Apple made a lot right moves with the revamp of its notebook line today, yet it missed a tremendous opportunity to steal Christmas away from Dell, HP, and Toshiba. While $100 off the previous MacBook is nice, it’s not good enough. In a slow economy, cutting-edge and quality take a backseat to affordable and usability. Windows machines will win that race come this gift-buying season. Unfortunately, Apple has made a miscalculation with its price point and it won’t be enough to have just three figures on the price tag to lure in new customers. No, buyers will see the sea of laptops at Costco, Wal-mart, and Best Buy selling PCs loaded with Windows Vista at reduced prices. Consumers in general usually won’t pay a premium for a superior product and with the slow down in the economy, $100 off an Apple laptop isn’t going to change anyones mind from a PC to a Mac.
I hear the same argument daily from my clients that “Macs are too expensive” and how they can buy 2 laptops at Costco for the price of one Mac. Even when I educate them that the cost of ownership will be much greater with the PC, they don’t care and don’t listen. This mentality will continue in this lackluster economy even more so than ever.
While the MacBook is a great piece of hardware with some incredible features, it missed the prime feature of all: a great price point. It’s not to say that the MacBook won’t do good, its sales will be good if not strong; however, it won’t be spreading like a Southern California wild fire like it could have.
Looking for that perfect laptop stand? Need something light and small for your computer bag? Want something that looks cool, too? Versatile? Innovative? Mmm, I think we gotcha covered, mate.
SvenOnTech just reviewed the new Innovative Cricket and this thing easily hopped in and out of our travel bag. We easily set it up to hold our first-generation MacBook Pro and they feel in love with each other. Oops, are we giving away the review? Sorry.
Read the review, kick the tires, and see what you think. You might find yourself adding one of these to your laptop bag real soon.
Powertraveller, the UK manufacturer of power and charging solutions for electronic devices, has opened the cage and unleashed two new beasts - the powergorilla, a portable charger for laptops and its ‘mate’, the solargorilla, a solar panel capable of powering a laptop.
Available separately but designed to work together if required, these two devices are capable of handling the power needs of laptop users worldwide.
• Weighing in at 631g and measuring 2200 mm x 130 mm x 15 mm, a fully charged powergorilla will give laptop users between 2-6 hours of extra power and over 20 hours on various other devices including mobiles, iPods and hand-held game consoles.
• The powergorilla is capable of powering and charging laptops ranging from 16V, 19V or 24V – just select which voltage is required and the LCD screen will indicate which setting has been chosen.
• Included with the powergorilla are 15 interchangeable tips for the most popular laptop brands, as well as tips for the leading makes of mobile phones and other hand-held digital gadgets.
• The powergorilla offers the option to ‘daisy-chain’ - whilst the powergorilla is charging your laptop you can charge the powergorilla from the mains power supply or from the solargorilla. Alternatively, the powergorilla can power a laptop and recharge other digital devices at the same time.
• At the heart of the powergorilla beats a high energy density Lithium Polymer rechargeable battery (capacity: 21000mAh ). The powergorilla can be charged either via the mains using the included worldwide A/C mains charger (to fully charge, allow 5-6 hours) or direct from the sun via the solargorilla (6 hours in strong sunlight will charge a powergorilla by up to a half).
• The solargorilla tips the scales at just 700g, measures 264 mm x 200 mm x 19 mm. Tough rubberised casing and water resistant, the solargorilla has a 20V power socket out and standard 5V USB socket. The solargorilla works via two PV (photovoltaic) solar panels which generate electric current when exposed to light – the greater the UV intensity, the greater the performance.
• To charge the powergorilla or to power a laptop, just open the two panels of the solargorilla, expose to direct sunlight and connect to either your laptop directly or to the powergorilla. The green LED on the solargorilla indicates the strength of charge.
Available in June 2008, Cricket™ is extremely portable to go anywhere with a laptop—folding to fit in a pocket or computer bag.
Features:
• Adjustable height – simply press button to adjust height of screen.
• Enhances airflow – air circulates beneath and around computer, keeping it cool.
• Extremely portable – easily fits in a pocket or computer bag.
• Ergonomic computing – elevates screen to comfortable viewing height, enabling use of full-size keyboard for more efficient computing.
• For tablet PCs – raises screen at angle for greater readability and more comfortable writing angle.
Specifications:
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If you’re in the market for a desktop holder for your laptop, you will want to read our just released review on the Lapworks Attaché Laptop Desk. With two built-in fans and four USB ports, the Attaché Laptop Desk does more than just keep your ergonomics correct.
See what we thought about this unit and if it’s worth your $49 or not.
LapWorks has announced its newest laptop stands for notebook computers – the sleek Attaché Laptop Stand and Envoy Laptop Stand.
Both portable Laptop Stands elevate PC and Mac notebooks to:
1) improve screen viewing ergonomics
2) Enhance typing ergonomics
3) Cool a laptop to extend its life.
Each sturdy Laptop Stand includes two silent built-in cooling fans, a 4-port USB 2.0 hub, and 4 push-button elevation settings. The lowest elevation allows for cooling and improved ergonomics while using the laptop’s own keyboard. In addition to cooling, the 3 steeper inclines raise the screen closer to eye level to create an ergonomically-sound desktop workstation when using a separate keyboard and mouse. With the exception of the Attaché’s heat-absorbing aluminum face plate, both units are identical.
The $69.95 Attaché Laptop Stand and the $49.95 Envoy Laptop Stand are available directly from LapWorks.
Both Laptop Stands are constructed of high-impact ABS plastic and measure 12-7/8 inches wide by 11 ¾ inches long and 1-5/8 inches thick when folded closed. The Envoy weighs 1 pound, 10.5 ounces while the Attaché weighs 2 pounds, 7.5 ounces with its aluminum face plate. Each is easily transportable and carries a one year warranty.
