Apple recently upgraded its popular Macbook Pro laptop line, equipping them with a faster processor and more powerful graphics hardware. Specs and prices follow.

The following prices are as listed on the online Apple Store for the Philippines. Feel free to share lower prices below, dear readers! I personally think the basic 13-inch Macbook Pro is pretty powerful.

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Take a look at the e-fliers below and you’ll see what I mean (click on the thumbnail to see the full-size version):

Should you buy gifts from Apple? While their products—especially their desktops and laptops—are pricey compared to competitors, and while I’m not really a fan of Apple’s exclusivity-oriented marketing, Apple’s customer service is more or less the best I’ve heard about locally. I’ve at least two anecdotes in memory, involving a reseller (Power Mac) agreeing to fix an older-generation Macbook Pro that was out of warranty for free, and a desktop repair that took less than a week.

In any case, your options are either buying from the numerous Authorized Apple Resellers in the country (like Power MAC), reputable companies with access to Apple stock like Ynzal, or even the online store. The latter currently features “Fast, free shipping on orders over ₱3,000″. On top of that (as far as I know) only the online store offers engraving for iPods. Just be aware that engraved products aren’t covered by Apple’s official return policy—for obvious reasons.

So, are any of you buying an Apple product for Christmas, for yourself or for a loved one? Do share below!

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You probably know that there are no playback controls on the iPod shuffle itself; they’ve been moved to the earphones that come with the iPod shuffle, effectively limiting you to that pair. If it breaks or stops working, you’ll have to buy an expensive replacement from Apple, paying whatever price they set for the new pair of earphones.

Otherwise however, the iPod shuffle is much easier to use than its predecessor, despite still lacking a display to aid navigation. Playing and pausing a track, browsing through songs and even playlists are made possible by pressing the button between the volume up and down keys one or more times. I’ve tried jogging with the shuffle, and while listening through playlists can take some time, moving to the next or previous track wasn’t really that difficult.

When you stop using the shuffle though, you must remember to turn it off! After a quick 30-minute jog, I wrapped the earphone cords around the shuffle and tucked it away—only to discover a couple of days later that it died because I accidentally left it on!

For its size, the iPod shuffle is surprisingly affordable. The earphones that come bundled with each iPod aren’t known for their audio quality, but those that come with the shuffle are decent enough, treble- and bass-level wise. Just make sure you never lose those earphones, or the USB charger that plugs into the earphone port, otherwise you’re left with an unusable gadget.

Pricing info available here: iPod shuffle (3rd Gen, 4GB) First Impressions

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The generations of the iPods above? The 3rd-gen shuffle, the 5th gen nano, and the 6th-gen classic. The 8GB iPod touch is a second-generation variant, while the 32GB and 64GB versions are marketed as the third-gen.

Just remember, the new iPod can capture videos at 640 x 480 resolution—but can’t take pictures for some reason. Also, Apple’s now pushing the new iPod touch as a portable gaming platform among other things, but significant changes (voice control support and bundled remote earphones) are only present in the 32GB and 64GB variants. Some more notes from the intrepid Jayvee:

• “The yellow and Product Red versions of the 5th generation iPod nano are only available in the online store.”
• “The special edition ipod shuffle in aluminum… is only available through the Apple Online Store for Philippines..”

Got a price lower than these official figures? Feel free to share it below.

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To be clear, that’s the price for people upgrading from Mac OS X Leopard. Full pricing details of Snow Leopard—the marketing name for Mac OS X 10.6—and who qualifies for a P590 upgrade follow.

Aside from the single-user upgrade-from-Leopard license (at P1,690 in case you forgot), Snow Leopard is also available in a “single household, five-user license” Family Pack upgrade, for P2,790. Those upgrading from Tiger (Mac OS X 10.4)—and presumably earlier versions of OS X—will have to pay P9,490 for the Mac Box Set, a bundle of Snow Leopard, iLife 09, and iWork 09. The Family Pack Mac Box Set retails for P12,990.

What about that P590 upgrade? Those who’ve purchased a new Mac from authorized resellers between June 8 and December 26, 2009 qualify for it, so long as they request for upgrade “within 90 days of purchase or by December 26, 2009, whichever comes first”.

