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Hands On: Axiotron 15″ Modbook Pro (Photos)

Aviv — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 00:30:07 +0000

Axiotron is a company that takes existing Apple notebooks and turns them into fully functional tablets called Modbooks. Lately they unveiled a brand new 15″ Modbook which we were been able to get hands on with moments ago.

The new 15″ Modbook Pro is set atop an existing Macbook Pro. Prior to this Modbook Pro, Axiotron only offered standard Macbook configurations so this new Pro model is definitely a step up. If you send them your existing Macbook Pro to get modded, you’ll be looking at a $3,049 pricetag. If you opt for a brand new setup directly from Axiotron you’re looking at a more hefty $4,999 pricetag.

The Modbook Pro is much more seamless than the regular Modbooks. The screen lies flush with the surrounding bezel as apposed to bulging up on the outside.

The images above are of a prototype in a clear plastic case. Axiotron only had one model out of the case and we were able to get a few minutes to privately talk about the device and see how it looked first hand. In our time at Axiotron’s booth, it was apparent that by taking Wacom tablet technology, they were able to bring some really interesting input concepts to market.

Axiotron Modbooks in general are much more widely accepted than many other third party manufacturers. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak fully endorses and supports Axiotron and he was at their Macworld booth today, and should be nearly everyday for the rest of the week.

Hands On: 17″ Unibody Macbook Pro (Photos)

Aviv — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 21:47:09 +0000

We got to spend some hands on time with the new unibody 17″ Macbook Pro. Our first impressions are great, but there still may be a dealbreaker thrown into the mix for some.

The new 17″ Macbook Pro is extremely sturdy. Just like its little brothers, the machine is smooth and feels precision perfect nearly all the way around. The body is seamless and the screen is big and bold. However, Apple decided to include a non-replaceable battery. They claim the battery will get nearly eight hours of solid runtime, and charge roughly 1,000 times for a five year lifespan.

As you can see, the bottom of the notebook is completely seamless which means you cannot swap the battery out. Many people travel with two laptop batteries and when one dies out, they have a backup. With Apple’s new 17″ Macbook Pro, that is not possible. Interestingly, Apple focused a lot of efforts on making the battery even easier to replace on the 15″ Macbook Pro.

When comparing the 15″ and the 17″ side by side, the size difference becomes dramatically noticeable. The thinness and weight of the machine is still really attractive, and the screen real estate is exactly what a lot of people have been waiting for, only with the new body style.

Overall, this machine is a beast. It’s capable of up to 8GB of Ram, and mobile power was clearly at the forefront for Apple when designing this notebook. The addition of a $50 anti-glare option for potential owners takes away what may have been a dealbreaker for many (glossy screen), but the embedded battery might make you think twice as hard before making the purchase.

The Importance Of Backing Up and the Increasing Virus Threat

Michael Rosenthal — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 01:25:17 +0000

Do Mac users need to lose sleep over the malware that plagues our PC using friends? Do we need to load up on antivirus and antispyware and antirootkit software? Probably not. There is a better solution: bootable clones.

The more knowledgeable PC users know that the greatest vulvernability to malware assault resides in user habits, opening email attachments and clicking at inappropriate sites. The best PC antimalware publishers often have trouble keeping up with the lastest that the evildoers have produced. There are several new viruses released into the wild daily. Their number is approaching 200K. None of them has any effect on the Apple platform.

Symptoms of a Virus Infection

When the day arrives that Mac users experience abnormal computer behavior resulting from malware, such as alarming notices or impaired function of applications, they will notice that their antiimalware and firewall have been disabled. Some of the most recent malware disables the abillity of the user to uninstall the new arrival. In short, the most sophisticated malware disables all known defenses, before it gets down to business. Then the hard drive usually becomes very sluggish or unusable. It is often possible to offload data before reformatting and reinstalling the operating system; followed by installing applications, settings, passwords and data. Much is usually lost along the way, along with hours or days of time.

Viruses versus Spyware versus Rootkits

For a long time it has been possible to think of viruses as malware that could place irritating little notices on your computer or permanently disable it. Spyware has a more commercial intent. It inveigles its way onto your hard drive and recruits your computer into an army of robots (“bots”) that can be called upon to forward spam. It is often downloaded with Kazaa, Limewire or other freeware that enabled questionable activity. The most common symptom of spyware presence is pronounced slowing of all computer activity. Today, the distinction between the two is blurred. Some spyware can be as malignant as a virus.

