Apple updates notebook range, cuts cord on mouse

Apple Computer Inc. launched three new models in its PowerBook notebook range Tuesday, and unveiled the shape of a new cordless mouse to accompany them.

Chief Executive Officer Steve Jobs summed up the company's innovations in the year to date in a keynote speech at Apple Expo Paris, and concluded with the announcement of performance increases for the 12-inch and 17-inch PowerBooks launched in January, and the introduction of a new 15-inch model, replacing the one introduced in January 2001.

Already, 42 percent of the computers Apple sells are notebooks, compared to around 25 percent for computer makers across the industry, Jobs said, adding that he hopes to bring that level up to 50 percent in short order.

Jobs repeated his January claim that, for Apple, 2003 is "the year of the notebook," and said, "We still aren't even done with the year yet; we have more innovating to do."

That's a reference to what could be the biggest disappointment of the day for Macintosh fans: the next version of Apple's Mac OS X operating system, known by its code name "Panther," is still not ready. It will sell for $168 or €168 including sales tax in Europe, and "will come out before the end of this year," Jobs said.

The three new models of its thin, aluminium-cased PowerBook range will therefore begin shipping with the existing 10.2 ("Jaguar") version of Mac OS X.

The new 17-inch PowerBook contains a number of enhancements to speed its performance, including a 1.33GHz G4 processor and 512K bytes of Level 2 cache memory, double that of its predecessor. Cache memory enhances a processor's performance by speeding its interactions with slower main memory.

The new PowerBook also uses PC2700 DDR (double data rate) RAM. It ships with 512MB, but up to 2GB can be installed.

The slot-loading Superdrive (Apple's name for a CD-RW/DVD-R drive) has also received a speed boost, to 2x speed when writing to DVDs. Its 17-inch, 1440 by 900 pixel screen is driven by a Radeon Mobility 9600 graphics card, and can be connected to an external monitor via a DVI (Digital Video Interface) connector. Other ports include FireWire (IEEE 1394) serial ports running at 400Mbps and 800 bps, and two USB 2.0 (Universal Serial Bus) ports running at up to 480Mbps. Available now, it is priced at $2,999 or €2,999 including European sales taxes.

The updated 12-inch model contains a 1GHz processor, with 512KB of Level 2 cache and up to 1.25GB of main memory, two USB 2.0 ports and a choice of either a Superdrive or a Combo (CD-RW/DVD) drive. The Nvidia GeForce FX Go 5200 graphics card can be used, via the newly added DVI connector, to drive a second display or provide an external mirror of the internal 12.1-inch, 1,024-by-768-pixel display. The PowerBook can also operate with the lid closed. The 12-inch model equipped with 256MB of RAM and a 40GB hard disk drive, retails for $1,599 or €1,599 with the Combo drive, and $1,799 or €1,799 with the Superdrive.