Wireless data relief: Spelled W-i-M-a-x?

Net access over cell networks is still slower than with a home broadband connection, even on faster third-generation (3G) cellular data networks like EV-DO (Verizon and Sprint Nextel) and HSDPA (AT&T and T-Mobile). And those speedier networks aren't yet available in all metro centers, let alone in many rural areas. Laptop owners and those with advanced cell phones like the iPhone can get their broadband via Wi-Fi hotspots, but those are highly local, and so don’t really offer broadband access on the go.

Hoping to capitalize on these shortcomings, this week a coalition led by Sprint, Nextel, and Intel announced support for a more potent flavor of Wi-Fi called mobile WiMax. Based on the IEEE 802.16e wireless standard, mobile WiMax offers data speeds comparable to Wi-Fi (that is, about 5 to 10 times faster than today's cell data networks). WiMax also offers much greater range; indeed, some even think WiMax might one day replace cable or DSL as the home broadband access of choice.

But before you start salivating too much for a WiMax fix, consider the following issues that may yet trip up this promising technology—which, by they way, has been simmering in the wireless community for about a decade.

AT&T to pro-rate early termination fees for cell-phone contracts

In another sign of the growing consumer power in the cell phone marketplace that we reported last January, AT&T has joined Verizon in pro-rating its $175 early termination fee, a major thorn in the side of respondents to our latest survey of cellular service providers (available to subscribers).

But three other big wireless service providers, Alltel, T-Mobile, and Sprint, have yet to deliver on their promises to do likewise this year. Those providers still ding you for up to $200 if you cancel your cell phone contract before its full term is up. Consumer advocates including Consumers Union, Consumer Reports' parent organization, consider such flat fees to be unjustified, since consumers continually repay the cost of a low-priced or "free" cell phone with a portion of their bill each month.

AT&T's plan is similar to Verizon's. For both, there is no cancellation fee for the 30-day trial period at the beginning of a new cell phone contract, during which new customers can quit the service if they're dissatisfied. Thereafter, the $175 fee on one- and two-year contracts is reduced by $5 for each month you stay with the service.

Two promising new non-iPhones

Cell phones with iPhone-like design are garnering most of the attention as manufacturers begin to roll out their 2008 models. But we're also impressed with some conventional handsets that are taking more original, if not subtler, steps toward better cell-phone design. Here are two of them:

LG enV2 by LG. The original enV, with its tiny, hard-to-see keypad didn't impress us much when it debuted a more than a year ago. But, based on an initial look, this second incarnation, available this month from Verizon for $130 with a 2-year contract, seems to have fixed the problem. For one thing, the keypad is wonderfully large—roomy enough to accommodate the widest thumbs. It's also noticeably thinner and smaller, measuring just 4 in. x 2.13 in.  x 0.65 in. (For a closer look at the enV2, click on the image at right and the one immediate below.)

Like the old enV, it opens up like an eye-glass case to reveal a 2.4-in. screen, stereo speakers, and full QWERTY keyboard to satisfy heavy texters and multimedia addicts (though the keys did appear to be a tad more narrow than those on the original). Other niceties include support for GPS navigation and stereo Bluetooth headsets.

(Complete details of the original LG enV are found in our Ratings of cell phones, both available to ConsumerReports.org subscribers.)

Motorola MOTO Z9. GPS navigation, while flourishing on the Sprint and Verizon networks, has not been an option for most AT&T customers, save for a select group of smart-phone users (that doesn't even include owners of the iPhone, which lacks true GPS). That changes with the Motorola MOTO Z9, available now from AT&T for $250 with a 2-year contract. (Click on the image at right for a closer look.)

This GPS-enabled phone, which is compatible with AT&T's 3G data network, has a large, 2.4-in display that promises comfortable viewing of real-time, turn-by-turn directions offered by the extra-cost service. The Z9 is also compatible with AT&T's Video Share, which lets you stream live, one-way video of your special moments to another compatible phone. You can also download content directly music from eMusic and sideload tunes from Napster To Go. Other features include support for microSD cards up to 8GB and stereo Bluetooth headsets.

—Mike Gikas

Send in the iClones

Last week at CTIA 2008, the biggest tradeshow in the U.S. devoted to cell phones and other things wireless, key manufacturers Samsung, LG, and Sony Ericsson didn't even try to deny that the upcoming models they eagerly trotted before us bore a strong resemblance to the iPhone.

