I know; I was saying that I thought it was a bit much to ask for both higher resolution screens and LED backlighting any time soon.
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MacBook, MacBook Pro and Ultra-Portable Updates
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I know; I was saying that I thought it was a bit much to ask for both higher resolution screens and LED backlighting any time soon.
flash memory?
Does someone think Apple will be putting Flash memory into the macbook pro's by WWDC ? It would really improve battery life
Does someone think Apple will be putting Flash memory into the macbook pro's by WWDC ? It would really improve battery life
Do you mean flash memory like the ROBSON Intel Turbo Cache stuff?
If so, so far at least, I don't think anyone has seen dramatic battery life improvements from this tech so far. If you're expecting it to give you another hour or two or something, you'd be in for a disappointment.
I think Robson is more useful for near-instantaneous boot times, not battery life. Unless you mean flash hard drives (very unlikely by WWDC, as large versions of flash HD's aren't nearly cheap enough from what I understand).
I think that Flash HDs could come as an option for the Macbook and/or a new, smaller MBP
Why not? Apple generally spend a long time between updates, so often many updates come in one. Steve said that LED backlighting would come this year, and resolution independence in Leopard is going to allow for comfortable use of ridiculously good resolution
Macbook Student Deal
Hey I'm a senior in high school and I am graduating next month. I know I want to buy the macbook for college but I'm hesitant because last year they had the deal where you got a macbook and it came with an ipod nano. Does anyone know if this deal is still going to happen? What time of year did they offer that deal last year?
sorry if this is in the wrong thread, thanks!
Hey I'm a senior in high school and I am graduating next month. I know I want to buy the macbook for college but I'm hesitant because last year they had the deal where you got a macbook and it came with an ipod nano. Does anyone know if this deal is still going to happen? What time of year did they offer that deal last year?
sorry if this is in the wrong thread, thanks!
Hey I'm a senior in high school and I am graduating next month. I know I want to buy the macbook for college but I'm hesitant because last year they had the deal where you got a macbook and it came with an ipod nano. Does anyone know if this deal is still going to happen? What time of year did they offer that deal last year?
sorry if this is in the wrong thread, thanks!
Honestly I think that deal was more about clearing out stock of old first gen Nanos, to make way for the aluminum second generation nano.
I'd only see them doing a similar deal if and when they are getting ready for a new generation of the nano.
Hey I'm a senior in high school and I am graduating next month. I know I want to buy the macbook for college but I'm hesitant because last year they had the deal where you got a macbook and it came with an ipod nano. Does anyone know if this deal is still going to happen? What time of year did they offer that deal last year?
sorry if this is in the wrong thread, thanks!
There are multiple threads on this just do a search. They've actually been doing this for years (at least 4 year by one thread). It used to be called the cram and jam.
Most people around here are pretty confident it will happen again. Last year it ran from June 5-late September.
Wait a minute
Ok wait.... NO OPTICAL DISK DRIVE? What's up with that? If this is true, it was a bad idea on
's part. I think they can spare that tiny bit of space for a slot driven optical drive. What are they now, .26"?
Ok wait.... NO OPTICAL DISK DRIVE? What's up with that? If this is true, it was a bad idea on
's part. I think they can spare that tiny bit of space for a slot driven optical drive. What are they now, .26"?Ok wait.... NO OPTICAL DISK DRIVE? What's up with that? If this is true, it was a bad idea on
It seems kind of silly at this point to worry about something like this until there's something more concrete.
Having said that, depending on how thin this thing is, no optical drive wouldn't be a complete shock. The Lenovo ThinkPad X61 and Asus U1F are examples of ultraportables that lack optical drives built-in.
It's not impossible though; dynamism.com has plenty of examples of ultraportables that manage to still cram in an optical drive.
But if Apple is actually getting this thing to .6 or .7" thick, it might not leave room for an optical drive. Also depends on the overall size of it.
think outside the (ultraportable) box
Agreed, but let's look at a bigger picture (pun intended):
I believe many buyers would try to use the ultraportable as their only computer*. Those customers would want/need a larger monitor on their dorm room/home office desk.
Some users might also want a better keyboard (I don't like my MB kbd), or a mouse, if they prefer that to the touchpad--AND they'd want that small, slim external superdrive for loading software, backing up, etc.
So how does this mess up the workspace, and conflict with apple's quest for attractive industrial design? Well, consider...
Apple's Duos had two great docks:
1) a large one with an additional hard drive, an ethernet jack and other ports, and a modem, and which served as a base for the monitor it could connect to. It might have included a floppy drive, too.
2) a "mini" dock, which merely provided the ports so you could leave the optional externals attached and slide the Duo into the dock to accomplish all the connections quickly and easily.
If a new ultraportable sacrifices a few features for size and weight--if it has a screen too small for regular use, or lacks an optical drive--then maybe it's time for apple to reconsider the dock concept.
