Apple Hardware Technologies Track at WWDC 2004
Apple leads the way in hardware innovation with built-in mobility technologies like Airport, Airport Extreme and Bluetooth and the best integration of connectivity technologies, FireWire and USB. Apple continues to push the hardware envelope on the Power Mac G5 and Xserve G5 with 64-bit/133MHz PCI-X expansion slots that provide more throughput for high-bandwidth solutions such as HD video editing. Apple is also innovating with multi-processing technologies, including SMP, and distributed processing technologies, featuring the easy-to-use computational clustering solution, Xgrid.
In the Hardware Technologies track, you’ll learn the latest developments in Apple hardware technology and Mac OS X hardware support, including device driver development and optimization for the G5 processor. Register now and save $300.
Hands-On Review--iFlex: We were at last year's Worldwide Developers Conference when Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the iSight camera and iChat AV software to add video to iChat. The iSight presentation blew everybody away with the iSight's ease of use and clarity in video and audio from the built-in microphone. Every WWDC attendee got one courtesy of Apple and many of us set out right away to use them amongst ourselves in the internet area of the Moscone Center West.
Since then we have bought several iSight's. One of them we sent to a family member out West so that we can see each other every week or whenever the mood strikes. We also use it in business for one-on-one video conferencing and, with the aid of digital projectors attached to PowerBooks, one-on-many and even many-on-many video conferencing--all free thanks to Apple's deal with AOL to use its AIM network.
The iSight is designed for one-on-one video chats. It includes several mounts that center the iSight over the top of a PowerBook, iBook or display. While there is some ability to move the camera around, it's design basically only allows centering a talking head. What if you want to show something that is happening next to the Mac? Or several people sitting at a table across the room? And it has to be highly portable. Well then, it's the iFlex from MacMice to the rescue.
The iFlex is basically an 18" length of flex cable with 6-pin FireWire connectors at each end. One end plugs into the underside of the iSight camera and the other end plugs into a FireWire port on a Mac or a hub, depending on where you want to locate the iSight. MacMice sells the iFlex for $19.99 and we got one for this review and to use.
The iFlex can be twisted into almost any shape and it holds that shape very well in our experience. We can twist it so that the iSight shows the conferencee from any angle or fixes on anything anywhere in the room without having to turn the Mac or display to face it and without shaking. It's light and coils up for easy transportation in our computer bag. We think it is best to form it into the shape one wants, with part of it touching the surface that the Mac sits on, and then plug it into the Mac's FireWire port to minimize any stress on the port.
In summary, we think the iFlex is a handy accessory for the iSight camera. We'll certainly be carrying it everywhere in our PowerBook's bag.
Saw something? Send a tip
The archive ran on reader tips. What did you see, where, and do you want the credit?