Wrapping Up Christmas Gifts

For several months, The Twisters have been nagging about wanting a Nintendo Wii console under their Christmas tree this year.  We told them insistently, that that wish depended on their school performance.  If their grades were acceptable and if they made it to the next level, the console was possible.  We were careful to stress the word possible.

Serendipitously, The Twisters are passing to the next academic level and their school performance was acceptable.  This means that we will stick to our commitment and place a Nintendo Wii console under their Christmas tree on the 24th this month.  Last week we went to Multimax and acquired the longed gadget.

Last Sunday Abdiel and my wife wrapped it up.  He wanted to take it home, but we said, “No way Jose.”  It stays here until the time is ripe for Santa to deliver it on the Christmas Eve (if you still believe in Santa Claus—tongue-in-cheek).

Below are several pictures capturing the moment of the wrapping of the Christmas present.  We hope this gadget will contribute to keep the family together by playing entertaining games at home.  It is uppermost important for us to keep this family together and happy.

Snapshot of the Nintendo Wii console before it was wrapped up in special Christmas paper. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

Snapshot of my wife Aura and Abdiel carefully wrapping up the Nintendo Wii console one lazy Sunday afternoon. If you look closely at the clock on top of the TV set, it was exactly 1:00 p.m. Photo by ©Omar Upegui R.

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Apple Releases a Smaller iPad Into the Wild

Credit: http://www.mashable.com

After keeping the consumer electronics world on its toes for months, Apple finally announced a new gadget to its remarkable line of products.  It was no secret, so the event didn’t have that veil of mysteriousness that Steve Jobs used to exhibit during his legendary and dazzling product announcements.

Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, announced yesterday the iPad mini, the highly anticipated pint-sized version of its popular tablet.  The 7.9 inch Mini marks the iPhone-maker’s first foray into the smaller-tablet segment. Apple hopes to beat back incursions onto its home turf of consumer electronics hardware, while safeguarding its lead in a larger tablet space—one that even deep-pocketed rivals like Samsung Electronics have found tough to penetrate.  The new tablet essentially has most of the functions and features of the full-size iPad but in a smaller package.

Apple is asking $329 for a Wi-Fi only model, which is a little costlier than some predicted, but some analysts see that as a bid to retain premium pricing levels.  The Kindle Fire from Amazon and the Nexus 7 from Google have grabbed a chunk of the lower end of the tablet market and proved demand for a pocket-sized slate exists. Those companies’ tablets—the most successful other than Apple’s—have forced Apple into a space it has avoided and at times derided, analysts say.  Surveys conducted ahead of Tuesday’s news suggested some consumers had hoped for a more affordable Apple mini tablet.

Apple’s iPad mini comes with a 7.9-inch screen that weighs half as much as the larger iPad, which it resembles. The iPad mini has two cameras, a dual-core A5 processor and 10-hour battery life. It comes in both Wi-Fi only versions and models with LTE wireless connectivity.

Apple said pricing for the iPad mini would start at $329 for a version with 16GB of memory and Wi-Fi only wireless, which would price it above some rival tablets of similar size. It will be available starting November 2, just in time for the holidays.

The iPad Mini starts at $329, well above the $159 starting price for Amazon.com Inc.’s Kindle Fire and $199 for Google Inc.’s Nexus 7. Both have 7-inch screens. The Mini will be just $70 cheaper than the 2011 iPad 2, which is still available.

Unlike its rivals, Apple will make a version of the iPad Mini that can access cellular networks from AT&T, Verizon and Sprint. That version will start at $459, compared with $629 for the full-sized cellular model.

Apple is also refreshing its full-sized iPad, giving it a faster processor and faster Wi-Fi capabilities. It will go on sale next week as well.  Apple also updated its iMac line. Some versions will sport a hybrid storage drive that combines the speed of flash memory and the capacity of regular hard drives. They will go on sale in December.

If you like to follow product specifications, I have good news for you.  Below are the basic specs for the small gadget.  Here we go:

• Screen Size:  7.9 inches
• Resolution:  1024 x 768
• Pixel Density:  163 ppi
• Weight:  10.88 ounces
• Dimensions (WxHxD):  7.8 x 5.3 x .28 inches
• CPU:  Dual-core Apple A5
• Storage:  16GB, 32GB or 64GB, no card slot
• Operating System:  OS 6
• Battery:  10 hours
• Camera:  5MP rear, 1.2MP front
• Networking:  Dual-band Wi-Fi, LTE
• Price:  $329/$459 for 16GB, $429/$559 for 32GB, $529/$659 for 64GB; available November 2nd

I don’t have any interest for this smaller Apple tablet.  I recently purchased a third generation iPad which I’m still learning how to use and exploring new apps for the gadget.  So far, I’m enjoying Netflix movies, reading my e-mail messages, and reading Kindle books.  I know there are still a truckload of stuff I can do with this baby, but I’m in no hurry.

