OS X Snow Leopard purrs, doesn't roar

The jump from Mac OS 10.4 (Tiger) to OS 10.5 (Leopard) was amazing. Not only was the eye candy given a diabetic boost, the platform jumped straight into 64-bit computing with a host of new features.

But if you are expecting the same treatment for the next iteration, Mac OS 10.6 (Snow Leopard), be prepared to be disappointed. Instead of breakthroughs, Snow Leopard seems to be content being a giant patch rather than a new OS worth waiting for.

The only significant addition is native support for Microsoft Exchange, which is irrelevant to, oh, eight out of 10 consumers out there. You'll hardly notice the other features, which include support for multiple processing cores, up to 16TB of system memory and faster JavaScript implementation.

Frankly, the preview of Apple's next operating system is a yawner, but we're crossing our fingers that Apple is are saving the best for Macworld next year.

Via Apple

Western Digital reportedly working on 20,000rpm hard drive

While many are marking 2008 as the year of the solid-state hard drive, Western Digital seems to be saying if it doesn't spin, it's crap. The company is reportedly developing a 20,000rpm Raptor drive--double the rotational speed of its current Raptor lineup--to combat the increasing popularity of SSDs.

While a 20,000rpm drive might compete on performance with SSDs and offer greater capacity, it would seem to be moving in the opposite direction when it comes to energy efficiency--another chief benefit of the SSD set. Also, heat and noise concerns grow as the revolutions per minute increase. To the end, Western Digital is said to be working on housing that will not only dissipate the heat output, but also dampen the noise. The drive will reportedly feature the same design as the VelociRaptor--2.5-inch platters inside a 3.5-inch enclosure.

It's too early to say when we might see a 20,000rpm Raptor drive, but I would suggest RATT's Round and Round for use in the marketing efforts. When the going gets tough, the tough get hair metal.

Via CNET Crave

WWDC 2008: iPhones, 10.6, and a new .Mac?

Expect to hear new details about the future of Apple's Mac OS X and Web business next week at the Worldwide Developers Conference--and we think there might be a new iPhone, too.

On Monday, Apple CEO Steve Jobs will take the stage at the Moscone West Convention Center in San Francisco to address a gathering of Apple's developers and the media. This year's WWDC is sold out to the development community, who will be hearing formal presentations by Apple on both Mac and iPhone development during the week's sessions and meetings.

Anyone with even a passing interest in consumer electronics is probably aware that Apple is expected to unveil the next generation of the iPhone in the near future. The older version has been sold out for weeks as we approach the anniversary of the first model's debut, and anticipation of a model that can connect to 3G cellular networks has been building almost since that date last year.

One of the primary drawbacks of the first iteration of the iPhone has been its reliance on the slower EDGE network outside of Wi-Fi hot spots, which can make downloading a Web page an exercise in patience. Upgrading to a faster connection should encourage people to do more Web browsing outside of Wi-Fi connections and could open up a whole new class of applications that need a faster pipe to work effectively.

Apple is also expected to include GPS technology inside the latest version, another development that could pique the software development community's interest in the iPhone. Location-aware services are available on several phones that use GPS technology, and the iPhone developers could soon be ready to join the party.

Will the new iPhone be available immediately following Jobs' keynote? It's not clear. There have been conflicting reports, but Brian Tong of CNET TV is hearing from his sources that Apple Retail employees have not yet been told whether they'll need to report early on Monday for a special training session, which the company has done in the past before major announcements.
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ASUS' all-in-one PC: The Eee Monitor

Pictures of the Eee Monitor, the upcoming all-in-one desktop PC from Asus, have surfaced.

A PC World reporter at the Computex tradeshow in Taipei snapped a few photos of a company slide showing the Eee Monitor. Head here for the images.

It appears quite iMac-esque--shiny and white with a minimalist design. And although ASUS isn't confirming a price just yet, it's a fair assumption that the Monitor, part of ASUS' Details surfaced in January suggesting a US$499 price point. The Eee Monitor is supposed to use Intel's Shelton platform and include a TV tuner, and a display between 19 inches and 21 inches.

It should be available in September, which is almost a year after new all-in-one PCs from Dell and Gateway began to hit the market.

Via CNET Crave

Optimus Maximus maker is at it again

The adventures of Art Lebedev's keyboards continue. We thought there might be a lull in news from the Russian design firm now that it has gone to market with its Optimus Maximus, the most-hyped keyboard of all time. Silly us. Now the company is already onto its Next Big Thing, the "Optimus Popularis."

Although it's still very much a work in progress, Electronista says it differs from the Maximus by not using OLED displays, though some keys will have symbols that change with different software. The Popularis is also smaller, though don't expect the price to be tiny. All that's been said is that it will be under US$1,000. Such a bargain.

Via CNET Crave

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