Right now there are a lot of iPad 2′s in Greenhills. These are sourced from the gray market and the prices are currently off the charts. Initially the 16GB model sold for P35,000. Now it’s skyrocketed to the P40,000 level. Note that this is just for the 16GB WiFi only model. The SRP is supposed to be just half that! Some people are saying that they don’t mind paying the premium because the Philippine official release will probably be later this year. However remember that Hong Kong and Singapore are both getting the iPad 2 soon which means that the gray market prices should take a sharp dive sometime in April. If you’re going to buy gray market might as well wait for April or May. You’ll end up saving thousands of pesos.
I currently own two MBP’s. One is the 2009 13-inch 2.26GHz model and the other one is the latest 2011 13-inch 2.7GHz Thunderbolt. I was initially playing Dragon Age II on my 2009 MacBook but I quickly transferred to the 2011 MBP once I got it. I was expecting the gameplay to be much smoother considering the spec upgrade. However I was in for a disappointment. For some insane reason, Dragon Age II performs better on my 2009 13-inch MBP. With the 2011 MBP, regardless if the settings are on low or high the game just keeps crashing after an hour or two of gameplay and the MacBook just heats up ridiculously.
iOS 4.3 is now out for download! It was actually on iTunes as early as last night but I was only able to download the update this morning. I just finished installing it on my iPhone 4 and the first feature that I tried was the Personal Hotspot. This lets you turn your iPhone 4 into a mobile WiFi modem! This is a huge thing because this eliminates the need for multiple unlimited data subscriptions especially if you have an iPad WiFi. Check out screenshots below of how it works: Continue reading →
This is probably one of the most ill-timed promotions/product launches that you can do. Next week Apple will be announcing the iPad 2. That’s almost 1 year since the first iPad was announced. It’s interesting that local telcos are only offering the first iPad in postpaid bundles now. Very weird and not too enticing anymore. If they did this during the first few months of the iPad they probably would have made a killing but now isn’t a good time. Here’s the package offered by Globe:
Not too hot on this one at all and I know that a lot of Filipinos feel the same way. Might be good for retention plans though.
Shortly after announcing that they will be “launching” the iPad 2 next week, Apple just updated their website to feature the all new line of MacBook Pros. The new machines feature more power, a faster way to transfer data (Thunderbolt technology), and a new graphics card. The official Apple website of the Philippines was also updated to show the latest line of MBP’s. You can actually order online already and get it shipped to you within 4-6 days. If this is the case then the local distributors will already have stocks available by this weekend.
Here’s a screenshot of the website with the official prices for the Philippines with the specs of all the new units.
I’m sure that the secondhand prices of 2009-2010 MBPs will be dropping significantly in the next few weeks.
After months of getting battered by Android on the airwaves, Apple will finally make a stand next week when they announce the highly anticipated iPad 2. The first generation iPad’s specs don’t stack up anymore to the new Android tablets and the BlackBerry PlayBook but hopefully the iPad 2 will be further reinforce Apple’s market leadership position in the tablet category.
What do we know so far about the iPad 2? Based on what we’ve gathered from various tech blogs, here’s the list of the upgrades from the original iPad:
Multi-core ARM Cortex-A9 CPU (single-core ARM Cortex-A8)
Dual-core SGX543 GPU (single-core SGX535)
2048 x 1536 display at 260 dpi (1024 x 768 at 132 dpi)
GSM/CDMA chipset (GSM only)
Front- and rear-facing cameras
SD card slot
Redesigned, flatter case
Of course nothing is 100% sure. Let’s all just wait for March 2 for the official announcement.
I got the chance to check out the iPad Dodo case a few days ago. The case literally looks like a Moleskin notebook from the outside. True to form it’s made of quality material from the inside and out that make it a sophisticated and good protective cover for your iPad. It doesn’t offer too much functionalities but it does the job of keeping your device safe. Here’s a photo. Sorry for the low quality since I just took this with my phone.
The Ballistic HC Case is another rugged and ultra-protective case for your iPhone 4. It just costs $50 USD (less than P3,000) and it gives your phone 4-5 layers of security. This will probably be a little thicker than the Otterbox Defender. Anyway, there are no distributors in the Philippines yet but I’m pretty sure it will be available here soon given the popularity of the Otterbox brand.
Check out this video where they dropped the iPhone 4 with the Ballistic HC Case from a height of 15 feet.
Literally. I mean virtually! LG’s latest ad on the LG Optimus directly slams the Apple iPad when they show the superior specs of their tablet. In the video there’s a scene ala Street Fighter where a character that looks a lot like Steve Jobs gets kicked in the face. Interesting. This video will definitely get a lot of views and hits.
The iPad 2 seriously needs better specs because all the Android machines being released lately have insanely powerful engines compared to the first iPad.
Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg both published reports that Apple is currently working on a less pricey and smaller iPhone called the iPhone Nano. This new product is rumored to be half the cost of the iPhone 4. This is probably Apple’s response to the different low-end models of Android and BlackBerry eating up the mass market. The reports say that the new product will be announced sometime in July or August.
With regards to specific features, the iPhone Nano will definitely be lighter, edge-to-edge screen, and a voice-based navigation system. It will also be integrated very well with MobileMe. Here’s a fan made mock-up of the iPhone Nano:
Groupon Philippines (Beeconomic) is currently featuring the A Shop on their website and they’re currently offering an awesome deal on iPads. You can get a 16GB WiFi only iPad for just P21,590. That’s the best price I’ve seen so far in an iPad here in the Philippines so if you’re interested in getting one then you might want to consider this offer. They also have a deal for the 32GB WiFi/3G iPad.
Motorola aired an ad during Super Bowl which a lot of Apple fans found “interesting”. Personally I feel that competition is very healthy. With better products being churned out by Android and BlackBerry, Apple needs to keep on taking it a notch higher to stay ahead of the game. I hope that the iPad 2 won’t just have a few minor upgrades because as of the moment the specs of other tablets are really far superior to the existing iPad (save for the vibrant Apple app ecosystem).
The MiLi Power King is literally the biggest mobile external battery charger you’ll find. The reason for this is that it can actually charge not just your phones and music players but also your laptops. Just like the Power Crystal, the Power King comes with different plugs that can be used for different kinds of devices. We used it to charge a bunch of gadgets namely the following: laptop, iPhone 3GS, iPhone 4, iPad, Canon G9, and a BlackBerry Bold 9700.
More details about the MiLi Power King after the break. Continue reading →
Power Mac Center is having a Valentines contest on their Facebook Page. They’re giving away some cool gadgets so you guys might want to take a look. Basically you either post a photo or upload a video and the most “liked” entry wins. Pretty simple mechanics but this is very prone to abuse (some people create multiple accounts). Anyway, check out the promo posters below.
I logged on to the Mac App Store this morning and was pleasantly surprised to see several triple A game titles available. The games were released several months ago but they’re all still awesome. Some of the games that I saw were Borderlands ($49.99), Civilization 4 ($29.99), and Bioshock ($39.99). Civilization and Borderlands are doing well on the app store since they’re both on the Top Grossing list already as of this writing.
Civilization 4 seems like an okay purchase since the download is just around 700MB. Borderlands might take a couple of days to get since it’s an 8.8gb download (yowza).
Apple Manila is a website dedicated to sharing the latest news, hot deals, and updates on Apple products in the Philippines. Sister website of unbox.ph, newmedia.com.ph, and blackberrymanila.com. :)
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