My first tablet was the Amazon Kindle Fire.  I was very excited with this acquisition due to the wonderful reviews on the Internet, and of course, its irresistible price—$199.00.  However, I was deeply disappointed when I learned I couldn’t buy apps from Amazon’s store nor could I stream movies from Amazon’s Prime Instant Video—unlimited, instant streaming of thousands of popular movies and TV shows.  I was also restricted from acquiring over 22 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, books, audiobooks, and popular apps and games such as Facebook, Netflix, Twitter, HBO GO, Pandora, and Angry Birds Space. 

When I learned all of the above was reserved for people living in the continental United States, I felt scammed by Amazon.  They didn’t said anything about this restriction on their Web page.  I only use the Kindle Fire to read electronic books and occasionally surf the web, although its too cumbersome to do so, due to its size.  But can’t complain much.  It’s no use crying over spilled milk.

I have some reservations about the success of the iPad mini due to its steep price—$329 starting price.  But with Apple products you never know.  People are infatuated with their products and will buy them no matter what.  The Apple brand is mesmerizing.  Will wait and see how it’s received by the market.  Good Day.

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Is Amazon.com Following Apple’s Path?

Jeff Bezos, current CEO of Amazon.com. Credit: Fortune Magazine

After the sudden departure of Steve Jobs from the scene, Apple seems to continue the culture quality promoted by its legendary Guru.  Tim Cook has taken over the reins of the company and is following Steven’s pattern of continuous improvements by the book.  The only problem is that Tim Cook is no Steve Jobs.  Geniuses like Steve Jobs are not up for sale for a dime a dozen.

As you probably know, Steve Jobs was booted out of Apple by John Scully in a bitter managerial quarrel, and was called back to the company after acquiring NeXT in 1996.  The deal brought Jobs back to the company he co-founded, and provided Apple with the NeXTSTEP codebase, from which the Mac OX was developed. Jobs was named Apple advisor in 1996, interim CEO in 1997, and CEO from 2000 until his resignation. He oversaw the development of the iMac, iTunes, iPod, iPhone, and iPad and the company Apple Retail Stores.  He also changed the business model of Apple.  Instead of being a computer company, it was now a global consumer electronics company.  It made Apple spin on the top of a pin and took the whole world by storm.

Will anybody step in and fill the vacuum left by Jobs?  Pundits are wondering and making all kinds of speculations.  The name that keeps coming back and back is Jeff Bezos, the smiling CEO of Amazon.com.  Out of the blue, he consolidated the largest and most productive online retailer the world has ever known.  Any imaginable product you can think of is only a click away at Amazon.com.  Its prices are outstanding and customer service is one of the best in the block.

Amazon became the symbol of book retailing over the Web and a trillion other things as well.  Then Bezos made a brilliant move.  He introduced the Kindle e-book reader and shook the foundations of the publishing industry.  Then he surprised us with the Kindle Fire tablet and once more opened the door to a new niche within the tablet business.  He wasn’t trying to kill the Apple iPad, he was just creating a new subcategory in the tablet business and mainstream America bought the idea.  I understand Amazon.com is selling approximately one million Kindle Fires per week.  Not bad for a book peddler.

Amazon, of course, is much more than a retailer these days. It’s also a web hosting service, with Amazon Web Service powering such giants as Netflix, Reddit, and Foursquare.

Of course, the company has also led the eBook revolution, and with its launch of the popular Kindle Fire, has created a unique and impressive way to get us all to carry around little touch-screen cash registers.

Meanwhile, Amazon Prime is almost certainly the best deal anywhere on the internet, giving customers free 2-day shipping, tons of streaming video, cloud storage, and numerous other perks for only $79/year.  Customers who subscribe to Prime spend more than double what other customers do, and it’s still an amazing deal.

