Illini Apple Center

LightScribe Pulse Smart Pen

2009-01-09T10:25:00.000-08:00

This was one of the busiest booths on the entire show floor, and certainly the most crowded. I couldn't even get enough time with the product to take a picture! But I can't leave this amazing product out. It's the most useful tool for anyone to take to a lecture or meeting. You use it on specially printed paper, either from a preprinted notebook or that you've printed yourself on your inkjet. It records everything you write, as you write it. Not only that, it can record audio at the same time, and keep it in sync with the notes. It comes with a USB cradle to sync the notes and audio back to your computer. Once the data is there, you can listen to the audio and it will show you which note you were writing at that moment. As if all that isn't enough, it can translate what you're writing into another language or perform simple math calculations, and display the results on the pen itself, before you even sync.

Dragon-i iPod Dock

2009-01-09T10:17:00.000-08:00

Just like last year, I have to show one of the stranger products that we WON'T be stocking. This is called the Dragon-i. It doesn't sound that bad, but it's pricey. I've seen docks that cost half as much that offer better sound. Still, you have to give them credit for building something that looks so different from every other iPod dock out there.

Iomega Drives

2009-01-09T10:08:00.000-08:00

Now that Iomega has been acquired by longtime Mac software vendor emc, they seem to be paying a lot more attention to Mac users. Check out their array of external hard disks for Macs. Besides solutions obviously designed to match the Mac Pro, Mac Mini, and MacBook Air, there are some other great options. The two drives with the black rubber harnesses on them are actually designed and tested to survive a fall from seven feet! It really seems like they've put a lot of thought into this line. Toss in the fact that they include great software like Retrospect, and these drives are very appealing. Plus they were showing off their upcoming Home Media Network Hard Drive which integrates so well with itunes it's almost as if Apple themselves designed it.

Iqua vizorSUN

2009-01-09T09:45:00.000-08:00

This is amazing. A hands-free bluetooth car setup that clips to your visor and is powered by a solar panel. No more attaching and detaching somethng, or running another cable down to your power socket. Just one simple, slick device with no cables. This makes it simple (and legal) to use your phone in your car.

Verbatim Speaker Keyboard

2009-01-09T09:41:00.000-08:00

This is a perfect accessory for the Mac Mini. It's a keyboard with built in speakers. It also features a slick blue backlighting, music controls, and a single USB cable connection for all of its functions. Of course it has the Mac keyboard layout with correctly positioned Command, Option, and Control keys. Neat idea.

iSkin Fuze for iPhone

2009-01-09T09:32:00.000-08:00

This is my new favorite iPhone case. It's beautiful, with a soft, colorful inner layer and a hard, clear outer layer. This means it will protect the phone without grabbing onto pockets. Available in several different colors, it does seem the best fusion of other soft and hard case attributes.

Griffin AirCurve.

2009-01-09T09:20:00.000-08:00

This iPhone stand surprised me. It's a beautiful yet inexpensive clear stand for the iPhone which also passively amplifies the small speakers built in to the bottom of the iPhone. While serious audio listening will still require an actual speaker dock, this makes other iPhone sounds like Alarms, Ringtones, and incoming Text Messages much louder and more clear. In fact, Griffin claims a 10 dB improvement, which means these sounds are twice as loud. It also has a pass-through slot for a charger cable. This is perfect for iPhone users (like me) who occasionally miss calls and alarms because they leave the phone in another room.

Speck See Thru Satin Cases

2009-01-09T08:28:00.000-08:00

Speck, who makes one of our most popular accessories, the SeeThru Hard Case, had some new twists on that concept. In addition to new models to fit the new MacBook and MacBook Pro, they also introduced a new satin finish. The new finish feels slightly soft to the touch, eliminates a lot of the plasticky gloss, and generally makes the product much better.

JBL OnTime 200P

2009-01-09T08:24:00.000-08:00

The JBL OnTime 200P is easily the best sounding Alarm Clock dock I've seen. It's also fully iPod and iPhone compatible, and comes with a handy remote to control both the iPod and the Audio System. Plus it has an AM/FM Tuner, so you can listen to the radio, too.

