The Lion Has Finally Arrived!

Image courtesy of cultofmac.com

The long-awaited Mac OS X Lion has finally arrived to consumers yesterday. The last big update on the OS was about 2 years ago. The Lion has many new features (you can it ‘em all here) that can make our experiences with Mac better.

Am I upgrading? Well, I’m fully satisfied with my current Snow Leopard 10.6.8 and why fix it if it ain’t broken? The Lion might be riddled with bugs since it’s just a day old and real world test with real world users IS the actual test.

I might wait for a while until the dust has settled, and thinking of paying US$29.99 for Lion makes my heart skips a beat. Moreover, I’m not eligible for the free upgrade as I bought my MBP last April.

Nevertheless, being a gadget guy, it won’t be long for me to embrace Lion. Heck, maybe tomorrow I’ll be downloading it from App Store. Now, where did I put my spare US$30…

BTW, did anyone tell you that you can’t buy OS X Lion from the stores? Well, you have to download it from Apple App Store and it’s about 4Gb! If you’re lucky enough to have unifi, then happy downloading!

Can’t wait for my Mac OS X Lion upgrade!

The new OS X Lion will be available in July 2011 via Mac App Store

It was something that I’ve been waiting for, and for ages. When I was a Windows user (yes, you have to start somewhere too), I’ve always dream of a more user-friendly and easy to use Operating System (OS), and Windows 7 is almost there. But being Windows, it prone to memory crashes and fatal errors. When I finally found Mac OS in 2009 (via MacBook), I’m hooked!

What I like about the new Mac OS X Lion:

• it cost only $29.99 (that’s about RM90.90) and that’s farking cheap!;
• downloadable only via Mac App Store and 4Gb in size (break out your fast broadband!);
• multi-touch gestures (just like when using MacBook’s touch pad);
• full screen apps (view you apps in full size and browse to your desktop without having to minimise your current app (brilliant!);
• mission control – brings all your full screen apps together in a page;
• launchpad – new home screen for your apps;
• airdrop – something like bluetooth and able to send files to other people;
• check out all the 250 new feature here.

Check out the Apple video about the new OS X Lion. And go get it if you’re game. I know I will.

Apple’s iPad Keyboard Dock

I’ve been using this iPad keyboard dock for a while now, and I guess it’s time for a short review.

The iPad keyboard is an official Apple device and was made by Apple in China, just like all the iDevices. Unlike the bluetooth or the infrared docks available in the market now, this dock requires no battery or any power source whatsoever, as it sap (!) power from the iPad itself. You can also charge the iPad while using the keyboard dock by using the dock connector port at the back. There’s also a connector for connection to external speakers.

Here it is...

From Apple’s sales brochure:

With the iPad Keyboard Dock, you get a useful home base for your iPad. It combines a built-in aluminum Apple keyboard with a dock for syncing, charging, and more. It also works with other iPad accessories, such as the iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter and the iPad Camera Connection Kit.

The attached keyboard features a sleek anodized aluminum enclosure with low-profile keys that provide a crisp, responsive feel and an ultracompact design that fits on even the most crowded desk. Special keys provide one-touch access to a variety of iPad features — the Home screen, Spotlight search, display brightness, picture frame mode, the onscreen keyboard, and screen lock.

Unboxing...nice plastic packaging inside the box...smells good too

Packaging is superb and very minimal (very Apple-like), where there’s only the dock, USB cable and a small booklet inside the box. I think Apple can make the box smaller, but probably to not complicate things during shipping, they stick to a rectangle box.

Looks good in real-life

From my first impression during the unboxing (ironically at Austin Chase Coffee The Gardens), the dock is solidly built and not too heavy for carrying and not too light for operation (if it’s too light, the dock will moves around while you’re typing). Built quality is top notch (expected from Apple, again), with a clever usage of plastic and aluminum to make it some sort of a premium product (just like their MacBooks, iPhones and iPads). There’s no sample dock at Machines (where I bought the dock), so there’s no sample set to check before buying. Minus point for Machines.

Have I mention that the dock is a full-sized keyboard? If you own a MacBook, then you’ll feel at home. It’s very comfortable to use the chiclet keys and you’ll rarely missed a key. To make the keyboard looks even better, it was made to be as low profile as the MacBook Air.

