Apple to Bring in ARM Port for Mac OS X

Apparently Apple is planning something big and it’s pretty clear from a report by a Dutch intern. The report sheds some light on the fact that Apple just took about 12 weeks to shift or port the operating system kernel of Mac OS X from Intel to ARM. The significance of ARM will be clearer if you can consider the news that Microsoft’s Windows 8 operating system will be featuring in a few ARM based tablet devices, due to be released soon.

What’s behind the idea?

Taking into account Apple’s new idea which ported Mac OS X kernel to ARM, we can safely assume that certain Apple computers is going to have some major updates, in the Operating system of course. We can expect upcoming Apple laptops to have a change in the operating system. Instead of running in iOS, which the iPad and iPhones use, ARM based Apple laptops might come featuring the Mac OS X operating system – the Apple desktop operating system.

One other fact about ARM is that they don’t require too much power, unlike Intel. This means, if the ARM based Mac OS X powered Apple laptops really comes into life, they will be having a great battery life. With the build of a MacBook and low power requirements of the ARM, the new Apple Mac OS X Laptop concept can be given a smaller, slimmer battery, which would considerably reduce the weight of the device as well.

Mac OS X in ARM – The beginning:

It was in 2010 that Apple’s Platform Technologies group started working on the Mac OS X kernel – Darwin, so as to make it run in ARM architecture. Reportedly, within 12 weeks they managed to port Darwin to an ARMv5 compatible processor and made the Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard operating system run in it. But this idea does have competition obviously as Intel is working on increasing the demands for its architecture by improving the horsepower to impress users. However, ARM architecture will also be getting improvements in the horsepower with its low power consumption feature in tact.

Microsoft’s change of plans by making Windows 8 compatible with Intel and ARM platforms is basically intended to stabilize the shrinking market of Microsoft desktop PCs in the West and the East. But Apple doesn't face such problems as Apple computers are apparently the best there is in the business, selling millions of units. Yet they are porting to ARM and considering the use of Mac OS X in their laptops. Apple has always been two steps ahead of the other competing firms and this is exactly why Apple is still at the top. Hopefully, more details on Apple’s plan to run Mac OS X in laptops would be unveiled soon. 

Apple Plans for iPad and Macbook Air

Apple is a company that has always hesitated to undergo more research and innovations in the technological sectors especially the computers and tablet industry. One of the latest developments that are circling across the industry includes Apple working keenly in developing an iPad and Macbook Air model hybrid device.

As per sources, it seems to be absolutely clear that the company is actively working on a hybrid of the successful iPad and Macbook Air laptop. It is in line with the fact that Apple feels that their most successful product iPad has all it takes to satisfy the needs of all those users who might have been interested in such a hybrid combination.

                          

Apple has been closely observing the success of Asus Transformer Prime which is an android tablet that arrived with a detachable keyboard.

Apple observed that even though the hybrid combination of the android tablet lacked certain qualities such as the support for laptop functionalities such as Word Processing as well as spread sheet suite that is present outside of the Google Docs, the device still made respectable sales in the international market. This increases the company’s confidence on the potential and demand that may be existing in the market for such a device.

There are rumors surrounding the industry that iPad3 will have the same form factor as that of iPad2. There are often accusations against Apple that they are not living up to the expectations of the users as far as the design point of view is concerned.

Apple feels that users are looking out for a dramatic change in the design of their products and the introduction of the hybrid combination can very well conceal the accusations regarding Apple not doing anything new as well as interesting. And the hybrid combination of iPad and Macbook Air is expected to create waves in the industry.

Rumors are also surrounding about the possible budget ‘iDevices’ in the future with Apple being pretty sure that the customers will not hesitate paying for premium devices if the users are sure that they will be getting a superior product in return. The company still claims that they are always on the lookout for creating great products having a belief that customers will continue to pay more for them.

The company believes that instead of focusing more on the smartphones market, the company believes that the consumer preference will keep on increasing towards the highly capable devices that the company currently produces.

