MacWorld Expo 2007 New Product Rumours

With less than 24 hours until Steve Jobs takes to the stage at the Moscone Centre, San Francisco for this year MacWorld Expo, I have been doing the rounds on various sites to see what everyone is expecting.
Macrumors has many threads covering expectations for the iTV, iPhone and new iWork 07 application. It seems that many doubt we will see the iPhone, with a new iPod more probable. There is also a thread showing various banners from the Moscone Centre.

ThinkSecret are pretty quiet, but do give us some details and a screenshot of the anticipated iWork 07 spreadsheet application.

Whilst AppleInsider mentions new iPods with bluetooth stereo headphones.

For myself, yes I am very excited, though I think we may not get massive announcements, but they will be good. New iPod, Leopard ship date, iTV, Mac Mini update, not in that order, but in order of what I would like to see. By this time tomorrow we will all know what our credit cards will be coming out for.

Apple MacBook Thin - anyone?

Will Apple release a MacBook Thin at this Januarys MacWorld Expo? This seems to have been touted around a lot by many websites, a thinner 12-inch version of the current MacBook sounds plausible, but I think not, for many reasons.
Firstly, 12-inches is just too close to the current 13.3-inch MacBook and would probably conflict too much. Secondly, why would Apple do this when the MacBook is selling so well anyway.
More likely is the introduction of a completely new device, perhaps a colour Newton-type device with a touch screen. Then further down the road, perhaps when the next generation MacBook Pro is released, we may well see a new 12-inch or even 10-inch pro model. I think this is much more likely.
Back to the Newton-type device, I think Apple know that users have been wanting some sort of touch screen device. They are bound to keep an eye on the forums, blogs and news sites. So who knows, we can only hope.

Samsung SGH-i320 Blackberry Beater

The Samsung SGH-i320, also known as the BlackJack, is now available in the UK. It is available sim free through many resellers, or on contract with Vodafone. For a long time now I have wanted a Blackberry, but stayed away, mainly because the handsets did not appeal as much as the service. Well the new Samsung looks stunning, has Samsungs design and build quality, and runs Windows Mobile 5. It supports push emailing, so you get that superb Blackberry-esque delivery. Check out the specification here.

UK Boost for Mobile & Monitor Manufacturing

The BBC News website reports on Plastic Logic, a Cambridge based company that has secured £50.6 million funding for a German plant for manufacturing plastic electronic devices. This is great news for the UK as it may well lead to lower prices for electronic devices over here. According to the report "When it is built in 2008, the new factory could produce one million control circuits in a market that is tipped to expand to 41.6 million units in 2010." Read the full report here.

Apple Mac Pro & MacBook Pro Awards

It is great when Apple products get recognized as just being great, makes me smile that I made the right choice in platforms all those years back. InfoWorld has awarded the Mac Pro and the MacBook Pro their 2007 Technology of the Year Award. Well done Apple, and thanks InfoWorld.

MacWorld Expo 2007 Countdown Widget

If you want to keep an eye on how long we all have to wait for the MacWorld Expo 2007, where Steve Jobs will announce some cools new products and developments at Apple, then point your browser here. A cool widget that does one simple task, countdown to the big day!

Radtech Debut DriveMate USB Storage

Radtech have today launched their new DriveMate device, a USB storage device that offers 2GB or 8GB of storage capacity in a very neat and compacy package. Standard and 64-Bit encrypted models are available ranging from $74.95 to $144.95. The integral USB cord makes this device ideal for laptop use, when plugged in it does not get in the way of other ports. It is also extremely thin, so very portable. It has not yet made its way onto the UK site Radius Vision, though I suspect it is only a matter of time.

Apple's Bold 2007 Statement

With MacWorld 2007 just around the corner, Apple have made a very bold statement on the front page of their US website. The statement reads "The first 30 years were just the beginning. Welcome to 2007." Such a simple but strong statement sends chills down your spine and just makes for even more excitement and anticipation about next weeks announcements.

MacWorld 07 Geekanoids Expectations

MacWorld 2007 is almost upon us and I for one am looking forward so much to what Steve Jobs will announce. Here are my predictions of what I expect to see (and what won't happen) next week;

• There will be no Apple iPhone. It will happen one day, but not this January.
• There will be no changes to the MacBook or MacBook Pro.
• The iTV final details and name will be revealed, available to order now, shipping by the end of January.
• Leopard final details and £99 pricing announced, order now, shipping 1st February.
• Mac Mini will get the Intel Core 2 Duo upgrade, plus a small price drop.
• ...and one more thing, new Cinema Displays with built-in iSight.
• ...and one more thing, yes saving the biggest announcement until last. The new true Video iPod, with touch sensitive buttons on the side of the unit and a full 4-inch widescreen.

Well, that is what I am expecting, let us hope that we at least get some real goodies this year. Leave your comments on what you are hoping for.

Happy New Year from Geekanoids

Dear Readers, just a quick post to say a very big Happy New Year ! to you all. Thank you all for your kind support and for taking the time to read the reviews and articles on Geekanoids. You, the readers, are the most important element of this website, so keep coming back throughout 2007 for some great reading material. Thanks again and I hope you all have a brilliant 2007 (and beyond).

Grundig Phusio 27-inch HDTV £399

This Grundig Phusio LCD HDTV seems like a pretty well specced unit. Not a big big name player when it comes to the Samsung, Toshiba, Sony and Pioneers of this world, but when I saw this, I just felt I had to share the details.

Head on over to the Grundig website and you can pick up this 27-inch screen (model GUVLDHD2700) for just under £400 (down from £699.99). It has integrated Freeview with 7-day electronic programme guide, 1280x720 resolution, nice and bright at 550cd/m2 and a respectable 600:1 contrast. Viewing angles are quoted at 170 degrees on both axis which is also good. Most impressive is the inclusion of an HDMI socket to accompany the twin SCART sockets. This is a real bargain price for a set with this sort of connectivity and well worth checking out.

Geekanoids launch Mac Support Forum

OK, so I know that I should be spending today getting ready for the New Year celebrations, but this quiet time is the only chance I get to develop some new things for Geekanoids.
Over the past year we have had a lot of readers email in for support. Always happy to help, personal emails fly back and forth. The natural progression was to set up a Support Forum, so that is what I have done today.
Click on this link and it will take you to the home page on the Forum, where you can post in the many categories. If you are looking for help, or willing to offer a solution, or perhaps you want to discuss one of the articles or reviews you have seen here, then the Forum is the place to go.
At the moment it is set up on a free service, but if it proves popular I will look to move it onto a private server. For now though, it is a great way to share and join the Geekanoids community. Enjoy !
Click this link to go to the Geekanoids Forum.