JBL OnStage Speaker Docks

2009-01-09T07:54:00.000-08:00

JBL Speaker docks are consistently among the best sounding mid-priced docks out there. What makes them really impressive is that they get their rich, full sound out of incredibly small, beautiful packages. The OnStage IIIp, above, is the latest in the popular OnStage line, now with a full remote. It is small enough to take with you when travelling, and can run from batteries as well as wall power. It works great with all docking iPods and iPhones, without triggering the annoying Airplane Mode dialog or allowing digital interference from the phone.

The OnStage 200iD is a larger cousin to the IIIp. It shares many of the same features, including the great sound, the remote and full iPhone compatibility. This model is larger, and requires wall power at all times. It is more powerful, though, and can fill a larger room with beautiful sound.

STM Slip Notebook Case

2009-01-09T07:44:00.000-08:00

This case is great for people who take their MacBook everywhere with them, set up, do a bit of work, and then break back down to head to the next place. Students going to class, for example. It's a bit more substantial than a neoprene sleeve, but still light and compact. It actually straps to the notebook, and you leave it on as you use it. When you need to use your machine, just unzip the sides and open it up. It has a small compartment for a few cables, and a handle to make it easy to carry.

STM Evolution Backpack

2009-01-07T09:40:00.000-08:00

Anyone who knows me knows I've used the same old laptop bag for a decade. That's about to change. This backpack is amazing. It comes with a rain cover which is stored in a compartment on the bottom of the bag, and can be deployed to keep your stuff dry in even the worst of storms. There are compartments for everything, including a well-padded one for your laptop, plus others for your cables, ipod, books, phone, and more. The laptop stays hidden while you're grabbing a book. It's incredibly comfortable, with light yet effective padding that makes even a full load easy to carry. This is easily the best thought-out computer backpack I've ever seen.

DriveSavers live demo

2009-01-07T08:39:00.000-08:00

DriveSavers was actually doing a live demo of their data recovery technique. They set up a quasi-clean space, took a hard disk apart, showed how to examine it with a microscope and stethoscope. Impressive stuff. Obviously, you should always back up your stuff, but if you need them, it's good to know people like this are there for you.

LightSpeed Web Store 2.0

2009-01-07T08:20:00.000-08:00

Our Point of Sale developer, Xsilva, is showing off upcoming changes to their product LightSpeed. The new Web Store is impressive, and will enable a lot of improvements to our website when it's released. In addition to very slick drag and drop ordering, it allows live order and repair tracking. This is huge. Any customer who has a custom order coming or a repair checked in with us will be able to head to our website and get a real-time summary of what we're working on for them.

They were also showing upcoming changes to the main LightSpeed Application, including a slick new front end and an interface that will allow other developers to create additions to the software like an improved Global Service Exchange module. All this should speed up our ordering, check-out, and repair creation processes.

Targus File Transfer Cable

2009-01-07T08:07:00.000-08:00

Another simple yet useful idea: the File Transfer cable. This is neat because it works on both PCs and Macs, and all the software is built into the cable itself. It's the perfect solution for people who are migrating a lot of data from Windows to a Mac, or who have to move documents back and forth across platforms regularly. It's much easier and faster than creating a network share between the machines. The only limit to how much you can transfer is the available hard disk space on the destination machine. It's also significantly faster than using a flash drive. The machines in the image have a bunch of other stuff plugged in, too. This cable is the skinny grey one with the blue LED on the larger left hand connector.

MacAlly Keyboards

2009-01-07T07:58:00.001-08:00

These are really inexpensive, yet feel nice and have the traditional Mac key layout and labels, including important keys like Command and Option which tend to be mapped in strange ways on keyboards that were made for Windows. They are available in wired and a bluetooth wireless that takes advantage of the built-in bluetooth on virtually all modern Macs. These are perfect for people who want more traditional keys, a full number pad on a bluetooth keyboard, or just a less expensive alternative to the aluminum Apple keyboards.

MacBook Pro Battery

2009-01-07T07:46:00.001-08:00

OK, this is probably more technical than most people care for, but it really shows how much better the new battery is. And after all, I AM a technician.

A little more research showed that the new 17-inch MacBook Pro's battery is a 95 Watt Hour unit. This compares to 68 Watt Hours in all previous 17-inch models. The demo I was able to play with out on the floor showed an actual full charge capacity of 12758 mAh, which is much higher than any portable Mac made until now, almost three times what my own MacBook Pro has, for example.

