Posts about Mac hardware
The recently announced iMac Pro is a beast of a machine. That said, it seems like a very niche model that won’t move Apple’s revenue needle in any appreciable way. While the machine is geared for professional graphics users, I don’t foresee most graphics/CGI shops buying these. For one, companies would expect to get many years of…
Yosemite introduced a bug that impacts a relatively small group of Mac users, including myself. I use a Mac Pro with a Logitech USB webcam. Mac Pros don’t have a built-in microphone, so I use the webcam for sound input. This configuration generally works fine throughout Yosemite, except for FaceTime. There is a microphone input setting on the…
The Fusion drive is a $250 build-to-order option for iMacs and Mac minis. Apple doesn’t push this option very hard, but it’s something you should strongly consider. The Fusion option gets you a 128 GB solid state drive in addition to the standard (mechanical) hard disk drive. The read speeds on the SSD are…
A study by a company that makes PC monitoring and administration tools found that the most reliable Windows laptop was the mid-2012 MacBook Pro 13″. This shouldn’t be entirely surprising. Apple computers have always been manufactured with top-grade components. Boot Camp provides the drivers to run Windows relatively seamlessly. While there are minor issues…
Apparently we can expect 802.11ac wi-fi products coming from Apple soon. Hints of the protocol were found in the latest beta of Mountain Lion. While not unexpected, it would be great news to see 802.11ac this year. For low-end hardware, the protocol starts at 433 Mb/sec. Since this is Apple, we’ll probably be getting higher-end…
The 2012 iMacs are about to be released. Before you place your order, it’s important to know the memory options for each model. The memory is not user accessible on the 21.5″ model. This means that you’ll need to pick an 8 or 16 GB model when you order it. Once you own it, you can’t upgrade…
Solid state drive prices have been plummeting over the past few months. I couldn’t resist buying a Crucial M4 128 GB drive for $129. This drive is highly regarded for its speed and reliability. Although my Mac Pro doesn’t have a SATA 3 interface to take full advantage of the M4’s speed, using an SSD…