Apple has updated it's iBook and Mac mini lines, adding souped up hardware to both.
The new iBook starts at US$999 / £699 and is available with either a 12.1" or a 14.1" XGA screen running at 1024x768; the rumoured widescreen models remain under wraps. The iBook now sports a 1.33GHz or 1.42GHz processor, and 512MB of RAM as standard - about time too, since OS X is horrendously slow with the previously fitted 256MB.
Both iBooks now have wireless cards as standard, presumably to compete with Centrino a little more. The graphics cards have also been updated from Radeon 9200s to Radeon 9550s which will make, well, a bit of a difference we suppose. We know the Radeon 9200s don't support the fancy desktop rendering technology in the latest version of the operating system, Tiger; we're not sure if the 9550 does either.
The Mac mini, starting at US$499 / £359 also has faster processor, more memory, a bigger hard drive, and the ability to kit it out with a DVD burner. Unfortunately, it is still stuck with Radeon 9200 graphics - Apple really missed a trick here to make this version fully Tiger compatible.
With beefier hardware, both low-cost systems now represent even better value for money, bundled not only with the XP-beating OS X operating system, but includes all the software you need to start work out of the box: Mail 2, Safari 2 browser, DVD Player 4.5, and Quicken 2005, as well the award-winning iLife suite of iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie HD, iDVD and GarageBand.
Does this update tempt you to join the Dark Side? Or is the iBook just too... feminine for you? Let us know What you think.
The new iBook starts at US$999 / £699 and is available with either a 12.1" or a 14.1" XGA screen running at 1024x768; the rumoured widescreen models remain under wraps. The iBook now sports a 1.33GHz or 1.42GHz processor, and 512MB of RAM as standard - about time too, since OS X is horrendously slow with the previously fitted 256MB.
Both iBooks now have wireless cards as standard, presumably to compete with Centrino a little more. The graphics cards have also been updated from Radeon 9200s to Radeon 9550s which will make, well, a bit of a difference we suppose. We know the Radeon 9200s don't support the fancy desktop rendering technology in the latest version of the operating system, Tiger; we're not sure if the 9550 does either.
The Mac mini, starting at US$499 / £359 also has faster processor, more memory, a bigger hard drive, and the ability to kit it out with a DVD burner. Unfortunately, it is still stuck with Radeon 9200 graphics - Apple really missed a trick here to make this version fully Tiger compatible.
With beefier hardware, both low-cost systems now represent even better value for money, bundled not only with the XP-beating OS X operating system, but includes all the software you need to start work out of the box: Mail 2, Safari 2 browser, DVD Player 4.5, and Quicken 2005, as well the award-winning iLife suite of iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie HD, iDVD and GarageBand.
Does this update tempt you to join the Dark Side? Or is the iBook just too... feminine for you? Let us know What you think.
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