Rootkits are a relatively new class of malware that get themselves installed so deeply into the system that they are not detectable by normal antimalware tools. They enable remote control of a machine for evil intent.

The Elegant Solution: Bootable Clones

Enterprise IT pros, photographers and videographers who live by their digital product have long known of the importance of backup; usually making multiple copies. These are generally data or file backups. Ted Landau, developer of MacFixIt and a member of the first generation of Mac columnists, has famously said that you have not backed up until you have done it twice. He relates how in a couple of clicks he erased his hard drive and, in a momentary lapse, his only backup drive, as well.

The rationale behind data backup was orginally being prepared for the failure of your computer’s drive. Leopard’s Time Machine does an admirable job of backup, but neither of these methods is a complete solution to a corrupted drive. Bootable clones are.

A clone is a bit-for-bit copy. When you have cloned your computer’s hard drive to an external drive you have an alternative to boot from, generally using using the Start Up Preference Panel or Target Mode, if connected by Firewire. (Pre-Intel Macs can can only boot through a Firewire connection. Intel Macs can boot from an external drive connected with USB 2 or Firewire.)

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Photos: Macbook Pro (Late ‘08) Compared to Previous Gen Macbook Pro

Aviv — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 18:02:47 +0000

We recently posted our unboxing and first impressions of Apple’s new 15″ Macbook Pro. After putting the machine through its paces for nearly 48 hours, and reviewing some benchmarks, we took some comparison photos between the new Macbook Pro (unibody) and the most recent Macbook Pro available before the Late ‘08 model was released. Enjoy.

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New 15″ Macbook Pro: First Unboxing Photos and Impressions

Aviv — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:46:55 +0000

We just got our hands on a brand new 15″ Macbook Pro. Below are some photos of the unboxing experience and our general first impressions and thoughts about the new notebook.

Specs for this Macbook Pro: 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2×2GB, 320GB Serial ATA @ 7200, 6MB shared L2 cache, 1066MHz frontside bus

The box is extremely lightweight. Always a good sign. Apple has definitely factored in their overall carbon footprint. Like Steve said, smaller boxes, smaller palettes, less fuel and so on.

NOTE: Up until now, Macbook Pro’s have shipped in black boxes like their desktop kin. These are white.

The initial impression the notebook gives off when you open the box is very solid. It simply looks like a more unified machine. The unibody enclosure seems to wrap beautifully around the edges. It has more of a Macbook Air-like essence to it. Which is completely the right direction for Apple to be heading in.

The entire notebook is lighter and feels much sturdier than its predecessor. Both the weight and load balance throughout the entire machine seem spot on. So far, first impressions of the new Macbook Pro are very impressive.

The magnetic latch has finally been inherited by the Macbook Pro. No more of that pestering hatch closure. The way the shell seamlessly fits together when you open and close the machine give it a wonderfully high-end feel. Everything that Apple has been working to refine throughout its entire notebook line over the past few years has clearly made its way into the new Macbook Pro.

Apple has moved all of the ports to one side of the machine. The ports are: MagSafe power port, Gigabit Ethernet port, One FireWire 800 port, Two USB 2.0 ports, Mini DisplayPort, Audio line in, Audio line out, ExpressCard/34 slot, and a Kensington lock slot. The optical drive is on the other side. It looks just like an optical drive.

A core strength in the new Macbook Pro is the ability to swap out hard drives, and the battery, very easily. You can swap between hard disk drives and solid state drives for the first ever (officially) on an Apple notebook. To many users, this equals pure bliss.

Initial impressions and reactions given from unboxing and handling the Macbook Pro have been impressive. Apple has clearly been working on this for a long time and the level of refined detail can be seen when the box is first opened. From first picking up the machine, to flipping the lid open, design and aesthetic influence taken from the Macbook Air and iMac have been fused together to produce Apple’s classiest notebook yet.

Stay tuned, MacBlogz will continue to provide in depth reviews and analysis of Apple’s new notebook line.

Update: Per request, I’ve uploaded some more photos at the MacRumors forums here.