Scosche passPORT

2009-01-07T07:04:00.000-08:00

Here is a simple yet incredibly useful product. It allows the newest generation of iPods and iPhones, which can only charge over USB, to work with older accessories that provided power through FireWire. There are actually many speaker docks, car kits, and other accessories like this. Some were made as recently as last summer. The passPORT is an inexpensive and easy solution to keep them current.

New iLife 09

2009-01-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

iPhoto is to die for. The "Faces" and "Places" features add so much organizational power to this already impressive app. And the Facebook and Flickr integration make it so much easier to share your images.

GarageBand is very cool. The Lessons actually draw in brand new musicians - people who haven't previously been able to use this application. Apple's framework for teaching is an impressive new use for this already powerful Application

iMovie seems much more powerful than before, too. From technical features like applying audio from one clip over another and smoothing out camera jitter to features that create a polished finished product like the Themes and Maps, this App makes home movies exciting. The themes feature is especially cool, creating a very dynamic movie from raw footage in almost no time.

Well, back to the show to find more.

More MacBook Pro

2009-01-06T12:10:00.001-08:00

I'm actually really excited about the changes they've made to the battery. I need to go back and find out exactly what the capacity is, but having a 1000-cycle expected life instead of the previous 300-cycle is a huge improvement. Also, having 7-8 hours of life instead of the previous 4-5 really means each cycle is worth a lot more. Not to mention the convenience of being able to work away from an outlet for three more hours than before. The solid bottom panel to this laptop just adds to the sleek look and feel, unlike most PCs where the bottom is a mishmash of panels, vents, screws, and stickers. I'm sure it is also contributing to the solid feel, which is unlike any 17" laptop I've ever encountered. It is impressive.

Macworld Show Floor

2009-01-06T12:07:00.001-08:00

The excitement is everywhere. There are still tons of eager Mac users, enthusiastic presenters, and curious local Media. The floor is busy and interesting. Although I've only really hit Apple's booth so far, there is a ton more to see.

New Macbook Pro

2009-01-06T11:49:00.000-08:00

Wow. I'm in. The show has the same energy as always, with tons of eager Mac-fanatics, enthusiastic vendors, and of course media everywhere.

First off, since I'm a hardware guy, I had a chance to play with one of the new 17-inch MacBook Pros. They only have four demo units here on the show floor, so I was lucky to get a bit of time to play with it. It feels amazingly solid, much like the 13-inch MacBook and 15-inch MacBook Pros introduced in October. This is an especially impressive feat for a large machine like this.

The new model weighs 6.6 pounds, which is a slight reduction from the previous model's 6.8. Also very impressive given how solid it is. Build to order options include an antiglare screen, faster 2.93 GHz Core 2 Duo Processor, 8GB of RAM, and various hard drives and solid state drives. Right now they're predicting a ship date at the end of January, though that is subject to change.

Macworld Keynote Coverage

2009-01-06T09:01:00.000-08:00

I'll be heading for the show floor as soon as it opens, 11AM PST, which is actually 1PM back in Illinois. Until then, I recommend Engadget and Gizmodo for the best coverage. I can't wait to see what's in store!

Macworld 2009

2009-01-04T19:24:00.000-08:00

I'm packing up and getting ready to head to San Francisco for Macworld 2009. Although I won't be providing live keynote coverage this year, expect many posts from the meetings and show floor from Tuesday through Friday this week, with a wrap-up over the weekend.

Despite Steve Jobs not providing the keynote speech, I'm very excited about what Apple and others have in store. The rumors surrounding Apple's upcoming products are intriguing to say the least, though I'll refrain from commenting until the announcements become official. AppleInsider and MacRumors both have plenty to mull over for now.

I'm always excited about the opportunity to discover new third party products and services, too. Lots of the products on our shelves today started out as "Wow! That's cool!" moments at shows like this one. I think the iPhone Accessory market has become far more mature in the past year, and I'd like to find several new items to bring back with me. Of course, as a 21-year Mac user, I'm always interested in new third party solutions for Macs, too.

So check back here all week and head over to the Illini Apple Center in Champaign over the coming weeks to see all the greatest new stuff from Apple and others.

How the MacBook Air Stacks Up

2008-01-31T09:16:00.000-08:00

As a recent college grad (i.e. poor), I was a little disappointed when I heard the price point for the new MacBook Air. The Air would actually be my dream laptop to supplement the iMac that sits on my desk, but at $1799, the Air seems out of reach.

