Thunderbolt for PCs is arriving soon

Thunderbolt has the potential to be a revolutionary technology, with a lightning-quick (hence its name) 10 gb/s upload speed. At this rate, it can upload an entire HD movie in just 30 seconds. Yet, one thing is holding it back from becoming the most popular upload technology in the world; it's only compatible with Macs. Only 15% of computers in use are Macs, which limits possibilities for devices with Thunderbolt. However, a new report by CNet says that LaCie might make this technology available on PCs.

According to the report, LaCie will unveil PC compatibility for Thunderbolt, along with PC versions of both Little Big Disk SSD and 2big Thunderbolt. Bringing Thunderbolt technology to PCs would drastically improve upload times, and it would make the technology much more common. It could also make HD movies more common. The only thing for sure is that you won't have to spend seemingly endless times in front of your computer, waiting for that huge file to download.

Prototype of 3G MacBook Pro from 2007!

One big hole in Apple's MacBook laptop line is 3G/4G capablitlity. Well, Apple was extrememly close to making a 3G capable MacBook Pro in 2007 as this MacBook Pro on eBay shows. It looks like a normal 2007 MacBook Pro... that is, until you find the SIM card slot and the retractable antenna. Take a look at it here. The original seller thought it was just a normal broken MacBook Pro that he bought on Craigslist for parts... but he quickly realized this was something a little more special...

The MacBook is now discontinued

If you go on the Apple Store, you'll notice that the MacBook does not show up. And Apple has confirmed that the MacBook has been discontinued, leaving room for the new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro. I personally think that doing away with the classic white laptop is quite a bad idea; now people who want a less pricey Mac laptop will have to settle for a $999 MacBook Air (11" screen is a little small), or a 13" MacBook Air or MacBook Pro (Both rather pricey). Apple, don't say I didn't warn you for the flood of angry emails you're about to get...

Note: Apparently Apple is still selling MacBooks for educational purposes.

Apple retail stores begin preparing for Wednesday Mac OS X Lion release

Looks like I was right about OS X Lion and the new MacBook Air coming Wednesday, some international Apple retail stores have began preparing for the release:

"Now on all new Macs"

"Upgrade your Mac to OS X Lion with an App Store gift card...  OS X Lion is available starting  July in the Mac App Store for $29.99"

While these signs encourage you to come in and try OS X Lion, all of the Macs on display in the store are running Snow Leopard.

Mac OS X Lion and new MacBook Air to begin shipping on Wednesday!

AppleInsider and MacRumors report that the new MacBook Airs will begin shipping on Wednesday, July 20 at 8:30 AM! Rumors say that the $999 base model will now have 128GB of flash memory and 4GB of RAM. It is unspecified if we will see 512GB of memory in high-end MacBook Air. All MacBook Airs will recieve i5 or i7 Sandy Bridge processors, and the backlit keyboard that Apple included in the original MacBook Air will return.

The MacBook Air won't be the only Mac to be refreshed. The Mac Mini is a month overdue for a refresh, and will get a Sandy Bridge processor. The Mac Pro will be refreshed in late July or early August. And Apple will even release a new LED Cinema Display that connects to your Mac via Thunderbolt! Both the Mac Mini and the Mac Pro will sport a Thunderbolt port.

Next MacBook Airs to have Thunderbolt, i5 and Sandy Bridge processors

Ming-Chi Kuo (yes, the guy who told us about the iPhone 5), says that Apple is revealing new MacBook Airs next month. These MacBook Airs will have a Thunderbolt port, integrated Intel graphics, and this amazing line-up of dual-core Sandy Bridge processors:

11.6" models- 1.4 or 1.6 GHz Sandy Bridge i5
13.3" models- 2.1 or 2.3 GHz Sandy Bridge i7

These flash-memory computers actually ran fast on Core 2 Duo processors. Now on a Sandy Bridge i5 or i7? Holy cow.

Retina display Macs to come?

Mac OS X Lion Developer preview 2 included ultra-high resolution backgrounds, which were 3200x2000. Some of the icons were 1024x1024, instead of the normal 512x512. This hints that there will be Macs with retina displays! It seems like a good idea. It started with the iPhone 4, then came to the iPod Touch 4, it'll appear on the iPad 3, and now on Macs!