Apple Releases Security Update for Mac OS X

Competing and dominating Microsoft Windows Operating system is no easy task. But it seemed pretty easy for Apple, as their Mac OS X operating systems are supposedly immaculate in performance; although a few annoying issues are there. But still, the big deal is that Mac OS X operating systems have crossed boundaries and dominated in markets worldwide, even going head to head with Windows and its reputation.

The reason for the success of Apple Mac OS X is significantly because of Apple’s dedication to constantly impress and satisfy Apple users with constant reliable updates for apps and OS, and the technical support they offer. Most Mac OS X operating system users would agree that there are a few issues in the OS, mainly security issues, which should be fixed. Apple apparently answered the call and has released a security update recently.

Supposedly, this security update is going to make major modifications in the OS by optimizing the security and fixing all the issues at the same time. The security fix updates are not just for the Mac OS X but also for certain other products, and hence the update comes in batches. The Mac OS X10.7 Lion operating system security update is the highlight in Apple’s releases as the OS reportedly has a huge number of users worldwide. So obviously, there will be a proportional number of reports mentioning the issues in the OS X Lion as well.

Apple was quick with their response and made it clear that they have analyzed the problem enough to detect a few bugs which can be exploited by users with malicious intent so as to remotely access the personal data of the OS X Lion users whose computers have been infected. Apple, then stated that the new Mac OS X 10.7.3 Lion update will include all the patches necessary to resolve this issue and make your computer secure from unauthorized remote accesses.

Issues in products such as QuickTime will also be fixed if you use the patch. There are vulnerabilities even in a few versions of Apache which haven’t been updated. Hackers can decrypt Secure Sockets Layer encrypted information and access other private data. This has been brought to the public by Kaspersky Labs recently. The security certificates will also be revoked to be trustworthy again by the new Apple update, so that hackers won’t be able to spoof them. 

These are all that has been known about Apple’s security updates. More details will be posted soon. 

Apple Updates Final Cut Pro X Video Tool

Video editing softwares are quite abundant now and this makes it difficult to choose the best video editing software because almost all of the video editing softwares available sport unique features. For Mac devices however, there is no need to think of any other better video editing software, when there is Final Cut Pro X. With blazing performance, dynamic media organization, a brilliant timeline, Final Cut Pro X stands tall among all other video editing applications.

Final Cut Pro X – The best in business

Final Cut Pro X is considered to be one of the best video editing softwares ever made. Its instant popularity and rise in demand also made it clear that there are a large number of Mac users, who are into video editing. Although the current Final Cut Pro X has positive feedback from the many users of the app, Apple still does what they do best with their successful products – develop updates to improve functionalities and satisfy the current users.

This explains why Apple recently unveiled latest updates for the Final Cut Pro X application. The users of the old version of Final Cut Pro X wouldn’t deny the fact that although the application offers impressive performance and a variety of editing options and tools, it still lacks some support for new generation devices. So basically there are issues with the old version when it is used on par with latest technology integrated devices.

Apple’s latest update for Final Cut Pro X

The Cupertino based World’s most successful company; Apple doesn’t even break a sweat to come up with the best update for the already amazing Final Cut Pro X.

Features of the Latest Final Cut Pro X update:

• New editing support
• Beta support for broadcasting monitoring of PCIe Cards and Thunderbolt devices
• Multicam editing
• Improved Chroma key
• New editing tools providing new functionalities
• Compatible with app-exclusive third party add-ons

With this update, broadcast monitoring is possible in Thunderbolt devices. The new Multi cam editing feature can synchronize up to 64 different angles of photos and videos and it does this synchronization automatically. The Chroma key improvement in the Final Cut Pro X update lets the users manage several sophisticated adjustments in the application. There will be better interchangeability with a number of third-party apps and plug-ins with the improved XML.

Video clips from various different cameras can also be synchronized automatically by using audio waveforms, timecodes, date and time and there will be a couple of new editing tools as well which would come in handy when working on multicam projects. You will be able to download the update from the Mac App Store.

