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We've been following the Chevrolet Cruze sedan's evolution from concept to production model. We've even taken a first drive in one. Now, as the 2011 Geneva auto show approaches, we get an early look at the production version of the Cruze's hatchback design.

Interestingly, the five-door Cruze's silhouette and roofline don't change all that much from those of the four-door model when viewed from the front quarter. However, when viewed in profile or from the rear quarter, the Cruze begins to resemble a bow-tie badged Subaru Impreza.

While a Geneva debut signals definite European … Read more

Microsoft reports its fiscal second-quarter earnings tomorrow afternoon, and much has changed for the company since its last, both good and bad.

There are some big new products in the pipeline like Kinect and Windows Phone 7, as well as enterprise-oriented tools like Lync. But there are also some new questions about the future of PC growth and Microsoft's health as a company with more key employee departures that are likely to have Wall Street asking some tough questions during the Q&A.

As far as expectations go, analysts surveyed by FactSet peg Microsoft's second quarter at … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed from our readers. This week we have questions on RAM modules not working in one PowerBook RAM slot, options for viewing alternative region DVDs, and a Windows 7 taskbar "Preview" option in OS X. We continually answer e-mail questions, and though we present a few here, we certainly welcome alternative approaches and views from readers and encourage you to post your suggestions in the comments.

Question: RAM not working in one slot

MacFixIt reader Donald asks:

G4 Powerbook, 15", 1.67GHz, Early 2005. I have 2x1GB … Read more

Magnepan, based in White Bear Lake, Minn., has built nothing but flat-panel speakers since 1969. The company will be premiering a new speaker, the MG 3.7, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, from January 6-9. To some this may appear to be a deja vu event, mirroring last year's introduction of the MG 1.7, which turned out to be one of my speaker of the year picks for 2010.

But I wouldn't want you to think of Magnepan as one of those companies that rolls out "all new" models every year. The … Read more

The great thing about search engines is that they can return pages and pages of results on just about any topic you can imagine. The bad thing, though, is that there's often no way to know anything about those results before you click on them. Are they legitimate, or are they spam, or even porn? BetterSearch is a Firefox extension that gives users more control over their search results by providing previews and other helpful features.

BetterSearch installs easily in Firefox and then integrates seamlessly with the search results of several major search engines, including Google, Yahoo, and Bing. … Read more

While we haven't really been impressed with gaming's presence at the last few CES shows, there does seem to be some evidence that 2011 might be different. Given the news that Nintendo will be making an appearance in Las Vegas, we're anxious to see if the company will be offering a more in-depth look at the next portable gaming system to hit around springtime, the 3DS.

There is also a growing buzz surrounding what's arguably 3D's best platform: video games. Expect to see more 3D HDTV manufacturers showcasing their products' prowess while hooked up to … Read more

At last year's CES, the e-reader product a lot of people were talking about didn't exist. It was a concept from Mirasol, a Qualcomm-backed company that was showing off its screen technology in a prototype unit.

Mirasol's screen caught people's attention for a few reasons. For starters, it was color. Secondly, its high-tech reflective display technology was not only energy-efficient but readable in direct sunlight. And finally, it was capable of displaying full-motion video. Marrying the best of what e-ink had to offer with some of the strengths of LCD, it looked a lot like the … Read more

iTunes is finally letting its song previews play just a little bit longer.

Apple has, as promised, begun extending the length of song samples from 30 seconds to 90 seconds at the iTunes Store in the U.S. Many samples of the site's top-selling singles, such as The Black Eyed Peas' "The Time (Dirty Bit)" and Coldplay's "Christmas Lights," were available tonight in the longer format.

The length of song samples has been found to be key to a consumer's decision to purchase music online. Researchers at Robert Morris University reported last year … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which we answer questions e-mailed from our readers. This week we have questions on how to turn off previews in Safari, the best format option to use when setting up a hard drive for OS X, and problems with updating Boot Camp drivers. We continually answer e-mail questions, and though we present a few here, we certainly welcome alternative approaches and views from readers and encourage you to post your suggestions in the comments.

Question: Disabling Safari previews

MacFixIt reader "P. Calderon" asks:

How do I [turn off Safari previews]?

Answer:

If … Read more