Connecting the dock with iPad

Connecting the iPad to the dock is very easy, aligning the iPad with the connector and you’re good to go.

Now for some real life world usage of the keyboard dock. How do I feel about the dock? Well, I’m quite happy and comfortable with it but (yeah, there’s a but) I think Apple should incorporated some improvement on the keyboard itself and not to concentrate too much on the shell design.

It charges the iPad too

I can only wish that:

• The angle of the iPad is adjustable;
• The iPad can be used horizontally too;
• The dock should comes with a carrying case or something like that. It’s a bit weird having to carry the dock inside your laptop bag;
• Larger base at the back of the dock – equals to steadier stand for the iPad;
• Apple sells the dock cheaper, so I can buy two – one for my office and one for home.

But overall (despite the shortcomings), I’m happy with my RM229 purchase. You can get the iPad keyboard dock at Machines or online at Apple Malaysia.

Looks good from the back too

Pros: Excellent built quality; easy to use straight from the box; durable.

Cons: Can be cheaper; sometimes there’s lag while using dock (you press a key and nothing happen); keyboard can be a bit hot when using for extended time; no horizontal mode; hard to carry around.

I’m sorry for the bad photos as I’m using my backup phone (Nokia E5 – fixed focus) to photograph the review.

Cool iPad 2 Unboxing

Do you want to iPad?

Not sounding like a gadget blog, I’ve finally get my hands on the much talked about gadget, the Apple iPad. I’ve owned several other Apple products, namely the MacBook laptop and the iPods (Classic 160Gb, Photo 30Gb & iPod Nano 3G), and when I heard that Apple is coming out with a tablet PC-kindathingy, I just can’t wait to try it out (the iPhone still eludes me).

Another winning product from Apple?

The iPad is owned by Had and I got to play with it for several days. When I first hold the iPad, I was expecting something like the weight of the iPhone. But how wrong was I. The iPad is HEAVY! Just make sure your little kid not holding it on his/her own, as he/she can easily drop it. Weighing at 0.68kg, this device is not actually light. As a yardstick, try holding it using one hand for a minute. If you hand feels tired, then it’s heavy for you.

iPad 16Gb Wifi

But with a screen size of 9.7″, there’s a lot of space to view your apps. Unlike the Samsung Tab, the iPad is large enough for old age people like me to read the screen comfortably. I still can’t get used to the weight, but let’s get on to the rest of the mini-review.

Besides the pre-installed applications, you can always download more at Apple Store. If you don’t like paying for an app, there’s always the free ones, whether it’s a trial, incomplete or 100% working copies, Apple Store is the place to be.

Let me ask you something. Why do you buy the iPad? Is it because everybody else have one? Is it hip to have one? Or are you one of the early adopter in your circle of friends, and wanted to be the first to have the iPad? Whatever the reason, people are buying it by the bucketload. It can’t be denied that Apple makes good and desirable products. And we always buy one even though we don’t really need it. Just like me and my three iPods.

Acres for applications

I still feels that the iPad is a glorified iPod Touch. Imagine playing with an iPod Touch, but this time it’s the right size to put on your lap. They shared almost the same apps, physically looks the same (except the size) and if you’re familiar with iPhone or iPod Touch, you’ll feel the same with the iPad, just like the ducks to the water.

Still made in China

After playing using it for a few days, I felt that the novelty wears off. Other than the size, I personally thinks that my MacBook is better than the iPad. And deep inside, I felt that Apple is trying (successfully) to shove the tablet PC into our mouths.

Accept it or not, Apple really have a winner here. The iPad looks like a godsend gadget, and every Tom, Dick and Harry is buying it, no matter how old or how young you are. Believe me, once you hooked to the iPad, there’s no turning back. It’s that addictive.

The iconic Apple logo

But if you want to find a replacement of your PCs/laptops that you can carry around without the added weight, then the iPad makes sense. The iPad can almost do everything the laptop can do: surfing the net (3G or Wifi), transferring files, creating or editing documents, playing games, chatting, files storage and more. And it’s also cheaper than a laptop.

As for me, I’m sticking to my trusty MacBook. I’m old-school, hence the need of a physical keyboard. Embracing the iPad? Maybe in a couple of years, when something fresh and new comes along.