MarcForrest.com

Category: On The Marc

  • [Press Release] Apple Introduces All New MacBook Pro with Retina Display

    Now this looks like an AWESOME laptop !! Can’t wait to get my hands on one of these….just need to sell a kidney or 2 !! Ouch…Hopefully we will have pricing in SA in the next coupld of months !

    SAN FRANCISCO—June 11, 2012—Apple today unveiled an all new 15-inch MacBook Pro featuring a stunning Retina display, all flash storage and quad-core processors in a radically thin and light design. Measuring a mere 0.71 inches and weighing only 4.46 pounds, the completely redesigned MacBook Pro sets a new standard in performance and portability for pro users.
    “The MacBook Pro with Retina display pushes the limits of performance and portability like no other notebook,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO. “With a gorgeous Retina display, all flash architecture and a radically thin and light design, the new MacBook Pro is the most advanced Mac we have ever built.”

    The new MacBook Pro Retina display is the world’s highest resolution notebook display with over 5 million pixels, 3 million more than an HD television. At 220 pixels-per-inch, the Retina display’s pixel density is so high the human eye cannot distinguish individual pixels from a normal viewing distance, so text and graphics look incredibly sharp. The Retina display uses IPS technology for a 178-degree wide viewing angle, and has 75 percent less reflection and 29 percent higher contrast than the previous generation.

    Featuring a precision engineered aluminium unibody design and an all flash storage architecture, the all new MacBook Pro is the lightest MacBook Pro ever and nearly as thin as a MacBook Air. Flash storage that is up to four times faster than traditional notebook hard drives enables the all new MacBook Pro to play four simultaneous streams of uncompressed 1080p HD video from internal storage.* The flash storage architecture also delivers improved reliability, instant-on responsiveness and 30 days of standby time.

    The MacBook Pro with Retina display features the latest Intel Core i7 quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.7 GHz, NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M discrete graphics, up to 16GB of faster 1600 MHz RAM and flash storage up to 768GB. Two Thunderbolt and two USB 3.0 ports allow pro users to connect to multiple displays and high performance devices, and a new HDMI port offers quick connectivity to HDTVs.

    The MacBook Pro battery delivers up to 7 hours of wireless productivity, and uses advanced chemistry and Adaptive Charging technology to provide up to 1,000 recharges.** The MacBook Pro also features a FaceTime HD camera, glass Multi-Touch trackpad, full-size backlit keyboard, dual microphones, enhanced speakers, 3-stream 802.11n Wi-Fi and a thinner MagSafe 2 power port.

    OS X Lion, iPhoto, iMovie, iTunes and other Apple apps including Aperture and Final Cut Pro X have been updated to take full advantage of the new MacBook Pro with Retina display. The updated Aperture 3.3 also includes revolutionary new image adjustment features and now supports a unified photo library so photographers can move seamlessly between iPhoto and Aperture.

    The all new MacBook Pro ships with OS X Lion. Starting today, customers who purchase a Mac are eligible for a free copy of OS X Mountain Lion when it becomes available. Mountain Lion introduces innovative features including the all new Messages app, Notification Center, system-wide Sharing, AirPlay Mirroring, Game Center and the enhanced security of Gatekeeper. With iCloud built into the foundation of OS X, Mountain Lion makes it easier than ever to keep your content up to date across all your devices.

    Pricing & Availability
    The 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display is available through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and Apple Authorised Resellers. The 15-inch MacBook Pro is available with a 2.3 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.3 GHz, 8GB of memory and 256GB of flash storage starting at $2,199 (US); and with a 2.6 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz, 8GB of memory and 512GB of flash storage starting at $2,799 (US). Configure-to-order options include faster quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz, up to 16GB of memory and flash storage up to 768GB.

     

  • [Press Release] Apple Updates MacBook Air, MacBook Pro & reveals New Generation MacBook Pro

    Although no news on when we will see it in SA, Apple announced some exciting changes to their Macbook lineup earlier today at the annual Apple Developer conference WWDC

    SAN FRANCISCO—June 11, 2012—Apple today updated MacBook Air with the latest Intel Core processors, faster graphics and flash storage that is up to twice as fast as the previous generation.* The current generation 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro have also been updated with the latest Intel Core processors and powerful discrete graphics from NVIDIA. Apple’s popular AirPort Express has been redesigned to include features previously available only in AirPort Extreme.

