MacBook - page 33

I had previously written the following short article in response to a reader’s question about their MagSafe power adapter. Although the recent class action settlement has seemingly resolved this particular issue, some readers might find it helpful to look at this article as a case study, which may offer some points relevant to other product defects.

“Hi Cult of Mac,

About four months ago I purchased a used 2007 MacBook Pro online from a seller on eBay. Two weeks ago I noticed the charger was discolored and looked like it had started to melt! I can now see the wires inside the cable near the base of where it connects to my MacBook Pro. I don’t think I caused any damage to the cable. I never purchased AppleCare. What should I do?”

Here’s a fun, kinda crazy way to use the sudden motion sensors that come in some Mac notebooks, like the newer unibody MacBooks and MacBook Pros. These sudden motion sensors are used by Apple to detect when a laptop with a physical spinning hard drive is dropped, and therefore this tip won’t work on the 2010 or 2011 MacBook Airs that shipped with flash-based, non-spinning SSDs. Using a third-party app, you can pick up your laptop and give it a shake-to-undo option, just like the one on your iPhone, iPad or iPod touch.

Apple is supposedly is preparing to overhaul its key product trifecta: the iPhone, the iPad and iMac, as well as the MacBook Air in 2012. The report, based on the tech giant’s “upstream supply chain,” echos existing chatter the company will unveil new versions of its products in the coming year.

Oh, this is slick. The PlugBug by TwelveSouth is an accessory for your MacBook that solves the problem of how to charge an iPad 2 and your laptop at the same time from a single outlet, and it does so pretty damn ingeniously if you ask me.

So here’s the deal. Apple’s got their MagSafe power bricks so protected by patents that it’s impossible to sell, say, an aftermarket MagSafe brick that charges a MacBook and iPad from the same bifurcating cable.

TwelveSouth got around this restriction in a pretty clever way. At the top of every MacBook power brick is a removable wall socket adapter, which you can even plug standard laptop power cables into. The PlugBug just snaps into the power brick adapter slot and offers a 10W USB port to simultaneously charge your iPad and MacBook at the same time.

I love it. Heck, I’m putting in my order now. If you want to do the same, it’ll cost you just $34.99 with free shipping in the US.

Apple appears to have resolved the problems where 15-inch Mid-2010 MacBook Pro computers may intermittently free or stop displaying video.

The resolution has appeared in the form of a software update that is available now.

We’ve seen a number of rumors surrounding a MacBook Pro refresh in recent weeks, and just as expected, the latest models hit the Apple online store this morning. In addition to increased storage for some models, there are speed improvements across the board with faster Intel Core i5 and i7 processors.

A Chinese plant temporarily closed because of noxious odors wafting into nearby communities is spending millions to reopen. The Catcher Technology site, which produces 60 percent of unibody cases for Apple’s top-selling MacBook and iMac, hopes to reopen by November.

Thanks to a leak through Apple’s own website, we’re all expecting a refresh to its MacBook Pro family to introduce faster Sandy Bridge processors. According to the latest rumor, they’ll be ready to purchase from next week.

Following recent rumors that claim a refresh to Apple’s MacBook Pro lineup is imminent, I’m sure many of you are eagerly awaiting the new models before you go out and purchase a shiny new notebook. You may not have much longer to wait, according to Apple’s own website, which hints the new models are just weeks away.

We’ve all had the experience of a computer being a lemon, one problem after another. Here’s one story of a MacBook Pro from hell that has a happy ending thanks to a sympathetic support rep at Apple:

I have a MBP 2.4ghz – the logic board failed 6 months ago and was replaced and worked fine. Last week the battery overheated and “swelled” ruining it. It was removed and run on AC adaptor only after that. The adaptor cable was tripped on and disconnected from the magsafe. The unit would not boot on after that point. After letting it cool completely down, it started up normally. I shut it down and it would not reboot.

Apple’s flagship Covent Garden store in London has been gutted today to make room for European journalists who will be flocking to catch a live-stream of the Cupertino company’s iPhone media event.