The newcomers unabashedly borrowed from Apple's hit multimedia smartphone in looks and ergonomic design. Like the iPhone, the Samsung Instinct, the Sony Ericsson X1 (click on the image at right for a closer look), and the LG Vu have a large, dark touch screen (about 3-in. measured diagonally) framed by a shiny metallic edge. Their interfaces, though distinct, all provide a quick way to jump in and out of their many functions, from phone calling and text messaging to media playback and Web browsing. And like the iPhone, if you select the wrong application icon, pushing a home key brings you right back to the main menu.

Pending our thorough tests of these pending pretenders, we can't say how well they stack up against their inspiration. But used briefly on the tradeshow floor, their performances seemed quite impressive, and some even add useful features the iPhone lacks.  Here are my first impressions:

XM-Sirius Merger: What it might mean for you

Last week, the Department of Justice granted rivals Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio permission to merge. If the Federal Communications Commission also grants permission in the coming months, as many expect, there could be a single, integrated satellite-radio company by 2009.

Consumers Union, our parent organization, and other industry stakeholders are continuing, however, to fight the merger. Such critics reject the companies' assertions that the merger would be in the consumer interest and say it violates anti-monopoly safeguards the FCC put in place about a decade ago as conditions for the satellite-radio operating licenses.

To help bolster support for the merger, both XM and Sirius have posted the fees and channel lineups they say would be in place after the merger is approved.

The new plans aim to deliver on the consumer benefits the companies promise will result from a merger. But our look at the proposals suggests the pluses generally come with tradeoffs or depend on some as-yet-unanswered questions.

A Lenovo laptop that knows your face

I hate passwords. Or more correctly, I hate how many passwords, PINs and security codes/answers I have to remember.

There are passwords and access codes to get into my home and office computers; my cell phone; my work and personal e-mail accounts; my home, office and cell phone voicemails; my online bank accounts; my wireless home network equipment; my accounts with Web sites such as ConsumerReports.org and this blog...

Maybe that's why I was very interested in the Lenovo IdeaPad Y510, one of the latest notebooks Consumer Reports is testing for our upcoming laptop computer Ratings update. Its most unique feature: It uses your face as the key to personal computer security.

The IdeaPad uses VeriFace, a "facial recognition" program installed in the IdeaPad.  Put simply: You register yourself (and anyone else that you want to have access to the laptop) by letting the software "scan in" the faces in front of the built-in, 1.3-megapixel webcam. Those facial images can then be associated with logins—to a Windows Vista "user" account, for example. That way if you've set the Lenovo to "lock" after a period of inactivity, getting back in is as simple as facing the webcam at the top of the IdeaPad's 15.4-inch LCD screen. This facial recognition scheme can also be used to log you into your Web-based e-mail and other accounts that normally require you to type in a user name and password.

You can review how the Lenovo IdeaPad works by watching our video using the player embedded in this post.

As with other biometric-based security devices (such as fingerprint scanners), VeriFace worked well and wasn't spoofed by simple trickery. But this 007-type approach to PC security wasn't completely flawless. (Hint: Those who wear hats and reflective glasses or typically use their laptops in badly-lit places might have second thoughts about facial recognition security.) And VeriFace still requires typed-in passwords as a back-up means of access—which means it is no less vulnerable to hackers and code-cracking software.

We're still testing the Lenovo IdeaPad and will include it in our Ratings of laptop computers soon on ConsumerReports.org. But one shortcoming that was obvious to me and other testers: Its LCD screen reflected light—a lot. Under our video studio's bright lights, the screen acted like a mirror. Perhaps that's so you can better examine your face before telling the Lenovo's VeriFace software, "I'm ready for my close-up."

—Paul Eng

Cell-phone spam: How to curb it

Cell-phone spam still trails computer spam, with the typical cell-phone user receiving at most a few spam text messages per year rather than the thousands that may bombard their computer-based e-mail accounts. But in some ways, cell spam is more annoying. It can cause your phone to ring or vibrate at inopportune times and possibly cost you money—typically 10 to 25 cents per message if you don't have a text-messaging plan.

Since 2005, the CAN-SPAM Act (Controlling the Assault on Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing) has prohibited commercial e-mail and text messages to be sent to cell phones without "express prior authorization." Unfortunately, the law leaves commercial entities lots of loopholes. For example, it doesn't prevent your carrier or its partners from sending you upgrade offers or account notices. Also, non-commercial organizations such as charities and political campaigns can shoot you all the messages they want on your dime.

