Hardware

Starry-Eyed Apple Watchers Await iPhone 5
September 05, 2012

Apple confirmed it has an announcement in store, sending out invites to a Sept. 12 press event that is expected to be the debut of the highly anticipated next-generation iPhone. Apple has not confirmed it will unveil a new iPhone at the event, but the invite seems to suggest that its newest phone is on its way.

Apple Fans, Welcome to the Machine
August 23, 2012

I've been an Apple Mac user since high school, using them even as I struggled through business classes on clunky PCs. As an adult, I used them in college. I have since purchased five Mac laptops and an iMac, and while I'm not a graphic artist, I've pounded on them most days of my life for years and years.

Linux and Apple: Which Is the Lemon, Which Is the Lemonade?
August 23, 2012

When life gives you lemons, everyone knows you should make lemonade. But what if life gives you Linux on a Retina MacBook Pro? That, too, has been shockingly referred to as a "lemon" in recent days, but the solution there isn't so clear. "If you are planning to buy one of the new Apple MacBook Pro notebooks with a Retina Display for use under Linux, hold off on your purchase," warned Phoronix's Michael Larabel.

Cupertino Invites Cable Cos. Into Apple TV
August 17, 2012

The introduction of a revolutionary new TV set from Apple may not happen next quarter, but it may be getting closer. Apple is in hush-hush negotiations with some of the largest cable providers in the U.S. to allow their subscribers to replace their set-top boxes with Apple's, according to a report.

AAPL Investors Hold Hands Out for Long-Awaited Dividend
August 15, 2012

Apple shareholders will be paid a dividend on Thursday as part of the company's $10 billion share buyback program announced in March. Starting on Aug. 16, shareholders of record will receive $2.65 per share each quarter. When it announced the dividend, Apple was coming off a quarter that blew away Wall Street expectations.

Where Apple's Boy Genius Went Wrong
August 09, 2012

Apple produced a set of three terrible ads that ran on television for the first part of the Olympics. They featured a cute and likeable Apple Genius boy/man out in public in his Apple Genius blue t-shirt helping hapless individuals. They didn't exactly resonate with me, but hey, any commercial that doesn't freakin' sing to me gets ignored.

Some Macs Won't Get to Lie With the Mountain Lions
July 13, 2012

When Apple releases the next version of its desktop operating system later this month, there will be glum faces among some owners of older Macs. The company has announced that six Mac models, as well as hoary versions of its defunct Xserve enterprise platform, won't be supported by OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion.

Why It Should Be an iPod HD, Not an iPad Mini
July 12, 2012

Ever since the Amazon Kindle Fire came out late last year, I've been wondering when Apple would release a big iPod -- not a small iPad "mini," but a larger iPod sibling. On the surface, it's all just a game of semantics. What does an iPod "HD" have that an iPad "mini" does not? Or vice versa? Not much, of course, just marketing and perception, which happen to be two areas where Apple excels.

SF Won't be Picking Apples
July 11, 2012

Apple's withdrawal of its computers from the EPEAT registry is having ripple effects, including the loss of business from the city and county of San Francisco. Lke many governmental agencies, businesses and universities, San Francisco requires that its computer equipment be on the EPEAT registry. "Apple's decision has caught us off guard a bit," said Jon Walton, the city's chief information officer.

iMacs May Be Next on Apple's Retina List
July 05, 2012

Apple is gearing up production of the next generation of all-in-one iMac computers for release in October, Digitimes has reported. They will reportedly be equipped with Retina displays in a bid to outdo the competition, which is hot on Apple's heels with a combination of stronger focus on the all-in-one PC market and the coming of Windows 8.

Google Flexes Nexus' Tablet Muscles
June 30, 2012

Everyone in the tech world now suddenly wants to make their own hardware. Apple's been doing it for years, but Microsoft jumped on recently with the Surface tablet, and now Google's sort of making its own tablet too. I say "sort of" because the new Nexus 7 tablet isn't really made by Google. Like everything else in the Nexus line, it's made by a name-brand hardware builder -- in this case Asus.

Modbook, the Mac Tablet of Yore, Marches Back Into Action
June 29, 2012

The Modbook Pro, a converted MacBook Pro that has been modified by Modbook and is billed as the first Mac tablet, is set to return to the market later in 2012 after an absence of several years. Its predecessor, the Modbook, which was based on a MacBook, was one of the best-of-show winners at Macworld 2007.

Japanese Hackers Spread a Different Kind of STD
June 18, 2012

Today in international tech news: Six men are arrested in Japan for propagating a virus that spread via a porn site and allegedly netted them more than $250,000. Also: Google releases a report detailing removal requests from governments around the world, and there's a MacBook Pro shortage in the UK.

The Best Windows 8 Laptop in the Market: The MacBook Pro Retina Edition
June 18, 2012

When testing a new OS from Microsoft, finding the right hardware is often the biggest problem. Many of the negative reviews of Windows 8, including my own, are tied to hardware that just wasn't designed for it. I was at Microsoft's TechEd last week, and after hearing presenters drill down in detail on the specs for what an ideal Windows 8 laptop should be, I experienced an aha moment.

MacBookius Superior: Apple's New Super-Powered Mutant
June 16, 2012

The bulk of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference basically amounts to a massive teach-in for makers of Apple software. But each year the event is kicked off with a traditional big-production Apple keynote, and ever since the company kicked MacWorld to the curb, that keynote has often served as an occasion to roll out some major new hardware upgrades.

The New MacBook Pro Aims for the Heart, Not the Head
June 14, 2012

With a heavy heart, I have decided not to the buy the gorgeous new MacBook Pro with Retina Display. I lust after the idea of 2,880 by 1,800 pixels gloriously showing off my awesome photos of the Grand Tetons, Half Dome and small children running from the cold droplets of a sprinkler system under a hot summer sun.

Glued Guts Make New Macbooks a Bear to Fix
June 13, 2012

If you've tuned in to Apple's WWDC announcements and have been turned on by the company's newly announced MacBook Pro with Retina Display, drop out and pick another MacBook instead, advises Kyle Wiens, CEO of Fixit. "Right now, we're telling consumers to buy a mid-range MacBook Pro, which is repairable, and not the Retina MacBook Pro," Wiens said.

WWDC: New Friendships Forged, Old Bonds Broken
June 13, 2012

Apple executives once again took the stage this week to show off the company's new software and hardware initiatives at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference. This was the first time CEO Tim Cook took the helm at a WWDC keynote. He and other company executives presented conference-goers with a first look at Apple's upcoming version of iOS.

MacBook Pro Turns Over a Sharper, Thinner New Leaf
June 11, 2012

Apple executives took the stage at its annual Worldwide Developer Conference Monday to unveil a slew of new hardware and software, including a new MacBook Pro with a Retina Display, as well new information about the upcoming iOS 6 and Mac OS X Mountain Lion operating system.

Apple and Facebook - Relationship Status: Flirty
June 06, 2012

Apple may be forming a close friendship with Facebook as the iPhone maker develops its next-generation mobile OS, judging by a comment from Apple CEO Tim Cook at the recent D: All Things Digital conference. Taking the stage for a public interview at the event, Cook was asked about Facebook integration in iOS 6, the presumed name for the next version of Apple's mobile operating system.