MacRyu – The Worst Mac Blog in Singapore, and Some Say the World

During a response to a question during the earnings call, Tim Cook confirmed that Apple will be “launching iPad 2 in another additional 13 countries next week…” including Singapore of course.

Possible pricing for iPad 2 (wifi only) in Singapore?

Posted April 21st, 2011 by Ryu at 2:37 am in iPad, Rumors and Singapore. 0 Comments

Some information came in regarding possible prices when the iPad 2 launches in Singapore next Friday, 29th April 2011.

16GB $668

32GB $798

64GB $928

Only time will tell if they are accurate, but if they are, it will represent quite a major drop from the original pricing for the iPad 1 when it launched in Singapore last July, for the original 16GB wifi set cost $728, and will also put it in line with my previous information that the 16GB wifi will launch with a price between $650 to $690.

When is the iPad 2 launching in Singapore?

Posted April 13th, 2011 by Ryu at 10:49 am in iPad, Rumors and Singapore. 2 Comments

Chatter and whisperings for the past 30 days point to 29th April 2011 as the day us Singaporean mortals will finally be able to buy the magical device from a local store.

More chatter also enlightens us to the fact that the cheapest wifi model will start at a price lower than the original $728 the original 16GB wifi iPad launched with last year, most likely between $650 to $690.

I will be at my favourite iPad Launch Day queueing location as usual this year.

Apple Online Stores down in Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong (and probably other countries too)

Posted March 6th, 2011 by Ryu at 2:34 am in iPad. 0 Comments

What is happening? The US Store is up.

Are we going to see iPad pricing for all the other countries very soon!?

Update: Stores are back online. No changes. ARGH..

2011 MacBook Pros – Possibly the coolest ever?

Posted February 23rd, 2011 by Ryu at 6:42 pm in MacBook, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and Speculation. 1 Comment

So the rumors about the new MacBook Pros releasing tomorrow night are definitely super interesting to me.

Let’s first recap how and why there is so much anticipation for this MacBook Pro release, unlike the other speed bump/innards update releases over the past two years.

1. It is now 2011. Apple first introduced the unibody MacBook Pros in late 2008, which makes three years already. And Apple loves to refresh its hardware designs every three years or so (discounting the fateful Aluminum Powerbook/MacBook Pro design). Which makes this year a perfect timing for new MacBook Pro designs. As with all Apple redesigns, it’s a big deal.

2. The release of the redesigned MacBook Air last year (I bought one myself, it’s that good). With the new MacBook Airs there is a very apparent new MacBook design philosophy – the focus on using SSDs, and not just any SSD, but the Toshiba Blade X-gale series that first appeared on the MacBook Airs, because they are much much smaller than a standard 1.8″ or 2.5″ traditional SSDs, and also because they are stock parts, they make way more sense for Apple to use them then to solder flash memory onto the logic boards themselves. And Apple publicly said that the Air will be the basic building block upon which future MacBook designs will be derived from, much like how the original Air inspired the Unibody MacBook Pro series.

3. The iMac refresh last year brought some interesting hardware configurations, namely, that Apple has a build-to-order configuration for a SSD and traditional HDD combination in an iMac, rather than have just a SSD as an option. This configuration allows one to install OS X and all apps onto the SSD and use the HDD for data. Having the OS and apps on the SSD will basically result in super speeding up boot times, application launch times, system response times, and the such, you get what I mean here. Basically it gives you a feeling of a much faster system than you actually own.

4. And that finally Apple probably has to switch to Core i3/i5/i7 series for their 13-inchers, for the Core 2 Duo chips will be out of production soon (or already is).

Macrumors (sourcing from Macgeneration, a french site) released the following rumored specs and info about the new MacBook Pro earlier today;

– no more white MacBook (Apple goes back to two lines of 13″ inchers)
– 16 GB SSD mSATA drives on all models to store the system
– Core i3 and third USB port on the 13″ model
– Matte screen option on the higher-end 13″
– Option to replace the SuperDrive with a SSD on the 15 and 17″ models
– HD screens on all models : 1440×900 on the 13″, 1680×1050 on the 15″
– 200 to 300 grams lighter : 1.8 kg for the 13″, 2.3 kg for the 15″, 2.65 kg for the 17″
– Better battery life : 12 hours on the 13″, 10 hours on the 15″
– 8 GB of RAM on the 17″

This seem to fit in with much of the changes in design philosophy brought about by the updated MacBook Air and the iMac refresh, for it makes use of 16GB of SSD for the system to basically boost overall system response speeds. Core i3 for the 13″ MacBook Pro makes complete sense with Sandy Bridge being good enough. Though personally I’m still hoping for some kind of miracle where Apple will put in a more decent-than-stock integrated/dedicated graphics on the 13″ MacBook Pro.