Portable chargers powered by nature

Imagine being able to charge your cell phone, MP3 player, and other electronic gadgets when you're on the go. And I mean really on the go—when you're hiking, biking, or whenever you find yourself far from any wall socket.

Well, that's exactly what the makers of HYmini and Solio had in mind when they created their portable renewable energy chargers. Both products are about the size of your hand, light-weight (about 3 and 6 ounces) and produce electricity from the wind and sun. The juice can be used to directly power a mobile gadget or stored within the chargers' own internal batteries for later—to charge a GPS unit during dinner at night by the camp fire, for example. (How much energy you get and can actually use varies greatly with environmental conditions and the specifications of each device—cell phone, GPS unit, etc.)

The chargers, which were recently on display at Greener Gadgets, a conference in New York City, haven't been tested by Consumer Reports. But they did capture our attention. Here's a quick look at these two innovative mobile power-supplies:

HYmini

It may look like a fan to keep you cool, but in reality the $50 HYmini is a cool way to get power. (Click on image above for a closer look.) Miniwiz, HYmini's maker, says the first generation of these hand-held turbines are designed to capture energy from winds of up to to 40-miles per hour—gusts similar to what you would get from jogging or bike riding. (The company offers armbands and bicycle mounts just for those kinds of activities.) But even when there is no breeze, HYmini can still generate power by connecting an optional $25 solar panel. (Up to four can be used to charge the HYmini's internal battery.)

Mostly talk: New unlimited cell plans won't pay for most

Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile are now offering unlimited talk plans for $99.99 per month. While the plans offer convenience and 'peace of mind,' few subscribers, except heavy talkers, are likely to save with these all-you-can-talk offerings.

That's because with a little consumer planning effort and discipline consumers can maximize Verizon's and AT&T's national, no-roaming-fee, no-long-distance-charge plans that cost $60 a month. Those plans ostensibly sell you 900 anytime minutes per month, but both also give you unlimited nights and weekends. With Verizon's "national IN calling" feature, there's also no charge for calls anytime of the day to some 64 million other Verizon Wireless customers. AT&T's version of this is "mobile-to-mobile" minutes, and offers free calls anytime to AT&T's more than 70 million customers.

It's pretty much the same deal as AT&T's and Verizon's with Alltel's National Freedom 900 plan, except that that carrier's "My Circle" feature also lets you make unlimited free anytime calls to 10 wireless or landline numbers on any network. T-Mobile's myFaves 1000 plan provides 1,000 whenever minutes, free roaming and long-distance and unlimited nights and weekends; but instead of unlimited minutes to other phones on the T-Mobile network, it gives unlimited "myFaves" minutes to only 5 designated numbers on any network.

The Other Digital Transition

Most of the news coverage regarding the "digital transition" has been about television, which is switching to all-digital broadcasts on February 17, 2009. But some cell-phone users and other wireless subscribers face another type of digital transition—and in just a few days. On February 18, an FCC law requiring cellular carriers to provide analog service to subscribers and roamers expires. That means some older analog phones, alarm systems, and OnStar emergency services will no longer work.

Unlike TV broadcasters, cellular carriers aren't being forced to drop analog service. Rather, they're now allowed to discontinue analog service if they already blanket their cellular geographic service areas (CGSAs) with digital coverage. You won't be blindsided by the change. Carriers have to give their analog customers adequate warning. Here's the 411 on who's affected, and what they can do about it:

Cell-phone users. The expired law primarily affects some analog customers of Verizon, Alltel, AT&T, US Cellular, and Dobson (and other companies that market their services as "Cellular One"). Fortunately, it's only customers who have older, analog-only phones—not the newer digital phones with analog backup. You can tell your phone is analog if it's more than 5 years old, or if it doesn't have the ability to access the Web or handle text messages. Customers of SprintNextel and T-Mobile, whose networks are already entirely digital, should not be affected by the change. Rural subscribers to regional analog carriers shouldn't be inconvenienced either, though their phones may no longer be able to roam in areas serviced by digital-network carriers.

MacBook Air: First impressions

We've begun taking a first look at the MacBook Air, Apple's super-slim laptop. (The Air starts at $1,799 for the hard-drive version. There's also a version with a solid-state drive that starts at $3,098.)

One thing we already know: The Air is as sleek in person as it looked coming out of that interoffice envelope in Apple's ads. You can watch our video on the MacBook Air for a closer look and to learn more about what our testers have discovered so far about Apple's hot new portable computer.

