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How to mod a MacBook Nano (Black&White), pics-a-plenty!
- Thread starter iSamurai
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There might be another reason why Apple doesn't want to go the cheap route... environmental.
When you spend $300 on a laptop you don't care as much so you end up beating the crap out of it. Then it eventually ends up in the landfill sooner than necessary. And those $300 laptops aren't exactly made to Apple's new environmental standards and are manufactured with all kinds of hazardous and cheap junk.
One of Apple's best strengths imo is selling stuff that lasts longer than your average PC—at least its useable life is. (I'm typing this on a 5+ year old MDD G4.) Ever since the Intel transition, imo Apple's quality has dwindled a bit but is still better than most PC makers.
And before anyone poo-poos this, go watch last week's 60 minutes special on companies shipping e-waste illegally out east. It's really tragic.
When you spend $300 on a laptop you don't care as much so you end up beating the crap out of it. Then it eventually ends up in the landfill sooner than necessary. And those $300 laptops aren't exactly made to Apple's new environmental standards and are manufactured with all kinds of hazardous and cheap junk.
One of Apple's best strengths imo is selling stuff that lasts longer than your average PC—at least its useable life is. (I'm typing this on a 5+ year old MDD G4.) Ever since the Intel transition, imo Apple's quality has dwindled a bit but is still better than most PC makers.
And before anyone poo-poos this, go watch last week's 60 minutes special on companies shipping e-waste illegally out east. It's really tragic.
Instead of designing and releasing a $300 netbook, Apple could design a $300 netbook and sell it for $600. It would sell in droves, expand Apple's overall market share, and maintain their profit margin. Especially in a time when $1300 notebook computers are going to increasingly be viewed as an unaffordable luxury.
How has Apple been showing 'so much' emphasis on reducing the lineup? As their market share grows, it is inevitable that they will gradually expand their product lineup.
I'm not saying they will or won't, but there is a credible market here if Apple chooses to target it.
Are you kidding? People buy cases for iPod Shuffles.
People care about Apple stuff because of industrial design, not because of the cost. Apple could introduce a 'premium netbook' that runs OS X pretty well and people would take care of them.
I have a MSI Wind clone (Advent 4211) running OS X, runs it perfectly except for the normal hacintosh bugs such as forgetting about the battery kext etc. Of course it feels every bit like a £279 laptop, the case creeks, the keyboard isn't great, the webcam is off centre in it little hole and the internals are squeezed into the case to the point where it's hard to close it after you take it apart.
Still I don't worry about scratching it, it has 3 USB ports, ethernet and my wallet is heavier, hence why I don't miss my Air too much
These units are built with lowest-possible cost parts to meet the lowest possible price point, a race to the bottom.
Apple could take that basic MSI (in terms of CPU and basic specs), spend an extra $50 to dramatically boost the external design, and mark it up to $500 or $600 and sell a ton. They could still get a decent margin on these units, and sell enough units to offset the lower price-per-unit.
This could actually be the best switcher machine. Many people seem to buy netbooks to complement their existing desktops or even notebooks. It's a peripheral machine, so why not give a Mac a try then?
Once someone tries a Mac netbook and likes it, there's a good chance of getting an iMac or MacBook sale down the road...
what i love is when the people that get upset are all like "oh come on, apple would never make a keyboard like that" or "oh apple, doesn't use backspace" congratulations, you're just smart enough to realize it's blatantly fake. however, you're just shy of being smart enough not to wig about it.
aww. It's so wonderful to have this topic posted on the front page of Mac Rumours and Gizmondo
Besides that, I just thought (while in the middle of writing my exam this morning):
You know that Apple's been sporting the chiclet keyboards (the keys that look like independent flat squares) recently. So, how are they going to make that for the smaller version? The keys would be packed, just like a conventional laptop. Although there's similar closer-packed keys like the Voodoo 133... I really hope that they won't do make any virtual keyboard onscreen... sometimes tried-and-trusted is better.
Besides that, I just thought (while in the middle of writing my exam this morning):
You know that Apple's been sporting the chiclet keyboards (the keys that look like independent flat squares) recently. So, how are they going to make that for the smaller version? The keys would be packed, just like a conventional laptop. Although there's similar closer-packed keys like the Voodoo 133... I really hope that they won't do make any virtual keyboard onscreen... sometimes tried-and-trusted is better.
I like the idea- perfect size for a back-of-trainseat table, and could hook it up to a desktop monitor when I get home or to the office. Providing the next generation could run Snow Leopard (even if it doesn't get any extra benefit from it- it's a case of future-proofing), and ideally iLife 09, then I don't see what more I'd need! Apple might not like hacintoshes but as long as I'm buying a legit copy of OSX for merely personal use I don't see what moral leg Apple has to stand on...
Tangent - the discussion was about a claim that Dell was just as proprietary as Apple, not the merits of operating systems.
You have the option to buy a large Apple laptop. Nobody will force you to buy a netbook if a larger system is right for your needs.
If, however, you wanted a small Apple laptop - you don't have that choice. If you want a small Apple, you're forced to choose between a large Apple or a netbook from another company.
Unfortunately, none of these look "interesting". A group of 3rd graders could come up with something more unique than these lame mock-ups.
I'm surprised that people aren't complaining about Firewire. I mean, come on guys, the complainers here complain about the MB Air lack of firewire, and the new MB lack of firewire. But people point to this as if it's the next big thing.
yawn.
That would require actual reading versus fulfilling a geeky wet dream...
