Cooler Master, an industry leading chassis, thermal solution, peripheral, and accessory manufacturer today announces a visually alluring new piece of functional art, the ARC MacBook Pro and iPad stand. Draw attention to your beautiful pieces of technology with this new multipurpose stand.

Market researcher Ming-Chi Kuo, who is credible with reports on Apple's product lineup in the past, predicted that Apple could discontinue the 17-inch variant of its MacBook Pro soon, owing to weak sales. Apple's next MacBook Pro could look increasingly like the MacBook Air, offering high-performance in a very compact form-factor. Being a major design rejig, Apple could take a fresh look at the viability of each variant based on its past market reception. "While adding new products, Apple is likely to stop making the 17" MacBook Pro this year due to falling shipments, in order to maintain a lean product line strategy," Kuo writes in his report.

Over the past few days, several retailers have been reporting shortages of 15-inch MacBook Pro 2011 (including its variants based on higher processor clock speeds), suggesting that Apple is lowering its production to make way for the new 2012 MacBook Pro. Apple is a known early-adopter of technologies, and the advent of low-TDP 22 nm "Ivy Bridge" processors by Intel could catalyze 2012 MacBook Pro.

The new MacBook Pro launch is imminent, according to Apple Insider, and could happen any time this month. We know from older reports that by design, the new MacBook Pro closely resembles Apple's successful MacBook Air. The new MacBook Pro could be driven by Intel's Core i7-3820QM or Core i7-3720QM "Ivy Bridge" quad-core processors, with integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics, and options for discrete graphics.

Apple is reportedly toying with the idea of a slightly bigger MacBook Air. This report comes in the wake of several others, pointing that the MacBook Pro of the future will look increasingly like the MacBook Air. Apple is considering this new, big MacBook Air to fully enter the Asia PC market, sources told DigiTimes. 14-inch notebooks are preferred more in the Asian markets, while European buyers, for instance, prefer 15-inch (or bigger) ones. The screen resolution of the new 14-inch MacBook Air is not known. The current biggest model in the series, the 13.3-inch one, packs 1440x900 pixels.

Later this year, Apple will refresh its MacBook Pro line with a new generation, and it is reported that these new products will look increasingly similar to the MacBook Air, as they will get a lot more slimmer. MacBook Pro is Apple's main line of portable Mac computers, and arguably its most popular Mac. Apple has mastered ultra-compact notebook design with the MacBook Air, which its PC rivals are struggling to get even close to. It is now going all out on the ultaslim form-factor by designing ever more powerful MacBook Pros based on it.

The ultra-slim form-factor will also see hardware such as optical drives and hard disk drives leave. Primary storage will be handled by SSDs, there will be an increasing relevance of iCloud for additional storage. "They're all going to look like MacBook Airs," a source familiar with the designs of the upcoming MacBook Pros told AppleInsider. We will get to see MacBook Pros that are as slim as the MacBook Air, but as big as 15-inch and 17-inch, while being backed by powerful hardware, even as PC makers struggle with big Ultrabooks since they're government by specifications laid down by Intel, a move that could limit their success in Europe, creating a great market opportunity for Apple. AppleInsider provided mock-ups of what the new MacBook Pros could look like.

Launched yesterday as a developer-preview, Apple's OS X "Mountain Lion" will support fewer Macs than its predecessor, probably because of increases in hardware requirements for smooth operation that older Macs can't quite guarantee. The support list for Mountain Lion looks like this:

• iMac (mid 2007 or later)
• MacBook (13-inch Aluminum, 2008), (13-inch, plastic, Early 2009 or later)
• MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid-2009 or later), (15-inch, 2.4/2.2 GHz), (17-inch, Late 2007 or later)
• MacBook Air (Late 2008 or later)
• Mac Mini (Early 2009 or later)
• Mac Pro (Early 2008 or later)
• Xserve (Early 2009)

As you can see, some x86 Mac models are out of the support list, including importantly, the pre-Unibody plastic Macbook Pros. Perhaps Apple will support Mac OS X "Lion" with security updates for a lot longer.

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced of 8GB and 16GB DDR3 memory upgrade kits for Apple Mac desktop and laptop systems.

Mac systems with two memory slots have traditionally been limited to only 8GB of memory. By increasing the individual module capacity to 8GB, Corsair's latest memory upgrade kits allow Mac owners to upgrade to 10GB, 12GB, or even 16GB of memory.