[Feb. 11, 2008 UPDATE: You can also watch the video using the player embedded within this post. —Ed.]

But what we don't entirely yet know, because we're still running tests on the hard-drive version, is how much you sacrifice for such a dramatic slim-down. Still, here are some preliminary thoughts based on what we've seen so far:

• The design is stylish, resulting in a very thin, light laptop. But some features are sacrificed, including an optical drive (although you can add an external one).


• The large touchpad features multi-touch capabilities like those found on the iPhone and iPod Touch.


• The display backlight is LED, making it brighter but less power-hungry than other MacBooks. It also has a wider viewing angle.


• The Air stays cooler than other Mac laptops we've tested.

For more information on the Air, look for our First Look on ConsumerReports.org next week, followed by more-detailed test results when we included Apple's new portable in our complete Ratings of laptop computers (available to subscribers).

[Feb. 26, 2008 UPDATE: We've completed our first round of tests. You'll find more details in our free report, "Apple MacBook Air: First Look" on ConsumerReports.org. —Ed.]

—Donna Tapellini

Apple doubles the capacity of iPhone, Touch

Expanded capabilities, expanded capacity. New versions of Apple iPhone and Touch (the iPhone-without-the-phone), available today, have doubled the maximum storage capacity of these big-screen multimedia devices. They provide 16 and 32 gigabytes (GB) of storage, respectively; both cost $500.  Still available are the 8GB iPhone, $400, and 8GB and 16GB Touches, $300 and $400, respectively.

The storage boost comes just weeks after the software upgrades announced at the MacWorld trade show in San Francisco, which added GPS-like tracking on Google Maps, rented-movie playback, and customizable menus to these Wi-Fi-enabled products. In September, when the Touch debuted, another software update enabled both products to download iTunes content directly over their Wi-Fi connections.

These content options further challenge the capacities of these flash-memory digital media players. For example, just one movie rental alone can eat up 1.5GB to 2GB of storage. Add to this the ever-growing library of TV shows and free video podcasts and an iOwner could face a content overflow. That may explain why Apple discontinued the 4GB iPhone just two months after its June 30th debut.

Just ordered a less-than-maximum-capacity iPhone or iPod you don’t want? Call and cancel the order. If it's already shipped, Apple says, you can refuse the delivery and call the company to order one of the new, large-capacity models.

—Mike Gikas

PMA2008: Sony Deepens its SLR line

This morning, Sony held a press conference at which they unveiled a new high-end SLR, which will be launched by the end of 2008. The SLR, which they're referring to at the moment only as "The Flagship," will include a 24-megapixel "Exmor" CMOS image sensor. (Click on the image at right for a closer look.)

The sensor will also be a full-frame sensor. (My previous post about the Canon EOS 40D digitial SLR has more details regarding full-frame sensors in the "Sensor Size and Lens Magnification Factor" section.)

In addition, this sensor will be image stabilized using Sony's Super SteadyShot system, which resides inside the camera body itself and so should work with any lens. (Canon and Nikon incorporate image stabilization into their SLR lenses.) Additional specs and features are sketchy on this camera for the moment, but it appears that Sony's commitment to SLRs is deepening.

The company also recapped many of their new product announcements from recent months, including two new consumer-targeted SLRs, both with live-view capabilities and articulating, swiveling LCDs. The two new SLRs are the 10-megapixel alpha DSLR-A300 ($800 with kit lens) and the 14-megapixel alpha DSLR-A350 ($900 with kit lens). (Click on the images for closer looks at the A350, on the left, and at the back of the A300, lower right.)

In addition, Sony revealed that they'll be entering the digital picture frame market by announcing three new S-series photo frames: DPF-V900 ($250), DPF-V700 ($190) and DPF-D70 ($140) digital photo frame models.

—Terry Sullivan

PMA2008: A Snapshot of New Cameras

There are lots of new digital cameras here at PMA this year, although many offer just modest changes from previous models, such as slightly more megapixels or a wider LCD. Here are a few of the more interesting ones I’ve come across since I arrived in Las Vegas yesterday:

The 10-megapixel Panasonic Lumix DMC-FX35 (click on the image at right for a closer look) is a sporty ultracompact that has lots of intelligence—at least according to its specs. It boasts Intelligent Exposure (to determine or adjust for exposure), Intelligent ISO (to adjust ISO depending on whether the camera senses movement), Intelligent Scene Selector (to detect lighting conditions and set the camera to the appropriate scene mode), and face detection. But the smartest thing about this point-and-shoot is that its 4x optical zoom lens has a very wide wide-angle setting: the equivalent of 25mm for a 35mm film camera. The last point-and-shoot that made a big splash with this wide a lens was Kodak's EasyShare V570. List price will be around $350. It will be available in March in silver, black and blue.

