We're currently putting Apple's latest "skinny" iMac through its paces here in New York, but an eager Japanese customer has already popped open the 21.5-inch desktop's case, revealing a serviceable hard drive, removable logic board and even a bit of room to spare in the tapered silver housing. There's not much in the way of details over at Kodawarisan, a scant Japanese-language site, but there are plenty of interior pics to gawk at, tiding us over until the experts at iFixit manage to dissect an iMac of their own. Head on over to the source link below for a dozen or so undressed snaps of Cupertino's latest creation.
Via: Gizmodo
Source: Kodawarisan
Who said Apple's event was all about the little things? Apple just unveiled its first redesign to its iMac desktop in three years. The new all-in-one makes the widely expected leap to Intel's Ivy Bridge Core i5 and Core i7 processors, but also represents a much leaner and meaner replacement for the 2009-era template -- its edges are just 5mm thick, and it's constructed with "friction stir welding" as well as a gapless, less reflective display that's laminated together with the glass. Screen sizes remain the same and include both a 21.5-inch, 1080p model and a 27-inch, 2,560 x 1,400 model -- sorry, no Retina displays this year. They share 720p-capable front cameras with dual mics as well as NVIDIA's GeForce 600-era graphics, up to 32GB of RAM and a panoply of storage options that peak at 3TB of spinning storage, a 768GB SSD or what Apple calls a Fusion Drive that mixes both 128GB of flash with 1TB or 3TB of conventional storage (a hybrid drive, for those of us who've seen it before). There's no optical drive unless you plug in a USB option.
The 21.5-inch model ships in November, and will set you back $1,299 for a 2.7GHz Core i5, 8GB of RAM and a 1TB hard drive; pony up for the 27-inch model at $1,799 and you'll get a 2.9GHz Core i5 as well as the same memory and storage. Apple's larger iMac doesn't ship until December, however, which will give some impulse buyers at least a brief respite.
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Apple unveils next-generation iMac with slimmer design and Ivy Bridge, starting at $1,299 originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Oct 2012 13:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Many of those who buy iMacs and Apple-designed displays are eager to avoid clutter in the first place, which makes an organizer all the more logical for those who'd like Desk Zero almost as much as Inbox Zero. Accessory maker Twelve South's newly available HiRise aims to clean it all up -- and lift it up. The aluminum-and-steel frame elevates Apple's modern all-in-ones and screens to any one of six points while conveniently leaving storage space that goes with the local computing decor, whether it's to hold external hard drives or car keys. Although the HiRise is no trivial expense at $80, it's better for propping up an iMac than an old college textbook, and arguably more useful as a whole.
Filed under: Desktops, Displays, Peripherals
Twelve South HiRise takes iMacs and Apple displays to new heights, tidies up in the process originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Sep 2012 17:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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These days, just about every Apple product is defined by a non-removable battery. It's with no small hint of irony, then, that Apple just received a US patent for a universal removable battery system. As proposed, the technique would let Apple cut batteries from lithium-polymer or similar materials into commonly sized packs that could then be swapped between devices, providing all the benefits of removable, rechargeable batteries with a longer lifespan than an old set of AAs. Batteries could have serviceable cores for when they finally give up the ghost, and computers could even alternate between charging the batteries (when plugged in) or using them to extend the runtime of MacBooks. We'd recommend against basing any purchasing strategy around Apple's filing, though. The Cupertino team originally applied for the patent in 2010, and in turn broke out the technology from a patent it had filed in 2007 -- there's no guarantees Apple is still interested in replacing those disposables, let alone any sealed-in batteries. That won't stop us from yearning for the day when a Magic Mouse lasts for more than a week of heavy use.
Filed under: Peripherals
Apple gets patent for universal batteries, edges closer to long-lasting wireless peripherals originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 19 Sep 2012 22:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Along with the introduction of new MacBook Air and MacBook Pro computers, Apple yesterday introduced a new swath of Mac Pro desktops. The introduction was a quiet one for sure, and WWDC attendees of Tim Cook's keynote were none the wiser. It's hard to fault Apple for the decision, as the upgrade was modest at best, but that's exactly what has most upset Andy Hertzfeld, one of the Mac's original designers. Now an employee of Google, Hertzfeld directed harsh criticism at Apple. The following is an excerpt from his Google+ profile:
"The specs for the "new" Mac Pro had hardly changed, except for a tiny, inconsequential processor clock bump. Still no Thunderbolt, still no USB 3.0, no SATA III or RAM speed improvements -- it seems like it's stuck in time in 2010. The only thing that's still high-end about it is the bloated price."