Matte screen options for the 13″ will finally appease the bunch of silly users who keep insisting that matte screens are better (when they are not) and who had to buy the 15″ because there wasn’t a matte screen option for the 13″, until now.

The screen resolution change isn’t a surprise, Apple switched the resolution starting from the updated 13″ MacBook Air last year, and it makes no business sense for them to keep using a lower resolution screen for the MacBook Pro lines.

And really, besides the introduction of SSD in every model and the increase of screen resolution, the most important part must be the decrease in weight of the whole MacBook Pro lines. With the unibody series the MacBook Pro line was already almost some of the lightest notebooks in its categories (all the more cool when you realised that competitors are achieving comparable weight using cheap filmsy lightweight plastic that breaks when you knock your laptop against your knee). If the 1.8kg weight for the 13″ MacBook Pro is real, there is just simply going to be no competition.

I am really excited, shouldn’t you be too? Especially you, you, you, you, you, you, and you, since you are already planning to buy your first Mac in the next two months.

This is really exciting.

P.S. And then there’s Light Peak. Shall not comment on it until we see it tomorrow.

P.S. again. It seems that new last minute-rumors have appeared to dispel some of the more cooler rumors including case redesigns and weight reduction. Check it out here. If true, will be much less ambitious and exciting than originally hoped for.

P.S., yet again. Cool my arse. The rumor mill could have never been more wrong. The 13″ers are totally lousier upgrades compared to the previous generation, which has better graphics and longer battery life (10 hours vs the current 7 hours)

iPad cases review: The Artisans Craftsmen’s Case for iPad

Posted February 14th, 2011 by Ryu at 5:41 am in iPad and Review. 0 Comments

Right now you must be thinking, the Artisans Craftsmen’s case is totally inspired by the DODOcase.

Not like being inspired by what many has termed “the best iPad case in 2010” is a bad thing. The Artisans Craftsmen’s Case attempt to improve upon the original DODOcase in construction and quality.

Nevertheless I will attempt to look at the Artisans Craftsmen’s Case for iPad in its own light, rather than compare it with a product that I have neither own nor have the intend to purchase.

What is the Craftsmen’s Case? The most direct answer is: it turns your iPad into a giant moleskine notebook.

The Craftsmen’s Case is completely handmade, which means on closer look you will never find two completely same cases, a good thing for those who like their iPad accessories to be unique.

The case is designed to turn your iPad into a digital moleskine. There is the usual hardcover (used on hardcover books) and moleskine-like rubber strap on the outside, and in the inside, a wooden spine/frame (that is made from one solid piece of wood, thus increasing its strength, unlike the DODOcase whose wooden parts are made from a few pieces of wood) holds the iPad firmly in the case without the need for any rubber grips that might lose its hold over time. The whole case, including the wooden spine/frame, is hand made locally, as detailed in this video here.

The case is surprisingly light for its size, due to the materials used. It does, however, add considerable thickness to the iPad, despite not adding much weight to it. This is partly because, when the iPad is held in the case by the wooden spine, little or no part of the iPad’s aluminum back is actually touching the hard cover, from what I can tell personally from testing the case. This in theory (I haven’t been using the case long enough to tell if it will actually scratch) prevents the aluminum back from scratching against the hard cover back.

Because of how it is designed, the iPad is actually raised above the bottom cover by the wooden spine/frame, thus prevent the back of the iPad from touching the bottom of the cover for better prevention against scratches

Of course, like any other iPad case, it has its weaknesses. And for this case in particular there are a few.

Firstly, since it’s really made up of mostly paper, glue, and some wood, being waterproof/splashproof is definitely not one of its strengths. Most other cases made with plastic or leather on the market could theorically be a better choice for protection against the elements than the Craftsmen’s case, basically due to the type of materials used in its construction. However, how many iPad cases on the market are as unique as the Craftmen’s Case?

Also, exactly because it’s made with perishable materials, your Craftsmen’s Case will definitely show some wear and tear over time. Not exactly for the kind of owner who expects his iPad and its case to looked untouched for the rest of his life.

Then there’s the price. At over a hundred dollars retail, this case isn’t going to win any best value for money awards.

However, it is clear to everyone who will be interested in the case that it is definitely a premium product, and it is definitely a pretty well made premium product.

If you are the type who loves your moleskine as much as you love your iPad, and want your iPad to “become” a moleskine, the Artisans Craftsmen’s Case should be a perfect fit for you.

If you just want proper protection for your iPad at the lowest possible price, the Craftsman’s Case was never made for you in the first place, and you will be better served by something like Apple’s own iPad case.

For more information and pictures about the Craftmen’s Case, you can check out the Artisans’ website here.