GE or General Imaging, a newcomer last year, is back again this year with a compact for under $100. The 7-megapixel GE A735 will have a 3x optical zoom and a 2.5-inch LCD. It will also have smile detection and blink detection features, similar to Sony’s Smile Shutter feature. Not bad for a camera with a list price of $90 to $100.

There's quite a bit happening at the high-end point-and-shoot market too, a part of the market greatly affected by price drops in SLRs. Fujifilm released the FinePix S100FS (click on the image at left for a closer look), an 11-megapixel camera almost as large as an SLR. The reason for its size? It's got a 14.3x optical zoom lens (28-400mm, 35mm film equivalent). It's also got optical image stabilization, which Fujifilm says is a first for them. Other intriguing features include a menu setting (Film Simulation mode, which is where the "FS" comes from) that Fujifilm says will emulate the color of some of the company's great camera films, such as Provia and Velvia. There are many other features as well; Fujifilm says it's after the serious consumer, the "prosumer" in industry lingo, that may a camera that's like an SLR, but with a fixed lens. List price will be around $800 and it will be available in February.

—Terry Sullivan

PMA 2008 Preview: What's incoming in cameras and more

Each year, camera enthusiasts and pros wait to see what the major camera manufacturers will introduce at the annual Photo Marketing Association trade show (PMA), which will take place this year in Las Vegas from Jan. 31 through Feb. 2. And while some companies opted to unveil some products at CES, just three weeks ago, most have chosen to stick with PMA08 to introduce not only cameras, but also lenses, printers, software, and photo accessories.

Starting Wednesday, I'll be at the show, posting the latest news about cameras and related products and services to this blog.

Although I expect a few surprises at the show, some developments and trends are already evident. Here's what I expect to see, by camera type or technology:

Macworld 2008: Add to your iPhone; handsfree talk

Besides printers, scanners, and networked storage solutions, which you always expect to find at Macworld, the focus this year seemed to have shifted towards new 3rd-party peripherals revolving around iPhone. Dozens of new headset, headphones, and docking options have recently become available to support Apple's new flagship product.

Macally, a long time provider of Mac peripherals, offered Tune Pro and FlexTune. Designed for the iPod, TunePro is an audio minisystem with a flat-panel appearance and includes an alarm clock—perfect for the nightstand; FlexTune is a small but very versatile charger and speaker set for both iPod and iPhone. What was interesting about the latter was the way the speakers could slide laterally so the iPhone could be rotated to landscape mode for video viewing, to minimize the device's footprint on an office desk.

Skullcandy offers creative designs that appeal most to a younger crowd. They recently introduced the iPhone FMJ headset. They also offer full-featured wireless headphones. Most of their prices are under $100, except for the high-end phones, which retail for $169.95.

Ultimate Ears offered four models of high-quality headsets for iPods and iPhones: the Custom, the Triple.fi, the Super.fi, and the Metro.fi for the style conscious.

I briefly stopped by Xtreme Mac as well, and saw a wide variety of good-sounding, aesthetically-pleasing docking stations, speakers, and clock radios, most notably the Luna X2 and the Tango X2. They also offered nearly a dozen varieties of cases, pouches and protective covers for iPods and iPhones.

One of the more interesting presentations I attended was from Altec Lansing, who said their new T612 iPhone dock and speaker system (Click on the image at left for a closer look.) is the first to be "Apple certified", meaning Apple agrees to sell them in Apple stores. Apparently such certification is difficult to attain, as Apple has very tight engineering standards regarding specific emissions and GSM shielding. Capable of both desk and wall mount, the sound is very rich and clean. It is also backward compatible with dockable iPods.

Macworld 2008: Some software and audio odds and ends

Some MacWorld miscellany, beginning with four operating-system/software entries:

Improvements to MS Office. I said earlier in the week I'd say something about the new MS Office 2008. The features are more or less in parity with the Office 2007 product that's been out for a year, now. Entourage plays better with Exchange Server, to address concerns about corporate distribution, and I was assured by the lead developer for Word08 that the "Normal" file, a file that holds all of your custom stylesheets translates fully from older versions. The only other thing to note here is that with Office08, virtually every major Mac application suite has made the transition to Universal Binary code base and is Intel-native. That means there's no longer any need for Rosetta, the built-in code translator between G5 Mac processors and Intel Windows processors.