It would be easy to jump to the old stereotype that Apple is over-priced (which turns out to not be true if you compare the specs), but if you compare the MacBook Air to the other ultra-light laptops it turns out to be a pretty darn good deal.

I grabbed that chart from the Apple Insider. See all that blue in the MacBook Air column? Those are features that beat out the other notebooks. Turns out the Air is high on features and low on cost. That chart doesn't change the contents of my wallet unfortunately, but I can pretty confidently call the MacBook Air a good buy and I can't wait for them to ship so I can play with one in our store.

~Ben

Unofficial: 1.1.3 Update Restores Bricked iPhones

2008-01-20T13:26:00.001-08:00

This may be good news for you hackers out there who attempted to unlock your iPhones only to have them rendered completely useless after installing firmware updates. Several users have reported their iPhones being restored to working condition by the 1.1.3 update. From what I gather, you should take these steps:

Put the iPhone into recovery mode.
Connect the iPhone to your computer and perform a restore/update with iTunes.
Activate your phone with your original AT&T SIM card.
Restart the iPhone.

NOTES:

I have not tested this myself as I do not have a hacked iPhone.
The 1.1.3 update also reportedly breaks hacks that previously allowed you to install third-party apps and use the iPhone with other providers.
Apple does not officially state that the update will unbrick a hacked phone, but rather maintains that this is an unfortunate side-effect of having to rewrite the iPhone's firmware.
Neither Apple nor the Illini Apple Center recommends breaking your EULA by hacking your iPhone in any way.

~Ben

Sources: Gizmodo, ars technia, TUAW

Another MacWorld....

2008-01-19T22:31:00.000-08:00

... come and gone.

Big thanks to Tim for the live updates, great photos, and insiders look to the floor. Thanks ryan for being to ultimately awesome! And of course thanks Ben, and everyone else who helped make this possible.

That being said, please come back and visit! We're planning a lot more for this site in the coming [insert amount of time here]! Everything from upcoming specials and sales at the Illini Apple Center, Ask a Tech (email service@illiniapplecenter.com with questions!), tips for proper computer and Mac OS X maintenance, and fun hacks and shortcuts. We hope to be your source for both general and C-U local Apple info!

Speck

2008-01-17T16:40:00.001-08:00

Speck is one of our favorite case vendors. They had this impressive booth full of cool new stuff. Look for more from them in our store soon.

Creative PlayDock

2008-01-17T16:34:00.000-08:00

This is the best iPhone friendly speaker dock I found. It won't be out for about three more months, but works so perfectly with the phone that it's worth the wait. No digital static, beautiful interface, and great sound. It does great with the other dock connector ipods, too.

ModBook

2008-01-17T16:30:00.000-08:00

By special request, here's the Axiotron ModBook, a MacBook that's been converted to a tablet with the display on top. Seems decent for people who need to draw or sketch a bunch, but I didn't like the text input on this. Because this is an aftermarket rebuild of the computer, it ends up being kind of expensive. Still, for now, it's the only Mac tablet.

Show floor from above

2008-01-17T16:29:00.000-08:00

Melty

2008-01-17T16:27:00.000-08:00

Here's an iMac that DriveSavers was able to recover all the files from. They had an entire room of success stories like this. We're going to be partnering with them for more difficult data recoveries, where the disk is physically damaged beyond our capabilities to deal with it.

I heart LightSpeed

2008-01-17T15:08:00.000-08:00

This one is mostly for the staff of our store. Here I am with Dax Dasilva, the creator of LightSpeed and President of Xsilva. He even recognized my name!

My favorite accessory

2008-01-17T15:02:00.000-08:00

For an iPhone user like me, this is the best idea ever. A headphone extender cable with a mic and button to replace the one on the included earbuds. With this, you can use any set of headphones you want and still have all the hands-free phone and remote control capabilities of the original earbuds.

Cool Sonic Impact Speaker Dock

2008-01-17T14:36:00.000-08:00

This thing had impressively loud and clear sound, even on the noisy show floor. Plus it looks way cool.

Other Worldly

2008-01-17T14:29:00.000-08:00

Here's one of our favorite vendors, Other World Computing. If you want anything from them, ask us. We can order, install, and support all sorts of great products from them.

Build a fort with your data

2008-01-17T14:24:00.001-08:00

This one has been around for awhile, but it's the first time I've seen it in person. These are three hard drives stacked like Lego blocks, also from LaCie

Hub Monster!