Apple MacBook Air SSD Gets Faster

Last year, the Thailand floods affected Apple’s business due to the global shortage of hard disks. Solid state hard drives replaced ordinary hard drives, but at a slow rate. Using solid state drives would make the host computers so much faster that the system will even boot up in a jiffy.

It was Apple which actually made SSDs famous, by including them in the Mac systems, technically. More people came to know about it and the demand for SSD increased, hence increasing Apple Mac devices with SSDs’ demand proportionately. However SSD’s doesn’t usually come in great sizes. The memory capacity will be comparatively small, but the computer will be very much fast, in accessing and running applications to booting up.

Reportedly, Solid state drives are nothing like it has ever been thanks to the efforts from companies like Samsung and Toshiba.  At the CES 2012, Samsung’s and Toshiba’s booths showcased their respective versions of the SSD storage solutions. It is Samsung and Toshiba that provide SSDs for Apple’s MacBook Airs. The new 470 OEM SSD from Samsung seems to have caught Apple’s attention and reportedly, news came out pretty soon that Apple is planning to buy Samsung’s new SSDs on a large scale.

Apple SSD SM128C

Toshiba’s new SSDs are comparatively slower than Samsung’s new OEM SSDs. That isn’t the surprise here. According to Samsung’s reports, 470 OEM SSDs got completely sold out late last year itself, which made Samsung take a shot in developing a new 830 Series SSD. The Write speed of 830 2.5 inch model SSD was over 400 MB per second while the read speed was over 500 MB per second.

If you search the speed of the current SSD models in Apple MacBook Airs and compare it with the Samsung OEM 830 models, you will be very surprised and absolutely impressed, because the read and write rates of 830 series SSDs are almost twice more than those of the current SSD model in MacBook Airs. In addition to this, even Toshiba’s new SSD will bite the dust if it goes head-to-head against Samsung’s 830 SSDs.

Samsung also confirmed that its biggest customer is still Apple, which buys 830 Series SSDs. So technically, it is safe to assume that enhanced MacBook Airs will soon be out with 830 SSDs in them, making them twice as fast. However, we also have to consider a possibility that Apple won’t always be relying on Samsung SSD drives for too long. It might go for the easily available Toshiba SSDs, which is developing at a slow rate or continue with Samsung for a risky yet effective team up.

Apple Mac Sales up in US

Apple’s Macs have been incredibly successful since its release, achieved worldwide appreciation, earned a huge number of followers and is the best selling device this year. Apple Macs gained a big reputation, eventually making Apple develop accessories and endorse accessories from other companies as well for Macs.

Apple Mac sales have skyrocketed this year globally. NPD Group has made a report of the Apple Mac sales in the United States. According to the report Apple Macs sales rose up over 13 percent this year.

Apple Mac sales are projected to go up even more after this month. Popular analysts, Gene Munster and Piper Jaffray expect Apple Mac sales growth to far exceed the rate mentioned in the NPD reports, by the end of December.

Apple investors are expecting 5.2 Million Macs to be sold in this month alone, worldwide. This would definitely increase Apple’s Mac sales growth rate topping 25% before the year ends. Apple desktop devices and notebooks sales went up 5% and 9% this year respectively, as per the reports prepared by NPD. Gene Munster has apparently high hopes for Apple Macs, believing that the sales will go further than 5.2 Million Macs this month, making a new record and marking Apple’s milestone in the Macs sector.

This is in the US alone, according to Munster. Apart from the growing sales of Apple Macs domestically, Munster states that Apple Macs are growing equivalently faster in the international market. We can’t argue with Munster’s statement as it is well known that Apple Macs sell like hotcakes in almost all major continents and is one of the most preferred computers at present.

In September this year, Apple sold about 4.89 Million Macs. Quite a few analysts statistically calculated record breaking Mac sales in December. It should also be known that Apple’s iPods sales have gone down this year, but Apple Macs are having a better time and is believed to contribute 18% of the overall revenue of Apple in the December quarter.