Yesterday's speed bump to the Mac Pro might've come as a disappointment to many power users, but we're given reason to believe that a more substantial upgrade is on the horizon. While it's somewhat uncharacteristic of Apple to comment on unreleased products, company representatives have confirmed to both David Pogue and Forbes that a new Mac Pro and iMac "will likely be released in 2013." Naturally, the wording intentionally leaves the possibility that we may see refreshes come a bit earlier -- and we'll certainly cross our fingers -- but for the moment, both systems seem like safe buys for those needing to upgrade their desktop Macs. For those willing to wait, however, we'd like to believe that Apple has a few tricks up its sleeve for 2013.
Update: Apple has since circled back to Forbes to clarify that only the Mac Pro is targeted for an update in 2013. As for the iMac, we're merely left to hope that an Ivy Bridge refresh is already in the pipeline.
Mac Pro refresh irks Andy Hertzfeld, Apple confirms revisions 'likely' in 2013 (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 12 Jun 2012 20:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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MacRumors (1), (2) | The New York Times, Forbes, Andy Hertzfeld (Google+) | Email this | Comments In the interest of keeping cool this summer, we've put together a list of the hottest products out right now. From smartphones to e-readers and everything in between, there's no time like the present to re-up that post-spring-cleaning stash. So grab a popsicle or a cold one and dive in -- the water's just right.
Desktops are amazing. They deliver serious, expandable computing power to the places where you need it most, and with much better bang-for-the-buck than laptops. Moreover, they're constantly evolving: low-power PCs can now do more with fewer watts, regular gaming PCs can achieve 3D effects that would have required extreme setups just a year ago, and all-rounder desktops have become, well, even more rounded. Which brings us to the recommendations: three PCs that range from $799 to $1,199 and beyond, and that represent each of these three categories. If you're going cheaper, don't be afraid to build your own -- that way you'll only spend money on specs you actually need. Ready to see our selections? Head on past the break to read 'em.
Continue reading Engadget's summer gear guide 2012: desktops
Engadget's summer gear guide 2012: desktops originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 01 Jun 2012 07:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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Yup, Apples are bound to flow beneath the Ivy Bridge at some point, but how much of a performance boost will they deliver? If you're happy to hold onto a little skepticism, then two unexpected appearances on the Geekbench site could offer some early answers. The first purports to be an unknown 'MacBookPro9,1' laptop powered by an Ivy Bridge Core i7-3820QM running at 2.7GHz, which achieved a benchmark of 12252 -- that's around 17 percent better than a current equivalent Core i7 15-inch or 17-inch MacBook Pro. The second benchmark comes from an 'iMac13,2' running off Intel's next-gen Core i7-3770 desktop chip clocked at 3.4GHz, which only merits a score of 12183 because it's hobbled by 4GB of RAM. If you exclude memory and compare only the CPU integer and floating point scores, then you're looking at a roughly nine percent gain over a current 27-inch iMac with a 3.4Ghz Core i7-2600 processor. Now, these benchmarks could be faked, or represent non-final hardware, but the motherboard codes look valid (see the source links) and they generally tally with what we've come to expect from Ivy Bridge: a healthy oar-stroke forwards, but nothing that would frighten the fish.
Update: 9to5Mac has done some digging and come up with a few more interesting tidbits about the upcoming MacBook Pro refresh. For one, code pulled from the Mountain Lion beta appears to indicate that the Ivy Bridge machines will boast USB 3.0 and a new GPU in the NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M. The site also claims that the laptops will be slimmer than the current gen, a rumor that we've been hearing for quite some time now.
MacBook Pro and iMac with next-gen Ivy Bridge processors crop up on benchmarks (update) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 May 2012 08:49:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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