Thursday, Jun 07, 2007

Apple Universe Episode #15 Part 3- Bye, Bye Mac Mini

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The Travelstar 5K160 Upgrade Kit is actually Hitachi’s Travelstar 5K160 HTS541616J9SA00 2.5-inch SATA hard drive—which uses newer perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology—combined with a USB 2.0 drive enclosure and backup software. Although not the largest laptop drive out there—in the short time since I received this kit, Fujitsu and Western Digital have announced 250GB laptop drives compatible with the MacBook Pro—the 5K160 is a nice upgrade for those whose MacBook Pro (or MacBook) shipped with a much smaller drive.

Before you install the drive, you’ll need to copy the data from your original hard drive to the new one using the included USB drive enclosure. Putting the new drive in the enclosure—it doesn’t come pre-installed—is a simple process involving five Phillips screws, four to mount the drive in the enclosure and one to secure the case. The drive connects to your laptop using two USB cables, one for data and one for additional power. I’m a big fan of hard-drive kits that include such an enclosure, as it makes the process of copying your data before the swap much simpler (and faster)—otherwise, you’d need to use another Mac or a separate hard drive to temporarily host your data. And the enclosure lets you use your old hard drive for backups or other data storage afterwards. Hoping to tackle the growing problem of pump-and-dump stock scams Microsoft has quietly filed lawsuits against at least three alleged perpetrators who it says used its MSN Hotmail networks to promote stocks. Hotmail has “received large volumes of unsolicited commercial e-mail messages” promoting stocks for companies such as Distributed Power, TGC Ventures, China Biolife Enterprises, and Irwin Resources, according to court documents filed during April and May in King County Superior Court in Seattle. Verizon Wireless is plotting a response to AT&T’s widely-anticipated Apple iPhone offering, according to published reports. Apple previewed iPhone at the Macworld conference in January. It will feature a 3.5-inch, 160 dot-per-inch color screen, a 2 megapixel digital camera and a touchscreen Apple calls “Multitouch,” which is designed to enhance accuracy by ignoring unintended touches. iPhone will be 11.6 millimeters thick — thinner than typical smartphones, according to Apple CEO Steve Jobs. AT&T has exclusive rights to offer iPhone for five years. It will be available from the carrier next month. Verizon Wireless’ counter is the LG Prada, or KE850, according to TheStreet.com. Prada is a sleek handset similar in look to the iPhone, the Web site reports. It includes a camera, and can play music and videos and allow for document viewing. Microsoft Zune team invited to give up iPods. Sony 'micro home theater system' features iPod option. A number of reader reports and a Google Groups message board posting indicate that CNBC is reporting that the iPhone will be released on the 20th of June. According to CNBC, the iPhone will be "in stores" on that date. Apple's iPhone had been officially targeted for "late June". iPhone sales/support training runs from May 30th - June 20th, giving more credibility to the June 20th date. Businessweek profiles "Metro" -- a prototype laptop designed by Intel and Ziba Design. The 0.7 inch thick laptop is the world's thinnest notebook and weighs only 2.25 pounds.
Unlike other prototype designs, this design is to go into production later this year with an unspecified manufacturer, according to Businessweek. BoyGeniusReport.com has posted screenshots from AT&T's accounting system revealing new account codes for three versions of iPhone sales:

- iPhone PostPaid
- iPhone PrePaid (Pay As You Go)
- iPhone Hybrid (Pick Your Plan)

"PostPaid" is the traditional 2 year contract sign up method that most cellular customers, while PrePaid and Hybrid represent different PrePaid (no contract) plans that Cingular currently offers. Adobe's CS3 icon branding taken to the next level - the rest of your apps. he new branding Adobe conceived for the new CS3 suite hasn't quite caught on with everyone just yet. Some say the icons are too bland and boring, while others like my friend John decided to take Adobe's 'periodic table of apps' concept to the next level. Via some icons found at sites like InterfaceLIFT and designing a few of his own, John has completely element-ized his entire Dock. In fact, I couldn't fit a decent picture that could display all the icons in this post, so head over to a TUAW gallery pic to take in the entire work of art - or monstrosity - depending on which side of the fence you sit on. Knock yourselves out if you feel like guessing each app - I have the entire list, but it won't be easy to nail 'em all.

Posted by Daniel Brusilovsky at 1:14 PM |  MAKE A COMMENT  

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