A new Windows on Mac option. Another interesting entry in the "virtualization" competition comes from Codeweavers, who were demoing their "Crossover" product. Crossover allows someone who wants to switch to Mac and still protect their Windows software investment to actually install and run their legacy Windows programs natively in OS X; no virtual disk image or Windows OS is required. The downside is that this capability has to be customized by Codeweavers for each legacy Windows application. Consequently, the company has concentrated on a limited list of only the most used Windows apps to date, like MS Office, Access, Visio, etc. (You'll find the list of supported apps at http://www.codeweavers.com/compatibility/.) The result is very fast and responsive. If you use those apps, this could be of real value.

MacBook Air: Some closer looks

A Consumer Reports colleague (Joyce Ward) and I met privately with Apple reps Tuesday afternoon for a personalized demonstration of the MacBook Air and other products. It was fun to take a closer look at these new offerings, even if just for a short time.

They say the MacBook weighs three pounds, but it honestly didn't feel even that heavy when I held it in my hand—it seemed lighter somehow. The screen was bright, the keyboard a joy to touch, and the trackpad "touch" software had specific settings for one-, two-, and three-finger operation. One finger can click, drag, or double-click. Two fingers flip, rotate, magnify, or minimize images or web pages by using a "pinching" motion. Three fingers let you "slide" from page to page, image to image. This software utility is currently fully compatible only with the Leopard Finder, Safari Web browser (seen on a Windows XP machine at left), and most of Apple's "iApps." Expect third-party support in the future.

Of course, one of the first things that came to mind when seeing the MacBook Air was, "How's this battery deal gonna work?" In case you hadn't heard, the battery in the MacBook Air is not user-replaceable. As a long-time traveling laptop user, that worries me. I always found having the occasional spare battery to be a good thing, especially on those extra-long excursions.

Apple insists its batteries are absolute state of the art, hold a charge very well, and have a very long life. (The 17-inch MacBook Pro's battery lasted 5.25 hours in our latest tests.) Nevertheless, Apple will try to ease your worries with a Battery Replacement Program: Bring your MacBook Air to the nearest Apple store, and the techs will replace the battery (while disposing of the old one in an environmentally responsible manner). Total cost: $129, the same as a new battery you would replace yourself in other models. In addition, more and more airlines today offer laptop power ports on their planes, and both Apple and third parties sell adapters. So as time goes on, the need for having all that extra battery power handy is becoming less necessary. (It was unclear whether this Apple store program was a "while you wait" service, or a "drop it off and pick it back up tomorrow" sort of thing. Time will tell.)

Apple's goal with the MacBook Air was to design a sleek laptop without most of the tradeoffs associated with ultra-portables. The full 13.3-inch backlit LED screen with 1280 x 800 widescreen resolution bears this out, as does the standard MacBook keyboard and an oversize trackpad that supports the one-, two-, and three-finger multi-touch technology used on the iPod Touch and iPhone. Nevertheless, for power users, there are some tradeoffs: There's only one USB port, no Firewire, no DVD, and the custom battery.

Which led to my next question for the Apple folks:  What if you're on the road, your Time Capsule (seen at right) is at home, and your system has a meltdown? Low odds, mind you, but there it is, coming from a geek who can't be too paranoid. They recommended two solutions. The first, of course, is to carry that $99 external DVD drive and your install disk with you. Another possibility is to install, from that disk, a copy of the Remote Disk application on someone else's Mac (or PC!) with a wireless card. Then you can piggy-back on their CD drive and run the installer to restore your hard disk. Clever, but all you're doing is imposing on a friend's good will—sooner or later you'll have to connect to some physical media to restore your system.

Next up in our interview session was the "Time Capsule" wireless backup solution. Security was my main worry with this product, so I asked our Apple reps: Should I be concerned with potential man-in-the-middle attacks when wirelessly backing up your hard drive? Not necessarily. Time Capsule is essentially a full Airport Extreme base station (a fancy term for "wireless router") combined with a server-class hard drive. It supports all the wireless security protocols found in any other wireless router, including WPA and WPA2. That was the answer I was looking for, but it was still unclear how simple that would be to set up for the uninitiated. It's not normally much fun for those who do it for a living. All that wireless security is well and good, but sometimes to an old school guy like myself, there's nothing more secure than a good honest wire, and fortunately for me, Time Capsule has three gigabit-Ethernet ports included. (See image at left.) But of course, that does me no good with the MacBook Air, which has not a single Ethernet port built-in.

