CPU posts

CoverSutra updated to be faster and Snow Leopard compatible

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Sep 24th, 2009

I picked up CoverSutra a little while ago in a bundle purchase, and I generally liked it -- it's an iTunes controller with the added features of regular notifications with album art, a music search, and Last.fm scrobbling. My one complaint with the software was that it was a bit of a CPU hogger -- my little Mac mini chugged right along trying to keep it running, and I occasionally had to turn it off completely if I was doing something else CPU-intensive.

But maybe with newly released version 2.2 they'll have fixed that problem -- not only have they made the app fully compatible with Snow Leopard and iTunes 9, but they've beefed up performance, taking advantage of all available CPU cores and, they say, dramatically loading album artwork and searching music faster. I haven't tried it yet, but if you've had the same problems with CoverSutra I have, it's worth picking up the new version and testing it out. 2.2 is of course a free upgrade to current users, and the app itself is available for $19.95.

Tags: album-artwork, coversutra, cpu, itunes-9, mac-mini, performance, snow-leopard, update, version-2.2

Filed under: Hardware, Rumors, iPhone

PA Semi team creating new ARM-based iPhone CPU

by Robert Palmer (RSS feed) on Sep 15th, 2008

Apple Senior Manager Wei-han Lien let slip that teams acquired with the purchase of PA Semi are working on an ARM-based processor for the iPhone, and possibly other devices, according to The New York Times.

While not a huge surprise, as Steve himself said that's what the former PA Semi staff was working on, the question was still "what kind of processor?"

ARM variants can be customized to meet the needs of very specific devices, including supporting the multi-touch screen, or QuickTime playback. Electronista suggests that this supports earlier hints that Apple licensed the architecture from ARM under a secretive arrangement in late June.

Lien updated a section of his LinkedIn profile to describe what he was working on. (The NYT has a screenshot.) Oops. The profile, as you might expect, has been changed.

Tags: arm, cpu, electronista, iphone, linkedin, new york times, NewYorkTimes, nyt, pa semi, PaSemi, processor

Filed under: Software, Freeware

iStat menus turns 1.3

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on Jun 6th, 2008

iSlayer has released version 1.3 of iStat menus, the powerful -- and free -- Mac system monitoring app. There are so many changes that the release notes for this latest update take up an entire page of the iSlayer website. Some of the more notable additions include:

Monitoring power, current and voltage sensors on PPC and Intel Macs
Controls for PPP and buttons for copying IP (Leopard only)
Improved support for VPN connections
Better MacBook Air temperature monitoring support (w00t!)

I use their calendar / time menu (see screenshot above) in place of the standard Mac time item in the menu bar. I also have to admit to an obsession with following the temperature of the CPU on my MacBook Air.

iSlayer requests a donation if you use and like iStat menus. For a download, click here.

Thanks for the heads-up on the update, Marc!

Tags: cpu, freeware, monitoring, software

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Hardware, Rumors, iPhone

Atom-powered Mini-tablet Confirmed By Intel Germany CEO?

by Steven Sande (RSS feed) on May 15th, 2008

Was it a slip of the tongue? ZDNet.de reports that Intel Germany CEO Hannes Schwaderer, speaking at an Intel 40th anniversary event at Munich's BMW World, confirmed that there is an iPhone that will be using Intel's new Atom processor. The new device is "slightly larger" than the current iPhone, raising speculation that this new member of the iPhone family may be the long-rumored Apple mini-tablet with a 720 x 480 display.

Schwaderer also mentioned that an upgraded version of the current iPhone with the same form factor would be a 3G model. With iPhones out of stock in the US and UK, and Steve Jobs scheduled to give the keynote at WWDC 08, new iPhones and the mini-tablet might be right around the corner.

What do YOU think about Herr Schwaderer's comments and the rumored mini-tablet? Take our poll! A big thank-you hug to Erica Sadun for the poll answers!

Update: If you had "Intel disavows knowledge of future iPhone products" for $200, you win.

[via ZDNet.de, MacRumors]

Tags: atom, cpu, intel, iphone, tablet

Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, Odds and ends, Macbook Pro, MacBook Air

MBP vs. MBA benchmarking showdown

by Mike Schramm (RSS feed) on Apr 21st, 2008

Bare Feats continues to pit Macs against each other in a no-holds-barred, up-against-the-wall benchmarking breakdown, and this time around it's the MacBook Pro and the MacBook Air in the octagon together. And things go about as planned -- while the solid state drive in the MBA has its advantages, the processor and GPU (what little there is of it) in the MBA don't even really compare to the MBP. Sure, it's a small, super thin, super portable computer, but not only are you paying in cash for the portability, you're paying in performance, too.

