bridge

I won't name names, but we have an editor here in the office, who, every time a new Apple product comes out, says he isn't going to get it. He had the iPhone 3GS and said he was going to wait for the iPhone 5 and not get the iPhone 4. Two weeks later, he had the iPhone 4 and had given his 3GS to his wife.

I said, "Dude, where's your discipline?"

"I know, I know," he replied sheepishly. "But I wanted it. I couldn't resist."

He's got an iPad, the original. I know he's going to get an iPad 2, even though he says he isn't. How do I know? Because the moment Steve Jobs got up on stage and showed his first slide, he said, "Gee, that looks pretty nice." He had him at hello.

The iPad 2 didn't look any different from what we expected it to look like--and it didn't look all that different from the original iPad. But suddenly there on stage in the flesh it had taken on a new, irresistible sheen. Not the Charlie kind of Sheen. Just the Apple kind. … Read more

Lenovo's newest tablet/notebook features Intel's Sandy Bridge architecture and longer battery life.

Announced today, the Thinkpad X220 convertible tablet/notebook will join Lenovo's upcoming X220 notebook. Both products are the latest additions to the company's X series of ultraportable notebooks and tablet/notebooks with 12.5-inch screens, and both are slated to reach store shelves next month.

The X220 convertible starts at $1,199, while the notebook's starting price is $899. Though Lenovo is targeting both computers to individuals as well as companies, they are designed primarily for business users.

Outfitted with Sandy Bridge, … Read more

Lenovo is announcing a new model Tuesday in its highly regarded ThinkPad X series of ultraportable laptops that offers a USB 3.0 port, a uniquely sized 12.5-inch screen, and long battery life, as CNET reported on Monday.

The X220 appears to be a variation on the previously announced Lenovo IdeaPad U260 theme. That IdeaPad, like the ThinkPad X220, is 3 pounds and offers a 1366x768 resolution 12.5-inch screen.

But there are some significant differences, the most salient being the ThinkPad's use of dual-core Core i7, i5, and i3 Sandy Bridge processors and a USB 3.0 … Read more

Though Lenovo's upcoming ThinkPad X220 ultraportable sports a powerful CPU and plenty of RAM, its potential battery life may be the biggest lure.

The X220 isn't on sale just yet, but Lenovo is providing an in-depth glimpse at its specs thanks to an online PDF. The details confirm that the notebook can run without AC power for up to 23 hours on a single charge via a slim external battery pack. But even without that external battery, the unit is capable of a still healthy 15 hours on its standard 9-cell battery.

Lenovo also says that a low power multimedia mode can boost battery life by 30 percent, while users can opt for either higher performance or better battery life through the unit's Turbo Boost+ mode, which builds upon Intel's built-in Turbo Boost feature.

Aside from the battery life, the X220 sports some other powerful specs.… Read more

Great-sounding albums are becoming increasingly rare, so when I find noteworthy efforts I'm happy to share the news. The goal is highlighting new stuff--or at least newly recorded/remastered music--so there's no need to include Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon" or Steely Dan's "Aja." I assume you're already hip to the best music from decades past; I'm trying to spread the word about the best new music over a range of styles, with something for every taste.

For more sonicly superior music, check out my "How to make your speakers sound better: Play better-sounding music&… Read more

While Dan is at the Game Developers Conference, and Joe is enjoying the lovely weather in Orlando with his son, Scott and Julie drag digital photography team member Matthew Fitzgerald to join us in a discussion on all things Apple.

As the new Sandy Bridge-based MacBook Pros finally emerge out of the woodwork into CNET labs and out for review, we talk about the new Thunderbolt technology. Matt sheds some light on what this means for him as a photographer, as well as how much (or little) this new tech will be embraced by the masses. It seemed like only yesterday (the much ignored) USB 3.0 was introduced. And as always, we continue to speculate on features for the iPad 2 and iPhone 5.

Meanwhile, Scott appears to be the only one in the room to have seen the Oscars. Matt and Julie had other things going on that night, respectively. That's just how we roll.

… Read more

Update: You can find the full review of the 15-inch MacBook Pro here.

Apple's latest MacBook Pros are here, and we have both the 13- and 15-inch models at the CNET offices. The systems are currently running our benchmark tests, but here are our initial hands-on impressions after playing around with both for several hours.

MacBook Pro, 13-inch, 2.7GHz dual-core Core i7 Last year, we remarked that the popular 13-inch MacBook Pro, with its older Core 2 Duo processor, was due for an update compared with its faster 15-inch cousin. That time has come in a big way; … Read more

Update: You can find the full review of the 15-inch MacBook Pro here.

Breakout stories on key topics are below:

After weeks of a growing chorus of rumors, leaks, and anecdotal evidence, Apple today announced a series of updates to its popular MacBook Pro line of laptops.

The biggest changes are all under the hood, as first reported on CNET. The entire updated line now offers Intel's latest Sandy Bridge CPUs, which debuted last month.

Just as significantly, the new MacBook Pros are also the first products to feature Intel's new Thunderbolt technology (formerly known as Light Peak). The Thunderbolt tech is envisioned as a sort of unified successor to USB, FireWire, and DisplayPort, allowing peripherals to hypothetically carry data and video at 10Gbps. The Thunderbolt port on the MacBook Pros looks identical to (and is backwards-compatible with) existing DisplayPort connections, and--with the proper adapter cable--should also be able to interface with HDMI connections as well. (Also, note that Intel will be hosting a press event at 10 a.m. PT today at which it is widely expected to highlight its Thunderbolt/Light Peak technology in more detail. Join CNET for live coverage at that time.)

The third big change is in the laptops' internal graphics processor. Instead of the Nvidia GeForce 320M graphics previously found in these systems, the default graphics come from Intel's HD 3000 GPU, which is the improved, integrated graphics that come bundled with the current Sandy Bridge generation of Intel's Core i-series processors. For the larger 15- and 17-inch models that include discrete graphics, the GPUs now come from AMD instead of longtime rival Nvidia. … Read more

Apple's new MacBook Pros, expected to be announced tomorrow, use a copious helping of Intel technology--and even throw in a measure of silicon from Advanced Micro Devices, CNET has learned.

Thunderbolt: First things first. Intel's Light Peak technology (which Apple had a hand in implementing) has been renamed Thunderbolt, according to an industry source familiar with Apple's MacBook Pro rollout. In short, Thunderbolt is the official brand for the technology that had been codenamed Light Peak. This manifests itself in the form of a Thunderbolt connector on the new MacBooks.

Thunderbolt is a new interface that will … Read more