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Apple putting final touches on super thin 15-inch MacBook
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Rumors
MacRumors is reporting that Apple is in late stage testing of a new ultra-thin 15-inch Macbook. It's unsure if this'll be a MacBook Air or MacBook Pro, but if the release of the new Mac mini is any indication, we wouldn't be surprised to see the MacBook Pro line do away with the optical drive. It makes sense that Apple would take design cues from the MacBook Air and bring them over to the Pro line, and adding SSD into the more powerful MacBook Pro would make that thing fly. Apple did just refresh the MacBook Pro back in February, so we wouldn't expect to see these new notebooks until 4th quarter of this year.
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Save 24% on MacBook Pro Core i5
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Hot Deals, PC / Laptop
eBay has the 17-inch MacBook Pro for 24% off for a limited time. These Apple notebooks are packing a 2.53GHz Intel Core i5 processor. They normally sell for $2,299, but the 24% off savings means that you end up saving $550. Shipping is free with this deal as well, so this is an amazing deal all around:
Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals, or you can Like TechPromos on Facebook.
Deal of the Day: 13% off 13-inch MacBook Pro
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Hot Deals, PC / Laptop
eBay has an awesome deal today for anyone looking for one of the new MacBook Pros! They're offering 13% off the recently updated MacBook Pro. The new model sports the Thunderbolt port, HD FaceTime cameras, and the Intel Sandy Bridge chipset. These normally sell for $1,199, but today's deal brings it to you for $1,049, saving you $150--and shipping is included in that price. They've got limited stock, and this deal will only last for a few hours. If you're interested, head on over:
Save $150 on Apple MacBook Pro
Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals, or you can Like TechPromos on Facebook.
Read More 
| MacBook Pro deal
Deal of the Day: Huge Mac discounts from Best Buy
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Hot Deals, PC / Laptop
Best Buy is holding a huge Mac sale today, offering discounts up to $260 off of MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, and Mac Pro - and that includes free shipping:
Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread. Oh, and if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow @TechPromos for the latest deals.
Read More | Best Buy Mac sale
MacBook Pro purchasers reporting problems with Thunderbolt and Cinema Displays
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop
A series of rainclouds has descended over Apple. Purchasers of the company's latest Macbook Pros—featuring Intel's brand-new Thunderbolt ports—are reporting issues when they go to hook up their Apple Cinema Displays to their laptops via a Displayport-to-Thunderbolt connection.
"I have a new MBP with a thunderbolt port, which is connected to an Apple 24" cinema display, using the new thunderbolt port," writes user "Streitz" on Apple's support forums. "I am experiencing one second black outs every few minutes, and fairly regular jitters once the computer starts warming up and crunching some numbers. The shift never occurs on the 15" monitor, only the external. I also still have my old MBP with a mini-display port, and the external monitor works perfect with it."
The display flickering issue allegedly affects all editions of the latest Thunderbolt-laden MacBook Pros. And as the above comment illustrates, it seems to be a problem involving the combined Thunderbolt/DisplayPort connection. The only fix, so far, appears to be the time-honored tradition of waiting it out.
New MacBook Pro teardown gives us a look at Thunderbolt
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Design, PC / Laptop
The teardown crew at iFixit got its hands on Apple's new MacBook Pro, providing a sneak peek at a new connection technology known as "Thunderbolt."
The new MacBooks are the first Apple portable to include a quad-core processor, Intel's Core i7. The devices also include more RAM, iFixit discovered. Thunderbolt, meanwhile, combines PCI Express and DisplayPort into a single connector.
On the new machines, you can chain up to six Thunderbolt devices. For comparison, FireWire supports 63 devices and USB supports up to 127 devices. But as iFixit noted, this might not be an issue since "we're not even aware of six products that support Thunderbolt yet." But if the connection becomes more popular, it might become a problem.
The RAM in the MacBooks is PC3-10600. That's the same RAM found in the 21.5-inch and 27-inch iMacs released last year, but different from earlier Apple laptops, iFixit said. PC3-10600 can be used in older MacBook Pro machines, but the RAM found in those older machines - PC3-8500 - will not work in the new MacBook Pros.