Data for iPhone, iPad, and Mac App Stores; Average Mac app is 7x as much as average iPhone app, 3x as much as average iPad app!

Now that there are apps for three different devices- iPhone and iPod Touch, iPad, and Mac- we can compare the prices of these apps against each other. This concludes that Mac apps are very pricey compared to iPhone and iPad apps; in fact, they are cost 7x as much as iPhone apps and 3x as much as iPad apps. Studies also show that 11% of Mac apps are free, compared to 33% of iPhone apps.

The Mac App Store is also not as popular as other app stores. 2 months since launch, it has 2,225 apps. 2 months after the launch of the iPad, there were 8,099 apps avaliable. Yet more studies have calculated the average price of apps for all three devices. These are $1.57 for iPhone, $4.19 for iPad, and $11.21 for Mac.

I have to say, however, that these prices will probably drop. Designers making the first apps to appear on the Mac App Store probably thought that they could bump up the price a little, as they didn't have as much competition. Now that the number of apps should soon hit 4,000, designers will have to reduce the price of their apps. However, Mac software is far more complicated than iPhone software, so expect average prices to stay above $8.

The next Mac Mini, MacBook, and iMac!

Too many people go searching for prototypes, for internal documents, for leaks. Often, they never find anything. Why can't they just use logic? I'll demonstrate it. And oh, while I'm doing that, I'll give you info about the next iMac, MacBook, and Mac Mini.

We all know that the MacBook Pro got upgraded with better graphics processors, i5 or i7 Sandy Bridge processors, and a Thunderbolt port, to name a few improvments. We also know that the iMac is a "twin" to the MacBook Pro. It has always been the same thing... same specs, same design, same everything... as the MacBook Pro. So, the iMac will follow along with the MacBook Pro. That brings us to Conclusion 1: The next iMac will feature many of the new MacBook Pro's qualities, including the Thunderbolt port, the Sandy Bridge processors, and the better graphics cards.

Let me ask you a question: Why would you get a MacBook right now? For only $200 more, you could get the MacBook Pro, which is so much better! So, obviously, if Apple wants to continue selling MacBooks, they'll have to bring over some qualities from the MacBook Pro. But, unlike the iMac, the MacBook is not a "twin" to the MacBook Pro. It costs $200 less. In order to maintain that price difference, Apple will not make it as good as the MacBook Pro. That leads us to conclusion 2: The next MacBook will have an i3 processor (I guess that because it is one step down from an i5), and possibly a Thunderbolt port.

The Mac Mini is a "twin" to the MacBook. So, that leads us to conclusion 3: The next Mac Mini will have a i3 processor, and possibly a Thunderbolt port.

And, now you know a little bit about the next iMac, MacBook, and Mac Mini. How many other sites are talking about that already?

Mac OS X Lion: An In-Depth Preview

When the MacBook Air was made, Apple undoubtedly took many ideas from the iPad, including flash memory. Now, Apple is going to add features from the iPad to their OS! "We're taking our best thinking from the iPad and bringing it to Mac OS X Lion, avaliable in Summer 2011" says Apple. Here's an in-depth preview of Mac OS X Lion:

First, Mac OS X will have Launchpad. Launchpad gives you an iOS-style display of all your apps. Swiping on the trackpad flips through your pages of apps, and you can even put your apps in folders, just like in iOS. This will complement the Mac App Store, which gives Macs a big advantage over PCs. Second, Mac OS X Lion will have full-screen apps. This means that your apps will be displayed full-screen, with no distractions. A swipe of your trackpad switches applications. If you'd like to see more than one app at once, you can do that also. This improvment will certainly help the 11" MacBook Air, with its very small screen. Third, a swipe of the trackpad will give you a birds-eye view of all your open apps, called Mission Control. Fourth, the multitouch gestures will be more fluid, realistic and responsive. Fifth, Mac OS X Lion will feature Auto-Save, which automatically saves your work for you as you go along. Sixth, Versions will record the evoloution of a document as you make more edits. Seventh, Resume will let you start from where you left off after you turn on your computer again. Eighth, Mail will feature Conversations (seen in iOS), which will clean up inbox clutter. Ninth, Mac OS X Lion will have AirDrop, a feature which lets you share files wirelessly between Macs.