Post production pros know that you can never have enough fast, cool and reliable storage. Dedicated to serving the Apple Mac and creative professional audio/video (A/V) markets, G-Technology by Hitachi is demoing its first 4TB hard drives at IBC 2011 (Stand #7.D12a) in its two-drive, RAID 0, G-RAID solution. Continuing to develop innovative and creative storage solutions for those looking to push creativity beyond the limits, the 8TB G-RAID demo shows how G-Technology is making digital production faster, super-sized and affordable, giving users a competitive edge in the demanding entertainment and film industry.

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced worldwide retail availability of 4GB DDR3 memory for Apple Mac desktop and laptop PCs.

Corsair's Mac memory kits are tested at Apple Developer Compatibility Labs and are guaranteed to work with any Mac desktop or notebook PC that supports 4GB DDR3 SODIMMs, including iMac, Mac mini, Mac Pro, MacBook, and MacBook Pro models. This includes virtually all models offered by Apple since 2010.

Kanex, maker of audio-visual solutions for Apple computers, is excited to announce the C24DL, a full resolution dual-link digital video inverter (DVI) to 27 inch Apple LED Cinema Display (ACD). The C24DL is a simple dual-link DVI with USB to Mini DisplayPort converter designed for users with legacy Macs (2006-early 2008 MacBook Pro, 2005-mid 2007 Mac Mini) or PCs with high-end graphics cards to connect specifically to a 27 inch ACD.

The Kanex C247DL supports the native HD resolution (2560x1440) of the ACD not available with other standard DVI adapters. The innovative converter actively converts the video signal from the dual-link DVI delivering pixel perfect resolution. The included USB cable powers the C247DL, allows for audio transfer to the ACD speakers, and supports all USB 2.0 functions including use of the iSight camera.

Apple today unveiled the new Apple Thunderbolt Display, the world's first display with Thunderbolt I/O technology and the ultimate docking station for your Mac notebook. With just a single cable, users can connect a Thunderbolt-enabled Mac to the 27-inch Apple Thunderbolt Display and access its FaceTime camera, high quality audio, and Gigabit Ethernet, FireWire 800, USB 2.0 and Thunderbolt ports. Designed specifically for Mac notebooks, the new display features an elegant, thin, aluminum and glass enclosure, and includes a MagSafe connector that charges your MacBook Pro or MacBook Air.

"The Apple Thunderbolt Display is the ultimate docking station for your Mac notebook," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "With just one cable, users can dock with their new display and connect to high performance peripherals, network connections and audio devices."

Apple announced that Mac OS X Lion, the eighth major release of the world's most advanced operating system with more than 250 new features and 3,000 new developer APIs, will be available to customers in July as a download from the Mac App Store for $29.99. Some of the amazing features in Lion include: new Multi-Touch gestures; system-wide support for full screen apps; Mission Control, an innovative view of everything running on your Mac; the Mac App Store, the best place to find and explore great software, built right into the OS; Launchpad, a new home for all your apps; and a completely redesigned Mail app.

"The Mac has outpaced the PC industry every quarter for five years running and with OS X Lion we plan to keep extending our lead," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "The best version of OS X yet, Lion is packed with innovative features such as new Multi-Touch gestures, system-wide support for full screen apps, and Mission Control for instantly accessing everything running on your Mac."

PROMISE Technology today announced Pegasus, the industry's first-high performance hardware RAID solution designed to unleash the raw speed of the all-new Thunderbolt technology. Designed from the ground up for media and entertainment customers, Pegasus offers superior speed and throughput in a form factor small enough for a desktop, and is available in 4-bay and 6-bay aluminum enclosures with up to 12TB of raw storage.

"Intel is excited about the superior performance and simplicity Thunderbolt technology and PROMISE's Pegasus family of products will bring to consumers and media professionals trying to keep up with the explosion of digital media," said Jason Ziller, Director, Thunderbolt Planning and Marketing, Intel Corporation.

LaCie today announced the LaCie Little Big Disk featuring the all-new Thunderbolt technology, developed by Intel and brought to market with collaboration from Apple. Designed to store large audio and video files, the LaCie Little Big Disk will bring a new level of performance to creative workflows with ultra-fast data transfer, complete system backup in minutes, and faster content editing than ever before.

"Thunderbolt technology is a breakthrough in I/O technology and represents the future of mobile computing. Soon you will be able to carry workstation-class power and functionality in compact devices," said Philippe Spruch, Chairman and General Manager, LaCie. "LaCie is excited to be one of the first to deliver Thunderbolt technology with the LaCie Little Big Disk."

