MacBook Air

The MacBook Air arrived amongst a lot of controversy. On the one hand it’s the sexiest laptop in the universe, and on the other it’s missing an awful lot of features. So what is the big deal? Has any laptop ever had everything? Or has our expectation of Apple risen so high that they’ll never live up to it? It’s a tough call.

The MacBook Air is impossibly thin, measuring just 0.16 inches at its thinnest point and 0.76 inches at its most rotund. Of course the thinness also means it’s very light, weighing in at just three pounds. It’s far sturdier than you’d think, being crafted from anodised aluminum, and when you open it up and begin to use it, the first thing that strikes you about the Air is just how well put together it is. The whole keyboard is sunk into a tray so that the screen can lay flat on the keys when closed. Below that is the newly sized trackpad.

In order to fit all the specifications for a respectable Mac into this wafer of a laptop, Apple has managed to get early access to some new technology from chipmakers Intel, managing to shrink one of its Core 2 Duo processors by 60 per cent. There’s the option of a 1.6 or 1.8 GHz core 2Duo processor, it has 2GB of Ram, and the choice of an 80GB hard drive or a 64GB solid-state drive. This means that you get a decent computer for your money, but performance-wise this won’t set the world on fire.

The other features of the MacBook Air are tales of haves and have-nots. There’s no optical drive, but there is Remote Disc, which is a wireless way to access the drive of another machine. Because of its diminutive stature there is only one USB port, so if you need more then you’ll have to cart a hub around. You also get a micro DVI input and a headphone jack in the collapsible bay. There’s no ethernet port, but in this day and age, who really needs it? You also get an iSight camera for iChatting and a very cool ambient light sensor that will illuminate the keyboard in darker places.

The other major selling point for this laptop is the trackpad. It’s the only one of its kind in the line-up, and has technology taken straight from the iPhone. We now have two brand new gestures, as well as those we already know. The pinch will shrink and enlarge font sizes in Safari, icons in Finder, and zoom in and out of pictures in iPhoto and Preview. Two-finger scrolling is also standard fare from the other laptops. Three-finger swiping is new, and will skip you back and forth through pictures and web pages. Then there is rotate, perhaps the coolest gesture of them all. Semicircular motions will rotate pictures, and will no doubt soon be finding their way into a number of other applications.

In terms of fitting into the current laptop line-up, the Air sits between the MacBook and the MacBook Pro. This is based mainly on price, as it’s possible to get a MacBook with better specifications for less money. The Air lacks the raw power and the disc space of other laptops, and because the Ram is so tightly packed, Apple has furnished it with an ample 2GB. But there’s no option to upgrade.

Overall, this Mac is a beautiful creation with cutting-edge technology at its heart, and no Mac fan will be able to resist the feeling of awe when around it. That aside, until Apple can squeeze a faster chip, more USBs, and an optical drive into something of similar size, then it’s going to be overlooked by people who use Macs for the professional advantage they give. If you have another Mac and money to spend on a serious piece of lap candy, then the MacBook Air will give you plenty to smile about. On the other hand, if you need one Mac and need it to be portable, you’d better look at the rest of the line-up.

iPad Has Come!!

Thats right, its finally here. The fabled Apple tablet. Rumours about such a device have been circulating for many, many years. So, after what was definitely the most insane period of rumours and speculation of all time, Apple unveiled what they hope will be both a Kindle and Netbook killing device. We’ve copied the Press Releease here in full so you can digest all the info and will be following this post with some of our opinions on what’s hot and what’s not, when it comes to the iPad.

SAN FRANCISCO—January 27, 2010—Apple® today introduced iPad, a revolutionary device for browsing the web, reading and sending email, enjoying photos, watching videos, listening to music, playing games, reading e-books and much more. iPad’s responsive high-resolution Multi-Touch™ display lets users physically interact with applications and content. iPad is just 0.5 inches thick and weighs just 1.5 pounds— thinner and lighter than any laptop or netbook. iPad includes 12 new innovative apps designed especially for the iPad, and will run almost all of the over 140,000 apps in the App Store. iPad will be available in late March starting at the breakthrough price of just $499.

“iPad is our most advanced technology in a magical and revolutionary device at an unbelievable price,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “iPad creates and defines an entirely new category of devices that will connect users with their apps and content in a much more intimate, intuitive and fun way than ever before.”

iPad features 12 next-generation Multi-Touch applications. Every app works in both portrait and landscape, automatically animating between views as the user rotates iPad in any direction. The precise Multi-Touch interface makes surfing the web on iPad an entirely new experience, dramatically more interactive and intimate than on a computer. Reading and sending email is fun and easy on iPad’s large screen and almost full-size “soft” keyboard. Import photos from a Mac®, PC or digital camera, see them organised as albums, and enjoy and share them using iPad’s elegant slideshows. Watch movies, TV shows and YouTube, all in HD or flip through pages of an e-book you downloaded from Apple’s new iBookstore while listening to your music collection.

iPad runs almost all of the over 140,000 apps on the App Store, including apps already purchased for your iPhone® or iPod touch®. The iTunes® Store gives you access to the world’s most popular online music, TV and movie store with a catalogue of over 11 million songs, over 50,000 TV episodes and over 8,000 films including over 2,000 in stunning high definition video. Apple also announced the new iBooks app for iPad, which includes Apple’s new iBookstore, the best way to browse, buy and read books on a mobile device. The iBookstore will feature books from major and independent publishers.