Knowing that Mac OS X Lion will be released Summer 2011 and that it will have all of these features, I'd highly recommend waiting if you're planning to buy a Mac soon.

Newest MacBook Pro: Specs and Pics!

Fscklog posted a photo of the box of the new 13" MacBook Pro that Apple will release Thursday. Here are the specs translated into English:

- Intel Core i5 dual-core processor at 2.3 GHz with 3MB cache
- 4GB of DDR3 RAM, 1333 MHz
- 320GB hard drive at 5,400 rpm
- 13.33" glossy screen, 1280x800 resoloution
- Intel Graphics GPU HD 3000 with 384MB of RAM shared with main memory
- HD FaceTime camera
- Superdrive 8x
- Thunderbolt, though compatible with the I/O devices and high speed
- MiniDisplayport
- SDXC Card Slot
- FireWire 800 port
- 2 USB 2.0 ports
- Digital Audio Out
- Integrated Ethernet
- Backlit Keyboard

Mac4Ever posted these photos:


And Mac4Ever also gave us a close-up of the Thunderbolt port:

3 New Apple Laptop SKUs Appear at Best Buy!

Best Buy still has those new iPad SKUs up, and now they've got new MacBook Pro SKUs up! Their labels are "new SKU", and their prices are $1,199, $1,499, $1,799, $2,199 (which are all prices of the current MacBook Pros, and a $2,499 price tag, suggesting that Apple will make another 17" option avaliable.

Why Apple's 27" LED Cinema Display is a Mistake

Apple has got to either shrink the size or the price of the $999 27" LED Cinema Display. Here's why it can't get paired with any Mac:

Mac Mini- A Mac Mini plus a 27" LED Cinema Display costs $1,699. For $100 less, you could get the 27" iMac, which has the same size display as well as WAY better tech specs

iMac 21.5"- That would cost you $2,199. For a goood $600 less, you could get the 27" iMac, with the same specs and the same size display.

iMac 27"- Excuse me, but that already has a 27" display.

Mac Pro - Buying one already costs around $3,000. Are you sure you're going to add an extra $1,000 to that?!

MacBook - If you're getting a MacBook (the cheapest Mac laptop), you must be trying to save money. And then spending another thousand bucks for a 27" display? Not too money-saving.

MacBook Air 11" - If the screen is too small, get the 13" MacBook Air. And that costs $1,400. Adding an extra $1,000? Not such a good idea.

MacBook Air 13" - Er... that costs $2,400?!

MacBook Pro 13" -  If you aren't carrying it around more than 3 times a week, save $400 by going for the 15" MacBook Pro. The screen there is pretty big. While if you do carry it around more than 3 times a week, this is gonna cost you $2,200, and you should get the 13" MacBook Air. But pairing the MacBook Air 13" with a 27" LED Cinema Display costs $2,400.

MacBook Pro 15" or 17" - The screens are mega enough on these MacBooks. Oh, and it will cost you $2,800 or $3,300, depending on your size.

More Apple News...

Apple has recently seeded a new version of Mac OS X 10.6.7 to developers for testing. Three versions of this have been seeded to developers since January 20.

9to5Mac has posted photos of the iPad 2 screen. It is impossible to tell if it is in fact a retina display, but it is higher quality. It is lighter and 30-35% thinner than the current iPad's display.

On February 1, 2011, Apple seeded iOS 4.3 Beta to developers a third time. Earlier builds of 4.3 Beta have included personal hotspot functionality, better AirPlay video streaming, and an option to change the functionality of the iPad's side switch. It will also allow users to stop downloading apps and delete them while only partially downloaded.   

The Mac App Store has Opened!

Yes, you saw that correctly; the Mac App Store is now open! Apple told us it would open in summer 2011 along with Mac OS X Lion, but they decided to open it now! Though it only opened days ago, it already contains more than a thousand apps like Compartments (a home inventory app), Flight Control HD, webpage-designing apps, image editing apps, workout partner apps, drawing apps, recipe apps, and more! And yes, Angry Birds is on there also. This really is something Microsoft will have to compete with. My guess is that the next version of Windows could have an app store.