    “Today we’ve updated the entire MacBook line with faster processors, graphics, memory, flash storage and USB 3 connectivity,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Marketing. “We’ve made the world’s best portable family even better and we think users are going to love the performance advances in both the MacBook Air and MacBook Pro.”

    Available in 11-inch and 13-inch designs, the new MacBook Air features the latest Core i5 and Core i7 dual-core processors and is perfect for browsing the web, making movies and managing photos. The new integrated Intel HD Graphics 4000 is up to 60 percent faster and gives the MacBook Air plenty of power to tackle games and videos.** MacBook Air features flash storage up to four times faster than traditional hard drives for instant-on performance and fast access to your apps and data. Now with 4GB of faster memory, configurable up to 8GB, you can run memory-intensive apps with ease. MacBook Air also features a new FaceTime HD camera that delivers high-definition 720p.

    The 13-inch MacBook Pro features the latest Intel Core i5 or Core i7 dual-core processors up to 2.9 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz. The 15-inch MacBook Pro features the latest Intel Core i7 quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.7 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M discrete graphics. Both the 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro can be configured with a 1TB hard drive or SSDs up to 512GB that are up to twice as fast as the previous generation.

    MacBook Air and MacBook Pro both feature a high-speed Thunderbolt port and two USB 3.0 ports to easily connect to external displays and a wide variety of high performance peripherals. The 13-inch MacBook Air, and 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pro deliver up to 7 hours of wireless battery life, and the 11-inch MacBook Air delivers up to 5 hours. Mac notebook batteries use advanced chemistry and Adaptive Charging technology to provide up to 1,000 recharges.***

    The MacBook Air and MacBook Pro ship with OS X Lion. Starting today, customers who purchase a Mac are eligible for a free copy of OS X Mountain Lion when it becomes available. Mountain Lion introduces innovative features including the all new Messages app, Notification Center, system-wide Sharing, AirPlay Mirroring, Game Center and the enhanced security of Gatekeeper. With iCloud built into the foundation of OS X, Mountain Lion makes it easier than ever to keep your content up to date across all your devices.

    Priced at just $99, the new AirPort Express features a completely redesigned compact enclosure and new wireless and connectivity capabilities. Simultaneous dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi allows users to easily create a network that delivers optimal performance and range. The AirPort Express also features an audio-out port to connect external powered speakers or an A/V receiver and use AirPlay to wirelessly stream from iTunes on your Mac or iOS device. A USB 2.0 port allows you to share a printer wirelessly over your network, and an additional ethernet port lets you connect to other computers and network devices. Setup is built right into OS X and iOS and can be done in just a few simple steps, and with AirPort Utility 6.0 for OS X Lion and iOS you can access a visual map of your network for viewing and reconfiguring devices.

    Pricing & Availability
    The 11-inch MacBook Air comes with a 1.7 GHz processor, 4GB of memory and is available with 64GB of flash storage starting at $999 (US), and 128GB of flash storage starting at $1,099 (US). The 13-inch MacBook Air comes with a 1.8 GHz processor, 4GB of memory and is available with 128GB of flash storage starting at $1199 (US), and 256GB of flash storage starting at $1,499 (US). Configure-to-order options include a 2.0 GHz Intel Core i7 processor, up to 8GB of 1600 MHz DDR3 onboard memory and up to 512GB flash storage.

    The 13-inch MacBook Pro is available with a 2.5 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor, 4GB of memory and 500GB hard drive starting at $1,199 (US), and with a 2.9 GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of memory and 750GB hard drive starting at $1,499 (US). The 15-inch MacBook Pro is available with a 2.3 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 4GB of memory, Intel HD Graphics 4000 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M, and 500GB hard drive starting at $1,799 (US); and with a 2.6 GHz quad-core Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of memory, Intel HD Graphics 4000 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M, and 750GB hard drive starting at $2,199 (US). Configure-to-order options include faster quad-core processors up to 2.7 GHz, additional hard drive capacity up to 1TB, up to 8GB of memory and solid state storage up to 512GB.

