Apple intros new Mac Pro with "Nehalem" Processor

Apple completely revamped it’s entire desktop line today. This included the new Mac Pro with “Nehalem” Xeon processors.

The new Mac Pro will be available next week through the online Apple Store, Apple Retail Stores, and Apple Authorized Resellers

This new Mac Pro is a significant upgrade and is priced $300 less than previous lower end Mac Pro.

Specs:

Quad-core Mac Pro ($2,499):

• one 2.66 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 3500 series processors with 8MB of L3 cache
• 3GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 8GB
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory
• 640GB Serial ATA 3GB/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
• 18x SuperDrive with double-layer support
• Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)
• four PCI Express 2.0 slots
• five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
• Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
• Ships with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse

8-core Mac Pro ($3,299):

• two 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon 5500 series processors with 8MB of shared L3 cache
• 6GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 32GB
• NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 graphics with 512MB of GDDR3 memory
• 640GB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
• 18x SuperDrive with double-layer support
• Mini DisplayPort and DVI (dual-link) for video output (adapters sold separately)
• four PCI Express 2.0 slots
• five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
• Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
• Ships with Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Mighty Mouse

Apple intros new iMac line

Apple completely revamped it’s entire desktop line today. This included the iMac line. There is even a 24-inch iMac that costs the same as a previous-gen 20-inch model.

The new iMac is now shipping and available through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers

The new iMac and Mac mini lines are now shipping and available through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers.

The new 20-inch 2.66 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,199 (US), includes:

* 20-inch widescreen LCD display;
* 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache;
* 2GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 8GB;
* NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics;
* 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
* a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support
* Mini DisplayPort for video output (adapters sold separately);
* built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
* built-in iSight video camera;
* Gigabit Ethernet port;
* four USB 2.0 ports;
* one FireWire 800 port;
* built-in stereo speakers and microphone;
* Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse.

The new 24-inch 2.66 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US), includes:

* 24-inch widescreen LCD display;
* 2.66 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache;
* 4GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 8GB;
* NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics;
* 640GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
* a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support;
* Mini DisplayPort for video output (adapters sold separately);
* built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
* built-in iSight video camera;
* Gigabit Ethernet port;
* four USB 2.0 ports;
* one FireWire 800 port;
* built-in stereo speakers and microphone;
* Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse.

The new 24-inch 2.93 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US), includes:

* 24-inch widescreen LCD display;
* 2.93 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache;
* 4GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 8GB;
* NVIDIA GeForce GT 120; with 256MB GDDR3 SDRAM memory;
* 640GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
* a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support;
* Mini DisplayPort for video output (adapters sold separately);
* built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
* built-in iSight video camera;
* Gigabit Ethernet port;
* four USB 2.0 ports;
* one FireWire 800 port;
* built-in stereo speakers and microphone;
* Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse.

The new 24-inch 3.06 GHz iMac, for a suggested retail price of $2,199 (US), includes:

* 24-inch widescreen LCD display;
* 3.06 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 6MB shared L2 cache;
* 4GB 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 8GB;
* NVIDIA GeForce GT 130; with 512MB GDDR3 memory;
* 1TB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
* a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support;
* Mini DisplayPort for video output (adapters sold separately);
* built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
* built-in iSight video camera;
* Gigabit Ethernet port;
* four USB 2.0 ports;
* one FireWire 800 port;
* built-in stereo speakers and microphone;
* Apple Keyboard, Mighty Mouse.

Apple intros new mac mini - 5x faster graphics

Apple completely revamped it’s entire desktop line today. This included two new mac minis with 5 times faster graphic performance over the old. The NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics that is also used in the macbook series.
The new mac mini is now shipping and available through the Apple Store, Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorized Resellers

The new 2.0 GHz Mac mini, for a suggested retail price of $599 (US), includes:

• 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB shared L2 cache;
• 1GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable up to 4GB;
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics;
• 120GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm;
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support;
• Mini DisplayPort and mini-DVI for video output (adapters sold separately);
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
• Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000 BASE-T);
• five USB 2.0 ports;
• one FireWire 800 port; and
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog.

The new 2.0 GHz Mac mini, for a suggested retail price of $799 (US), includes:

• 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 3MB shared L2 cache;
• 2GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable up to 4GB;
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics;
• 320GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 5400 rpm;
• a slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support;
• Mini DisplayPort and mini-DVI for video output (adapters sold separately);
• built-in AirPort Extreme wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
• Gigabit Ethernet (10/100/1000 BASE-T);
• five USB 2.0 ports;
• one FireWire 800 port; and
• one audio line in and one audio line out port, each supporting both optical digital and analog.

Blu-ray releases for March 3rd 2009

The top titles are the following:

• Australia
  
• Beverly Hills Chihuahua
  
• Brokeback Mountain
  
• I've Loved You So Long
  
• NFL Super Bowl XLIII: Pittsburgh Steelers Champions
  
• The Silence of the Lambs
  

A larger list can be found here

Sony's CyberShot DSC-HX1 camera. It's official March release.

Sony is got some nice goodies for PMA this year. The CyberShot DSC-HX1 rumors have been floating around for days. It’s the company’s first digital camera with sweep panorama technology for up to 224-degree horizontal and 154-degree vertical panorama shots with the push of a button. It’s also sporting a 20x optical zoom, 1/2.4-inch Exmor CMOS sensor for 10 frames per second at 9.1 megapixel resolution, a Sony G lens and 1080p HD movie recording. It could be out by the end of the month.

For a detailed look, go to the best digital photo site around, DPreview.

No iPods, iPhones allowed in Bill Gates household

This is pretty funny. He is depriving his family of some very cool toys. Sucks being the kids of a billionaire..maybe when they are a little older, they will sneak this stuff into the house like all other good boys and girls.

