04/27/03

Updates of the site.

Due to technical problems during the upgrade to a full php server, the updates of the site are currently only available on the forums. Please click here to read the news. We apologize for the inconvenience.

FAQ rebuilt and updated

We have rebuilt and updated our FAQ. Check it in our forums!

nVidia GeForce II for Cube available... Hurry!

Mac-Pro is selling the GeForce II (which works fanless in a Cube...) for $188.88 (look for product ID : NMGI) The GeForce2 video card by nVidia brings top of the line speed and power for all your video needs. GeForce2 utilizes digital vibrance control(dvc) bringing you brighter, clearer pictures even on newer flat screen monitors. GeForce is the standard graphics processing unit on all new Macs and is great for G4 Cubes and Mac OS 10.2

04/08/03

Macs4all shuts its doors

Macs4all apparently shut its doors last week.The Macs4All website has been offline for the past week. Macintouch reports today about Macs4All having their assets seized by the California Board of Equalization. If some of you have not received their products or a refund, we would recommend contacting your credit card company.

03/27/03

MCE announces a Superdrive for the Cube (and several other Macs...)!

MCE today announced several internal DVD-R models. One is for your Cube! Here is the press release :

"The new MCE DVD-R "SuperDrive" upgrade for the Power Mac G4 Cube allows Cube owners to author professional-quality DVDs as well as create, store, and share their collections of videos, music and photography. Plus, the fast, highly reliable drives are compatible with most computer and set-top DVD video players and other DVD burners - so video and data DVDs created using these drives can be shared with business associates, friends, and family. Install it yourself or have the MCE DVD-R "SuperDrive" upgrade professionally installed into your PowerMac G4 Cube at one of our worldwide MCE Authorized upgrade centers, and you'll be able to easily record up to 4.7GB of data, video or audio onto recordable DVD discs right from your Power Mac G4 Cube.

03/17/03

MacMice introduces iCinema

MacMice today introduced iCinema. iCinema is a Cinema Display stand which lifts your Apple display 4-inches above your desk surface. MacMice discovered that the most common point of dissatisfaction with Apple's LCD displays is with the inability to adjust them to a higher viewing position. While most Cinema Display owners eventually adapt to working while looking down at the display, it is not the most comfortable method. iCinema is built to sturdily lift your Apple display 4-inches above your desk surface, allowing you to work with more erect posture. Wherever your eyes now focus to view the center of your Cinema Display, the iCinema will raise that point by 4-inches.

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Build your own Cube... sort of....

We have found a nice hack made with a Gossamer motherboard put into a Cube. It is not the Cube you know, but a Cube made of pexiglas. You can check the whole thing here. We have to admit that this hack is great!

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Review of the Postworx Speedball for PowerBook and iBook

Postworx recently sent us two sets of SpeedBalls for review. The first one is white and matches perfectly the iBook and the second one just has the same color as our TiBook.

Speedball is a hardware addition primarily targeted at laptop computers. The product consists of two half-spheres with adhesive and removable mounting blocks. By attaching the two spheres to the far bottom corners of a laptop, the Speedball elevates the computer and offers improved cooling.

According to Postworx, "Speedball is a metallic coated product for use under notebook to increase notebook mobility on desktop. Its high performance coating is non-scratch and slides on any desktop with little or no resistance".

We found the Speedballs very easy to install and use, and our PowerBook G4 runs cooler than before. Each half ball weights 15 g and two pieces are needed under the back end corners of the notebook. They can either be posted or stuck under the notebook and removed and used again another time. The power slide capability of the Speedballs allows you to move your notebook easily on your desk. Notebook users can truly take the most comfortable sitting position whether leaning back, stretch forward, or just sitting upright. User can also share their screen information easily by twirling the notebook towards another person. The Speedballs also give you an ergonomic keyboard angle. And last but not least (especially if you own a PowerBook G4!), the increase in height at the back of the notebook allows a better air circulation under the notebook and helps lowering the temperature. Postworx claims that its operating temperature can experiences a drop by as much as 15 degree Celsius or 25 degree Fahrenheit.We do believe it is true.

Bottom line : this little piece of hardware is worth its price. You'll never regret buying it!

Pros : inexpensive, easy to install, remove and use, matches your PowerBook or iBook color.

Cons : What does that word mean? :-)

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We are back !

Dear readers, we are resuming publication. I apologize for the lack of news.... However, my Godfather died last week, and due to that situation, I did not post any articles, even those that were ready.

Cyril

02/15/03

iPod-Zone contest: we have our winner!

Our contest ended yesterday. We now have our winner, Johannes from Sweden. He will receive his Podstand for iPod soon! We will probably have some other contests soon....

Powerlogix specials, starting at $245.25.

Macs4all has very interesting specials (only valid for the week-end.). Here are the specials :

Shipping starts at $7. These are very limited stock, so first come first served. They have all tested good at the manufacturer, but do not have the benefit of the L3 cache. 30 day warranty.

