News Bits: Apple MacBook Refresh Soon, Cancer Awareness VAIOs, Sprint WiMax Plans Crumble

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Apple to refresh MacBooks

The introduction of Mac OS X 10.5 is getting closer as the release date of October 26 nears. Think Secret is reporting that the MacBook will be refreshed around that time and consumers should be able to get them during the first half of November. It is unknown whether the MacBook will receive a faster processor or an overhaul to the Santa Rosa platform.

Read More (ThinkSecret)

Sony intros pink laptop, donates to breast cancer research

In support of National Breast Cancer Awareness month, Sony has introduced a pink 14.1-inch VAIO CR-series notebook. It starts at $1369.99 and features an Intel Core 2 Duo T7500 processor, 200GB hard drive, DVD burner, 2GB of RAM, integrated graphics, and a built-in 1.3 megapixel webcam. Sony will donate $75 for the sale of each laptop.

Read More (Engadget.com)

Optiarc introduces Blu-ray drive for notebooks

Optiarc has introduced a Blu-ray drive for &quot;mid-range&quot; laptops. The BC-5500A drive will read and write both CDs and DVDs but will only read Blu-ray discs, hence the lower price. It is currently going for $335.

Read More (Engadget.com)

The must-have laptop gear

PCWorld is running an article designed to save you time and money when shopping for laptop accessories. Which ones do you really need to make your computing experience as smooth and as efficient as possible?

Read More (PCWorld.com)

 

Wall Street May Force Sprint to Curtail WiMax Plans

Sprint has one of the largest and fastest 3G cellular wireless networks in the United States, and the company is in the process of rolling out a 4G network using Mobile WiMax.

Unfortunately for this telcom, its leading-edge technology hasn't resulted in it gaining new customers. On the contrary, its subscriber base has actually declined in recent years, along with its share price.

As a result, Sprint's chief executive resigned on Monday. Gary Forsee had been the driving force behind this telcom's plan to have a nationwide WiMax network in place by 2010, and some are urging his replacement -- who has yet to be named -- to re-think the plan.

Critics of the Xohm service point out that it will cost $5 billion to put in place, is based on unproven technology, and do nothing about the the company's short-term problems. Defenders say that in the long term it will bring in many new customers by offering a mobile Internet service that's as fast as a DSL connection.

Those who are against the WiMax plan urge the new CEO to either slow down the process or even sell its assets to another company. Sprint can't completely drop the project, as it has purchased the rights to use portions of the wireless spectrum earmarked for WiMax.

As decision on the fate of the Xohm service won't be made until Sprint has found a new CEO.

 

Chaz, just a minor "correction"...the October 26th release date for Leopard is still speculation, this is no confirmation on that yet from Apple. So maybe its best to write "...as the rumored release date of October 26..." .

 

Well, looks like WiMax just hit a huge speed bump.



Then again, with Apple, Hewlett Packard, and Dell yet to sign up for the standard, one can only wonder what information may be hindering the introduction or future success of WiMax.

 

damn, only reads blu ray

 

Actually, that isn't such a bad idea that BR drive. Still too expensive, but it is a start for sure. Who actually has a need to burn 50GB of data? Who actually trusts a disc with such a high density (yet!) for critical backups and transfers?

Anyway, $335 to upgrade a laptop to be able to play BR isn't too bad...but it pales in comparison to the XBOX 360 HD-DVD price of around $150-175. Yes, apples and oranges here...but for people that don't play movies on the go the HD-DVD drive is the better choice price-wise.

 

I hope the Macbook gets a complete overhaul, including being thinner and lighter, LED screen, and discreete graphics.

 

Hm yeah, it's minor but worth noting. The article I sourced seemed to take it for truth but we'll find that out soon enough.

 

so your hoping that they update a mb to a 13" mbp, i dont think this will happen because apple will try and keep a clear distinction between its mb and mbp imo.

 

That is true...Apple will want to distinguish between the professional MBP and the consumer MB.

However, what Apple might do is reposition the MacBook so it targets the prosumer market (similar to what they did with the iMac)...if so, then Apple may just turn the MacBook into the 13-inch MBP.

 

That would be interesting. Just convert the consumer models into lesser-priced (and lesser-config, of course[and still around the same price of the older generation MacBook]) prosumer models.

Considering one of the talks is that the new MacBook will have aluminum casing, it could be a possibility.

 

If this is just a simple refresh and not a new Macbook design I'm going to be sad.

 

Blu-Ray needs a really fast computer with power saving off for smooth playback, so mobility is not that big of an issue.