The three children of Bill and Melinda Gates may not be allowed to have a product from a certain Cupertino-based rival in their home, but that doesn't mean Mrs. Gates doesn't wish for an Apple gadget every once in a while.

Melinda Gates told Vogue in a recent interview that the couple's three children try to have "as regular a childhood as possible,", but that doesn't include Apple's ubiquitous iPod digital music and video player or its cellular companion, the iPhone.

"There are very few things that are on the banned list in our household," she said. "But iPods and iPhones are two things we don't get for our kids."

Gates' husband Bill, of course, founded Microsoft, which sells its own line of digital media players under the Zune brand name. So when it comes to the market-leading iPod, it's look-but-don't-touch for the Gates family, including the three children (aged 12, 9, and 6), and even Melinda herself.

"Every now and then I look at my friends and say, 'Ooh, I wouldn't mind having that iPhone,'" she said.

The Classics on your iPhone

I know there are thousands of cool apps you can download, but this one is pretty sweet. You get 18 books currently with more books coming via a free app update. This from the developer:

“Escape into some of the greatest stories ever written. Experience digital reading in a way that is so natural, and so obvious, it just feels right. It begins with a collection of over a dozen hand-picked, literary masterpieces..”

The Collection:

• The Count of Monte Cristo
• Frankenstein
• Dracula
• Treasure Island
• Pride & Prejudice
• A Christmas Carol
• Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland
• Gulliver’s Travels
• The Time Machine
• The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
• The Call of the Wild
• Flatland
• 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
• Robinson Crusoe
• The Jungle Book
• The metamorphosis
• Paradise Lost
• Hound of the Baskervilles
• More books coming via free app updates!

You can download the app here, and no I don’t get any cut of the sales. The only money I get on the blog would be if you clicked on any of the Google ads placed strategically along the sides:)

Free photoshop like tool on the web

Pixlr is a free online photo editor, jump in and start edit, adjust, filter. It’s just what you imagine!
Here is the link to the editor. If you want the home page, it’s here. I found this great site when watching TWIT this afternoon.

OPPO Starting BDP-83 Early Adoption Program

Got this email from OPPO today concerning the upcoming BDP-83 Blu-ray player:

“We would like to thank you for the tremendous feedback that we have received from the community in response to our first BDP-83 Blu-ray player notification update. There were many great comments, suggestions and concerns which we will try to address in the release of the BDP-83. In particular, we would like to address the Early Adoption Program. We have decided to take a democratic, by-the-people approach to the implementation of the Early Adoption Program. For the initial batch we will randomly choose 50 customers to participate in the Early Adoption Program. These 50 customers will have the opportunity to purchase the BDP-83 for $499 before the official release. After using the player for about a week, they will be required to vote on whether the program should be expanded or suspended based on end-user experiences. If a supermajority (at least 70%) votes in favor of expanding the program, we will expand the Early Adoption Program by another 100 randomly chosen customers. The player will be shipped with a pre-production firmware version. Firmware updates will be available from time to time. The initial 50 Early Adoption Customers will be chosen no later than February 25th using the random number generator at random.org. After being contacted by us, the customer must place the order no later than 3pm February 27th Pacific Time; otherwise the opportunity to participate will be passed on to another customer. A simple “Yes” or “No” vote on whether to expand the program needs to be cast no later than March 15th. Terms and conditions for the Early Adoption Program, as well as the current program status, can be found at our web site: http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-83/EAP.aspx We would also like to take this time to update you on the status of BDP-83 developments. The last two months have been very fruitful, as the player now supports BD-Live (Profile 2.0) and can internally decode Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio formats. DVD-Audio has yet to be implemented through firmware, but we are working diligently on this feature. A preliminary features and specifications list will be available on our web site on Tuesday March 3rd.”

I currently have the Panasonic DMP-BD35 and the older DMP-BD30 in another room. I have also been very happy with the Oppo DV-980H universal player for listening to CD’s and SACD. It’s a steal at $169.00, but the new OPPO BDP-83 will also play SACD’s, so I may be upgrading in the future.

SDV - Will it impact you?

For those of you that don’t have a Tivo DVR, this might not be an issue. But for others(like me), it’s driving me bonkers. My cable company Time Warner has started implementing this thing called SDV, or Switched Digital Video. With satellite providers Dish Network and DirecTV promising so many channels in HD, the cable industry says they need to increase its capacity and “Switched Digital Video” allows them to add more channels without expanding their systems. However, once your cable provider enables SDV, any channel that is “switched” will be blacked out to consumers using a CableCARD in their HDTVs.

This is from the Tivo website:

Switched Digital Video (SDV) is a new technology that allows cable providers to expand the programming you receive by sending certain channels to customer homes only when the channels are requested. If you have a TiVo HD, TiVo HD XL or Series 3 HD DVR with CableCARDs, you could see a blank screen on a number of channels if your cable provider makes the transition to SDV. The good news is that TiVo has worked with your cable provider to develop a solution at no cost to you.

This is what you need to do:

1. Watch for communications about the transition to SDV from your cable company.
2. Call your cable provider to get a FREE Tuning Adapter.
3. Install the adapter by plugging it into your cable line and the USB port on your TiVo DVR, or have a cable company technician install it.
4. Continue to enjoy your TV and TiVo DVR in the same way you always have.

TiVo does not distribute Tuning Adapters – only your cable provider can do that – but with the most current software update, your HD TiVo DVR is fully compatible and ready to display SDV channels as soon as a Tuning Adapter is installed.

Of course my local provider does not have these tuning adapters yet, and has not even announced when they will have them available. So I’m paying for many channels that I don’t receive, which is driving me frickin bonkers. Are you one of these people? I’m going to be switching to DirecTV if this is not fixed very soon.