Jeff Bezos is not content with what he has accomplished.  He wants more.  There are rumors out there, that Amazon.com is planning to launch a Kindle smart phone and enter the shark infested waters of the mobile phone arena.  The Web is buzzing about the intentions of Amazon working on a mobile phone which should be released sometime next year.  Now analysis of Amazon’s supply chain in the Far East has revealed that the 7″ tablet may just be the beginning of an assault on the touchscreen entertainment monopoly that Apple has built over the past decade. A smartphone—similar to Apple’s iPhone, but considerably cheaper—could be on sale by late next year.

Citigroup believes that it will cost Amazon between $150 to $170 to build the smartphone, and analysts say that the company could sell the device to carriers at or near cost. This is, in contrast, to other OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), such as HTC, who would price the smartphone at $243, in order to make 30 percent gross margin. Meanwhile, carriers pay $600 and upwards for the iPhone.

It’s already rumored that the handset will feature a dual-core TI OMAP 4 processor, which promises such benefits as high performance and low power consumption, PC-like browsing, and 1,080 pixel HD video capture and playback.

A Kindle smartphone makes sense for Amazon, but it would also be a huge risk.  The tech landscape is as crazy and disruptive as ever.  As we all know, the future is shrouded in uncertainty. But I wouldn’t bet against Jeff Bezos any time soon making a big splash in the cellphone pool.  Good Day.

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A Great Visionary Call it Quits

Credit: Apple Inc./Gizmodo

Totally out of the blue, Steve Jobs announced its departure from Apple Inc. This unexpected announcement shocked Apple zealots around the globe.  After several years of failing health and medical leaves of absence, Steve Jobs said succinctly, “I hereby resign as CEO of Apple.”   Since the announcement, Apple stocks have tumbled seven percent as of 7:15 P.M. EST.

Jobs has been on medical leave since January 17, but unveiled the iPad 2 in March for the company. The former Apple CEO has suffered from pancreatic cancer.

Steve Jobs suggested that the best man to replace him is Tim Cook, the chief operating officer.  Apple’s Board of Directors have taken heed.  Mr. Cook has been Apple’s acting chief executive since Mr. Jobs went on medical leave. When he joined Apple in 1998 he quickly began upgrading Apple’s supply chain. Mr. Cook closed many of Apple’s production factories in California and outsourced manufacturing to suppliers in Asia. He became chief operating officer in 2007.

With the more recent introduction of the iPod, iTunes, iPhone and iPad, Apple has shaken up a range of industries. Mr. Jobs has been awarded much of the credit for turning Apple into one of the world’s most valuable companies. Last month Apple briefly became the most valuable company in the world in terms of market capitalization.

Below is the text of Jobs’ resignation letter:

“To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:

I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.

I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.

As far as my successor goes, I strongly recommend that we execute our succession plan and name Tim Cook as CEO of Apple.

I believe Apple’s brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it. And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role.

I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you.”

“The board has been preparing for this eventuality,” said Michael Gartenberg, research director of Gartner, an IT research company, according to ABC News Radio. “Mr. Cook has shown remarkable leadership in the two times that he has taken the reigns when Jobs was out on medical leave. And there is no reason to think he simply won’t continue that pattern of excellence.”

That’s it; one of the greatest visionaries of all times is calling it quits.  His name belongs to the exclusive club of Thomas Alva Edison, Walt Disney and Henry Ford.  As of today, Apple Inc. enters a new era.

Trip Chowdhry, an analyst with Global Equities Research, said Jobs’ maniacal attention to detail is what has set Apple apart.  “Apple is Steve Jobs, Steve Jobs is Apple, and Steve Jobs is innovation,” Chowdhry said. “You can teach people how to be operationally efficient, you can hire consultants to tell you how to do that, but God creates innovation. … Apple without Steve Jobs is nothing.”  Do you agree?  Let’s wait and see how Apple evolves without the creative mind of a genius.

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The Color Nook Hits the Catwalk

Ever since Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s CEO,  flexed his muscle and stood solidly behind the Amazon Kindle, the war of e-book readers has become white hot.  The large book resellers have jumped into the bandwagon with their own propietary gadget in an effort to rake in millions of greenbacks from the emerging electronic books industry which has a rising trend.

Photograph of the Color Nook e-book reader. Credit: Barnes & Noble

The latest kid in the block is the Color Nook which promises to give the Kindle a run for its money.  The $249 Color Nook, which has a 7-inch color touch-sensitive LCD screen and weighs les than a pound ships on November 19, just before the Christmas Holidays.

Barns & Noble decided to run the gadget with Google’s Android operating system bypassing Microsoft and Apple software.  This color e-book reader offers additional functionality such as Web browsing, audio and video playback, and some basic games.  It has a built-in Wi-Fi, but no 3G, and comes with 8 GB of internal memory which I think is the bare minimum.  B&N plans to sell some apps through its own stores.  Sounds familiar?

