Now that we’ve got upgrade installation videos for the Late ‘09 MacBook and iMacs, we are turning our attention to the other upgraded model – the Mac mini. While we’re hard at work on the upgrade videos for the new Server model, those of you with the standard mini aren’t being left out in the cold. In fact, the videos for your mini are ready to go!

As it turns out, the internals of the Late ‘09 mini are identical to those of the Early ‘09 model. That means the take-apart is exactly the same, too. So whether you want to put in a larger hard drive or bump up the RAM, the free video instructions can be found both in our Tech Center and on our YouTube channel.

Of course, if you decide after watching the process, you’d rather have this upgrade professionally done, we can help you out there, too. Our Installation Service offers swift turnaround and professional results, all at a reasonable price.

Even though your Mac mini isn’t one of Apple’s “flagship” products, it doesn’t mean it can’t be a heck of a workhorse. Maximize your mini’s performance with upgrades and a little help from OWC.

In case you didn’t see it mentioned on other news sites, forums, etc, we announced free shipping on all orders over $150 today thru December 31st from our on-line catalog of over 2,500 products and a Top 10 Gift Giving Ideas list with “stocking stuffer” suggestions starting at $3.99 to help you make tech/gadget gift giving easier and more economical heading into the upcoming “Black Friday/Cyber Monday” holiday shopping kickoff dates.

We’ve been reading that value and frugality are the key objectives of shoppers this year and wanted to make sure we offered the right products and services to make us the easiest, one-stop choice for all your Mac, PC, iPod, and iPhone product purchases. And even bigger news perhaps is that we’ve extended our operation hours so qualifying orders can ship same day when placed as late as 10:30pm as well as permanently extending our Live Chat support to a full 24/7 service level.

OWC Top Gift & Stocking Stuffer ideas include:

• Kensington Pocket-Link 3-in-1 Cable $3.99

Provides retractable Ethernet/telephone and USB cords in a single, self-contained housing.

• Cellboost iRecharge $4.99

External battery pack for iPods/iPhones and other USB chargeable devices.

• OWC Memory Upgrade Kits from $15.99

More memory = faster Mac with easy to install OWC Memory upgrades.

• OWC Express USB 2.0 Enclosure $19.99

Pocket-sized, bus-powered 2.5″ SATA hard drive enclosure for the digital mobile lifestyle.

• NewerTech® NuPower® Charge & Sync+ $39.99

Portable charger, battery pack, and sync solution for iPods, iPhones, and other USB compatible devices.

• NewerTech Voyager Quad Interface Hard Drive Docking Solution $89.99

“Quad Interface” hard drive dock for 2.5″ and 3.5″ SATA hard drives up to 2.0TB.

• NewerTech Guardian MAXimus $319.99

Plug and Play RAID 1 with two 1.0TB hard drives for protecting precious holiday memories.

Today we completed the benchmarking of the last two iMac computers that Apple introduced last month: The 2.66GHz iMac Intel Core i5 and the 2.8GHz iMac Intel Core i7.

With the ability to simultaneously run 4 cores and 8 cores respectively, these machines are quite the powerhouses of processing power.

It’s interesting to note that even with faster starting times than the other iMacs in this series, the RAM Hog II test (which simulates powerhouse usage where 80% of the machine’s resources are busy with other processes) was rendered satisfied after 12GB of memory was installed.

Not to say that 16GB didn’t show significant results in its own right. The After Effects Render Test (which spawns subprocesses for each core processor) showed steady improvement in times as more and more memory was added to the computer.

And speaking of that 16GB upgrade, to put a spotlight on the results, the i5 model was up to 44% faster in that RAM Hog II test with the maximum memory installed.

As always, what level to upgrade your Mac is a personal choice. You can check out all the Late 2009 iMac memory and hard drive upgrade options and decide if you want to go mild or wild.

One of the biggest changes in Apple’s lineup last month was the addition of two more memory slots to the new iMacs, giving them a total of four. This gives the new iMacs the capability to handle up to 16GB of RAM. While adding more memory will always improve performance, 16GB really makes a difference.