Apple today introduced its 2011 Macbook Pro, the company's premium line portable computers. Available in 13.3-inch, 15-inch, and 17-inch sizes, the Macbook Pro binds the latest notebook hardware with the Apple Mac platform. The 2011 version makes use of Intel's second-generation Core "Sandy Bridge" processors, AMD Radeon HD 6000 series graphics, a minimum of 4 GB of DDR3 memory, and Intel's newly introduced Thunderbolt 10 Gb/s "Light Peak" interface. The new Macbook Pro also features a new Facetime HD camera that allows Facetime conversations with three times the video resolution, and a revamped glass-based multi-touch surface trackpad that gives pointing with the precision of an iPhone 4. Mac OSX "Snow Leopard" is the OS of choice.

The lineup, with available hardware configurations is split according to screen size. The 13.3-inch are the entry-level, starting at US $1,199. The base model features dual-core 2.3 GHz Core i5 with 320 GB HDD, topped by a dual-core 2.7 GHz Core i7 driven model with 500 GB HDD at $1,499. The 15-inch pair includes a quad-core 2.0 GHz Core i7 powered model with AMD Radeon HD 6490M graphics and 500 GB HDD priced at $1,799, followed by a quad-core 2.2 GHz Core i7 model with Radeon HD 6750M graphics, and 750 GB HDD at $2,199. The series is topped by a 17-inch model with quad-core 2.2 GHz Core i7 processor, Radeon HD 6750M graphics, and 750 GB HDD, priced at $2,499. They are available right away from the Apple Store.

Intel Corporation today announced the availability of Thunderbolt technology, a new high-speed PC connection technology that brings together high-speed data transfer and high-definition (HD) display on to a single cable. Running at 10 Gbps, Thunderbolt technology can transfer a full-length HD movie in less than 30 seconds. This Intel-developed technology is coming to market through a technical collaboration with Apple, and is available first on Apple's new line of MacBook Pro laptop computers.

The vision for Thunderbolt technology (formerly codenamed "Light Peak") is to move media faster, simplify connections between devices, and foster new and exciting ways to build and use PCs. Combining high-speed data and HD video connections together onto a single cable is instrumental to achieving that vision. Thunderbolt technology delivers this via two communications methods, or protocols -- PCI Express for data transfer and DisplayPort for displays.

Apple's next-generation MacBook Pro computers are around the corner, with the company planning a Spring-Summer launch of new products. The new MacBook Pro models are said to use the latest generation of processors, chipsets, graphics, and an interesting storage solution. On all models, the MacBook Pro will feature an 8~16 GB internal SSD to boot from, and store the operating system. The rest of the storage will be handled by the hard drive. This ensures that at least the OS and vital OS programs will be snappy, benefiting from the SSD. Users can also opt for an all-SSD configuration, in which the data storage will be handled by a larger SSD. The next generation MacBook Pro will also feature a larger trackpad that gives users surface area nearly on par with iPhone 4 for multi-touch UI gestures.

Other World Computing, a leading zero emissions Mac and PC technology company, announced today the OWC Do-It-Yourself (DIY) SSD Storage Upgrade Kit priced starting at $109.99 MSRP. Available in fourteen configurations with capacities up to 480GB, the OWC DIY SSD Kits let you upgrade your Mac or Windows laptop to the industry's fastest solid state drives (SSDs) available on the market today.

With the OWC DIY SSD Storage Upgrade Kit, MacBook, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, and PC laptop users can make their computers faster than new with incredible SSD performance by upgrading their computer's internal hard drive with the industry's fastest SSDs from OWC. They can then continue to use their 'old' drive by installing it into the provided OWC enclosure for a 'new' pocket-sized portable external drive, saving money and the environment by re-using their 'old' hard drive instead of throwing a perfectly good drive into a landfill or just letting the drive sit idle and unused. By purchasing the OWC DIY SSD Kit, customers will also save up to 40% versus buying all the included components separately.

Matrox Graphics Inc. today announced connectivity improvements to the Matrox DualHead2Go DP Edition and TripleHead2Go DP Edition Graphics eXpansion Modules (GXMs) benefitting Apple Mac notebook and desktop users. The DualHead2Go DP and TripleHead2Go DP products now come packaged with a Mini-DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable that allows Mac users to connect these external multi-monitor modules directly to the mini-DisplayPort output of their systems to swiftly drive multiple monitors or projectors. Mac professionals and enthusiasts now benefit from the convenience of a true plug and play platform while experiencing the productivity-enhancements gained across an advanced dual- or triple-monitor workspace. In addition, an upcoming firmware release will enable the support of a dual 1600x900 resolution on DVI monitors, further expanding the list of supported resolutions for greater flexibility when choosing displays.

Portable storage has never looked so good with the new G-Technology G-DRIVE slim from Hitachi GST. Just in time for the holidays, and making a perfect external storage companion to the Apple Macbook, MacBook Pro or Macbook Air, the new G-DRIVE slim external hard drive gives users 320GB of storage and ubiquitous USB 2.0 connectivity in an amazingly slim form factor. The new drive is designed from the inside out to emulate G-Technology's known quality and style for the Apple Mac market, providing simple, reliable and affordable external storage for college students, business professionals and consumers on the go.