Most simply, of course, apple could design the externals--super drive, mouse, whatever--so they'd clip or hang to the back of the monitor--out of sight, but immediately at hand and already connected for when they're needed.
But imagine a monitor with slots built-in for a few accessories: a bluetooth mouse could recharge while in its slot; so could an iPod and bluetooth earpiece. The slim, portable external optical drive could similarly slide into a slot on the back of the monitor, achieving a "smart" multi-functional monitor. Given my druthers, i'd have a card reader built in, too. And why not a slot for an additional user-installable 2.5" drive? This desktop would be sleek and uncluttered. Yet the functionality is multiplied many times over. And when the owner wants to take that optical drive on the road, it just slides out.
The benefits to the user seem obvious. And it gives Apple another "wow" product to differentiate itself from products from companies that don't "think different".
Your thoughts?
==========================
* -- SO: would anyone buy an untraportalbe and want to use it as his/her only computer? I say yes. For ten years i juggled files between a top of the line apple laptop and apple tower. It soon became apparent the computing power of the 15" MacBook Pro met my needs: I sold my big MacPro and other than adding an external hard drive because of the limited capacity of 2.5" drives, I've never looked back: It's great knowing all my significant files are always with me, on the road, at a friend's, wherever i'm working in either house, etc. Yes, part of my large archive of photos and videos resides on an external drive. But hat was always the case with the prior two-computer scenario too. Now, however, i never have to worry whether the file on my laptop is the current one, or whether i revised it on the desktop machine. Ad infinitum. Fact is, the most recent MacBooks so closely approximated the MBPs in computing power, i'm now using one of those. And if an ultraportalbe comes out, well, that would be tempting--after all, when i sit down at my desk, there's that 23" cinema display to hook up to.
More to the marketing point, not everyone can afford two computers. I think lots of college kids would covet an apple ultraportable, if they had that big screen functionality when at "home". And I think a lot of road warriors would see this combination as a welcome solution to some of the hazards of maintaining files on two different computers.
Agreed, but let's look at a bigger picture (pun intended):
I believe many buyers would try to use the ultraportable as their only computer*. Those customers would want/need a larger monitor on their dorm room/home office desk.
Some users might also want a better keyboard (I don't like my MB kbd), or a mouse, if they prefer that to the touchpad--AND they'd want that small, slim external superdrive for loading software, backing up, etc.
So how does this mess up the workspace, and conflict with apple's quest for attractive industrial design? Well, consider...
Apple's Duos had two great docks:
1) a large one with an additional hard drive, an ethernet jack and other ports, and a modem, and which served as a base for the monitor it could connect to. It might have included a floppy drive, too.
2) a "mini" dock, which merely provided the ports so you could leave the optional externals attached and slide the Duo into the dock to accomplish all the connections quickly and easily.
If a new ultraportable sacrifices a few features for size and weight--if it has a screen too small for regular use, or lacks an optical drive--then maybe it's time for apple to reconsider the dock concept.
Most simply, of course, apple could design the externals--super drive, mouse, whatever--so they'd clip or hang to the back of the monitor--out of sight, but immediately at hand and already connected for when they're needed.
But imagine a monitor with slots built-in for a few accessories: a bluetooth mouse could recharge while in its slot; so could an iPod and bluetooth earpiece. The slim, portable external optical drive could similarly slide into a slot on the back of the monitor, achieving a "smart" multi-functional monitor. Given my druthers, i'd have a card reader built in, too. And why not a slot for an additional user-installable 2.5" drive? This desktop would be sleek and uncluttered. Yet the functionality is multiplied many times over. And when the owner wants to take that optical drive on the road, it just slides out.
The benefits to the user seem obvious. And it gives Apple another "wow" product to differentiate itself from products from companies that don't "think different".
Your thoughts?
==========================
* -- SO: would anyone buy an untraportalbe and want to use it as his/her only computer? I say yes. For ten years i juggled files between a top of the line apple laptop and apple tower. It soon became apparent the computing power of the 15" MacBook Pro met my needs: I sold my big MacPro and other than adding an external hard drive because of the limited capacity of 2.5" drives, I've never looked back: It's great knowing all my significant files are always with me, on the road, at a friend's, wherever i'm working in either house, etc. Yes, part of my large archive of photos and videos resides on an external drive. But hat was always the case with the prior two-computer scenario too. Now, however, i never have to worry whether the file on my laptop is the current one, or whether i revised it on the desktop machine. Ad infinitum. Fact is, the most recent MacBooks so closely approximated the MBPs in computing power, i'm now using one of those. And if an ultraportalbe comes out, well, that would be tempting--after all, when i sit down at my desk, there's that 23" cinema display to hook up to.
More to the marketing point, not everyone can afford two computers. I think lots of college kids would covet an apple ultraportable, if they had that big screen functionality when at "home". And I think a lot of road warriors would see this combination as a welcome solution to some of the hazards of maintaining files on two different computers.