Laptop Articles

Five setup tips for Apple's new MacBook Air

For the past couple of months, prospective MacBook buyers, especially those looking for a slim MacBook Air, have been holding off on purchases, waiting to see what Apple had in store for its annual WWDC keynote.

While the new 11-inch and 13-inch Airs look and feel a lot like the previous couple of generations, the internal components have been upgraded with new, and incredibly energy efficient, CPUs, leading to battery life scores in excess of Apple's estimated 12 hours for the 13-inch version.

Because of that great battery life, you can bet that plenty of new MacBooks were ordered … Read more

The current enigma of the Retina MacBook Pro

It's hard to imagine, but Apple's MacBook lineup has been turned on its head. As of right now, the highest-priced MacBooks are a technological generation behind the least expensive MacBooks, making for shopping confusion if you're about to invest in a new system from Apple.

The cause of the confusion is this. At WWDC 2013, Apple introduced laptops updated to the latest generation of Intel Core i-series processors. These fourth-gen chips are also known by the code name Haswell, and they promise improved performance, better integrated graphics, and greatly boosted battery life. These CPUs were launched earlier … Read more

Apple's new MacBook Airs: What we didn't get

SAN FRANCISCO -- Apple's new MacBook Airs look better than before, but they don't reach for the stars.

OK, so I'll admit: having a potential 12-hour battery life is incredible. It's a very big deal indeed. But the new 2013 MacBook Airs unveiled at Apple's WWDC keynote weren't revolutions of design, or even of features. They're another well-polished upgrade step to an already excellent laptop that's becoming as familiar in form as an iPod or an older MacBook Pro.

To be honest, there was more on my wish list. Primarily, this.

Higher-res … Read more

MacBook Pro survives the cut -- for now

"Reports of my death have been greatly exaggerated," Mark Twain once remarked.

The same might be said about the 13- and 15-inch non-Retina MacBook Pros, which some Apple watchers thought might be on the chopping block after Apple killed the 17-inch MacBook Pro at last year's WWDC and the MacBook Air line received an anticipated update.

For the moment, the standard MacBook Pros live on, coexisting with the lighter, slimmer MacBook Airs that are now equipped with Intel's more energy-efficient fourth-gen Core i-series "Haswell" chips and a much better set of battery life specs. … Read more

Dear Apple: Please update these Macs at WWDC

At Apple's WWDC keynote, one may rightly expect updates to the iOS and OS X operating systems, new software features and apps, and also a couple of new Mac hardware announcements. For example, at the 2012 WWDC keynote, Apple introduced the MacBook Pro with Retina Display, along with some MacBook Air component updates.

In 2013, however, as it's been so long since many of the current Mac laptops and desktops have gotten a significant overhaul, there's an outside chance that we'll see new designs and/or hardware for everything from MacBooks to the Mac Pro desktop. … Read more

Liquid nitrogen-cooled Haswell chip hits 6.5GHz

TAIPEI -- The CPUs in most computers are usually cooled using a combination of fans and heatsinks. PC enthusiasts have gone one step further by using liquid cooling as shown in the rig above. This allows them to push the processor to run beyond its normal operating speeds so as to achieve better performance without overheating the chip.

Professional overclockers, however, use subzero cooling to achieve extreme processing speeds. In most setups, liquid nitrogen is used to chill the processor and has to be topped up regularly, while Vaseline is applied to the surrounding microchips. This prevents them from short-circuiting … Read more

Asus takes on the HTPC market

TAIPEI -- In addition to new laptops and tablets, Asus also showcased its latest home theater PC (HTPC) offerings, the VivoPC and VivoMouse, at Computex.

The VivoPC appears somewhat larger than the Mac mini, but it has a high-quality metal chassis and is designed to blend easily among A/V devices. Other key differentiators include a pair of front speakers and 3.5-inch hard disk drive (HDD) support. This is unlike most small form factor PCs, which can accept only 2.5-inch HDDs.

Update: This article was originally posted on June 5, 2013 7:58 AM PDT.

Updated on June … Read more

Hands-on: Creative Senz3D camera's Portal 2 demo

TAIPEI -- During Intel's keynote at Computex 2013, the Creative Senz3D Interactive Gesture camera was announced. This camera utilizes 3D sensing technology, and when paired with Intel's Perceptual Computing SDK, allows developers to create applications with gesture control.

The camera has previously been provided to developers working on the SDK, but will be available to the public later this year. No price has been given so far.

Included with the camera is a software bundle that has games and utilities that let you take advantage of the Senz3D. One interesting example is a Skype plugin that allows you … Read more

Asus developing a 39-inch UHD monitor

TAIPEI -- Size matters for a display, and this Asus monitor caught our attention with its huge 39-inch screen size. Spotted at the company's Computex booth, this panel also features an ultra high-definition (UHD) resolution packing 3,840x2,160 pixels. However, it's still in prototype stage and will not be ready until early next year.

There are limited details about this 39-incher, except that it is based on a VA-type LCD panel … Read more

Outlook finally coming to Windows RT tablets

Consumers who own tablets running Microsoft's Windows RT operating system will get a new version of the software giant's widely used e-mail program, Outlook 2013 RT, later this year.

At the Computex computer trade show in Taiwan, Microsoft said Wednesday that the e-mail program will be included as part of the Windows 8.1 update announced last month. Outlook 2013 RT will be available as a free update for tablets running Windows RT, the scaled-down version of Windows 8, and will be included in Windows RT devices going forward.

When Microsoft rolled out Windows RT last year, it … Read more