—Thomas A. Olson

Free Internet Radio in Your Pocket

The Internet offers a growing range of free music services, from Napster, which allows you to stream albums at no cost, tailored to your taste, to sites like Pandora, Slacker, Finetune, AOL Radio, and others that let you create your channels that select music based on your preferences, and even adjust their programming on the fly as you tell the service what you like and don't like among the selections they've delivered.

Until now, listening to streamed music away from your computer has often meant paying a subscription, typically $15 a month, to online services like Napster and Rhapsody or the satellite radio services, XM and Sirius. You can then stuff a compatible portable player—sometimes a regular MP3 player but often a proprietary player you need to buy—with the service's music.

But Slacker is now one of the first online music services to offer portability without a subscription. You do need to buy a proprietary player, one of three new Slacker portable players launching later this month for $200 to $300. But you can then store free music from the site's 2-million-song library, either capturing it from their 100 channels or from the customized channels you've created at Slacker.com.

MacBook Air, super-thin notebook, introduced

What may be the most talked about of Apple's four major product releases Steve Jobs introduced today is a new addition to the MacBook line called the MacBook Air. With a teardrop profile only 0.76 inches at its thickest point, it's the thinnest notebook computer ever. (You can get closer looks at the new MacBook Air by clicking on each of the embedded images.)

Apple didn't compromise much on features. There's a full-size, backlit keyboard, 13.3-inch screen, iSight webcam, large trackpad with multi-touch gesture support (similar to the iPhone's, which lets you use your fingers in more ways than the traditional tapping and sliding), plus a new magnetic latch.

There are only three ports on the right side: USB2, MicroDVI, and a headphone jack. (There's no Ethernet port for wired networking, but that's not really an issue with a notebook designed for extreme portability.) Apple says that the 1.6-GHz Core 2 Duo processor is 60 percent smaller than chips made for other models. The standard MacBook Air comes with an 80GB hard drive—or a 64GB solid-state drive for an additional $999. The standard memory configuration is 2-GB and Apple claims 5 hours of battery life. The built-in wireless capability supports 802.11n and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR.

There's no internal CD/DVD burner; to use discs you need the $99 external MacBook Air SuperDrive which connects to the USB port. Also, a new custom application in Leopard called "Remote Disk" lets you wirelessly "borrow" other users' CD/DVD drives.

In keeping with Apple's environmental initiatives, MacBook Air notebooks have a fully recyclable aluminum case, displays that are mercury and arsenic free, and logic boards that are BFR and PVC free. In addition, the packaging has 56 percent less volume, to save trees.

The base model, which starts at $1,799, pairs a 1.6-GHz processor with an 80-GB Parallel ATA hard drive. A second model that features a 1.8-GHz processor and 64-GB solid-state drive starts at $3,098. Both ship in two to three weeks, but can be pre-ordered starting today.

Compared with Windows-based 13-inch slim-and-light notebooks we've rated (Consumer Reports' Ratings are available to ConsumerReports.org subscribers only), the MacBook Air is pricier and its hard drive is a bit slower and has a smaller capacity, but weighs more than a pound less. When compared with notebooks in the 3-pound range, such as the Sony TZ series 11-inch or Toshiba Portege R500 12-inch, its pricing is very competitive.

Macworld 2008: Preview

Apple goes into Macworld Expo, the annual party, love fest, and religious revival for the Cult of Mac, which opened today in San Francisco, following a year that's had a few fizzles (Apple TV, the first release of OS X Leopard, 10.5), one big hit (the iPhone) and under-the-radar sales growth of 40% for Mac desktops and laptops. The one adjective that no longer describes Apple is "beleaguered."

While analysts don’t see the same kind of explosive growth for Apple this year, they still hope a few compelling new products and services will keep the company on a growth track.

I do believe Apple will deliver. My first clue was this week's pre-event announcement of a new MacPro tower and XServe, powered by 8-core Intel Xeon processors, offering 2.3 times the speed and raw horsepower as the dual, quad-core 3.0 Ghz machines being sold only a month ago. If they couldn't wait one week to announce this, it often indicates they have so many other things to show us, there simply wasn't room in the Keynote program to hold it all.

