APPLE'S MACBOOK PRO LINE GETS SILENT SPEC BUMP

Apple on Monday quietly updated its line of MacBook Pro notebook computers with faster processors and more storage. The late-2011 MacBook bump comes a bit later than expected, but it is somewhat in line with various reports. Apple’s low-end $1,199 13-inch MacBook Pro laptop now includes a 2.4GHz dual-core Core i5 processor with 500GB of storage, and $1,499 will now buy a 2.8GHz dual-core Core i7 with a 750GB hard drive.

The 15-inch MacBook Pro includes a 2.2GHz quad-core Core i7 and an AMD Radeon HD 6750M graphics card for $1,799 or a 2.4GHz quad-core Core i7 and AMD Radeon HD 6770M GPU for $2,199.

On the top end of Apple’s laptop lineup, the base-level 17-inch MacBook pro now includes a 2.4GHz quad-core Core i7 processor and the AMD 6770M for $2,499, and a fully-loaded 17-inch model includes a 2.5GHz quad-core Core i7 CPU and a 512GB solid state drive for $3,849. Apple’s updated MacBook Pro notebooks begin shipping immediately.

APPLE LAUNCHES NEW MACBOOK PRO LINE

Apple surprised no one when it launched its new line of MacBook Pro computers today. Despite ongoing rumors that have been swirling for weeks now, anxious Apple fans in need of new rigs can finally breathe a sigh of relief as they open their wallets nice and wide. Here’s the breakdown:

• MC700LL/A: 13.3-inch display, 2.3GHz dual-core Core i5, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 320GB HD, Intel HD Graphics 3000 — $1,199
• MC724LL/A: 13.3-inch display, 2.7GHz dual-core Core i5, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 500GB HD, Intel HD Graphics 3000 — $1,499
• MC721LL/A: 15.4-inch display (1440×900), 2.0GHz quad-core Core i7, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 500GB HD, AMD Radeon HD 6490M — $1,799
• MC723LL/A: 15.4-inch display (1440×900), 2.2GHz quad-core Core i7, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 750GB HD, AMD Radeon HD 6750M — $2,199
• MC725LL/A: 17-inch display (1920×1200), 2.2GHz quad-core Core i7, 4GB DDR3 RAM, 750GB HD, dual graphics processors with automatic switching (Intel HD Graphics 3000 and AMD Radeon HD 6750M) — $2,499

The new MacBook Pro models will become available for purchase shortly.

VIZIO UNVEILS VIA LINEUP AHEAD OF CES

Vizio built its name on low-end HDTVs. Now, it is expanding into other areas and using the same business philosophy...make it cheap enough and people will buy it. Just ahead of CES, Vizio has announced they will be jumping into the tablet, phone and media TV sectors with their new VIA lineup.

The Vizio tablet will be 8-inches while the phone will be 4-inches. Both will run Android and have WiFi N, GPS, MicroSD slot, dual cameras and HDMI output. The tablet, at least at this time, will not have 3G capabilities and it is unknown if the phone will be GSM or CDMA.

In addition, Vizio will be launching a line of TVs and Blu-ray players with Google TV built in. This won't be the standard Google TV either, apparently Vizio is creating its own interface built on top of the standard Google TV interface. It remains to be seen(at CES later this week) if Vizio will be able to pull it off.