Apple Releases OS X Lion, Refreshes MacBook Air, Mac Mini, Introduces Thunderbolt Display

Archives For Tag 'Mac Mini'

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Thursday, 21st July 2011

Apple Releases OS X Lion, Refreshes MacBook Air, Mac Mini, Introduces Thunderbolt Display

Posted by Lester Chan at 10:41 in Gadget, Hardware, Software

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OS X Lion
Mac OS X Lion is finally released, it cost USD$29.99 in the Mac AppStore. I was downloading this at 11MB/s (megabytes not megabits) yesterday night! If you have a slower Internet connection, Lion will be made available on a USB thumb drive through the Apple Store (Singapore) for SGD$88. Mac OS X Lion is the eighth major release of Mac OS. It has more than 250 new features such as new Multi-Touch gestures, system-wide support for full screen apps, Mission Control, Mac AppStore, Launchpad and a new re-designed Mail app.

It seems that Xcode 4.1 (AppStore link) is free (usual USD$4.99) for OS X Lion only and FaceTime is included in OS X Lion (AppStore Link) (usual USD$0.99).

Website: Apple (Singapore) – Mac OS X Lion
Mac AppStore: Mac OS X Lion

MacBook Air
MacBook Air now includes the Intel Sandy Bridge Core i5/i7 processor, Thunderbolt I/O and backlit keyboard. It also seems that the white MacBook is phrased out in favor of the lowest end MacBook Air which starts at SGD$1,288. MacBook Air supports Bluetooth 4.0 with Bluetooth Low Energy.

11-inch: 64GB – SGD$1,288
- 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
- 2GB memory
- 64GB flash storage
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
11-inch: 128GB – SGD$1,588
- 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
- 4GB memory
- 128GB flash storage
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
13-inch: 128GB – SGD$1,688
- 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
- 4GB memory
- 128GB flash storage
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
13-inch: 256GB – SGD$2,088
- 1.7GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor
- 4GB memory
- 256GB flash storage
- Intel HD Graphics 3000

Website: Apple (Singapore) – MacBook Air
Shop: Apple Store (Singapore) – MacBook Air

Mac Mini
Similar with the MacBook Air, the Mac mini also receives the updated Intel Sandy Bridge Core i5/i7 processor and Thunderbolt I/O treatment and it seems that the optical drive got ditched by Mac mini. The death of CD is sooner than you think! Also Mac mini supports Bluetooth 4.0 and Bluetooth Low Energy. In the higher end Mac mini (SGD$1,088) discrete graphics (AMD Radeon HD 6630M) is being supported for the first time.

2.3GHz: 500GB – SGD$788
- 2.3GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
- 2GB memory
- 500GB hard drive
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
2.5GHz: 500GB – SGD$1,088
- 2.5GHz dual-core Intel Core i5
- 4GB memory
- 500GB hard drive
- AMD Radeon HD 6630M
2.0GHz: Dual 500GB – SGD$1,348
- 2.0GHz quad-core Intel Core i7
- 4GB memory
- Dual 500GB 7200-rpm hard drives
- Intel HD Graphics 3000
- OS X Lion Server

Website: Apple (Singapore) – MacBook Air
Shop: Apple Store (Singapore) – MacBook Air

Thunderbolt Display
Looks like Apple rebranded Cinema Display to Thunderbolt Display. It now supports Thunderbolt and acts as a docking station for MacBook Pro/Air with a Thunderbolt cable and MagSafe connector. It is a 27″ monitor (16:9 – 2560px x 1440px) with LED backlight and IPS panel. It has built-in FaceTime HD camera and microphone to make video calls and ambient light sensor to adjusts your screen brightness accordingly. It is going for SGD$1,348!