Well, as you probably know people actually are using homebrew bioses on a number of boards and devices. People also reflash the bioses on their Macs' optical drives to bypass the region change lock-in. I know I have, so I do not accept that point as it stands but that was not the point I was making.
The board in my Dell is available directly from its manufacturer with its default bios and all functions enabled. Dell has reflashed it with its proprietary locked down bios. It is analogous with Dell using its own connectors on the hardware to limit the choice for peripherals and internal components to what Dell deems suitable.
All of this can be bypassed. I could reflash the bios at a cost of my warranty and I could buy adapters to increase my choice of hardware. The point is I should not have to.
Please send me a pointer to a description of how to write your own motherboard BIOS. That would be interesting.
I hardly think that it's comparable to putting a mini-DisplayPort on a system, or ADB or ADC or....
Dell is going for mass market reliability, and if that means removing the bits that let you fry the mobo - then good. All vendors qualify the hardware, and sometimes that involves requesting bug fixes and feature changes in the firmware.
Clearly, you sound like someone who knows enough not to buy a Dell, and who knows how to build your own.
well
Apple is doing what they are doing best.
Good Design+Good Marketing+Tons of Lies+Tons of Hypes+A Pair of Horse Glasses= Fanboys who love to pay Double the Market Rate Priced Hardwares
I am wondering if Apple continues same pricing+hype+lies strategy, how long the current momentum will last...
Apple knows right now that they will never sell a netbook at 300$ range... why i know this is because if you want to do a 300$ (market prices, check it if you dont believe)SSD drive upgrade in an Apple Laptop costs 1000$, make the calculation, and you will find that an SSD drive in an Apple netbook, should worth 300$ alone... what is the price of screen? memory? lcd? mobo? case? you calculate the rest...
But wait, Apple will inded make a Netbook, and sell for say 600-700 range and will sell like how people drink water.... Because there are enough amount of blind, horse glassed people in the world with tons of money in their pocket, with little brain to "think" at all...
Apple is doing what they are doing best.
Good Design+Good Marketing+Tons of Lies+Tons of Hypes+A Pair of Horse Glasses= Fanboys who love to pay Double the Market Rate Priced Hardwares
I am wondering if Apple continues same pricing+hype+lies strategy, how long the current momentum will last...
Apple knows right now that they will never sell a netbook at 300$ range... why i know this is because if you want to do a 300$ (market prices, check it if you dont believe)SSD drive upgrade in an Apple Laptop costs 1000$, make the calculation, and you will find that an SSD drive in an Apple netbook, should worth 300$ alone... what is the price of screen? memory? lcd? mobo? case? you calculate the rest...
But wait, Apple will inded make a Netbook, and sell for say 600-700 range and will sell like how people drink water.... Because there are enough amount of blind, horse glassed people in the world with tons of money in their pocket, with little brain to "think" at all...
Actually, this is what I think Apple might do. Netbooks are a pretty good concept- cheap hardware can run modern OS's pretty well. But Apple would make it out of better materials, better keyboard, etc. (all of which adds up to $50 tops), and then mark the unit up to $600.
It's the same exercise as taking the $1000 HP, and making a $2000 MacBook Pro out of it.
In both cases they are touting the superiority of OS X, iLife, etc. but those add little to the actual manufacturing cost.
TOO HEAVY!!!
1 kg is too much weight. What is needed is a TRUE POCKETABLE MAC with a FULL Mac OS X 10.5.5 inside (not a mere OX X!). Something like this (just 454 g and 5-inch display) but with Mac OS X inside:
OQO model 02
OQO model e2
http://www.oqo.com
or even better, like this:
Next Apple moves will be Books and Games…
http://spidouz.wordpress.com/2008/09/03/next-apple-moves-will-be-books-and-games
Because even the MacBook Air is too heavy and large for us. What for? We do NOT need such pocketable Mac for heavy work on it. We need it as the ultimate Mac to carry Keynote and PowerPoint NATIVE files for full blown presentations (transitions, animations, etc) on wired and wireless video-projectors on classrooms, scientific meetings, home, etc. Just make the presentation on your Mac, save the NATIVE file to the pocket Mac and carry the latter and only the latter for the presentation. The same presentation experience as when using a laptop, but with only 454 g or so and in your pocket.
We need thousands for our University.
1 kg is too much weight. What is needed is a TRUE POCKETABLE MAC with a FULL Mac OS X 10.5.5 inside (not a mere OX X!). Something like this (just 454 g and 5-inch display) but with Mac OS X inside:
OQO model 02
OQO model e2
http://www.oqo.com
or even better, like this:
Next Apple moves will be Books and Games…
http://spidouz.wordpress.com/2008/09/03/next-apple-moves-will-be-books-and-games
Because even the MacBook Air is too heavy and large for us. What for? We do NOT need such pocketable Mac for heavy work on it. We need it as the ultimate Mac to carry Keynote and PowerPoint NATIVE files for full blown presentations (transitions, animations, etc) on wired and wireless video-projectors on classrooms, scientific meetings, home, etc. Just make the presentation on your Mac, save the NATIVE file to the pocket Mac and carry the latter and only the latter for the presentation. The same presentation experience as when using a laptop, but with only 454 g or so and in your pocket.
We need thousands for our University.
OK, sure.
But now I completely agree with the notion that Apple wants to appear more environmentally concerned - these netbooks go against that grain at the moment. End of story. Apple is being greener.
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@ Marx.... I can't tell if you're kidding or not. 1 kg too heavy... I certainly hope you're kidding.
@ Marx.... I can't tell if you're kidding or not. 1 kg too heavy... I certainly hope you're kidding.