According to
Hexus.net, the graphic card manufacturer XFX could release for this summer, retail nVidia GPU-based cards dedicated to the PowerMacG4. It could be the first non-ATI retail graphic card, and should be based on the mid-range GPU GeForce 6600 (in AGP format).
This new cards could be sold via the AppleStore as well as in your favorite shops.
If this info is entirely confirmed in the coming weeks, it would be an excellent news for mac users, first it will stop the non-competitors position on the Mac-dedicated retail graphic card market, and it will also push the canadian company to upgrade regularly its offers.
The second security update for 2006 is available via the software update panel.
Security Update 2006-002 is recommended for all users and improves the reliability and security of the following components:
apache_mod_php
CoreTypes
LaunchServices
Mail
Safari
rsync
Additionally, this update incorporates Security Update 2006-001, which improves the security of the following components:
apache_mod_php
automount
Bom
Directory Services
iChat
IPSec
LaunchServices
LibSystem
loginwindow
Mail
rsync
Safari
Syndication
For detailed information on this Update, please visit this website: http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61798
In one of its
documentations, Apple releases information about the "strongly criticized" Mac mini GPU, the GMA950.
- The GPU takes a base amount of 80 MB, and it can increase depending on the GPU needs.
- Apple confirms what we suspected and reported couple of days ago:
For best graphics performance, your Mac mini (Early 2006) ships from Apple with two equal-sized SO-DIMMs installed, one in each slot, for each memory configuration offered from the Apple Store. If you upgrade the memory in your Mac mini (Early 2006), make sure you have matching size SO-DIMMs in each slot for best graphics performance.
As soon as possible we will test the impact of RAM modules on GPU performance (2 identical modules vs 1 RAM module for the same total memory; such as 2x512MB vs. 1x1GB)
following many requests, we have performed a battery lifespam test with the MacBookPro in DVD player mode.
The test has been performed with the brightness sets to 10/16 and a headphone connected to the notebook, volume being set to 50%. In this conditions, the MBPro went into sleep mode after exactly 2h30, 4 minutes after the alarm message.
So you can play most of the DVD movies on your MBPro without any problem while running on the battery.
Rob from
Barefeats has compared an iMac Core Duo 2GHz, a MacBook Pro 2GHz, a PMG5 dual 2GHz and an upgraded Powerbook G42 GHz. The PBG4 used in the test had its CPU upgraded by Daystar. The most interesting test is probably the Photoshop benchmarking since it indicates the strength of Rosetta.
The MacBook does the job in 64 seconds vs. 50 sec. for the Powerbook 2GHz and 30 sec. for the Powermac.
In addition Rob has tested the impact of the RAM modules when using 2 identical modules in the MBP. The gain is between 2.5% with iMovie and 3.5% with Photoshop. When using RAM-demanding test, this gain might be even higher.