The new G-DRIVE slim leverages Hitachi GST's rugged, 7mm Travelstar Z5K320 drive, making it the thinnest, 2.5-inch external hard drive in the world. With its diminutive footprint - just a mere 128.6 mm (L) x 82 mm (W) by 9.9 mm (H), - sleek design and recyclable aluminum enclosure, users now have a stylish drive to help them move, work and play with their digital content. Lightweight and compact, weighing in at approximately 144g (5 oz), users can easily carry up to 80 hours of high-definition video, 320 hours of standard video, 114 movies, 80,000 songs or 160 games wherever they go.

NVIDIA reported revenue of $1.0 billion for the first quarter of fiscal 2011 ended May 2, 2010, up 2 percent from the prior quarter and up 51 percent from $664.2 million in the same period a year earlier. On a GAAP basis, the company recorded net income of $137.6 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, for the first quarter of fiscal 2011. That compares with $131.1 million, or $0.23 per diluted share, in the previous quarter and a net loss of $201.3 million, or $0.37 per share, in the same period a year earlier.

Gross margin increased to 45.6 percent for the first quarter fiscal 2011 from 44.7 percent in the previous quarter and 28.6 percent in the same period a year earlier.

• Revenue grew 2 percent quarter-on-quarter to $1.0 billion
• GAAP net income increased to $137.6 million, or $0.23 per diluted share
• GAAP gross margin improved to 45.6 percent

Super Talent Technology, a leading manufacturer of Flash storage solutions and DRAM memory modules, announced it has self certified its award winning UltraDrive SSDs for compatibility with the newest Apple MacBook (13"), MacBook Pro (15"/17"), and Mac Pro (Quad/8-Core) based on Intel's Core i7 CPUs.

During compatibility testing Super Talent was able to improve boot time by up to 58% and achieve performance gains of over 5.3x vs. the stock Apple Hard Disk Drive (HDD). The UltraDrive ME delivered 32x the bandwidth of the HDD on 256K Random Writes as measured by the xBench standard benchmark. The UltraDrive also outperformed the Apple SSD by 2.5x.

OCZ Technology Group, Inc., a worldwide leader in innovative, ultra-high performance and high reliability memory and computer components, today unveiled OCZ Vertex Mac Edition Solid State Drives and mobile memory solutions qualified by OCZ for ultimate compatibility with the latest family of MacBooks. These new premium offerings are designed for Mac enthusiasts demanding the latest technology in storage and memory to increase productivity and performance on their Apple notebooks.

"OCZ is excited to announce two new products that are specifically designed for Mac consumers," commented Ryan Edwards, Director of Product Management at the OCZ Technology Group. "Both the Vertex Series Mac Edition solid state drives and the new Mac Edition SODIMMS are designed to be an easy upgrade for consumers that want to boost the performance of their MacBooks, and have been tested in Apple's Development Center (ADC) to ensure stability and compatibility."

A new rainstorm may be coming on Apple's head if the following scenario becomes as real as the previous one. Numerous owners of brand new 17-inch MacBook Pro are complaining that their video cards or perhaps notebooks are failing. The new $2,799 MacBook, which was debuted in January at Macworld, features both GeForce 9600M and GeForce 9400M mobile graphics cards from NVIDIA, that switch during operation depending on the graphics load. Owners are now reporting that their laptops have started to show random green lines and artifacts on the display - a certain symptom for failing video card. Users also believe that the issue occurs only when the second card - the GeForce 9600M - turns on. Both NVIDIA and Apple had very serious problems over faulty GPUs last year. A second NVIDIA fiasco over faulty mobile graphics, won't be good at all for the company. Hopefully, this time an update from Apple will fix the issue. If not, prepare for more lawsuits on our news page. A discussion in the Apple forums was also posted, direct link here.

MCE Technologies announced on Monday that it has prepared a little something for the owners of "unibody" MacBook and MacBook Pro systems. MCE offers to replace the optical disk drive of your unibody Mac with a hard drive, providing you with increased internal storage capacity, RAID performance or additional reliability if you mirror the two hard drives. The OptiBay upgrade starts at $190 and offers to install 250 GB/5400 RPM, 320 GB/5400 RPM, 320 GB/7200 RPM or 500 GB/5400 RPM SATA hard drives. MCE also offers an external drive enclosure kit for the "SuperDrive" optical drive that's removed by the second hard drive, so you can have the goods from both worlds.