Click to continue reading New MacBook Pro teardown gives us a look at Thunderbolt
Apple updates MacBook Pro with Sandy Bridge processors, HD cameras, and Thunderbolt
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop
It's rare that an entire line of MacBook Pros is updated all at once, but sometimes new technology warrants this occasion. Apple, as expected, announced updates to the MacBook Pro 13-inch, 15-inch, and 17-inch. They all get Intel second-gen Sandy Bridge Core processors and all the technology associated with them, including dual- and quad-core versions. In addition to new internals, each MacBook Pro will be equipped with a FaceTime HD webcam and a lightning-fast connection technology called Thunderbolt. The 15-inch and 17-inch MacBook Pros will also have a new graphic partner in AMD, ditching Nvidia after several years.
The MacBook Pros keep their shape and form for the most part, since most of the changes occur within. Their metal frames are still an inch thick, carved from a slab of aluminum, the same as their predecessors. A FaceTime HD webcam replaces the standard one on all the MacBook Pros, and when used in tandem with the native FaceTime app, users can video chat in 720p. They didn't get the flash SSD that allowed the MacBook Airs to resume and boot up instantly, but the hard drive capacities have ramped up to 500GB, with a 750GB option, depending on the system. And there will be SSD options (512GB) available, albeit for an obscene price.
The newest and most out-of-the-ordinary addition is the mini-Display port that now doubles as a superspeed I/O port. Thunderbolt, formerly known as Intel's Light Peak technology, is a new connection technology that supports transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps (that's twice as fast as USB 3.0) between the laptop and a Thunderbolt peripheral. Problem is, peripherals that can take advantage of this new technology haven't surfaced yet. But with a huge backer in Apple, these peripherals will surely be available soon. The Thunderbolt port, according to Apple, can deliver PCI Express to external peripherals and can support FireWire and USB devices. Since it's also a mini-Display port, the same port can output to external displays.
Read More | MacBook Pro product page
Intel launches 10Gbps Thunderbolt data transfer technology
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Corporate News, PC / Laptop
Intel today officially announced the availability of Thunderbolt, its new PC connection technology capable of running at speeds of 10Gbps—more than twice the speed of USB 3.0, and fast enough to transfer a full-length HD movie in less than 30 seconds.
First introduced at IDF 2009 under the code name "Light Peak," Thunderbolt is based on fiber optics and was originally designed to transmit data over thin glass cables rather than traditional electrical ones. (Intel announced last month, however, that the initial iterations would use copper rather than fiber-optic cabling.) Powered by an Intel controller chip, it unites the PCI Express (PCIe) and DisplayPort protocols to send data and video transmissions in two directions at once over a single cable.
Thunderbolt's first commercial application is on Apple's just-released refresh of its MacBook Pro laptop line. There had been speculation for a while that Apple would introduce the technology commercially, as Steve Jobs declared in October that because of lackluster support the company would not implement USB 3.0 right away.
Click to continue reading Intel launches 10Gbps Thunderbolt data transfer technology
Tech Deals of the Day: iPhone 3GS for a penny, Atrix 4G, Walmart clearance
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, Cell Phones, Hot Deals, PC / Laptop
Here's today’s Deal of the Day list, where we bring the the top discounts on gadgets and consumer electronics for the day. The highlights for today are a big Walmart clearance sale, the iPhone 3GS for 1 cent, and the cheapest price we've seen on the new Motorola Atrix 4G:
- Walmart clearance sale
- Apple iPhone 3GS - 1 cent + free shipping
- Motorola Atrix 4G - $130 + free shipping
- Apple MacBook Pro - Refurbished discounts
Don’t forget, if you’re looking for other deals, be sure to check out our Newegg Promo Code thread.
New MacBook Pro to sport SSD for OS, larger trackpads?
Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Apple, PC / Laptop, Rumors
Our pals over at BGR are reporting that sources have told them that the new Sandy Bridge MacBook Pro models, which should be available sometime in the next two weeks, will be sporting a the following new features:
- Even larger surface area for the glass trackpad
- A 8 or 16GB SSD specifically dedicated to running OS X
- They'll be about a half-pound lighter on average than the current models
The bit about the SSD dedicated to the operating system is the most suspect of the bunch, but that would certainly be one way to speed things up. I use an SSD in my Mac Pro that dedicated to running OS X and holding my applications folder, with separate hard drives for data storage. These rumors are added to the one that says that Light Peak may make its debut on the new MacBook Pro as well.
Read More | BGR
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