Apple also introduced a new version of iWork® for iPad, the first desktop-class productivity suite designed specifically for Multi-Touch. With Pages®, Keynote® and Numbers® you can create beautifully formatted documents, stunning presentations with animations and transitions, and spreadsheets with charts, functions and formulas. The three apps will be available separately through the App Store for $9.99 each.

iPad syncs with iTunes just like the iPhone and iPod touch, using the standard Apple 30-pin to USB cable, so you can sync all of your contacts, photos, music, movies, TV shows, applications and more from your Mac or PC. All the apps and content you download on iPad from the App Store, iTunes Store and iBookstore will be automatically synced to your iTunes library the next time you connect with your computer.

iPad’s brilliant 9.7-inch, LED-backlit display features IPS technology to deliver crisp, clear images and consistent colour with an ultra-wide 178 degree viewing angle. The highly precise, capacitive Multi-Touch display is amazingly accurate and responsive whether scrolling web pages or playing games. The intelligent soft keyboard pioneered on iPhone takes advantage of iPad’s larger display to offer an almost full-size soft keyboard. iPad also connects to the new iPad Keyboard Dock with a full-size traditional keyboard.

iPad is powered by A4, Apple’s next-generation system-on-a-chip. Designed by Apple, the new A4 chip provides exceptional processor and graphics performance along with long battery life of up to 10 hours.* Apple’s advanced chemistry and Adaptive Charging technology deliver up to 1,000 charge cycles without a significant decrease in battery capacity over a typical five year lifespan.**

iPad comes in two versions—one with Wi-Fi and the other with both Wi-Fi and 3G. iPad includes the latest 802.11n Wi-Fi, and the 3G versions support speeds up to 7.2 Mbps on HSDPA networks. Apple and AT&T announced breakthrough 3G pre-paid data plans for iPad with easy, on-device activation and management.

Continuing Apple’s dedication to designing and creating environmentally responsible products, each iPad enclosure is made of highly recyclable aluminium and comes standard with energy-efficient LED-backlit displays that are mercury-free and made with arsenic-free glass. iPad contains no brominated flame retardants and is completely PVC-free.

Apple today released a new Software Development Kit (SDK) for iPad, so developers can create amazing new applications designed to take advantage of iPad’s capabilities. The SDK includes a simulator that lets developers test and debug their iPad apps on a Mac, and also lets developers create Universal Applications that run on iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

Pricing & Availability

iPad will be available in late March worldwide for a suggested retail price of $499 (US) for the 16GB model, $599 (US) for the 32GB model, $699 (US) for the 64GB model. The Wi-Fi + 3G models of iPad will be available in April in the US and selected countries for a suggested retail price of $629 (US) for the 16GB model, $729 (US) for the 32GB model and $829 (US) for the 64GB model. iPad will be sold in the US through the Apple Store® (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorised Resellers. International pricing and worldwide availability will be announced at a later date. iBookstore will be available in the US at launch.

*Apple tested wireless battery life by browsing web pages and receiving email over an AirPort® network, never letting the system go to sleep during the test, and keeping the display at half brightness. This is a typical scenario of use on the go, resulting in a battery performance number that is very relevant to mobile users.

**A properly maintained iPad battery is designed to retain 80 percent or more of its original capacity during a lifespan of up to 1,000 recharge cycles. Battery life and charge cycles vary by use and settings.

Apple ignited the personal computer revolution in the 1970s with the Apple II and reinvented the personal computer in the 1980s with the Macintosh. Today, Apple continues to lead the industry in innovation with its award-winning computers, OS X operating system and iLife and professional applications. Apple is also spearheading the digital media revolution with its iPod portable music and video players and iTunes online store, and has entered the mobile phone market with its revolutionary iPhone.

Source: iCreate Magazine

Instant Messenger: Adium

Adium is an application that lets you chat with your friends across many chat networks easily at the same time. With Adium, you can connect to Yahoo!, MSN, GTalk, and many others with just one single chat client.

Adding to its value, Adium also provides us with interface to Twitter and Facebook. And if you can't past a single moment without chit-chat with friends, Adium suits you most.

Source: Using Mac