MacBook - page 28

When Barack Obama first made his run at the United States presidency way back in 2008, much fuss was made about how this politician was so cool, he used a BlackBerry.

Seems laughable now, doesn’t it? Yet at the time, Obama was considered so technologically hip for using a BlackBerry that he once laughingly said that if the Secret Service wanted to take it from him, they’d have to pry it from his hands.

Flash forward five years, and President Obama’s BlackBerry doesn’t seem so cool anymore. In fact, it seems ridiculous. So why isn’t he using an iPhone?

It’s Black Friday everyone, and Cult of Mac is here to tell you that Apple has kicked off its sales across retail outlets in Europe (including the UK). We’re not just talking about gift cards being on offer, either — but real cash savings.

Here are the the most popular savings being given on Apple’s most popular products:

Despite the presence of the anti-theft Find My iPad solution, thefts of iPads (along with other tablets) have soared on UK railways over the past year. According to figures obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, thefts of iPads are up 10 percent for 2013 — with only 2 percent of the reported 949 stolen units ever recovered by their owners. During that same period of time, thefts of laptops and computers fell by 22 percent.

Booq’s new Viper hardcases are tough, zip-up versions of the regular Viper sleeve, an already very protective case to carry your MacBook or iPad. The hardcase is sized to fit an iPad, an 11-inch MacBook Air or a 13-inch MacBook Air. MacBook Pro users can suck it – it’s not like you ever leave the house with your giant computers anyway.

Unofficial iDevice chargers have taken the form of everything from the hand crank to to the camp stove, and now it seems that Apple is getting in on the act too by taking out a patent for portable solar panel chargers. The patent application — filed with the US Patents & Trademark Office — details a power management system incorporating a solar panel accessory, compatible with both Macs and iDevices, and potentially attached by way of a USB connection. By turning solar energy into electricity, this could then be used to charge future iPhones or MacBooks without the need for a mains power charger.

Every once and a while, someone suggests that Apple will eventually migrate OS X over to ARM, and the A7 processor’s move to 64-bit has reopened that rumor yet again. As we’ve explained before, they almost definitely won’t, but the rumor persists nonetheless.

It’s interesting, then, to see a different variation on this rumor. According to a Barclays Capital analyst, Apple doesn’t intend to put ARM chips in every MacBook… they want to make iPads into notebooks as alternatives to Macs.

The SideCar is a lump of silicone that’ll let you use a dual-monitor setup even when you’re on a plane. It’s a simple connector that hangs your iPad off the side of your MacBook screen, either just to keep it handy, or to use as a second monitor using one of many screen-spanning apps in the store.

Are you jealous of all that Android/KitKat business in the news today? What you need is a chocolate-bar-related product for the Mac, and I have just the thing: It’s the CURB, a Toblerone-shaped stand for your MacBook.

Remember those adapters that let you permanently flush-mount a microSD card in your MacBook Air’s SD card slot, adding welcome (if slow) extra storage to your SSD portable? I certainly do: I mixed up the two main brands when I wrote a review and never heard the last of it.

Now you can skip that extra step, because PNY now makes a sawed-off SD card that does the same job – without an adapter.

This week on The CultCast: Jobs! We’ve seen it, and now the question is — is it any good? We’ll discuss the much-hyped movie (100 percent spoiler-free), Ashton Kutcher’s performance and love for the man, plus examine if the real Jobs fits the fictional portrayal.

Then, an all new Yay & Nay: September 10th edition. We’ll yes and no our way through the rumors and what we expect at the all-but-confirmed Apple iPhone event.

Have a few laughs whilst getting caught up on this week’s best Apple stories. Stream or download new and past episodes of The CultCast now on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing on iTunes, or hit play below and let the audio adventure begin. Show notes up next!

Pegatron may be gearing up to take on future iMac orders from Apple after “some related upstream supply chain players” revealed that they have sent iMac components to Pegatron for assembly. Quanta is currently tasked with assembling Apple’s popular all-in-one, and it’s unclear whether the two will now work side-by-side or whether Pegatron will take over.

We’ve seen our fair share of cool MacBook decals and engravings over the years, but holy crap this one might take the cake. as the most trippy MacBook engraving ever.

Your retinas can get lost for days swimming through this weird Illuminati vortex. The redditor who created it said he designed it using Illustrator and then used a laser at his school. It’s a lot more permanent than a decal, but at least the warranty is still intact.

Source: Reddit

Been waiting around for a killer deal before jumping all over a new MacBook Pro with Retina display purchase? For the next three days Best Buy is giving away a free Apple TV to customers who buy one of two 15-inch MacBook Pro models that are $200 below MSRP.

Market research firm Harris Interactive conducts a fairly extensive poll each year in the area of consumer electronic brands. This year, Apple again took the top spot in three major categories, named the best brand of tablet, computer, and mobile phone. The iPad, Mac, and iPhone scored the best across an array of specific brand markers, like brand recognition, emotional response to the brand, and purchasing consideration.

