the rumored "iSlate"

On a report from Reuters there are rumors that Apple's highly anticipated tablet computer is already in the manufacturing stage and the production of the touchscreen device's casing will be in aluminum.

With the upcoming Apple event scheduled for January 27, 2010 the Apple Tablet rumor mill is in high gear. Many think the device will be named the "iSlate" but with the announcement of the hp Slate recently it is hard to tell if Apple would still use any name that involved "slate" in the title. Other rumored names are the iTablet, iPad, and macbook touch.

Last Fall Apple released the Aluminum Unibody Macbook and left the low end white cheap Macbook wanting. This year Apple decided to revamp the entry level laptop by redesigning the shell using the same technology that made the Aluminum Unibody Macbooks a success.

Included with the new unibody construction is the following:

• the thinner, lighter, more rigid construction
• a new built-in battery that lasts much longer
• the removal of all flaps and levers and covers (it now takes a screwdriver to open the back panel)
• a new multitouch glass trackpad
• new Mini DisplayPort video output (rather than mini-DVI)
• combined audio input and output ports (rather than separate audio in and out jacks)

Although we had hoped for a lower price point it seems Apple is content with the $999 price-tag.

Macmall has a lower starting price and sometimes includes a MacMall Preferred Account: No Payments for 6 Months on purchases over $500. BillMeLater: No Payments for 90 Days on purchases
of $250.

OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard

While searching for a cheap macbook keep in mind that you can speed up your new macbook simply by installing Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.

Apple has announced that it's long awaited operating system "Snow Leopard" will be available on August 28th 2009. This is just a few days before it's expected September release but we will take it.

You can pre-order Snow Leopard online.

Shopping on eBay can be exciting, fun and for the new shopper sometimes intimidating. If your in the market for a cheap Macbook for sale then be sure to check out  this interesting article "Buying a cheap Macbook on eBay" that Macbook Watch published on ezine articles.

Macbook Pro

The new Macbook Pro line

Apple re brands all Aluminum Unibody Macbooks into one Macbook Pro line that includes the 13", 15" and the 17" Macbooks. The price on the 13" Aluminum Macbook. Minor speed bumps were also included with the base model going from 2GHz to 2.26 GHz and higher version from 2.4GHz to 2.53 GHz. The price was reduced from $1299 to $1199 on the low end and $1499 from $1599 on the high end. The higher priced 13" Macbook now comes with 4GB of memory as standard.
The new battery on the Macbook Pro line is enclosed and offers up to 7 hours on a single charge( 8 hours on the 17" Macbook Pro)
Firewire and an SD slot is now included in the new Aluminum Macbook Pro line meaning Apple did listen to their customers complaints. The entry level price on the 17" Macbook Pro has been dropped from $2799 to $2499.

Macbook Air

The "cheaper" Macbook Air

The Macbook Air clock speeds have been increased from 1.6GHz to 1.8 GHz and 1.86 GHz to 2.13 GHZ. The price has been reduced $300 on the entry level Macbook Air bringing it to $1499 and a respectable $700 drop in price on the high end model bringing it to $1799

White Macbook

The "cheap" Macbook

The "cheap" Macbook has also been updated with a faster Intel Core 2 Duo processor and advanced NVIDIA graphics. Firewire has also been included in the White Mac Book. An option to upgrade to a significant 500 GB hard Drive has been added. The processor has been upgraded to 2.13 GHz and the memory to 2GB with support up to 4GB.

Snow Leopard

Snow Leopard coming in September 2009

Snow Leopard was finally given a launch date of September 2009 and will have a price point of $29 for current OS X 10.5 Leopard single license users and $49 for the family pack.
Mac users with Intel machines running versions of Mac Os X such as Tiger can purchase the box set including Snow Leopard, iWork '09 and iLife '09 at $169 for a single license or $229 for the family pack.
Apple also announced the launch of the Mac OS X Server Snow Leopard with a price point of $499 that includes unlimited client licenses on Mac, Linux and Windows.

Safari 4

The Safari 4 browser was launched from public beta to the official version delivering a number of enhancements.

