MacLiveExpo 2008 London - Planet Video

Planet Video Systems had a massive stand at the MacLiveExpo and it certainly got my attention. They handle the distribution of a large range of products, amongst which was the very cost effective editBOX 4, which is a four disk SATA2 hard disk box. It looked very well built and offers an innovative port-multiplier and multi-lane technology. I was also amazed at the tiny dvBOX Portable, a minute multi-interface external hard drive. This little wonder offers USB2, FireWire 400 & 800 and eSATA connectivity. It is BUS powered, or externally powered and comes in sizes up to 320GB with 7200RPM drives. Last, but by no means least, CineBags... these are the bags to have if you carry around a lot of gear. Multiple compartments for hard drives, laptops, cameras, lenses and they felt really well made. Expect to see reviews of some of these products real soon.

MacLiveExpo 2008 London - onOne Software

Of particular interest at the MacLiveExpo was the onOne Software stand, where they were giving video demonstrations of their superb software collection. They produce a range of plug-ins for Photoshop, Photoshop Elements and iPhoto, as well as products for Adobe Lightroom and Quark Xpress. Their Plug-in Suite 4 is a culimnation of all of the Photoshop plug-ins they produce, that enable you to manipulate your photo images with ease. FocalPoint, which is part of this bundle is of great interest to me. It gives the user the ability to create realistic depth of field in a photo, simply designating a sweet spot and tweaking the kind and intensity of blur. I am hoping to be able to bring you a series of reviews of onOne Software's products in due course.

MacLiveExpo 2008 London - MyGlove

There was certainly not a lot of iPod goodies at the MacLiveExpo 2008. Compared to last year, where the iPod and iPhone ruled, the only gem that stood out from the crowd was MyGlove. They were selling a range of iPod cases that are made from really supple leather. Each case looked really unique, with printed designs that were a nice refreshing change from the mainstream cases. Hopefully I will be able to bring you a video review of a couple of their cases soon.

MacLiveExpo 2008 - Gallery Photos

As promised here is the gallery photos from the MacLiveExpo 2008 in London. All of the photos were taken with the Ricoh GX200 digital camera. The majority of which were taken with the GX200's square format mode. This is ideally suited for the Geekanoids website, as the square format not only looks superb, but also means that the images do not need to be cropped before uploading them. A full review will appear of the Ricoh GX200 in a couple of weeks, but early impressions of this compact unit are very good. It handles very well and performed admirably with the awkward lighting in the exhibition hall. (click the link at the end of this article to see the full gallery). This gallery is sponsored by Clifton Cameras.






























MacLiveExpo 2008 London - Event Roundup

The MacLiveExpo 2008 started today in London and this time around you will find a different event. It is being held in association with CreativePro and LinuxLive, so on the show floor there is a much wider variety of exhibitors. Whether or not you think this is a good thing really depends on your main area of interest. Apple fans may well come away disappointed, with Mac exhibitors and resellers somewhat lacking. There are a few gems to be found, but that Mac feel has been lost. However, the diverse range of stands means that you may well discover something new, perhaps a flavour of Linux may take your fancy.

Of interest to myself were the likes of Academy Class, who have some very special show offers. Adobe had a great presence, with the new Creative Suite 4 being shown. Konica Minolta also had their 4650 laser printer on display, that could be picked up for a fantastic £260 from Cancom with a free 160GB Formac hard drive thrown in for free. Iomega also had their full range of storage devices lined up. These included their ultra smooth and stylish eGo Helium 320GB hard drive, that looks so curvy and matches the MacBook Air perfectly. Other stands of interest included Planet Video, MyGlove and onOne Software all of which I will cover in separate articles.

MacLiveExpo 2008 Starts Tomorrow

My annual trip down to the Olympia National Hall in Kensington, London starts tomorrow for this years MacLiveExpo. This year it is running in conjunction with CreativeProExpo and LinuxLiveExpo for a combination of the latest technological treats. With the likes of Adobe, Canon, Iomega and Samsung there, we are sure to be in for a treat.

Geekanoids sponsor Academy Class will also be at the exhibition, so I will be sure to bring you some news of their latest offerings. Plenty of photo opportunities no doubt, and this year we have a new sponsor... Clifton Cameras and Ricoh and supplying a Ricoh GX200 digital camera, which will be used to take all of the exhibition photos. I will be testing this camera's abilities throughout the show and reporting back to you all with 'gallery photos' and a full review of the GX200 over the coming weeks.

Geekanoids News #009 - 15th October 2008

Apple announced all those lovely new products yesterday... here is my video update (1 of 2) on the details and my further thoughts on the new MacBook and MacBook Pro. The second video covering the MacBook Air and new Cinema Display should be online shortly.

My thoughts - New Apple Products 14th October 2008

No doubt you have learnt about the slew of new notebook products launched by Apple tonight. We have a revised MacBook Air for starters. Then there is a complete redesign of the MacBook and MacBook Pro. Thrown in for good measure, a new Cinema Display that matches the current iMac, almost a mirror image.