Apple Mac Compact Available for Christmas

Apple’s MacBook computers have gained global appreciation and an incredible amount of followers Worldwide and within a short period of time. With the MacBooks gaining this much reputation, Apple constantly tries to make MacBooks, the World’s top best-selling gadgets of all time, by releasing and certifying releases of the coolest accessories for the Macs. Besides these accessories, Apple also develops OS updates for the Macs frequently.

Apple’s marketing strategy also includes launching all ready popular MacBook Air franchise as new limited editions with attractive features, differing even in size. Apparently, Apple is competing with Santa Claus himself as Apple’s new Christmas gift to the World is something cool, unique and pretty small and compact. It is a compact version of Apple’s MacBook Air sharing a similarity in size with iPod Nano.

This new version of MacBook Air is referred to as the MirrorBook Air. Certain facts about this gadget may sound disappointing, but MirrorBook MacBook will definitely win the hearts of Apple fan-girls, probably. The first thing is that Apple hasn’t endorsed it, well, not that much. If you are wondering about how cool such a small device would be with all the awesome technology it is made of, then you are going to be quite disappointed.

The truth is that MirrorBook Air doesn’t come integrated with super cool technologies. As a matter of fact, there isn’t much technology in it to speak of. If you have ideas to present this device to someone close to you, then you had better tell them not to expect MirrorBook to be a miniature version of MacBook Air with all of Apple’s much appreciated features. MirrorBook is definitely a miniature version of MacBook Air. But it is nowhere close to be considered as a small sized Apple MacBook Air.  

The bright side is that it can be used as a pocket mirror. It would make a cute and pretty pocket mirror and girls are going to love it – their very own MacBook model pocket mirror. This would be a great addition to all the fancy stuff you have at your place. If you are wondering about the price, no need to worry as MirrorBook costs only a fraction of the price tag of the real McCoy. MirrorBook Air is quite stylish for its size and would be a great Christmas gift for a girlfriend who loves Apple more than you.

QuarkXPress 9.1 Released for Mac

Something which is growing in popularity as much as the Android operating system is the technology called eBooks. ePublishing is a career option nowadays. If you are good at this stuff and if you are a proud owner of Apple’s iPad, then you can now use QuarkXPress 9.1. This is the latest version of the popular desktop publishing application.

Using this app in your iPad, you can create eZines as well as eBooks. Apart from all the traditional layouts and publishing tools and formats, the new version QuarkXPress 9.1 App comes packed with a number of cool features giving you a wide array of design choices, effectively helping you create the best layout for eBooks and eZines. You will be able to make cool designs of online bookstores and newsstands, make use of all tools at your disposal so as to make them attractive and then use the app to create contents for it as well.

ePublishing is a pretty great idea, giving you a lot of financial profits depending on your idea of the layout and the contents. Apple apparently wants to offer a platform for people who can manage designing and creating ePublishing firms and for capable authors of eBooks. QuarkXpress 9.1 comes with a lot of cool features making use of technologies that can be of very good use to you. Cloner is one of the coolest features in the app which allows users to copy and paste contents in groups to other pages or even layouts also allowing you to split multiple pages layouts to single page ones.

You can use the Linskter tool to link, relink and unlink text boxes without worrying about the usual textbox overflow problems which annoyed you in the previous versions of this app. There are a lot more which you will be able to do with this app, if you are up for creating ePublishments for Apple devices. You can even select a shape for your layouts using the ShapeMaker app which also lets you determine the size of the shapes, in addition to providing shapes like spirals, stars, rounded rectangles, polygons etc.

Even if you are just a print designer, QuarkXpress 9.1 will definitely prove to be a nifty and very useful application or an upgrade if you already own a previous version of this application. If you are up for the task and have passion in ePublishing, you would also realize that using QuarkXpress 9.1 in Apple Mac is kind of fun as well.