02/07/03

Powerlogix slashes prices on CPU upgrades.

Discount on Powerlogix single 1.2 Ghz: card available for only $594!

Macs4all is offering the Powerlogix 1.2 Ghz card for G4 Cube for only $609. That's already $10 cheaper than the Powerlogix price. But, for Cube-zone readers, it will be even cheaper! If you use the "cubezone" coupon, you will have a $15 discount, which makes the card $594 only! THE $15 DISCOUNT IS VALID TILL SUNDAY ONLY ! All backorders on that card will ship with the new price.

Benchmarks of Powerlogix single 800 Mhz, 1 ghz and 1.2 ghz.

MEMPHIS, who is now our new benchmark specialist :-) ran several tests with X-Bench. Here are the results for the Powerlogix single processors cards :

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02/06/03

Powerbook and iBook benchmarks - updated

We received a lot of e-mails asking for the specs of the laptops tested below by MEMPHIS. Here are the specs :

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02/05/03

Exclusive discount on Sonnet 800 and 1.2 Ghz upgrade cards with a Cube kit.

OWC is offering the Cube-Zone readers a big and exclusive discount on Sonnet cards.When the Cube-Zone readers purchase either the 1.2GHz ($735.99 before discount) or 800MHz ($369.95 before discount) Sonnet Encore/ST Upgrade and the STISGCKIT Cube Installation kit that is needed to install these into the Cube, OWC will give them a $20 discount. In order to obtain the discount, both items must be on the order and the coupon code "CUBEZONEST" should be entered at checkout (for online orders only). you will also get a FREE Sonnet Picolo USB Pen Drive with this purchase from now until 3/31/2003!

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Is the Powerbook 12" slower than the iBook 800? Maybe....

MEMPHIS, one of our forums moderators made some tests at the Des Peres (Missouri) Apple-Store (we thank them for their help!) and compared several Macs that were available there. he wanted to check whether the new Powerbook 12" is faster than the iBooks. We can only say that the results are quite unexpected! Just check the charts (click on the thumbnail to see the pictures) below, and you will understand that the iBook 800 owners should not be ashamed: their litle computer is, in several tests, faster than the Powerbook 12". The results are quite different from the Barefeats tests (MEMPHISmade the same tests several times in order to be sure that the results were accurate).

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MEMPHIS also took pictures of the new towers and displays....And we have to admit that we love that 20" cinema display!

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Apple announces new iMacs : why you should keep your Cube for a while.

Apple announced new iMacs yesterday. The entry level model is just a 800 mhz iMac with a lower price. The new high-end has some new features (Airport Extreme, Bluetooth, 133 Mhz bus and DDR). However, it still lacks a L3 cache ( the Cube 1.2 Ghz upgrde cards have 2 megs of L3....). If you don't need Airport Extreme, or a 133 Mhz bus, you can keep your Cube for a while. Your money could be used to buy a processor upgrade or a 20"Cinema display....

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Rumor : Powerlogix planning 1.4 Ghz duals for the Cube

Powerlogix will probably sell single and dual 1.4 Ghz cards for the Cube and also the other PowerMacs. This product will use the 1.4ghz 7457 G4 from Motorola. The 1.4ghz dual will also have 512K L2, and 4Mb L3. The good news ? the 7457 G4 runs cooler than the current G4. It is probably the way to go for Cube products. However, it might not ship for a few weeks (months?). In the meantime, you should either by the single Powerlogix 1.2 or single Sonnet 1.2 We have good deals on both!

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Using the Cinema Display 20" with a Cube.

On of our readers, Steff, snet us that note about using the new Cinema displays with a Radeon 7500 and a Cube :

"Just want to drop a short note on the Cinema HD Display/Cube topic: If you will compare the tech specs of the "GeForce3" and the "Radeon 7500" you will find an interesting point: the Radeon's maximum digital output is 1600 by 1200 and I guess it will run a stretched picture on a Cinema HD.

GeForce3:AppleCare Document 88307

Radeon 7500: AppleCare Document 88337

Do anybody have other facts? Is it true? Or just a mistake in thinking? "

Steff

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02/03/03

Benchmarks of the Powerlogix single 1.2 ghz and Dual 1 ghz

Powerlogix posted some benchmarks. Here are some you will find on their site

As you can notice the single 1.2 Ghz is probably the best choice. It is faster than the duals for most things, and way cheaper. I guess that should be everyone's choice till we have a PPC 970.

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Digimod case modification : the best Cube Hack available.

Rezmason, one of our readers, has created one of the best Cube hacks we have ever seen. You can find a tutorial here.

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iPod-Zone contest : win an iPod stand!