2008-01-17T14:17:00.000-08:00

This is one of the craziest USB hubs I've ever seen, from LaCie.

Daylight and LightSpeed

2008-01-17T14:10:00.000-08:00

Two of my favorite high-end business Mac apps now work together. If you're interested in either Point of Sale or business grade contact management, I can guide you to the right people.

The iRack is smoking!

2008-01-17T13:26:00.000-08:00

For everyone who loved that MadTV keynote parody, there is actually a product called an iRack. It's much less exciting than the one from the show, just a power supply for a rack of servers, but I still couldn't believe someone used that name.

See ya tomorrow!

2008-01-15T19:33:00.000-08:00

I'm heading out to the Macworld Blast party at the Warfield now, even though I have a bunch more to post. By the time I get back, I will have been up for about 21 hours, so I'm signing off the blog until midday tomorrow to get some much needed sleep. One final post, an item we will NOT be carrying, the strangest thing I've seen all day - a miniature tent for your laptop, to protect it from the sun and elements. They really do have everything here.

MacBook Air Continued

2008-01-15T19:23:00.001-08:00

Notice how well the power supply cable tucks in under the curved left edge. I think it's much safer there than with previous designs

MacBook Air Power Supply

2008-01-15T18:59:00.001-08:00

Small, sleek and round, this goes very well with the laptop. Note the very sturdy neck where the cable meets the MagSafe connector

MacBook Air Demonstration Table

2008-01-15T17:37:00.000-08:00

Dumb joke

2008-01-15T17:35:00.001-08:00

Here's a crazy display of MacBook Airs held up by a thread...... almost like they were floating in air (get it?)

Moscone South

2008-01-15T17:30:00.000-08:00

Yes, this thing is so big that it fills two multi-level buildings entirely. The south hall has most of the exhibit space, including the Apple Booth full of MacBook Airs and freshly updated AppleTVs, iPhones, and iPod touches.

Preview from the show floor

2008-01-15T12:05:00.001-08:00

I only went onto the show floor for a few minutes after the Keynote, but I'll be heading back real soon to play with all the new Apple stuff in person, and scope out other great products for the store. Check back here later today for pics and updates.

Homer Pod

2008-01-15T11:51:00.000-08:00

An iPod ad-style Homer Simpson silhouette listening to a donut with headphones behind Fox's CEO. (or is it CE d'oh?). Steve is off to the left. Next time I'll take a better camera and maybe position myself better around the video screens in order to get good Steve shots.

Reality Distortion Field is the best feeling ever

2008-01-15T11:37:00.000-08:00

Some pics from the keynote while I collect my thoughts and upgrade my iPhone

Oops

2008-01-15T11:31:00.000-08:00

I had anonymous comments turned off. sorry all! fixed.

I'm currently downloading the new iPhone software. I'm excited.

Just talked with Tim and h'e sback at his hotel, where he was some internets. he will be updating soon

And it's done.

2008-01-15T10:41:00.000-08:00

No one last thing?

Oh well! the Air is awesome. According to Tim, the Reality Distortion Field is the best high ever!

And now, if anyone has any questions, feel free to ask here on come on in to the Illini Apple Center. I'll be the one drooling.

encore? (reload often! individual posts updated every few seconds)

2008-01-15T10:29:00.001-08:00

Special Treat... guest.....

Randy Newman on stage

movie music writer

performing

Item 4: In the air

2008-01-15T10:08:00.001-08:00

MacBook Air (!) - The world's thinnest notebook

[

MacBook

MacBook Air

MacBook Pro

]

(and everyone fell silent on the internet)

13 inch display, full sized keyboard

.76" to .16" back to front

hes pulling it out of a document envelope..... it's aluminum!

unrecognizable port on the right side...

magnetic latch

LED backlit 13.3 display

Built in iSight Full size backlit keyboard

and.. .Multi-touch gesture trackpad! move windows, rotate photos, pan, zoom, pinch....

Really nice! (from tim: "I called it Oren! 1.8 inches? heh")

80 GB hard drive standard, 64 GB flash optional

tiny logic board

inte core 2 duo 1.6/1.8 GHz

bottom comes off for service. look very tech friendly (yay!)

intel CEO on stage.. credits apple for inspiration for smaller core 2 duo

processor is "thick as a nickel and wide as a dime"

MagSafe on the left, with USB, micro DVI, and audio out on right

$99 external SuperDrive

don't see firewire or ethernet....

steve explaining lack of optical drive...