These BlackBox cases are some of the most stylish cases I’ve seen for our Apple gadgets. Available for the iPad 2, the MacBook Air and the MacBook Pro, they’re all made from beautiful bamboo and provide you with ultimate protection and a super sleek design.

Remember that cool MacBook Pro with built-in 3G that one lucky surfer picked up on Craigslist? It got a lot of attention a couple weeks ago when it was listed on eBay, with bids in excess of $70,000. Unfortunately for its owner, Apple had the listing removed, and now it wants the machine back.

The beat goes on for Apple as the tech giant continues to increase Mac sales amid declining PC demand. The release of a new MacBook Air and the long-awaited Mac OS X 10.7 “Lion” software pushed U.S. Mac sales 26 percent higher during the first portion of the three-month September quarter, Wall Street experts say.

It’s been a long-standing rumor that Apple will switch to its own, proprietary ‘A’ series of ARM-based chips in its MacBook and desktop machines. Currently, Apple relies heavily on Intel to provide processors for its computers — the MacBook specifically.

In terms of the MacBook, a recent interview with the director of Intel’s Ultrabook group shows that Intel sees Apple switching to ARM processors as a very real threat. There could very well be a day when all Apple products run on the same series of chips — and that series will be exclusively made by Apple.

According to our own dear Mike Elgan, Apple is through creating new devices and will continue to coast on the product categories they currently have.

Not so fast, though! According to a Japanese site, component suppliers are gearing up to help Apple create new Macs that are “absolute different from current products,” with a debut as early as the end of the year.

For those of you with a MacBook, an iPhone and an iPad, check out this new iSurge Travel Charging Station from Energizer. It’s an all-in-one charger for all your Apple gadgets that allows you to charge 6 of your devices all at once.

That awesome MacBook Pro prototype with built-in 3G that we reported on yesterday was removed from eBay at the request of Apple last night, after bidding reached a whopping $70,000. However, its seller has been posting further details of the device on the MacRumors forums, revealing its magnetic MagSafe-like antenna setup.

A “one of a kind” MacBook Pro prototype, which has been listed for sale on eBay, reveals Apple’s work on a notebook with built-in 3G connectivity. It’s the first MacBook Pro we’ve seen with an antenna built into the side of the display, and a SIM card slot beneath the memory cover.

One Intel director revealed in a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal that Apple threatened to drop the chip maker over its hungry processors if it couldn’t “drastically slash” the amount of power they demanded.

If you thought Apple was already doing well, think again. The tech giant, already challenging the likes of Exxon-Mobile, is on track to double or even triple its market share, according to one Wall Street analyst.

It’s all how you look at things. If Apple were measured only by its notebook computers, the tech giant would be in last place, behind HP and others. However, throw the iPad into the mix and the Cupertino, Calif. company jumps to the head of the class with 20 percent of the market and ahead of PC goliath HP. But no matter how you cut it, Apple is thriving while the PC languishes in a ‘stagnant’ ecosystem, a report claims.

Here’s one time Microsoft’s molasses-like startup routine could pay off. A Florida company is suing Apple, charging the tech giant infringed a patent for quickly booting Mac OS X. The lawsuit names the MacBook Pro as one of the Apple devices that is claimed to use the disputed patent.

Apple’s new 13-inch MacBook Air might look just like last years model, but don’t let that fool you the insides have been almost completely replaced. Powerful new processors and upgraded internal components make Apple’s powerful and ultra-portable notebook computer even better than last years model. I called it blazing fast last year, but this year I have to say it’s smoking fast. Its performance leaves some MacBook Pros in the dust.

I’ve spent two weeks with my new 13-inch MacBook Air putting it through all kinds of real world tests, using it daily for a variety of tasks like word processing, web surfing, image manipulation, and running various applications including Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit and Mac OS X Lion virtualization.

I’d like to share with you what I experienced during the first 14 days I used this new 13-inch mid-2011 MacBook Air.

Frustrated by Apple’s reticence to release a Mac with a built-in 3G modem for everywhere internet connectivity? Don’t sweat it, Apple may have something else in mind: Super WiFi that would allow your MacBook to connect with your Time Capsule from up to 62 miles away.

Best of all? That tech just got one step closer to reality.