We are having a contest on the iPod-Zone to celebrate the opening of our new forums, Podstand will offer an iPod stand to one of our readers. The only thing you have to do is to be one of the first 500 persons to register in our forums and make at least 5 posts. The winner will be chosen randomly among the people who meet the requirements. The contest will end February 14th.

01/30/03

Does Apple want to kill the processor upgrade cards market?

With the new PowerMacs, we are wondering if Apple is trying to kill the processor upgrade market. You just have to look at the prices of the new Macs : the first two ones cost $1499 and $1999. The dual Powerlogix upgrade card is $1399. If you add $600, you'll have a tower, a motherboard with 4 PCI and one AGP 4x, 256 megs of RAM, a 80 GB HD, a combo drive and a Radeon 9000Pro, a faster bus than the Cube, faster memory. If you want to upgrade your Cube or your PowerMacs, you might also need a bigger hard drive, a new video card, and you won't even have an Airport Extreme slot or Bluetooth. We don't think a dual processor upgrade is worth it. However, a single 1.2 Ghz might be....Just think about it....

01/29/03

Discount on Powerlogix cards : lowest price on the web.

Macs4all is offering the Cube-Zone readers a $15 discount on all Powerlogix cards (which cost more than $300), for Cube or other PowerMacs.

For example, the Powerlogix 1.2 Ghz card for G4 Cube will cost you $779 - $15 = $764. In order to obtain the discount you must use the "cubezone" coupon.

New Gallery and Forums

We have created a new gallery where you can upload your pictures and share them with other readers(you don't need to register to post a picture in the gallery). You can add Cube related pictures and also any other mac related pictures, or even desktop pictures or screenshots of your OSX screen. It is still in beta....but you should like it. The new gallery allows you to send e-cards to your friends! The old gallery is still available. We also added new forums. The new forums are in early beta, and might not always work, but we think you can start posting there. However, the old forums are still available here.

New PowerMacs from Apple.

Apple released new PowerMacs and a new 20" screen. here are the specs of those new towers :

For more information, check Apple web site.

01/24/03

Single 1.2 ghz Powerlogix for Cubes and PowerMacs shipping.

Macs4all is now taking orders for the single Powerlogix for Cubes and PowerMacs. The cards will ship next week. Here are the product IDs of the cards :

Those cards will transform your Cube or your PowerMac into a really fast system.

01/23/03

New PPC970 PowerMacs on January 29th?

Mac4ever just posted an article about a possible annoucement of new hardware at the end of the month. IBM is also supposed to make announcements the same day. Mac4ever is also claiming that IBM is running a version of BSD on its iSeries....and OS X is based on BSD.....

Our own sources tend to believe that the PPC970 PowerMacs will be unveiled later....but we would like to believe the rumor published on Mac4ever.

Cube gallery updated.

We have updated the Cube gallery. One of our readers (Julian) has even created a desk just for his Cube. You can see it on the first picture. Our reader might build some others and sell them one day if some people are interested in buying them.. :-)

01/13/03

MWSF Coverage : pictures of the Expo (part IV)

Here are the last pictures taken at the Expo. They were take by Daniel, from Allmac.com. In order to see the pictures, click here.

Safari updated.

We told you last week that Safari beta was going to expire at the end of June and that Apple would make a new version before that. It is already the case. You can now download Safari v51. The former version was v48. (We thank Tadd for the information.)

Cube goodies : T-Shirt for sale

Missingbite has 40 Cube T-Shirt for sale. On the front part, there is a picture of the Cube, with the sentence "So Much Technology. So Little Space". On the back, there is a grey Apple logo "Think Different"missing bite has several different sizes, including : Large, XL, and XXL. Those T-Shirt sell for $12.95.

01/07/03

Fastmac introduces the first Combo drive for the Cube!

Fastmac today introduced what all Cube lovers have been waiting for : a slot-loading DVD/ CD-RW drive designed to replace your existing built-in DVD-only or CDRW-only drive with a drive that can do both! After upgrading your Cube, you will be able to do what no Cube user has done so far : burn a CD AND play DVD movies on your Cube without any external device.

You will simply have to remove the old drive, install the new one, and get ready to burn Cd's and play DVD movies on your Cube. Fastmac will provide complete instructions with photographs, and a quicktime movie. The drive is compatible with Mac OS X (including Jaguar), Mac OS 9, iTunes, Disc Burner, and DVD Player software. The drive is bootable and works with Dantz Development's Retrospect. The drive writes CD-R's at 8x speed, writes CD-RW's at 8x speed, reads CD-ROM's at 24x speed and reads DVD's at 8x speed. It carries a 1 year warranty. The price is $269.95.

Fastmac has a special introductory offer for Cube-Zone readers: Take $10 off if you mention Cube-Zone on the order form. If you're attending MWSF, the discount will be even bigger : if you pre-order the drive ( booth # 528 ), you'll get $30 off! The drives should ship at the end of the month.