Mac Geekery

The new MacBook Pros are a substantial change from the previous generation of MacBook Pros, but it’s hard to call them an upgrade, in my opinion. I’ve been using Macs for a couple of decades now and when I think of the word “upgrade” I tend to think of a notably faster processor, more features, and other goodies that make it scream “hey, this is what you have, but better!” The new MacBook Pros don’t really scream upgrade.

They scream redesign.

This isn’t the old MacBook Pro on any level. The only thing they have in common is the case material and the size of the unit. Other than that, this is a whole new computer in every measurable aspect: the screen is better, the keyboard has changed, the case is sleeker, the port layout is cleaner, the trackpad is …There's more »

I’m in love. I have to share this little bag I got a hold of recently and have been using daily for the past few weeks. Well, it’s not really a bag, it’s a sleeve. For me, that’s a little odd.

You see, I’m a backpack guy. I keep everything known to man in my computer pack from USB, FireWire, and ethernet cables to an old iSight and install discs for my computer and, for the hell of it, all the way back to 10.1. That’s the front pouch. But this is how it goes with me. When I’m in the room with my bag, I can do literally anything with my computer, and I love that.

But, most of the time, I’m heading to work and back to home. The bag is a little hefty for that and all it’s doing is going from one desk to another, so there’s no need for all of that stuff. So, I got a sleeve. The Macbook Pro is a sexy machine, so I didn’t want it covered in nylon or foam or that squishy stuff that sticks to my fingers if I drag across it (blech). I wanted something thick and protective. I wanted … leather.

Toffee makes some very nice sleeves for portable computers. I settled on the, er, coffee toffee and awaited delivery.There's more »

Always on the hunt for a better way to protect our precious iPods from being thrown off balconies and, sometimes, looking for excuses to do so, we came across the InvisibleSHIELD from ShieldZone. ShieldZone has, from time to time, posted videos of sales presentations where they’ve dropped two iPods into a box of keys taken off a crowd of customers. One is protected by an InvisibleSHIELD, the other is not. After damned-near destroying the box and returning the keys to their owners, the iPods are inspected. The InvisibleSHIELD-protected iPod is shown to be in Mint Condition, but the unprotected one comes out nearly unusable. The old ad-man in me sees these videos and thinks of 19th century snake-oil salesmen. That all changed when I applied the shields to my iPod and RAZR. Even so, a day into the test, after leaving the devices in my pocket with loose change, keys, and each other, I was still skeptical. At some point, I would think, the veneer would peel back showing some ugly underside.There's more »

It’s happened to every owner of a black iPod. You get it, you ogle a bit, you take off that thin sheet of plastic covering the front, and then 20,000 scratches magically appear within minutes. Guaranteed.

Thus, iPod covers are gaining in popularity these days, over and above the popularity they enjoyed for older iPods because you’re actually using the screen on today’s iPod for photos and video and so forth. It’s important that it’s not marred.

So, iFrogz purports to have a solution to this problem. Seal up the iPod in a silicone case and covers and keep it from the outside world. There’s the Screenz protection screen that sticks on the front of the iPod and is completely removable, which also comes with a decorative sticker to cover the wheel. Then comes the Wrapz silicon cover for the entire iPod, with the obligatory holes for the screen, wheel, dock connector, hold switch, and headphone port. For even more protection, you can cover all but the headphone jack with the Bandz band that fits snugly around the entire Wrapz package, locking it into place and protecting the unused ports (you’ll usually have headphones in to cover that port).There's more »

Even though Mac Geekery is mainly a tips site, we do use our Macs and iPods as well. So when people send MG product release notes we generally look at them, wonder why we’re getting them, and move on. However, after some thought, we found a method that might just work for MG. We’ll review for not just an honest good and bad, but “geek” content as well.

So we’re going to go back through all the product announcements some unfortunate marketer has sent us and see how they measure up. This should be fun.