Website: Apple (Singapore) – Thunderbolt Display (27-inch)
Shop: Apple Store (Singapore) – Thunderbolt Display (27-inch)

Tags: 2.7, Apple, lion, Mac Mini, MacBook Air, OS X, Thunderbolt

Tuesday, 15th June 2010

Apple Refreshes Mac Mini

Posted by Lester Chan at 19:02 in Hardware

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1,997 views

Apple has quietly refresh Mac Mini the same time the iPhone 4 is ready for pre-order (today). The lime light has been stolen by iPhone 4 and hence there are no leaks or generated interests to the refreshed Mac Mini.

Mac Mini Front View

Mac Mini Back View

The new model brings about the aluminum unibody, adding in a SD card reader and a HDMI port. The graphics card has been upgraded to NVIDIA GeForce 320M (256MB) as well.

Mac Mini with Intel Core 2 Duo 2.4GHz, 2GB memory and 320GB HDD starts from SGD$1,088.
Mac Mini with Intel Core 2 Duo 2.66GHz, 4GB memory and 2x500GB HDD starts from SGD$1,588.

Official Page: Mac Mini
Singapore Apple Store: Mac Mini
Press Release: Apple Unveils All New Mac mini

Tags: Apple, Mac Mini

Tuesday, 3rd March 2009

Apple Refreshes Mac Mini, iMac, Mac Pro

Posted by Lester Chan at 23:18 in Hardware

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3,260 views

Mac Mini
Mac Mini now comes with Intel Core 2 processor and NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics card.

2.0GHz : 120GB
- 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 1GB memory
- 120GB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
- SGD$988.00
2.0GHz : 320GB
- 2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 2GB memory
- 320GB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
- SGD$1,349.00

iMac
iMac now comes in 4 flavors, one 20 incher and three 24 incher powered by Intel Core 2 processor and NVIDIA GeForce 9400M or NVIDIA GeForce GT 120/130 graphics.

20-inch: 2.66GHz
- 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 2GB memory
- 320GB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
- SGD$1,948.00
24-inch: 2.66GHz
- 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 4GB memory
- 640GB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics
- SGD$2,448.00
24-inch: 2.93GHz
- 2.93GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 4GB memory
- 640GB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 256MB memory
- SGD$2,888.00
24-inch: 3.06GHz
- 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
- 4GB memory
- 1TB hard drive
- 8x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 130 with 512MB memory
- SGD$3,488.00

Mac Pro
Mac Pro now comes powered by Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem” processor and NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 512MB graphics and equipped with a Mini DisplayPort and dual-link DVI port on the graphics card for flexible display options.

Quad-Core
- One 2.66GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem” processor
- 3GB (three 1GB) memory
- 640GB hard drive
- 18x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 512MB
- SGD$3,988.00
8-Core
- Two 2.26GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon “Nehalem” processorso
- 6GB (six 1GB) memory
- 640GB hard drive
- 18x double-layer SuperDrive
- NVIDIA GeForce GT 120 with 512MB
- SGD$5,288.00

MacBook Pro
Apple also quietly bumped the speed of the upper end 15 incher MacBook Pro from Intel Core 2 Duo T9400 2.53GHz to Intel Core 2 Duo T9550 2.66GHz while maintaining the same price of SGD$3,988.00.

AirPort Extreme Base Station / Time Capsule
The new AirPort Extreme Base Station retailing at SGD$268.00 and Time Capsule retailing at SGD$448.00 (500GB) / SGD$748 (1TB) allows simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi and guest networking.

Simultaneous dual-band Wi-Fi
For maximum range and compatibility, AirPort Extreme works simultaneously on both the 2.4GHz and 5GHz bands, allowing all the devices on the network to use the most efficient band automatically. And AirPort Extreme uses the latest 802.11n wireless technology so you can enjoy up to five times the performance and up to twice the range of 802.11g wireless networks.

Guest networking
Now you can set up a separate Wi-Fi network with a separate password for your visitors. Simply enable the new guest networking feature, and your guests can use the Internet but can’t access other parts of your private network, such as your computers, printers, and attached hard drives.

Links (Apple Singapore)