Remote disc to use mac or pc optical drive

can install mac software from windows optical drive.

Just install a bit of software in any mac or pc andallow the Air to take control of its optical drive and mount discs wirelessly on the air's desktop as if they were local

battery life: 5 hours

weight: 3 pounds

2gb RAM standard

802.11/n + Bluetooth

$1799

ships in 2 weeks!

Order today!

there's an envelope TV ad.... very cool

environmental: mercury and arsenic free : )

main boards are bromide and PVC free

recapping... prepping for "one more thing" encore??

remember: reload often!

2008-01-15T09:55:00.001-08:00

Apple TV take 2! (item 3)

2008-01-15T09:44:00.001-08:00

no computer needed.

rent directly from the TV

DVD and HD qualaity rentals with Dolby 5.1

photos from Flikr and .Mac

Buy tv shows and music on your Apple TV, and sync them back to your computer

HD movie rentals: $3.99 and $4.99 (library / new release)

All new apple TV interface

"every HD TV needs this"

Free HD previews, built in reviews and recommendations

ready to play in seconds... demo of this... does start very fast. (of course he has a fast connection...)

The interface is 'beautiful... must see' according to tim

Also has a podcast browser

Video, HD video, music, all streamed free and live

Apple TV uses a live photo stream from .mac or Flickr as a screen saver, or browse live, from your couch, without a computer

you can connect to your Flickr contacts and friends

oops! steve's video died!

you can buy music form your Apple TV

free software upgrade for current Apple TVs. Everything new for all Apple TV owners. Software upgrade will come out in 2 weeks

New Price for Apple TV: $229

He's bringing the Fox chairman onstage...

more ways to watch. DVD with included iTunes content

steve's back....

item 3: iTunes

2008-01-15T09:36:00.000-08:00

Movie rentals! from EVERYONE! even Universal! all major studios!

Library titles and new releases! 1000 releases by the end of February. 30 seconds to start watching once you click.

Movies rented for 24 hours. you can transfer the movies between devices (!)

Prices: $2.99 for "Library"

$3.99 for new releases

30 days to start watching. once you start, you have 24 hours

you can watch them on the Mac, PC, all current gen iPods....

... and the new Apple TV take 2!

iPod touch

2008-01-15T09:34:00.000-08:00

5 new apps for the iPod touch: mail, maps, stocks, notes, weather.

Maps uses wifi hotspots (Skyhook) for location, even on the Touch.

all these for $20 to upgrade your current iPod touch. free for all new ones

here goes!

2008-01-15T09:16:00.001-08:00

No wireless, but I'm getting a good stream from tim via his iPhone.

Steve is on stage right now doing a recap of 2007.
He has 4 main points:
1.Leopard
been a great release. over 5 million copies
Time machine.
Companion.... Time capsule...
Airport extreme & hard disk in one
back up all your macs. 500 GB for $299 (new product!)

item the second: iPhone. 20,000 sold per day for 200 days (!)

new updates to the iPhone: you can change the location of your buttons on the home screen. you know have webclips. the SDK is coming out in february. Maps has been updated. Your location on maps is a big improvement (I look forward to pictures of this!). You can drop a pin on any map to remember it's location.

Finally! multi-recipient SMS text messaging!

Web clips on the iPhone allows you to add up to 9 web pages (or parts of web pages) to your home screen

The leak about the "wiggle" for customizing your homescreen has been confirmed. more info later. I'll get picks or video.

Find your location automatically! iPhone uses wifi hotspots and cell towers to triangulate your location!

Chapter guides on videos, lyrics on songs, all free today, for every iPhone!

let's hope they have wireless : )

2008-01-15T09:10:00.000-08:00

They're finally starting to seat people for the keynote. Go Tim!

Line moved inside

2008-01-15T07:46:00.001-08:00

Latest update from the line...... everyone here seems as excited as kids about to open their presents on Christmas morning

In line

2008-01-15T06:23:00.000-08:00

The line is actually great fun, a chance to hang out with fellow Apple lovers.... I'm on the right.

In line for the Keynote

2008-01-15T03:45:00.001-08:00

As of 3:20AM PST I've joined the faithful in line for the Keynote. The
line is nearly a block long, and there are satellite trucks all along
the street. I've done the show floor before, but never the Keynote.
I'm very excited.

introducing: the apple razr?!