This doesn't mean the MBA is a bad computer at all -- for most tasks, it'll work just fine. But complicated 3D graphics (both Halo and Unreal Tournament 2004 were tested) will be almost unplayable in games, and there will be a substantial wait, sometimes up to minutes more, for certain processor intensive tasks. If speed is a high priority (at least higher than portability), the MBA isn't for you.

I would like to see how the MacBook compares, though. It's not surprising that the MBP is a fast machine, but where does the MBA line up compared to the cheaper model?

[Via IMG]

Tags: barefeats, benchmarks, cpu, gpu, graphics, intensive, macbook-air, macbook-pro, tests, timing

Filed under: Hardware, Hacks, PowerBook, Rig of the Week

Rig of the Week: PowerBook with USB cooling fan

by Dave Caolo (RSS feed) on Sep 23rd, 2007

TUAW reader and Flickr user sninesix posted this snapshot of the USB CPU fan he rigged up to cool his PowerBook. When the original fan died, sninesix found an old fan he had lying around, removed the wires and hacked a USB cable onto it.

He then removed laptop's keyboard and positioned the fan just above the CPU. With a USB keyboard connected, he was back in business. Well done! You can watch a video explanation here.

If you'd like to see your own rig featured here, simply upload photos into our group Flickr pool. Each Sunday we'll comb through the most recent entries and declare a "Rig of the Week!"

Tags: cooling-fan, cpu, hack, powerbook, rig-of-the-month

Filed under: Hardware, Software

iStat menus v1.1 preview screenshot and details

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Aug 10th, 2007

The iSlayer crew has released a preview screenshot on the company's blog that highlights a few key features coming in v1.1 of iStat menus, their utility for keeping an eye on your Mac's various statistics from the menubar. Specifically new in this upcoming version will be network graphing, monitoring of S.M.A.R.T. hard drive temperatures, a breakdown of every temp sensor on a CPU and what looks like a significantly redesigned calendar. Stat junkies will likely appreciate these new and finely tuned features, though there's no word on when this new version will become available.

iStat menus, like every one of iSlayer's mostly statistic-obsessed products, is still provided as freeware.

Tags: CPU, hardware, iSlayer, iStat, iStat menus, IstatMenus, network, statistics

Filed under: Hardware

Intel to ship 45nm Core 2 chips by end of year

by Michael Rose (RSS feed) on Jan 27th, 2007

It's front-page news today in the NYT and elsewhere: transistor jockeys at Intel will be the first to market with processors based on a 45-nanometer process, dramatically boosting performance and/or lowering power requirements for the new devices compared with the current 65nm parts. With the use of "high-k gate dielectrics" made with hafnium metal, Intel is implementing the biggest improvement in fundamental semiconductor technology in 40 years, according to company co-founder Gordon Moore (long retired, but sending in his two cents from Hawaii).

Intel is building two entirely new fabrication facilities to build the new process chips, in Arizona (up and running midyear) and Israel (early 2008). Of course, the part of this news we care most about 'round here: the new chips, codenamed "Penryn," are already running Mac OS X in the lab, will most likely be completely compatible with the existing Core 2 processors (with the addition of SSE4), and Intel expects a double-digit performance boost for media applications. Now that's what I'm talking about.

Tags: cpu, intel

Filed under: Hardware, Odds and ends

AMD CEO: AMD + Apple inevitable

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Sep 21st, 2006

During an Intel-bashing session at the Commonwealth Club in San Francisco, The CEO of AMD, Hector Ruiz, ~~whined~~ remarked that an AMD + Apple partnership is in their cards: "Knowing Apple, why would they want to be held hostage like everyone else has been?" Of course, Apple wasn't available to comment on whether Mac users could have AMD inside anytime soon.

While I try to manage my shackled ankles that this iMac imposes, I'll let you check out the full rundown of what Ruiz had to say at Bloomberg.

[via Engadget]

Tags: amd, ceo, chips, CPU, hardware, intel

Filed under: Hardware

AMD acquires ATI for $5.4 billion

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 24th, 2006

AMD, the #2 CPU maker in the world, has announced a purchase of ATI, a leading graphics card manufacturer, for $5.4 billion. IMG has more details on the buyout and the business end of things, but we're more interested in finding out what exactly this means for the Mac market. ATI currently supplies the graphics hardware in a good portion of Apple's machines, including the MacBook Pro I'm typing this on and my wife's iMac, so here's hoping ATI makes enough money from working with Apple to keep AMD - an arch rival to Intel - happy. Stay tuned for more details as they develop.