Below is a distillation of predictions, hopes, and wishes from the amassed Mac pundits and bloggers for Keynote 2008:

Movie rentals in iTunes—Fox and Disney are reported as already signed on and almost everybody wants the "One More Thing" to be—at long last—the entire Beatles collection, made available at the iTunes Music Store (iTMS). (If that happens, no one will be crying over the loss of Universal.)

Improvements to iPhone: A 16GB, 3G model, with no limits on cell service provider—we can certainly dream, can't we? Also rumored is an iPhone SDK (software development kit), which would mean that there would be a market for third-party software. We might even see a demo of 3rd-party apps—something developers were clamoring for most of last year.

Office 2008—slam-dunk #2, as Amazon is already taking pre-orders. I expect someone from Microsoft will make the official announcement during the Keynote. (I'll write more on Office later in the week, when I get to see it for real.)

Leopard 10.5.2—this is almost a slam-dunk, as the Developers Cut is already making the rounds. There are at least 75 fixes and feature additions in the works, and this would be a perfect time to announce their deployment.

New Cinema displays with touch-screen and built-in webcam—possibly 24-, 27- and 30-inch models, an upgrade that is long overdue.

Blu-ray drives in some Macs—a rumor that is growing some legs, now that Blu-Ray seems to be winning the format war, and there is going to be a growing need to handle HD content.

Ultraslim notebook/touch tablet—this is the biggest rumor to make the rounds, and highly likely: Apple fills out its laptop line with an ultra-thin notebook, running on flash memory instead of a hard drive, sporting a 12-13 inch touch screen, which could possibly fold over to become a tablet Mac.

Final Cut Studio update—not likely, but definitely overdue, considering the plethora of new digital camcorders that have hit the market

Apple TV "2.0"—look for a "reboot" of this product, with new features, more storage, and built-in compatibility with iTMS movie-rental.

If you are not attending this year, here is a link to sites offering live blogging of the Keynote (SFW). Stay tuned!

—Thomas A. Olson

Thomas Olson, the Publishing Systems Administrator for Consumer Reports' Editorial, Design, Production and Pre-Press groups, has been a Mac enthusiast since 1984.

 

CES 2008: Wireless innovations for portable devices

Most of the buzz about wirelessness at the Consumer Electronics Show has been generated by products and technologies that seek to liberate HDTVs and other components that are usually connected by cables. But there have also been interesting announcements in traditionally unwired product categories. Here are three examples, from cameras, music players, and cellphones respectively:

Eye-Fi SD memory card. Some newer cameras have built-in Wi-Fi connections that enable them to wirelessly upload their photos to PCs, Macs and online photo and social networking sites over a home network. Now, any camera that accepts an SD memory card can have that convenience with the $100 Eye-Fi, a 2gigabyte SD memory card with a built-in Wi-Fi radio. (Click on image at right for a closer look.)

To receive photos in this mode, your computer must be turned on and running the Eye-Fi Manager software, a simple download from www.eye-fi.com. The card and software also allow any Eye-Fi-enabled camera to upload photos directly to 17 online sites, including KODAK Gallery, Shutterfly, Wal-Mart, Snapfish, Photobucket, Facebook, Webshots, Picasa Web Albums, SmugMug, Flickr, Fotki, TypePad, VOX, dotPhoto, Phanfare and Sharpcast. Eye-Fi is available now at Amazon.com, Buy.com, Walmart.com and other retailers.

Sennheiser MX W1 wireless stereo headphones. Even wireless stereo Bluetooth headphones have wires—the ones that connect the left and right speakers. Not the MX W1. (Click on image at left for a closer look.) The two-piece MX W1 uses a new wireless technology called Kleer, which, unlike Bluetooth, permits left and right speakers to link wirelessly. The headphones' twist-to-fit design keeps them securely and comfortably in the ear. Another advantage Kleer has over Bluetooth is that it transmits lossless 16-bit, 44KHz-sampled digital audio, the same quality that is recorded on a CD. Bluetooth, on the other hand, compresses audio prior to transmission, which degrades sound quality.

The MX W1 includes a small Kleer transmitter, about the size of a matchbox, which plugs into the headphone jack of your music source. The transmitter also allows you to link a second set of MXW1 headphones to share your tunes with a friend. The MX W1 also comes with a carrying case that doubles as a charger for the earphones and transmitter, allowing you to recharge the headphones up to three times without plugging it into a wall outlet. Sennheiser says playback time on a single charge is about three to four hours. The MX W1 will be available in May 2008 for a whopping $599.

Iqua Sun bluetooth headset. In what may be a fi