Exactly what I think of these announcements echoes itself in the last two words from my introductory paragraph above "mirror image". I have a 24-inch iMac, a lovely machine. Superb design, wonderful feel to it, brilliant power. The display is fantastic too, but it does annoy me when I can see my face in it. Maybe because I am not an adonis, but more likely I want to only see what I happen to be working on at the time.
When the MacBook was originally introduced, I got one. No sooner had I got the MacBook, I had the opportunity to get a matte screen MacBook Pro. Happy days again, with a professional display. Never have I looked back and yearned for a glossy MacBook display, nor trading my Pro in for the mirrored screen version.

What worries me about these new product announcements is centred solely around the screen. It is acceptable for the MacBook, but for the MacBook Pro it is insane. Users need to quickly snap up remaining stock or purchase the 17-inch version, which is the only one to remain matte.
The new Cinema Display looks superb too. Being an iMac owner, I may well get one, as it would match perfectly. Thousands of design studios though, will not be at all happy. The new display is a consumer or prosumer product, it does not serve the professional market at all.

That said, all of the new products are stunning. Greatly enhanced, superb graphic abilities, nice trackpad, more rigid, lots of positives. I just feel the pro market is being left behind for mass market appeal.

New Apple Cinema Display announced - October 14th 2008

Apple held a press event today, October 14th 2008. They announced a stack of new products, including a new 24-inch Cinema Display... it looks just like an iMac with the gubbins inside!

I like the look of this new model, finally it gives me a chance to extend my iMac display in style. It also compliments the complete range of Apple offerings, through to the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros. The only Macs that do not match are the 17-inch MacBook Pro and the Air. However, these new displays WILL be a great success... maybe not in the studio environment, but everywhere else. Maybe graphic design studios will give them a try and strategically place them so that they do not suffer from glare.

  • 24-inch size LED backlit display
  • Display port cable
  • USB2 port cable
  • Powered 3-port USB2 hub
  • MagSafe cable for powering your laptop
  • 1920x1200 resolution
  • Screen type: TFT active-matrix LCD
  • Colors: 16.7 million
  • Viewing angle: 178° horizontal; 178° vertical
  • Brightness: 330 cd/m2
  • Contrast ratio: 1000:1
  • iSight built in
  • Built-in 2.1 speaker system
  • Height: 18.84 inches (47.84 cm)
  • Width: 22.57 inches (57.32 cm)
  • Depth: 7.76 inches (19.71 cm)
  • Weight: 21 pounds (9.5 kg)
  • £649
  • Available November

Official Apple Press Release
Apple® today unveiled the LED Cinema Display featuring a stunning 24-inch LED-backlit widescreen display with built-in iSight® video camera, mic and speakers in an elegant, thin aluminum and glass enclosure. Designed for the new MacBook® family, the LED Cinema Display includes an integrated MagSafe® charger, three USB 2.0 ports and the new Mini DisplayPort, making it easy for MacBook users to quickly connect and power their notebooks as well as use their favorite peripherals.

“The new LED Cinema Display is the most advanced display that Apple has ever made,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “It is a perfect fit for our sleek new line of aluminum MacBooks with its 24-inch LED-backlit screen, aluminum and glass enclosure, integrated camera, mic and speakers, MagSafe charger, three USB ports and Mini DisplayPort.”

The 24-inch glossy, widescreen display with 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution uses LED-backlit technology to provide instant full-screen brightness and great power efficiency. Suspended by an aluminum stand with an adjustable hinge that makes tilting the display almost effortless, the new display includes a built-in iSight video camera, mic and speakers, making it ideal for video conferencing with iChat®,* listening to music or watching movies. The new display also includes three self-powered USB 2.0 ports so users can simply leave their printer, camera, iPhone™ 3G or iPod® dock connected when they take their MacBook with them. The sleek, thin display also includes a built-in universal MagSafe charger so users can conveniently leave their notebook’s MagSafe power adapter in their travel bag.

The new LED Cinema Display is the greenest Apple display ever, made with mercury-free LED technology, arsenic-free glass and highly recyclable materials. The LED Cinema Display meets stringent Energy Star 4.0 requirements and achieves EPEAT Gold status.** The new display contains no brominated flame retardants, all internal cables and components are PVC-free and its foam packaging has been reduced by 44 percent.

Part of the next-generation DisplayPort industry standard, the new Mini DisplayPort delivers a pure digital signal that can drive up to a 30-inch widescreen display. The Mini DisplayPort is ultra-compact at just 10 percent the size of a full DVI connector, perfect for the sleek design of the new MacBook family. Adapters are available for using the MacBook’s Mini DisplayPort with older generation VGA, DVI/HDMI and Dual-Link DVI displays.

New Apple MacBook Air announced - October 14th 2008

Apple held a press event today, October 14th 2008. They introduced new MacBook Pros, MacBooks and detailed below a revision to the MacBook Air. There was no actual design changes to this thin wonder, rather revised specification. This was a shame, but if you think about it, the Air already had multi-touch and was ultra thin. So some welcome changes, especially on the graphics front, with beefier NVidia graphics.

  • Intel 9400M graphics
  • 13.3-inch display (no change here)
  • 120GB hard drive
  • 128GB SSD option
  • Mini Display port (for external monitor)
  • 1.6GHz Core2Duo
  • 2GB RAM
  • £1,299 (for the HD version)
  • £1,799 (for the 128GB SD version, which also gets you a 1.86GHz Core2Duo)
  • Both new models ship early November

I will bring you more news and images as they become available.