Reddit user sa1f posted this fantastic image of an original white MacBook developer kit. What you’re looking at here is less of a prototype than a hardware test unit: all of the hardware of an original MacBook glommed together for testing, but not actually put together yet. A heck of a Frankenstein’s Monster, don’t you think?

Source: Reddit

AOC’s new USB-powered, 16-inch LCD display may be a godsend for travelers who occasionally need a little extra MacBook screen real estate.

The AOC screen plugs into a USB 3 port (and only a USB 3 port), and just like any other external monitor can either mirror or augment a MacBook’s screen. The screen’s resolution is 1366×768, which covers an area of 15.6 inches — not quite the resolution of the standard 15″ MBP’s screen, but not that far off.

I’ve long been a big fan of Aviiq‘s laptop stands — so much so that I almost never use my MBP without a stand under it. Why? It props the MacBook up at an angle better suited to typing, raises the screen close to eye-level, and allows for better cooling by allowing for airflow between the MacBook’s bottom and the desk.

Aviiq has just refreshed the fancier of the two models, the Portable Laptop Stand, and brought down the price considerably.

The MacBook Pro already looks pretty stellar. But there are a few add-ons you can pick up that will add even more style to it, and this Cult of Mac Deals offer is a shining example of one of them.

Lazerwood Keys are a sleek way to make your MacBook Pro stand out and add an element of style to your notebook that is truly unique. And Cult of Mac Deals has Lazerwood Keys in cherry wood for only $35 during this limited time offer.

The  MiniDrive is tiny caddy that lets you hide a microSD card entirely inside the SD card slot on your MacBook Air (or any other Mac with an SD slot). The idea is that you can cheaply add storage to your SSD-equipped Mac.

When I first wrote up the MiniDrive as a news piece, a whole bunch of readers got in contact to tell me how much it sucked, mostly because it didn’t fit properly into the SD slot on their Macs.

My experience has been fine, so I’m putting down those bad experiences to being the first wave of Kickstarter order fulfillments. That’s no excuse, clearly – if you sell something it should work – but I can only review what I have to review. And so I will.

UPDATE: This MiniDrive has nothing to do with the Nifty Minidrive I saw at CES. Sorry for any confusion.

This time ’round on CultCast: iOS 7 debuts to a standing ovation, but some aren’t in love; OS X 10.9 Mavericks will have you rewatching Top Gun, we’ll highlight the new features; new MacBook Airs get insanely long battery life and more power; and Apple resurrects the rumored Mac Pro to uproarious applause—it’s our complete WWDC coverage on this very special episode of the CultCast.

Join us as we review all the great stuff Apple announced in the glorious 90-minute event know as WWDC. Stream or download new and past episodes on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing now on iTunes, or hit play below and let the good times roll.

Show notes up next.

Apple’s Worldwide Developers conference is right around the corner, dear brethren, and on this episode of The CultCast, we’ll ponder the new hardware rumors surrounding the big event, like whispers of new MacBooks with dramatically extended battery life and even more power; Airs with retina displays, and why that’s now very possible; updates to the long-neglected Mac Pro; Intel’s powerful yet power-sipping Haswell chips; and soooo much more!

Join us and Gizmodo Chief New York Wired Editor Joe Brown for an extra long CultCast all about our WWDC expectations, hopes and dreams. Stream or download new and past episodes on your Mac or iDevice by subscribing now on iTunes, or hit play below and let the good times roll.

Show notes up next. Namaste.

The finishing touches are being added to Moscone West as WWDC 2013 draws closer. In just three short days Tim Cook and company will take stage at Moscone West to reveal a redesigned iOS, new MacBooks, and possibly a new iPad.

Apple’s WWDC keynote is slated to start Monday, June 10th at 10AM PST. Don’t want to miss all the juicy details as they’re unveiled? Well, here’s a handy infographic so you know what time to hop on and check the Cult of Mac liveblog for the full scoop on everything that goes down at WWDC 2013.

Image: Twitter

PC makers have been copying the Mac for years, but every now and then you just have to shake your head yet again. HP has unveiled two laptops that blatantly rip off Apple’s designs. It’s so painfully obvious that it makes you wonder if HP wants customers to be fooled into thinking they’re buying from Apple.

It was just last Fall that Apple announced the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display but Apple is already facing some competition from the likes of Google’s  Chromebook Pixel and now Samsung is getting in on the game.

This morning Samsung announced that it is manufacturing a 13.3-inch display that will have higher pixel densities than both the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro and the Chromebook Pixel.

Everyone’s gadgets look the same these days. That’s because they generally look so good out of the box. But why not personalize your gear a little bit? Make it really your own and let your personality come through every time you bring out your smartphone, tablet, computer, or other tech gadgets for all the world to see.

Cult of Mac Deals has an offer that will help you do just that, letting you change add stylish skin(s) to your tech with Slickwraps. We’ve got a deal tjhat gives you $50 of credit with Slickwraps for 50% off the regular price – just $25!