Apple Event: New laptops

Okay, recap on the event that are discussed in too many blogs out there. 😀
1. Macbook pro 15″ (17″ is only a refresh, still using the old nVidia 8600)
-Glass screen and trackpad
-nVidia chipset
-Dual GPU (1 integrated and 1 discreet)
-Firewire 800, no 400
-DisplayPort (instead of DVI)
-New screen is glossy only
-At the selling prices, IMO 4GB should be standard nowadays

2. Old Macbook
-Starting at $999
-White only
-Superdrive standard, no more combo drive

3. New Macbook
-Glass screen and trackpad
-All aluminum
-nVidia chipset
-nVidia graphics, no more intel
-DisplayPort
-No more firewire 😦 Boo! I guess since the new Macbook resembles really close to the new Macbook pro, Apple had to take something out

4. Macbook Air
-nVidia graphis, no intel, yay!
-Upgraded storage, 128GB SSD! Finally SSD that is larger than the standard hard-drive, but still a very expensive upgrade
-DisplayPort

4. 24″ Cinema display
-Glossy, glass
-Built-in iSight
-$899? Seems pricey to me.
-DisplayPort only
-Magsafe connector
-USB ports only, no Firewire?
-The cables are bundled together, seems perfect for connecting Macbook and Macbook pro, but how about the Air, where the magsafe connector is on the other side? Hopefully the cables can be split long enough

Almost all the rumors and spy pics are correct, other than blu-ray support. There are obvious trends here. Aluminum, DisplayPort, and the move away from Firewire 😦 The new Macbook has a really good value, delivering Macbook pro features (aluminum, LED display, nVidia graphics) at lower prices, as long as you don’t need firewire. I bet a lot of people will buy this instead of the more expensive MBP. However, note that Snow Leopard and iLife09 is coming soon, so for those that can wait, as usual, wait. 😀

Based on this event, we can already predict what will be on Macworld 09:
-Mac mini. The Mac mini is old. Presumably Apple would update it to using nVidia graphics and DisplayPort. I hope Apple can push the mini’s prices down, maybe utilizing dual core atom processors or the leftovers from old Macbooks. At least get rid of the combo drive and drop the price to be on the magic $499.
-iMac. Again, obvious update to include DisplayPort. Maybe the switch to nVidia instead of ATI? Hopefully quad-core.
-Mac pro. Another obvious upgrade to use video cards that have DisplayPort out to couple them with the new Cinema Display.
-iLife 09 & iWorks 09, couldn’t be more obvious. 🙂

My wish:
I want an Apple netbook, something that has smaller footprint than the Macbook/Air.

Edit: Streaming video of the event is up at Apple’s site, but cut short, not including the Q&A sessions.

 

One Touch

A music video that I made. 🙂

 

Impulse buy, or not.

Yeah, I’m still talking about the stuff announced at Macworld. Steve Jobs was so good in presenting Apple’s new products that it makes you to want them just based on impulse. However, good thing is the Time Capsule and Macbook Air are on pre-order status, allowing me to cool down and reevaluate.

1. Time Capsule
As I said, I already have an HP Windows Home Server. 1 person at a Mac forum pointed out that the Time Capsule has no redundancy. He/she is right. Sure, Jobs said it has a server-grade hard-drive, but it’s still a hard-drive. I also don’t see a way to replace/upgrade the hard-drive form the Airport Extreme enclosure. On the other hand, my HP WHS has 3 empty slot to add hard-drives, and it has redundancy if there is more than 1 hard-drive. Another poster pointed out this app called iTimeMachine, which allows Time Machine to use a network disk as a backup disk without having to use the Time Capsule.

2. Macbook Air
Yeah, it looks awesome. However, let’s reevaluate the drawbacks that are not mentioned by Steve Jobs.
-Battery is not user replaceable. Yup, show me other laptops that has non-user-replaceable battery. None. This is a big issue if you want to keep the notebook for a while, or if there is a problem/recall on the battery. The Sony TZ has a removable battery that you can upgrade to achieve better battery life than the Macbook Air.
-No SD slot. I was expecting an SD slot. Jobs kept bashing the Sony TZ, but failed to mention that the TZ has a memory stick and SD slot. With Apple seems to focus on digital life, and the fact that most digicams/camcorders utilize SD card, this should be a no-brainer. The TZ has it, even the eeePC has it, but not a $3000 Macbook Air?

I wish the eeePC has more on-board storage. Wishing for cheaper SSD soon. Oh, and note for those that are interested in the Macbook Air. Currently based on the specs, it’s still using Merom Core 2 Duo processors. Intel is scheduled to release the small-form-factor low voltage Penryn in May 2008, so I expect a refresh by mid-year/before the end of this year.

Restraint will save your wallet. 🙂

Things that I want but not announced:
Where is my quad-core iMac? 😡 Today, I can configure a quad-core Dell XPS420 with 3GB of RAM sans monitor for less than $1000. Comparable iMacs only have dual-core and 1GB standard RAM. Well, I guess that’s because quad-core Penryn won’t be out till May 08.

Well, maybe WWDC 08, Penryn and quad-core iMacs, and Penryn Macbook Air.

 

Time Capsule + Macbook Air

Macworld 2008. Again, Apple just amazed me. There are 2 things I most probably get:

1. Time Capsule:
Looks like an Airport Extreme with a hard-drive in it. I guess this is Apple’s respond to Windows Home Server. I love my HP WHS machine, but of course it doesn’t interact with a Mac as well as PC. Although it hurts spending another $$, the $300 500GB version is tempting, considering you also get a wireless router. This would also solve my dilemma if I want to buy a new Mac and use Time Machine.

2. Macbook Air
Simply amazing. I thought the Sony Vaio TZ series are thin, yet the Macbook Air is even thinner! 3 punds, 0.16inch thick! Granted you loose the optical drive, but I have an old notebook, and for the past couple of years, the optical drive is never used sitting in a bag. 5 hours battery life. The Macbook Air will be an excellent traveling machine. The catch is, how much is it going to be with the 64GB SSD option? The Sony TZ is about $3000 with the SSD drive. Also, the 80GB hard-drive is the same hard-drive used in iPods, which is a slow 4200rpm.

The ugly:
Firmware update for the iPod Touch will cost you $20. WTF? That’s just lame, really lame.