Apple and Macs: New products, iMacs, iWork, iLife

[wco81]

They announced new MacBook Pros with "ThunderBolt" or Light Peak ports this morning.

So maybe new iMacs are to follow.

[dbdynsty25]

Apple doesn't like Blu-Ray...I think it's gonna be a long while before that makes it into one of their systems.

[wco81]

If they haven't put it in now, they probably never will.

BR is selling well but the studios seem content to keep prices high even if that means sales will never reach DVD volumes.

Ironically, some Mac owners are ripping Blu-Ray discs and viewing the rips, because the software stack needed for BD playback needs to come out of the OS.


Lot of people wouldn't mind if Apple got rid of optical drives on all their computers, especially the laptops. MacBook Air was a hit despite not having optical drive because the SSD made performance snappy.

[dbdynsty25]

New iPad specs look pretty nice. Impressive upgrade and significantly better than the first. Not too shabby. HDMI out being the biggest addition in my mind.

The Smartcovers are pretty slick too...putting the thing to sleep when it's closed. Good idea for sure.

[wco81]

$39 for the dock to HDMI though.

Up to 1080p remains to be seen how good it will look. If you get 1080p video into the iPad (and iTunes doesn't sell 1080p video yet, I don't think), we'll see how smooth it is. I tried some 1080p BR rips on the original and it's not good, 720p is smooth.

But obviously A5 is the difference, with at least double the RAM to run iMovie, which they couldn't last year because of the RAM requirements.

The rumors are that Retina Display, with doubled pixels in both dimensions, is coming later this year. NVidia is saying Tegra 3 tablets will be out later this year and their SOC will support 2500x1600 displays.

[dbdynsty25]

$39 for the dock to HDMI though.

You are such a price whore. How much do you think HDMI docks are for other devices? More than that usually. You think they are going to give away cables for free? That's not Apple's style. The capability is finally available, which is what I was referring to. Good lord you're a buzzkill in EVERY tech thread. There is ALWAYS something better coming...thanks for reminding us EACH AND EVERY time.

If you can't enjoy what is NOW...then you end up a cynic, always waiting for the next great thing...like yourself. That sounds fun.

[sportdan30]

I'm quite impressed too Db. Of course, reading over at Macrumors.com, you'd think the world was ending. That's only a vocal minority of course. I sold my 16gb WIFI iPad a few days ago for $395. This to me is a very nice upgrade. After all, it's a consumption device. It's not meant to take the place of your desktop or laptop. By making it thinner, lighter, faster, and adding the camera and Facetime function, these are very nice additions. I'm hoping the RAM has increased to 512mb, but that remains unknown at this point.

Not having pre-orders is a bummer, but hopefully I'll be able to snag one at Best Buy or the Apple Store with out too much trouble.

Not sure about the case cover though. It does nothing to protect the back which could be easily scratched.

[Diablo25]

I really like what I see in the upgrade. I am actually considering selling my 64 GB (WiFi only) so I can jump in with this one I'll look into it a little more before I make a decision. That tax refund is already burning a hole in my pocket

[dbdynsty25]

I'm still not getting one, however impressed I may be. Android is still where it's at, lol. But then again, I ain't getting one of those either.

But I like where Apple is going for those of you who like these sort of things.

[JRod]

Not as groundbreaking this time around but then didn't expect it to be.

I think as a music device the iPad just got a lot sexier with Garage Band. Like I said, Apple knows who buys it stuff very well and music creators will always gravitate towards Apple, for the most part.

I do think they need a new iOS overhaul. Maybe we'll see a major refresh for the iPhone 5.

[sportdan30]

Prices have dropped on the iPad 1. Looks like I sold at just the right time.

[wco81]

The pace of improvement in mobile hardware is much faster than it is with PCs.

There are at least a half dozen SOC vendors who are trying to leapfrog each other. Apple no longer holds events from incremental upgrades of Macs (though the MacBook Pros announced last week are getting up to 50% higher scores on some benchmarks over previous models).

You're getting more for your money with these models but they're not going to have the impact that the first ones did or what's rumored to be coming down the line.

[ScoopBrady]

So, what are the iPad 1's going for now? I had decided I was going to pick one up but now I'll just wait for the iPad 2. I didn't expect release date to be so soon.

[Diablo25]

Guy I work with is interested in my 1st Gen (WiFi Only) iPad...64 GB. $699 at launch. What do you think I should sell it for..realistically? I have the Apple case also.

[wco81]

I heard Apple knocked the price of the $500 one to $400 and they have refurbs at $349.

So prices are dropping ...

[Danimal]

I'll just give mine to my wife and get the new one.

Funny, I didn't want one of these. got one through work for free and now I use it more then pretty much any device I own. I'll be ordering a new one the day they are available.

[sportdan30]

Engadget.com has some hands on impressions as well as videos of the black and white iPad 2. Thing looks a lot faster than the first generation.

[Diablo25]

Funny, I didn't want one of these.....and now I use it more then pretty much any device I own. I'll be ordering a new one the day they are available.

Me too. I had a Nook for reading and figured, meh, I'll pass. Well, I sold my Nook and got an iPad at the last minute and I use it WAY more than any device I have. Its a superb gadget. I'll be selling my first gen and getting a new one.

BTW, anyone interested in a 1st Gen iPad (64 GB, WiFi only)? PM me if you are interested. Otherwise I am going the EBAY route.

[10spro]

[Aristo]

The laugh track really sells it..

Oh wait. No, it doesn't. It's not actually funny.

[Naples39]

It's a clip from conan last night, with the studio audience laughing.

Like others, I use the iPad FAR more than expected, but not sold on upgrading unless there's solid reason to and I figure out what to do with the old one. Be interested to hear thoughts here if people upgrade.

[Aristo]

It's a clip from conan last night, with the studio audience laughing.

Like others, I use the iPad FAR more than expected, but not sold on upgrading unless there's solid reason to and I figure out what to do with the old one. Be interested to hear thoughts here if people upgrade.

I have an iPad and see absolutely no need to upgrade at all.

And while that was on Conan, that was not the studio audience laughing along. It was clearly dubbed in later.

[wco81]

There's the potential for a big jump in graphics if you play games -- that's based on what GPU some people are assuming is in the A5 SOC.

There's also the prospect of improved performance for all apps. with a presumed increase in RAM -- fact that it can run iMovie whereas last year's model couldn't is indicative of more RAM. One common complaint is that if you have a lot of browser windows open and quit Safari, the next time you open it, it reloads the site because it's been flushed from the RAM.

RAM and GPU may help rendering big PDFs. The camera may make for apps. which scan in documents useful.

A lot of people seem to be interested in Skype or FaceTime video chat.

[greggsand]

I'm also in the class of "never thought I would use it so much", but I do. I dig it to the point it makes using my phone or laptop to do anything, a last resort only.

I don't see me making the leap to ipad 2 until the apps I use on regular basis starting chugging with the ipad 1.

[MizzouRah]

Well.. I think I'm going to get an ipad2

Is 16GB enough storage? I'm leaning towards the 32GB, I have about 5GB of music on my ipod and about 7GB of pics on my pc.