The color gadget can be used to read books, magazines, newspapers and an expanded array of children’s titles.  However, its main feature is the reading experience in direct confrontation with Amazon’s Kindle and Sony’s Reader.  The battery is expected to last roughly eight hous which pales in comparison with the longer battery charge of Amazon’s Kindle—a single charge lasts up to one month with wireless off.

I understand the Color Nook will be available at Best Buy, Walmart and soon Books-a-Million stores, along with B&N stores.  The guns are aimed squarely at the Kindle.  However, due to its color features, medium-sized LCD screen, and light weight, it’s also a good alternative to the bulkier and more expensive Apple iPad. It will be interesting to watch how consumers react to this new baby.  Good Day.

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Antennagate Emerges Within the Walled Garden of Apple

Photograph of Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, addressing the audience about the antenna perceived flaw. Credit: Josh Lowensohn/CNET.

As much as Steve Jobs, Apple’s charismatic CEO, is paranoid about perfection, there was a real hardware design flaw in the iPhone 4 antenna.  The problem was identified as the Antennagate, by Steve Jobs himself.  The complaints were getting so strong, that Mr. Jobs had to interrupt his Hawaii vacations and return to Apple’s headquarters to calm the beast.

When he got home he organized an invite-only press conference to talk about its fast-selling iPhone, which has also been the most controversial, given what many believe to be an engineering flaw that leaves its users with dropped calls.  Many refer to this problem as “the Death Grip”.  Jobs referred to the situation as “Antennagate,” but said that getting signal loss from holding the iPhone 4 was “not unique” when compared to other smartphones.

The picture shows the gap that is causing the disconnection of voice calls when touched by the users' bare fingers or hands. Credit: Josh Lowensohn/CNET.

Apple will give free protective cases to buyers of its latest iPhone to alleviate the so-called “death grip” problem in which holding the phone with a bare hand can disconnect the wireless signal.  Jobs explained that the problem stemmed from two things: the antenna opening on the side, and a software algorithm that would depict more of a signal than there really was.

“Let me tell you what we’re going to do,” Jobs said yesterday. Apple will give iPhone 4 owners a rubber case, Jobs revealed, because a case will prevent users from touching the phone in the wrong place.  If people still aren’t happy, they can bring the phone back for a full refund. “We are going to take care of everyone,” Jobs said. If you’re still not happy, Jobs said, “you can bring your iPhone back within 30 days for a full refund.” The refund applies even for those who have long-term contracts with AT&T., the iPhone’s exclusive U.S. wireless carrier.

Jobs said Apple can’t make enough bumpers (cases that wrap around the rim of the iPhone 4 antenna) for of all 3 million iPhone 4 customers, so it’s contracting with third-party manufacturers and will offer customers a choice of cases.

Photograph of an Apple iPhone 4 bumper which has a price tag between $10 to $29. Credit: Apple Inc.

The more than 3 million people who have already bought the iPhone 4 and new buyers through Sept. 30 will all be eligible.  People who already purchased the $29 “Bumper” cases will be refunded.  Jobs said Apple can’t make enough bumpers for of all 3 million iPhone 4 customers, so it’s contracting with third-party manufacturers and will offer customers a choice of cases.

Jobs admitted that Apple’s internal iPhone 4 testing showed the phone dropped more calls than the iPhone 3GS, but said the number of additional dropped calls was extremely small and that competitive smartphones such as the BlackBerry and the Droid suffer from similar problems.

Apple faced a similar outcry in 2007 when it drastically cut the price of the original iPhone from $599 to $399, and the company delivered a similar response: a $100 store credit.  That measure calmed the waters.

Analysts have criticized Apple’s first responses to reports of reception problems as dismissive, and cautioned that the company shouldn’t come across as arrogant.  No mea culpa. No sense of regret that Apple messed up.  Just—we’ll send you a case.

Mr. Jobs also said Apple had sold more than three million iPhone 4’s. He said white iPhones would start shipping at the end of July. On July 30, Apple will start selling the iPhone 4 in 17 more countries including Australia, Austria, Italy, Ireland and Switzerland.

Jobs, a cancer survivor, also addressed a question about his health Friday.  “I’m doing fine. I was even better earlier in the week (when) I was having a vacation in Hawaii, but I decided this was important enough to come back for,” he said. “I’m doing great.”