Confused? Hopefully this table clears things up:

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3. New Macbook Pro Prices in the Philippines (2010) Apple recently upgraded its popular Macbook Pro laptop line, equipping them with a faster processor and more powerful graphics...

With a 13″ display, the smallest Macbook Pro is definitely more portable than its 15″ and 17″ counterparts. The smaller size comes at a cost of performance though, and it’s clear that Apple simply slapped on the “Pro” label to the 13″ aluminum Macbook to make the upgrade from the NVIDIA 9300M to the 9400M seem much more exciting. Essentially, the 13″ Macbook Pro is practically the same as the older, 13″ aluminum Macbook (sans the “Pro”), save for the slightly improved graphics card and the welcome addition of an SD memory card slot.

As always, Apple products are available locally from Apple Store Philippines, and authorized local Apple resellers. The 13″ Macbook Pro for sale at the online store starts at P69,000, and gets you the following specs:

• Intel Core 2 Duo
• 2GB Memory
• 160GB hard drive
• SD card slot
• Built-in 7-hour battery
• NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics

Anyone knows a lower price than what official Apple stores are offering? Feel free to leave a comment below.

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Question is, which Mac Mini?

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The report places the Apple Store on the site of the “new Philippine Stock Exchange”, supposedly located in Fort Bonifacio, Taguig City. Speculation dates the opening of the store sometime in 2011, as well as the involvement of engineering firm CB Engineers. If this rumor pans out, this Apple Store will be the first ever in the Philippines.

Though I’m not an avid Apple user, I’m all for this happening. It would be great to see Filipino Apple Genuises staffing the rumored store. And if Apple is indeed serious about building an official presence here in the Philippines, maybe it can finally extend full Apple Store support in the Philippines, allowing Filipinos to buy music online through iTunes? Maybe we can also expect the online Apple Store Philippines to start pulling stock from local warehouses, instead of Singapore?

Ah well, 2011 is still a couple of years away, so speculate, speculate, speculate! Thanks for the tip TechyMind!

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It’s been a pretty hectic week for Technograph, involving a couple of stolen Macbook Pros. The unibody was recently stolen, while its 2007 counterpart was found.

In the latter case, the robbed owner encountered a for-sale item on a local user group forum, and upon looking at the serial number of the item, realized that someone was trying to sell his stolen laptop!

To be clear, the poster on the forum wasn’t directly involved with the theft. Reports indicate that he bought the stolen laptop from someone else through another website. In fact, he innocently complied with the forum’s rule that for-sale posts should list the serial numbers of all items offered.

That’s exactly my point: for-sale sites should require that sellers list the serial numbers of their items. Victims of theft presumably watch out for the serial numbers of their lost goods, making reunions that much easier. Sure, sellers trying to fence stuff may post a fake serial number. But using a bogus serial is likely to make any buyer suspicious, once they inspect the item and find out that the actual serial doesn’t match the advertised one.

Obviously, for this recommendation to work, we all need to be vigilant. For-sale websites can do their part, requiring sellers to post serial numbers along with their items, while buyers can check the serial numbers of whatever item they’re getting to see if it’s stolen or not. Or even look for items only on websites that require serial numbers in their listings.

It’s impossible to eliminate theft and fencing outright, but we can make it as hard as possible. You may ask, why should we take the time and help other people recover their stolen goods? Because it’s the right thing to do, and if you do end up as a victim of theft, wouldn’t consider the help of others valuable?

Republished with permission from The Gadget Blog.

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• Don’t place your laptop into the trunk in public. Apparently someone noticed Marco and his friend were doing so, and thus had a target to focus on.
• Never rely on parking lot security. Most (if not all) parking lots carry a disclaimer that absolves them from legal liability in the event of theft and damages. This means that, in exchange for letting you park in their space, you hold them free from any responsibility to what happens to your car and whatever’s inside it.
• Keep your laptop with you at all times. Maybe a better alternative is to bring your laptop to wherever you go. It’s much harder to steal that way.

What else can we learn from Marco and Company? Feel free to leave an opinion below.

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