Drexel University in Philadelphia has started a new program that seems to be the beginnings of something very big.  They have installed a Kiosk style vending machine that dispenses Macbooks for use by Drexel faculty, staff and students.

The machine is the university’s attempt to prevent students from getting mugged while carrying around laptops.  Each machine holds 12 notebooks that can be “checked out” for free for 5 hours by swiping student ID cards.  There is a $5 late fee for overdue notebooks.  While the notebooks are checked in, they get a battery charge and the kiosk does a hard drive cleaning to prevent subsequent users from being able to access previous content.

Drexel’s media relations director, Niki Gianakaris said “We installed it in late December” “Students didn’t want to carry their laptops to the library late at night.”  I imagine the 12 Macbooks spend very little time in the Kiosk, Gianakaris said “This is obviously going to be very popular, we’ll evaluate their use and, depending on the results determine how many more we can install.”  Drexel is also considering a iPad machine as well.

Two other East Coast learning institutions are also trying to get the machines which were developed by Laptops Anytime out of Texas.

I don’t know about you, but I think this is the beginning of a new trend in schools and libraries.  Keep in mind that Drexel previously had laptops for borrowing behind counter at the library, a trend that many other colleges and universities are already adopting. Still, the idea of automating the process with vending machines is pretty cool. What do you think?

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With the patent wars still going strong, tensions are high in technology land. Just two months after Apple walked away from the courtroom a billion dollars richer, the Silicon Valley giant is trying to further distance itself from Samsung.

In the past, Samsung was the main provider of MacBook and iPad batteries. Now, according to TechCrunch, Apple is switching to Chinese Companies Amperex Technology Limited and Tianjin Lishen Battery. This isn’t stunning or even new for Apple. In fact, Apple chose to use LG displays on the new iPad mini instead of going with Samsung displays as it did on the regular iPads. Additionally, Apple axed YouTube and Google Maps from iOS6.

We have already seen shortages in Apple products due to the fact that they could not produce fast enough. Coincidentally, this year’s shortage was notably bad at the same time Apple switched off of Samsung displays. Therefore, this move away from Samsung batteries could lead to more shortages even in Apple computers. Now that Samsung has become a main competitor in the smartphone, tablet, and even computer markets, we might see continued partnerships but when possible the two companies will do their best to distance themselves from one another.

What do you think of this news, is it wise on Apple’s part to push further away from Samsung, or not?

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It’s not very often that you see great deals on MacBooks, because Apple maintains pretty stringent control over pricing. This is one of those rare occasions where you can save a solid $200 off a new MacBook Pro.

It’s the 13.3-inch MacBook Pro that’s on sale with a 500GB hard drive. You get a 2.4GHz dual core Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of DDR3-1333 RAM, 8x DVD/CD SuperDrive, Intel HD Graphics 3000, 7-hour battery life, and Mac OS X v10.7 Lion. Other features on this MacBook Pro include the FaceTime HD camera, Thunderbolt port, SDXC card slot, Bluetooth, and FireWire 800. And yes, that signature unibody design is in tow too.

The 500GB model in the 13.3-inch size is on sale for $999 on Amazon, down from the regular list price of $1,199. Alternatively, you can bump that up to $1,355 for the 750GB version, which is still $144 off its regular price of $1,499.

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The 2012 MacBook Air retains much the same skinny dimensions as its predecessor, but it gets bumped to Intel Ivy Bridge processors, up to a 2GHz dual-core Core i7. That’s not as fast as the quad-core chips going into the Pro, but you are getting a significantly lighter and thinner package. The Ivy Bridge processor is accompanied by up to 8GB of 1600MHz RAM and “60% faster graphics.” You don’t get discrete graphics though, as the Intel HD Graphics 4000 is still integrated.

Speed is one thing, but you still want storage. The updated MacBook Air has the option of having up to 512GB of flash memory. You’ll also find two USB 3.0 ports, along with the Thunderbolt port. Rounding out the specs are WiFi-n and Bluetooth 4.0, along with the same 5-7 hour battery life. Of course, like the new MacBook Pro, the new MacBook Air also gets MagSafe 2.

There’s no Retina Display on board, unsurprisingly, so the 11-inch model gets a 1366×768 resolution whereas the 13-inch gets a 1440×900 pixel resolution. Prices start at $999 and $1199, respectively.

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That’s not as high a pixel density as the Retina display on iDevices, but the assumption is that your eyes are going to be a little further away from the screen, giving you the same kind of super crisp visual experience. They’ve also ditched the optical drive altogether, slimming the MBP down to 4.5 pounds and 0.71–inches thick.