The issue is never the actual significance of a technological or mechanical problem in a popular product—it’s always the perception of the significance. And the perception is that Apple screwed up on the iPhone 4, and now it’s offering a band-aid solution.  What y’all think?  Is antennagate a tempest in a teapot, or is it a significant hardware design flaw in the crown jewel of Apple’s kingdom?  Good Day.

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In Search of an Apple Store in Panama

We have several Apple stores in Panama.  They’re called MacStores and all of them look gorgeous.  Apple has a way with industrial design and all their products reflect this manifest characteristic.

From computers to smartphones, Apple products are known for being stylish, powerful and pleasing to use. They are edited products that cut through complexity, by consciously leaving things out—not cramming every feature that came into an engineer’s head, an affliction known as “featuritis” that burdens so many technology products.

Even their retail stores carry this unique design style.  A perfect example is Apple’s retail store in downtown New York City.  This iconic outlet opened its doors on May 19, 2006 at 767 Fifth Avenue.  The store in itself is all underground, except for the entrance, a 32-foot glass cube right in front of the General Motors building opposite the Plaza Hotel and Bergdorf Goodman.  This glass cube is a must-visit landmark in the Big Apple.

I found an Apple store at a recent visit to Metro Plaza, and it also had a faint resemblance to Apple’s store in New York.  Beautiful transparent glass everywhere and an awesome black-and-white sign.  Absolutely Beautiful.

Below are several pictures of this ubiquitous consumer electronic store with a logo you can’t miss.  Here we go.

A MacStore at Metro Mall in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

Another view of an Apple store in Panama City, Panama. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

I love the minimalist sign; elegant, plain and simple. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

Photograph of the ubiquitous Apple logo. (Credit: ©Omar Upegui R.)

Great products, according to Mr. Jobs, are triumphs of “taste.” And taste, he explains, is a byproduct of study, observation and being steeped in the culture of the past and present, of “trying to expose yourself to the best things humans have done and then bring those things into what you are doing.” There’s no doubt, there is taste in Apple’s retail stores as well.  Good Day.

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Steve Jobs is Back on the Saddle

Steve Jobs, Apple's CEO, during a product presentation. (Credit: Apple Inc.)

It’s good news for employees, consumers and investors that Apple’s CEO is back to work, even though on a part time basis for the time being.

Apple Inc. co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs is back at his office a few days a week after taking a 5 1/2-month medical leave and getting a new liver.

Jobs, 54, will work from home on days he doesn’t work from Apple‘s Cupertino, Calif., headquarters, company spokesman Steve Dowling said Monday. Dowling did not say exactly when Jobs returned to the office.

The state of Jobs’ health and the timing of his return have been watched closely by investors and the media, because few CEOs are considered as instrumental to their companies’ success as Jobs has been to Apple. He is seen as the visionary behind Apple’s popular iPod music players and the iPhone, which left far more experienced mobile phone makers scrambling to catch up with similar touchscreen devices.

Methodist University Hospital Transplant Institute in Memphis, Tennessee., said last week that Jobs had received a liver transplant. Medical experts who were not involved in Jobs’ treatment have told reporters that cancer cells not removed in the original surgery could have spread to Jobs’ liver.

The hospital would not say when the transplant took place, but in a statement said Jobs was recovering well and his prognosis is good.

During Steve Jobs 5 1/2-month-sick leave, under the direction of Apple’s chief operating officer, Tim Cook, the company had continued to release well-received products, including updated laptops with lower entry-level prices, updated Mac software and a faster iPhone with many longed-for features. Apple sold more than a million of the new iPhone 3GS during its first three days on the market.

Welcome back Steve!  Good Day.

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Apple Revamps iPhone Operating System

In an effort to maintain its stranglehold on the smartphone’s market share, Apple recently announced an upgrade to its ubiquitous iPhone operating system, dubbed OS 3.0.

As the smartphone stakes heat up, Apple isn’t resting on its iPhone laurels. Yesterday, the company introduced version 3.0 of the gadget’s underlying system software, and if there was nothing earth-shattering, it did deliver on some features for which users have been clamoring.

Apple Inc unveiled new software for the iPhone that will support some long-anticipated features, such as copy-and-paste of text and picture messaging, as the company pushes to stay competitive in the phone market.

Apple also gave its vast network of software developers a slew of new options for upcoming applications, such as support for subscription models and automatic alerts, a move applauded by analysts.