Some of the innovative features include the Nitro engine which is capabe of running Javascript up to .5 times faster then Safari 3.

Safari 4 makes browsing more enjoyable with features such as cover flow, Top Sites and full history search.

• Will the new operating system Snow Leopard be released
• New iPhones
• The release of the new iPhone OS 3.0
• Cheap Macbooks otherwise known as a netbooks
• A Mac Tablet or should we say "iTablet"
• updates to the Apple TV
• The biggest question though is the return of Steve Jobs

Snow Leopard should be announced for a release date but hopefully not rushed as the debacle called Vista was.

New iPhones are traditionally announced at the WWDC and Macbook Watch is expecting the same this year.  What will this year's model have that will make current iPhone owners envious is yet to be seen?

Come this week we will find out if there is any truth to the rumors that have been circulating through the Mac community. Macbook Watch will have complete coverage so be sure to return for some exciting news.

On Tuesday Apple released Mac OS X 10.5.7 that includes general operating system fixes that improves the security, compatibility and stability of Macs and is recommended for all users running Mac OS X Leopard.

The Mac OS X 10.5.7 software is available for download through the system update utility or as a separate download at the Apple Site. Specific enhancements are as follows.

General

• Latest security fixes
• Resolves an issue with the Dvorak keyboard layout in Mac S X 0.5.6
• Improves the performance of cursor movement and video playback for recent Macs including Macbooks with the NIVIDIA graphics card
• The inclusion of extra RAW image support for 3rd party cameras
• The accuracy and reliability of Stocks, Weather, Unit Converter and Movies dashboard widgets has been improved
• Some issues when logging into Gmail have been addressed
• Syncing contacts with Yahoo has been improved
• Network performance when connected with particular Ethernet switches that have Flow Control enabled has been improved
• The expansion slot utility for Mac Pro can now report the correct PCIe slot
• Improvements on Finder search results for network volumes that don't support Spotlight searches such as Mac OS X Server v10.4, 3rd party AFP servers and Time Capsule
• Improved reliability of home network directories hosted by Mac OS X Server v10.4
• Several improvements to Client Management and Directory Service

iCal

• Improved stability and reliability when syncing with Apple Mobile Me
• Improved overall reliability with CalDav

Mail

• An issue that might cause the BBC field to incorrectly populate while redirecting the message from the sent mailbox has been addressed
• Addresses sync and reliability issues with Notes

Parental Controls

• Issues with the time limits that might not work right with Fast User Switching and full screen games has been addressed
• Consistent with application restrictions and Parental Controls has been improved

Printing

• Improved printer reliability and stability
• Issues that might cause 3rd party printers to incorrectly print to the wrong paper tray has been resolved
• Non-admin users can now have permission to add and remove printers by turning on Parental Controls and checking "Can administer printers"

Ever since 2001, the Mac OS X has brought more then a 1000 innovative and great features. This should be the last OS X update until the release of Snow Leopard which is rumored to be released or at least announced at the upcoming WWDC in June.

A year ago Apple CEO Steve Jobs was quoted in USA Today that Apple explored the idea of building a 3G chip into the Macbook Air, but decided against it because he didn't want the Macbook to be tied to one specific wireless carrier for using the internet.

Snow Leopard's System Profiler shows support for WWAN at the same level as other technologies offered by Apple, designed directly into the Mac hardware models. This may imply that WWAN services including support for 3G wireless networking may just become a Macbook standard.

What may be of interest is if Apple does build 3G into future Macbooks it is likely that we will see large subsidies against the popular laptop selling at a substantial discount. Macbooks are the perfect choice for this technology and will bring mobile computing to the next level.

With that being said, Steve Jobs has said when he left for his medical leave of absence that he would return in June. We hope this is true and believe that his return will not be a quiet one. Is Snow Leopard on the Horizon in June? How about updated Aluminum Macbooks?

According to macrumors.com buyers guide the timing would be perfect for updated Macbooks as Apple tends to make revisions every 6 months and the long anticipated Snow Leopard should be just about ready.

What are your thoughts and opinions?