Apple Notebook Shipments Skyrocket 61%
This is a good news, bad news story. Let’s start with the good news!
DisplaySearch, a market research firm, is reporting that Apple’s sales of notebook computers are up 61% from 1st Quarter, 2007 to 1st Quarter, 2008. In that fiscal quarter, Apple shipped over 1.4 million notebooks, compared to almost 900,000 the year before. That puts Apple just behind Asus in terms of growth year-to-year, as the Taiwanese board and component maker saw a 67% growth rate. Most other notebook manufacturers saw growth rates in the 20 - 40% range.
The bad news? Apple’s still in seventh place in overall notebook market share at 4.6%, trailing behind leaders HP (20.8%), Dell (15.1%), and Acer (14.7%) but still ahead of Asus (4.3%) and Sony (4.2%).
My personal speculation is that Asus is seeing huge increases due to the Eee PC subnotebook, which has been extremely popular with geeks wanting tiny Linux or Windows computers. If trends continue, Apple’s notebook market share numbers should continue to grow into 2008.
[via DisplaySearch]
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Found Footage: Boost your MacBook’s RAM
Have you ever thought about upgrading your MacBook’s scrawny 2GBs of RAM that Apple ships to something a little more deserving? Well, ChannelFlip has a very cool video showing you how to upgrade the RAM in either a MacBook or MacBook Pro. In addition they tested the performance of the 2GB and 4GB Apple RAM and the new Corsair 4GB low-latency Mac RAM. They show off the results in the video.
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SSD Upgrades for MacBook / MacBook Pro
MacBook / MacBook Pro owners, are you suffering from SSD envy?
There’s no need to fret, since ExperCom has just announced immediate availability of SSD upgrades for your favorite Apple laptops. If you already own a MacBook or MacBook Pro, you can send it to ExperCom’s Logan, Utah office and have your hard drive replaced with a 60GB ($599) or 120GB ($899) SSD. ExperCom moves your data to the SSD so your MacBook is ready to roll when it is back in your hands, and returns the old HD to you for use as a Time Machine drive (enclosure not included).
If you’ve been thinking about purchasing a new MacBook Pro or MacBook, ExperCom is selling those laptops pre-configured with SSDs. A 15″ MacBook Pro with the 2.4 GHz processor and a 120GB SSD is $2649, compared to $1999 for a stock Apple MBP with a standard 200GB hard drive. Want a white MacBook with a 2.2 GHz CPU and a 60GB SSD? It’s yours for $1649, $550 over the price of a white MacBook with a 120GB HD.
Since the SSD upgrades are not covered by Apple’s warranty, ExperCom provides service or can re-install the old drive prior to Apple service.
Thanks to Eric Hancock for the tip!
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Applescript to arrange your desktop
Here’s a very cool tip we first saw at Lifehaker. Jeff Kelley is a MacBook Pro user who, like many others, connects it to several displays, depending on context and the task at hand.
If you’ve done this, you may be familiar with the same irritation that has bothered Jeff. Namely, application windows re-sizing themselves across displays. The difference between Jeff and the rest of us is that he did something about it.
Here is a great AppleScript that notices his screen resolution and sizes his application windows according to his likes. Now, Mail, iCal and so on will appear just where they ought to. Very cool!
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The BlackBoard Pro
Here’s the situation. You’re sitting with a friend when she gives you some great information that you want to write down. Or, you want to share something with her, but your Mac is not running, and it seems like a hassle to wait for it to boot just to complete that simple exchange. What’s a nerd to do?
How about cover the lid of your MacBook Pro with chalkboard paint? That’s exactly what Russell Davies did, and the BlackBoard Pro was born. It’s got a certain “Little House on the Prairie Schoolhouse” charm, and as Russell says, “…there’s something very satisfying about crossing off a to do by licking your finger and smearing it out.”
Well done, Russell. We think.
[Via Joshua Blakenship]
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