An early version of the software is available to application developers today and will be available to consumers this summer. iPhone users will be able to download the software upgrade for free, while iPod touch customers will be charged $9.95.

The updated software kit for developers will have more than 1,000 new programing functions, including peer-to-peer capability, an interface allowing applications to communicate with iPhone accessories such as docking stations, as well as access to the phone’s music library.

The company says it now has a combined installed base of 30 million iPhones and iPod Touches.  Good Day.

Source:  The iPhone is Gaining Some Editing Skills – The New York Times

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Apple Revamped Its Line of Notebooks

As you can see in the image above, Apple’s corporate strategy is based on three pillars:  MacBooks, iPhones and iTunes.  All three are profitable segments of its profit-generating business model.

Many analysts believe that iTunes and iPhones were blessed with the halo effect of the Mac computers.  Apple zealots went bananas with the MacBooks and iMacs; therefore they were heavily inclined to buy other Apple-branded products like the iPhone and downloading music and videos through iTunes.  The economic results were absolutely fantastic.

Based on this fact, Steven Jobs looks very closely at the performance of the MacBook line like a laser beam.  On October 14th, after much buzz and anticipation on the Internet, Steve Jobs and its buddies announced an improvement on the MacBook line, conveniently scheduled before the shopping season.  Even though there’s an economic turnoil going on everywhere, Apple was not willing to trim prices.  They feel, Apple will  weather out the storm and will continue to sail under blue skies.  Apple did lower its least expensive laptop, the existing version of the entry-level MacBook, by $100 to $999.

What is new?

Apple presented four new MacBooks and one new 24-inch Cinema display. An updated MacBook Air, the ultra-thin portable notebook that does not have a CD or DVD drive on board, begins at $1,799, just as the previous Air did.  The Air was also revamped to include 9400M graphics and a bigger hard disk.  A 17-inch Pro will also be announced soon.

The updated versions of its MacBook and MacBook Pro machines, Apple focused mainly on adding features. Some had been in the svelte MacBook Air, including thinner laptop casings and a multitouch track pad, which, like the iPhone, understands gestures for spinning and zooming.

The redesigned laptops are thinner and lighter, and use what Apple touted as a construction breakthrough. All the new laptops now use casings cut and tooled from aluminum, without a stronger skeleton fused to the insides.

The specs of the new Macs are:

1. MacBook Pro $1,999

• 15.4-inch LED-lit display with glass cover
• 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor
• 2GB DDR3 1066 Ram memory
• 250GB hard disk
• Superdrive
  
• Multi-touch glass trackpad
• Weight – 5.5 pounds

2. MacBook Pro $2,499

• 15.4-inch LED-lit display with glass cover
  
• 2.53GHz Core 2 Duo processor
  
• 4GB DDR3 1066 Ram memory
  
• 320GB hard disk
• Superdrive
  
• Multi-touch glass trackpad
• Weight:  5.5 pounds

3. Mid-range MacBook #1 $1,299

• 13.3-inch LED backlit glass
• 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo processor
• 2GB DDR3 1066 Ram memory
• 160GB  hard disk
• Superdrive
• Multi-touch glass trackpad,
• Weight:  4.5 pounds

4. Mid-range MacBook #2 $1,599

• 13.3-inch LED Backlit
• 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo processor
• 4GB DDR 1066 Ram memory
• 320GB hard disk
• Superdrive
• Multi-touch glass trackpad
• Weight:  4.5 pounds.

5. 24-inch LED-backlit Cinema Display $899

• 1920×1200
• Nini-Displayport
• A USB port and a magsafe power connector that you can plug into your MacBook and power up.

As at other events in the last few months, Jobs appeared thin but, in a tongue-in-cheek nod to persistent questions about his health, projected a slide with his healthy 110-over-70 blood pressure reading.

Since appearing gaunt and pale at a previous Apple introduction earlier this year, Mr. Jobs’ health has been the subject of intense interest. The company and Mr. Jobs have responded by saying that he has not had a recurrence of pancreatic cancer, which he battled four years ago.  Mr. Jobs looked thin last Tuesday, but otherwise healthy and energetic.  However, I have a gut feeling he is slowly planning his way out.  He’s using more assistants to help him during product presentations.  It’s not a single speaker running the  show anymore.  As long as he looks pale and thin, the hens will keep on clucking.

If you’re a computer geek and would like to read a thorough review on Apple’s latest laptops, please click the link at the bottom of this entry.  Good Day.

Related Readings:  MacBook and MacBook Pro Dual Review – Bestmodo

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