     

  • 5 tips to ensure your QR Code Campaign is a success

    I have noticed a couple of South African QR Codes campaigns on some adverts, packaging & campaigns lately, but still. So many of them are getting them wrong ! There are a couple of key points to “follow” to ensure you get the best results from running a QR Code Campaign. So I thought I would share a couple of them, from my experience in using them :)

    [dropcap style=”2″]1[/dropcap]Make sure your QR code ends up on a Mobile formatted page

    This is the golden rule. I can’t even begin to explain how critical this is. What is the use of having someone snap a QR code and it lands up on a “normal” web site ? They using their mobile phone to snap the code, make sure it lands it up on a mobile page. Simple !

    [dropcap style=”2″]2[/dropcap]The shorter the URL, the easier the QR code is to snap 
    QR codes are really just a string of text, whether it is a URL or 7089 characters of text, QR code readers need to decipher the code, so the longer the text, the more complex it is to decode and the longer it takes to decode. Use a shortening service like http://bit.ly to shorten URL’s, or direct people to a web page for longer text. That way you can also get some sort of stats & analytics on the codes snapped.

    [dropcap style=”2″]3[/dropcap]Make QR big enough to read

    Make your QR code easy enough to snap. The other day I picked up a crisp packet (image on the right) which had 2 QR Codes on it, 1 directing me to a Facebook page & the other to a twitter account for the product. Both were really small codes, and were right next to each other making them almost impossible to scan. Rather have 1 bigger code, redirect them to a mobi page, with links to each social media account. Much simpler !

     

    [dropcap style=”2″]4[/dropcap]Make sure people can actually access the internet when scanning your code

    We know South African cell networks are nutorisly bad when coping with large crowds. Go to any sporting or music event where there are more than 1000 people, and you won’t be able to even use your phone. Because our cell bandwidth sucks, make sure you put your QR code in a place where people can actually access the internet. So don’t put your QR code in the bathrooms at the Shark Tank. Or at the bottom of the Gautrain station in Sandton (looking at you Gautrain)
    It just won’t work.

     

    [dropcap style=”2″]5[/dropcap]Not everyone has a QR Code scanner on their phone

    Fact. Not EVERYONE is going to think your QR code campaign is cool. Which means no everyone really cares about your QR Code and is everyone is NOT going snap it. Be clever and put a short URL next to the code. That way, the guys who don’t have scanners installed can still access your content. Use the same bit.ly url as in point number 2, which will give produce meaningful stats.

    Have you got any suggestions ? Leave a comment below with some ideas and we will add them to a future post about how to execute a successful QR Code campaign

     

  • Humanwrit.es launches !

    A couple of months ago I had supper with Jason Bagley & Rich Mulholland while I was in Cape Town. They told me about their exciting new project called Humanwrit.es which sounded very very cool !

    Humanwrit.es is a 192 page square format notebook you buy from the site for $20 (& $3 shipping in SA) and once you have done that, they donate 10 school workbooks back into the schools & communities. This means that even though you getting a super cool notebook, you also helping someone less fortunate out, and giving them access to something they would have never had before. The concept is very similar to the Tom Shoes business model which is hugely successful overseas, and gives children a pair of shoes for every pair of shoes bought through the site.

    I am really excited for Jason, Rich & Adrian, and wish them the best success in their venture. I know it will be a resounding success !! You can follow the Humanwrit.es story on their Facebook page and order your own Notebook at http://humanwrit.es/

    I have just placed my order, and I suggest you place yours soon :)

     

  • iDrifta DSTV Mobile decoder for iPad & iPhone

    Came across this a bit earlier…Very very cool…think I may just have to get me one :)

    The iDrifta plugs directly into the iPad, iPod Touch or iPhone, and uses the DSTV Mobile Decoder application. It comes in at a pretty reasonable R499 and is available at most Multichoice outlets & Service Centres. Very cool !