Lots of folks are shopping for new laptop computers right now (me included), so I thought I would put down a few words on what I consider to be the key elements separating a great buy from a mistake. This is only my own opinion, of course, and my Apple- and storage-geek status might taint the results. But what can you do? It’s my blog after all!
Apple
Are Hybrid Hard Drives A Good Alternative To An SSD?
How well does the Momentus XT perform in a Mac laptop? Focusing on lower cost and greater benefit without getting taken in by the coolness of SSDs or hybrid drives, let’s weigh the merits.
Amazon Is Still The Best Place To Buy Office 2011 For Mac
I already called out Amazon as the “go-to” place to buy Office 2011 for Mac OS X, but when the official Office for Mac blog spilled the beans on Black Friday deals, I had to take a look. Sure enough, Amazon.com is still the cheapest place to get Office 2011.
LaCie Releases USB 3.0 Driver For Mac OS X (But It Only Works With LaCie Drives)
Steve Jobs isn’t too keen on USB 3.0, apparently, but other vendors are stepping in to fill the void. CalDigit was first with a USB 3.o driver, but it was tied to the pricey PCI Express and Mini-PCIe cards they sell. Now LaCie is out with a free driver for just about any USB 3.0 card, but it’s locked to LaCie’s storage products. Let’s hope we get an unlocked driver soon!
The Tablet Wasteland and the iPad Oasis
Last year, as the pre-release hype around the iPad was reaching its peak, dozens of companies announced their own tablet computers or “pads”. Some predicted doom for Apple’s device even before it was released. After all, how could premium-priced Apple compete with the volume PC makers and all the factories in China? Pretty well, it turns out. Almost a year later, no tablet has even come close to Apple’s mighty iPad, and it currently boasts 95% market share. Where are the iPad killers?