Boy, you’ve got to start wondering about Best Buy’s computer repair group, Geek Squad, in all the issues it has been having with the law. Early last year, the Best Buy brand was sued for an employee recording 22-year-old woman in the shower with his camera phone. Other accusations of data theft from Consumerist.com have been made last year. And now, add one more to the growing list of problems for the Geeks, a $54 million law suit for losing a laptop.
Raelyn Campbell of Washington D.C. states in her lawsuit that the Geek Squad lost her notebook computer and attempted to cover up the loss by keeping her in the dark. “It’s a ridiculous number,” she admits for the dollar amount. “I had to come up with a number that was significant enough that might force them to pay attention to me.” Campbell continues on her blog, “To me, the big issue is not the low-balling and bullying tactics, but Best Buy’s systematic disregard for its customers’ personal information and potential exposure to identity theft.” She continues, “I am hoping the attention that the lawsuit and this website generate might motivate Best Buy and other consumer electronics stores entrusted with products that contain consumers’ personal information to adopt thorough procedures and policies to safeguard customers’ property and personal information against theft.”
Having indirect experience with the ‘Squad from customers from my day job, this long line of issues isn’t surprising. Many customers have told horror stories about the Geek Squad from making things worse to charging high prices for little well done work. In the end, you’re better off hiring a local ran repair shop with a better name in service. For those in the Central Valley and Bay Area, you’ve got hyperSven to call on. They’re professionals, not geeks. 
[Via Fox Business and InfoWorld]
Sierra
Wireless today announced that Fujitsu Siemens Computers has once again selected Sierra Wireless embedded modules to provide HSPA network connectivity to selected models in the LIFEBOOK product line of professional notebook computers. New platforms incorporating Sierra Wireless modules are expected to roll out over the course of 2008, including the new LIFEBOOK P8010, which is scheduled for commercial launch in March. The LIFEBOOK P8010 notebook is featured this week in the Sierra Wireless pavilion at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona (located at AV99, on the Avenue).
“Sierra Wireless advanced technology and excellent design made it the right choice for our LIFEBOOK notebook series,” said Andreas Thimmel, Senior Vice President Volume Business, Fujitsu Siemens Computers.
“The fully featured LIFEBOOK notebook line is highly regarded around the world for its performance and innovation,” said Jim Lahey, vice president, EMEA for Sierra Wireless. “We highly value our collaboration with Fujitsu Siemens Computers, and look forward to continuing to work with the company to provide mobile professionals across Europe, the Middle East, and Africa with reliable integrated mobile broadband solutions that enable them to work from wherever they need to be.”
Fujitsu Siemens Computers is the first PC OEM to utilize the GPS capability included in Sierra Wireless embedded modules, with a software application that supports the extension of location based services to upcoming notebooks. When supported by the mobile broadband network operator, this capability could provide features such as local find and locate for services such as fuel stations and restaurants, or navigation assistance using common software tools.
ou can now make sure that wherever you are you can always guarantee your laptop is fully charged with Proporta’s Portable Laptop Battery
The Portable Laptop Battery comes with a selection of input and output tips to cater for most laptop models. Simply attach the input tip to your laptop’s AC adapter and charge the battery for future use. When your laptop is next running low, insert the battery’s output cable and tip into the laptop charging port, and recharge your laptop for prolonged use.
A well as being environmentally friendly, it also includes a very handy USB port to allow you to charge your other USB devices, such as your iPod, camera and phone, whilst on the move. Just plug your mobile device’s USB charge cable into the battery’s standard USB port and recharge anywhere.
This really is a product you should never leave home without - now you have no excuse not to get all your work done 
It’s coming soon to Proporta, so check out www.proporta.com to take a closer look.
P.S. Check out more of Proporta’s products including Proporta’s Laptop Sleeve to keep your laptop safely covered up.
Western Digital Corp. today announced it is now shipping its 250 GB WD Scorpio™ 2.5-inch Serial ATA (SATA) hard drives. The drives employ perpendicular magnetic recording (PMR) technology to achieve the highest capacity available in a small form factor drive and have WD proprietary features that make the drive quiet, use less power and run at cool operating temperatures.
“The 2.5-inch market continues to be a major focus for WD, and this 250 GB WD Scorpio drive represents our second-generation PMR platform,” said Jim Morris, WD’s vice president and general manager of notebook storage. “The WD Scorpio 250 GB hard drive is a direct result of the significant investments WD has made in proprietary head technologies as well as significant system level feature innovation. With the introduction of our latest-generation WD Scorpio drives, WD continues to offer mobile computing and portable storage customers the same outstanding quality, reliability and performance that have earned the company a leadership position in the desktop PC market.”
According to market research firm, IDC, adoption of PMR technology in mobile 2.5-inch hard drives will sustain an increase in the average capacity shipped close to the average growth rate of 32 percent for the past five years. The firm states that by 2011, shipments of mobile 2.5-inch hard drives will more than double 2006 shipment volumes.*
Demand for 2.5-inch hard drives continues to increase at a rapid pace, driven by notebook computers, portable storage devices and consumer electronics products. Users of these applications need high capacity drives to manage storage-hungry content. WD Scorpio drives deliver the performance and features to meet demands that are specific to notebook PCs and portable storage devices, such as WD Passport® portable drives: quiet operation, high shock tolerance and low power consumption.
The new WD Scorpio drive further expands the company’s breadth of 2.5-inch mobile hard drive offerings to capacity points ranging from 40 GB up to 250 GB.
WD Scorpio Exclusive Features Read the rest of this entry »