Digital Gadgets

One of the major hurdles that notebook computer owners traditionally have had to overcome was the platform’s relative weakness in the graphics department, compared to what you could find on a desktop computer. With the rapid advancement in laptop technology, Nvidia is developing a dual graphic card design for your portable computer.

Said to integrate the awe-inspiring SLI graphics, the pair of MXM graphic modules will likely never find its way onto the thin-and-light incarnations of notebooks. This is due in part to the power-hungry nature of this graphics technology, as well as the potential over-heating issues that may be involved. You’ll need a massive battery, and a impressive cooling system to run the SLI graphics.

So, you’d be in the market for a more “desktop replacement” design than a truly portable notebook computer. The chipset to accompany will likely also be designed by Nvidia, in the form of the Nforce 4 SLI for notebooks.

More: mobilemag.com

Apple expanded its laptop offerings beyond the venerable PowerBook line Tuesday, with the release of the MacBook Pro portable computer. Announced by Steve Jobs during his Macworld Expo keynote, the MacBook Pro is the first laptop from Apple to use an Intel-built chip, the Intel Duo Core processor.

Apple claims the MacBook Pro delivers up to four times the performance of a PowerBook G4, with Apple CEO Steve Jobs hailing it as the fastest notebook ever. The 5.6-pound system is housed in a one-inch thick aluminum enclosure and features a 15.4-inch LCD screen that’s 67 percent brighter than the PowerBook’s screen; Apple says the MacBook Pro’s display is as bright as the company’s desktop Cinema Displays.

The company will offer two versions of the MacBook Pro—one with a 1.67GHz Intel Core Duo processor, and the with a 1.83GHz Intel Core Duo processor. A new iMac, also announced at Macworld Expo, features Intel processors as well. The system architecture has been altered for faster performance—the laptop features a 667MHz frontside bus, that is four times as fast as the PowerBook G4. The new laptop also ships with 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM memory, twice as fast as the old PowerBook. The 1.67GHz model ships with 512MB of RAM while the 1.8GHz model has 1GB installed; both systems can hold up to 2GB of RAM.

More: macworld.com

COMPUTER giant Apple last night unveiled a “revolutionary” new laptop computer which it says is four to five times faster than its predecessor.

The MacBook Pro is just one inch thick and weighs 5.6lb. Its increased speed is down to a new Intel chip, the first time Apple has used Intel processors. The chip will be rolled out to all new Mac machines this year.

The collaboration between Apple and Intel has sent shockwaves through the computer industry and their latest joint products will add a new dimension to the ultra-competitive marketplace.

The new notebook computer has a 15.4in screen and a built-in camera, so users can access video conferencing “on the go” or make their own films, claims Apple.

More: business.scotsman.com

Portability, accessibility and integration of technology are the key.

Two colleges at Iowa State have seen these components as essential toward enhancing the educational experience and outreach for students on campus.

The College of Veterinary Medicine and the College of Design house programs leasing or renting laptop computers to students, leading some to suggest these programs be used to spawn similar programs around Iowa State.

James Davis, ISU chief information officer, said decisions to implement laptop programs in other colleges would have to be handled on a case-by-case basis.

“It needs to be tailored for specific academic programs,” Davis said.

New laptop computer programs periodically develop every few years. He said the wireless networks on campus, which helps laptops connect to the Internet more readily, are used to complement the infrastructure already contained within many of the campus buildings.

More: iowastatedaily.com