Tags: AMD, ATI, buyout, card, chip, CPU, graphics, hardware, merger, partnership, purchase, video

Filed under: Hardware, Macbook Pro

Apple quietly responds to whining (of MacBook Pros)

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 7th, 2006

Rickard Almqvist at MacInTouch is reporting that Apple has apparently (and finally) produced a tweaked version of the MacBook Pro logic board in response to everyone's whining - MacBook Pro whining, that is. Rickard received a letter from Apple detailing the new board and stating that it was brand new, "only a few days old". Also of note is the need for new installation DVDs that contain 10.4.6, not the 10.4.5 discs the machine originally came with. And just for all you skeptics out there, Rickard has also posted a picture of Apple's letter on his blog, so you can let your "that was Microsoft Worded" and "Photoshopped!" naysaying fly.

Here's hoping MacBook Pros everywhere can finally stop whining. The one question I have is: are you going to be sending your MBP in for the new board? Or is iTunes usually blaring loud enough for you to still wonder what all this 'whine' talk is about?

[via MacDailyNews]

Thanks Miguel

Tags: board, CPU, fan, logic, macbook, mother, motherboard, pro, whine, whining

Filed under: Hardware, Education, iMac, Apple

Apple Introduces $899 Education Configuration for 17-inch iMac

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jul 5th, 2006

Apple has decided to show the EDU market even more love and has unveiled a slimmed-down 17-inch iMac for all y'all eating reheated Ramen noodles for breakfast in your dorm room right now. This model sells for a mere $899 (down from $1199 for the next model up) and includes a 1.83 Intel Core Duo CPU, as well as the typica 1440 x 900 resolution. However, the main specs that took a step down from the base retail version are a Combo drive, an 80GB Serial ATA hard drive and an Intel GMA 950 graphics with 64MB of shared memory, instead of the Radeon X1600 in the other retail versions.

Students and EDU sys admins who have been pinching pennies can rejoice, for this model is shipping within 1-3 business days.

Tags: 17-inch, 899, combo drive, ComboDrive, core duo, CoreDuo, CPU, GMA, hard drive, HardDrive, iMac, intel

iStat nano updated with support for Intel Mac CPU temp

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jun 18th, 2006

iStat nano, a handy system monitoring Dashboard widget, has been updated to version 1.51b with support for CPU temps on Intel Macs. The one catch is that you'll have to install SpeedIt, a System Preference pane and kernel extension that allows this kind of functionality (and much more). We've heard nothing but good things about SpeedIt and the features it provides (such as controlling CPU whine by regulating voltage), but we'd understand if the thought of installing kernel extensions has already made you skip this post in your newsreader.

If you're still reading this, however, it seems both iStat nano and the SpeedIt kernel extension are provided free, so have at it.

[thanks Aaron]

Tags: cpu, istat, memory, monitor, nano, process, ram, speedit, system, temp, usage

Filed under: Hardware, Mac mini

Hacker installs Core 2 Duo chip in Mac mini, hangs on for the ride

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on Jun 13th, 2006

Macenstein has blogged a Mac mini CPU swap, as a poster in a Taiwanese forum has switched out the Core Duo chip for a Core 2 Duo chip, a next-generation CPU from Intel. The brain upgrade has resulted not only in the Mac mini stomping a PowerMac G5 dual 2.5 GHz in an iTunes MP3-AAC conversion test (remember: Mac minis have slower laptop hard drives than desktop PowerMacs), but it also runs cooler, due to the new architecture of these Core 2 Duo (code name: Merom) Intel chips.

Given reports like this of these new chips, we might as well talk about the elephant in the room: if these reports of cooler running and even more powerful chips so soon from Intel are true, I foresee a lot of criticism of Apple jumping the gun on cramming Intel chips into their present lineup, in light of all these complaints about heat.

[via MacNN]

Tags: benchmark, benchmarks, core, CPU, dual, duo, hardware, install, intel, mac, merom, mini, speed, swap

Filed under: Hardware, Software, Cool tools, Freeware, iMac, Mac mini, Macbook Pro, MacBook

CoreDuoTemp 0.8

by David Chartier (RSS feed) on May 24th, 2006

CoreDuoTemp, the handy little app for monitoring your Intel Mac's temp, CPU usage and frequency, has been updated to version 0.8. New features include:

window position saved
menu extra indicator
new panel prefs
correction of the English translation
German language added

You can grab your own copy here.

Tags: CoreDuoTemp, CPU, cycle, cycles, frequency, Intel, Mac, monitor, temp, temperature, usage, watch

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