As far as tech specs are concerned, you get a quad-core i7 processor, up to 16GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA Kepler GeForce GT 650M GPU. You also get 768GB of storage, a 7-hour battery, SDXC card slot, HDMI-out (!), USB 3.0, a pair of Thunderbolt ports, MagSafe 2, two microphones, and a headphone jack. Rounding it all off are WiFi-n, Bluetooth 4.0, backlit keyboard, and a multitouch trackpad.

And all this can be yours starting today. The new entry-level MBP gets a 2.3GHz quad-core i7, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of storage for $2,199.

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While $249 isn’t cheap, it can certainly add some extended features to your Macbook that will make it seem and function more like a traditional desktop. To be honest though, if its just more Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 support you are after, it might be wise to wait for upcoming releases from Apple, perhaps even at the WWDC.

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While having a reliable source inside Apple is a good way to learn about the company’s plans for the future, another simpler way is following their patent applications. According to an application published by the United States Patent & Trademark Office, Apple appears to have plans to add a surround sound audio system into MacBook-like devices, and this system might help them to make even thinner products.

To enable surround sound configurations, the system will include audio transducers along with multiple speakers. And from the looks of things, Apple is planning to improve audio quality while decreasing the sizes of speakers so that they fit into smaller and thinner form factors. When this detail is combined with the info about thinner keyboards, it’s safe to believe that the future Apple machines will be the thinnest ever.

So, how does this system work? The system includes a few speakers and an audio transducer below the device’s keyboard. The configuration would allow speakers on either side of the screen to handle high range frequencies, while mid-range frequencies will come out through the lower speakers and the audio transducer would handle the low-range. According to Apple, the transducer could provide low and mid-range frequencies.

“…the transducer may output both low and mid-range frequencies, essentially performing as a “subtweeter.” In such embodiments, the speaker may output not only bass range frequencies (e.g., about 20-500 Hz), but also mid-frequencies (e.g., about 500-1500 Hz or higher)… The audio transducer may be combined with other speakers in an electronic device such as a laptop, tablet or handheld computing device 10. For example, in one embodiment, two tweeters and one woofer may be combined with the audio transducer. The transducer may output the bass channel and, optionally, the middle ranges, while the tweeters handle high frequency outputs. The woofer may output its standard range of frequencies. Through the combination of the woofer and the audio transducer, more decibels per watt may be outputted, especially in bass frequencies”.

They are also saying that the transducer, which could be a gel speaker or surface transducer, can be placed inside a chair, keyboard, or a touch-based input device to provide tactile feedback for a better “home theater experience”.

So, what do you think about this?

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You will need a few basic tools, like a soldering iron and solder. The DIY instructions are fairly straight forward, if you are looking for a unique project that will also give you the pride of knowing “I put this together”, than it is certainly worth taking a look at. Best of all, you can easily extend your usage by 2-3 hours or 6-8 hours depending on the mAh of your battery pack.  You can grab 9800 mAH one like in the video on eBay for about $30.  They even have 30,000 mAh packs, but that’s probably more than necessary.

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Yes, the name has risen to the surface once more in the form of an unofficial concept. This is not at all endorsed by Cupertino, but it could speak to the future of what Apple has in store. Basically, the designer has created what looks like a MacBook Pro (or even a MacBook Air), but has outfitted it with a touchscreen display and one crazy hinge.

The hinge can work like normal, allowing you to have the regular laptop experience, but the whole thing can fold over onto itself to give you just the straight tablet experience. The weird thing is that would mean your keyboard is now pressed up against the surface of your desk. That’s probably not such a good thing. The hinge can also go half-way, effectively turning your keyboard into a kickstand for the iPad-esque touchscreen.

It’s a neat idea and you have to give credit to the Apple-level polish of the faux ad video below, but I don’t think Apple is going to release something like this any time soon. We might just have to settle for Retina Displays in the meantime.

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To put things in perspective, the current MacBook line has you choosing between a 1366×768 panel or a 1440×900 panel for your display, as well as the 1920×1200 panel in the 17-inch MacBook Pro. By contrast, the new iPad is able to make the substantial leap to 2048×1536 pixels in just a 9.7-inch display. Considering that the MacBook range goes from 11.6-inches to 17-inches, Apple would have to substantially increase the resolution again.

That said, they were able to justify the lower 264 ppi on the new iPad (compared to 326 ppi on the iPhone 4S) because they said you’d likely have the screen further away from your face. I imagine you’d keep a laptop display even further, so it’s possible that Apple could go lower and still call it a Retina Display. There are reports of “double-sized graphics in the most recent preview of OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion” to further back up the possible presence of Retina Display tech in the 2012 MacBook line.

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