2008-01-14T22:32:00.000-08:00

Not sure about this one, but it come's from the folks at Wired, who tend to try to publish things that are reliable. Check out their last minute rumors!

possible leaked photo, and let's remember to call tim this morning!

2008-01-14T22:13:00.000-08:00

I'm not sure of the validity of this photo, but it's a purported leak of the new Macbook Air.
Sure looks lightweight! Let's hope Apple's release is a little more developed, however.

And let's all remember to try to call Tim tomorrow morning, so he wakes up in time to make it to the Keynote! (N.B. his alarm is set for 2:30 am PACIFIC TIME)

But don't worry if he can't make it (HE WILL!!)... a live feed from Apple Education will be differently awesome, and at least as pertinent to everyone here at the UofI.

Either way, I'll remind everyone that we will have a live chat in the store tomorrow during the keynote. If anyone has any questions they'd like to ask our man on the scene, please stop by!

'twas the night before Macworld

2008-01-14T19:16:00.000-08:00

I finally made it down to San Francisco, checked in to the hotel, and registered for the conference. These hardy souls are already forming the beginning of the Keynote line. They warned me that if I was not in line by 4 AM that it wasn't even worth trying. That free breakfast and live feed at Apple Education sure sounds tempting, but I've had dinner, set a 2:30 wakeup call and will be in line half the night and into the morning to be sure I'm there in person.

Apple.com Update

2008-01-14T13:42:00.000-08:00

Apple.com has just updated their website with a teaser for tomorrows keynotes. The teaser confirms the "There's something in the air" campaign, and promises to allow you to watch the keynote on their website. It is a pre-recorded - not live - keynote, however.

Rumors!

2008-01-14T10:26:00.000-08:00

Many of you may have heard the rumors about Apple releasing an ultra-portable notebook this year at MacWorld. Well, the rumors may be born out: we had heard rumors about the new notebook being called the Macbook Air, and there's definitely something in the air!

There are a few technical considerations for an ultra-portable that have generally kept them from being too popular. I'm looking forward to seeing how Apple engineers have addressed these issues. For one, optical drive tend to take up a lot of room. Don't be surprised if it uses an external DVD-RW/CD-RW drive.

As far as making a notebook thinner, the hard drive is an important factor. The current 2.5" SATA drives used in Macbook's and Macbook Pro's force those machine's to their current depth. We know, however, that Apple has considerable experience with the 1.8" hard drives they use in their iPod classics, and the capacity of those drives just keeps getting bigger.

As for the rumors about a multi touch trackpad: I'd love to see one, but i'm not going to hold my breath.

Getting ready to head down to San Francisco

2008-01-14T10:21:00.000-08:00

I'm getting really excited for Macworld. I've been out in California for a few weeks now, for the Rose Bowl and then visiting friends in Sonoma County.

But anyways, my vacation is over, and it's nearly time to head down to San Francisco for my helping of Apple flavored Kool-Aid. I've been reading all the rumors like everyone else (AppleInsider has the best ones, though MacRumors is good too). I'll be checking into my hotel, registering for the show, and crashing out early tonight. I've gotta be up ridiculously early to try and get into the live keynote. If that doesn't work out, I've got reservations at a live Apple Education feed and brunch, so I'll be able to relay stuff either way. I'm going to try and run a live chat with Ryan at the Illini Apple Center during the keynote, where everyone in the store can ask their questions and I'll relay as much of the experience as I can. Tuesday evening there is the Macworld Blast! party at the Warfield, a legendary venue in San Francisco that I'm very eager to see. On Wednesday afternoon there are a bunch of tech workshops and talks I'll be going to, so I'll know how to take care of all of the new stuff they'll be introducing this week. Thursday there are presentations by David Pogue and Andy Ihnatko, two of my favorite Apple-centric writers. Mixed in during every spare minute will be the enormous show floor, where they have basically every product available for Macs and iPods. I'll make sure to get all the best ones ordered as soon as I'm back in Champaign, so stop by the store over the next several weeks to check them out yourself. But first, keep checking back right here for all the latest updates!

Welcome to the Illini Apple Center Blog v0.1a

2008-01-11T15:08:00.000-08:00

We will be posting updates live from MacWorld! More info coming soon! Check back here for updates, or view our website