Apple has generally made the iMac’s memory easy to upgrade, and this revision is no different. Some people, though, like to see it done first before diving in themselves. That’s why this week’s addition to our Instructional Series of videos is all about adding memory to your Late 2009 iMac! It doesn’t matter if you have a 21.5″ or 27″ model, or whether you have a Core 2 Duo, i5, or i7 processor, the process is the same for all of them and we show you how to do it.

As always, you can find this video (and all of our instructional videos) either in our Tech Center or on our YouTube channel.

We’ve received four configurations of the 21.5″ and four configurations of the 27″ machines so far.  The quad core i5 and i7 machines aren’t due out till later this month.  Between the advancements in Snow Leopard and adding additional memory to these computers, they sure can go fast!

In fact – we found up to a 46% performance boost by installing the OWC 16GB Memory Upgrade Kit versus the factory installed 4GB.

We’ve run the machines through a rigorous battery of benchmark tests to test not only the pure processing speed of these machines, but also show what adding OWC memory to the setup can do.  Additionally, the different video card options have also been pitted against each other, so if you haven’t purchased your iMac yet, we now offer a definitive tool for making an informed decision on which graphics card to order.  Both of the Radeon HD options prove to generate twice the gaming frame rates than the Nvidia equipped model.  Not too shabby!

Unlike the prior generation of iMacs, these models have a total of four DDR3 memory slots. You can add an additional 4GB kit and have 8GB total or an 8GB kit and have 12GB total without removing  the standard factory 4GB.

Should you want to max the memory up to 16GB, you will need to take out those original modules. While Apple officially supports up to 16GB in all the new iMac models, they only offer up to 8GB in the 21.5″ model. Not only does OWC offer you the options for up to 16GB total, but even if you just need an additional 4GB, we’ll save you 50% compared to the same installed by Apple.

The results make our company mantra ring true.  ”More Memory = Faster Mac!”

As additional machines are run through the same tests, they will appear on the same page as our overall goal is to have every Snow Leopard compatible machine tested using the same process.

Just last week, Apple released a bunch of new Macs. You know what that means; it’s time for more upgrade videos!

To start out this new batch of upgrade instructions, we’re going to show you how to upgrade the memory in the new MacBook.

If you’re a regular reader of the OWC Blog, you should know by now that—dollar for dollar—adding more memory to your system gives you the best performance boost for the investment. Combine that with Snow Leopard’s ability to utilize memory better than its predecessors, and you have very little reason for not putting as much RAM into your Mac as you can reasonably afford.

Fortunately, Apple made upgrading the memory in the new MacBooks incredibly easy to do. Just remove the bottom cover, replace the memory and then close it all up. In no time at all, you’ll be able to upgrade the stock 2GB of memory to 4GB or even 8GB!

Sounds simple enough, doesn’t it? See for yourself by checking out the video in our Tech Center or on our YouTube Channel.

With Apple’s new machine releases, we’re hard at work in the OWC Test Labs seeing just how fast we can make the machines go.

Our first machine that we’re looking at is the October 2009 2.26GHz MacBook.  This machine is pretty tight on the inside – meaning there isn’t much extra unnecessary space inside.  Like the iPod and iPhone, conservation of space seems to be a high-priority of Apple’s design teams.  So even though the machine is lighter and sleeker, it does pose some drawbacks in upgrading.  This Macbook has no problem running either a 5400rpm, 7200rpm or SSD drive for the fastest speeds, however; the physical height of the drive is limited to the 9.5mm form factor.  The 12.5mm drives are too tall to fit in the space provided.

I should reiterate that point.  The drive doesn’t officially fit.  Sure, we were able to cram it in, and screw the cover closed (with a little bowing of the bottom) but we don’t suggest or will support actually running the drive this way.  Too much physical pressure on a drive can certainly contribute to early drive failure – it’s just not worth risking your data or the expense of a warranty compromised drive.

We’re pleased to announce our findings that our OWC brand memory certainly takes the cake in these machines!  While Apple lists 4GB as the maximum amount of installable memory, our 8GB memory kit OWC8566DDR3S8GP is now tested and fully certified for the full 8GB utilization – a real performance benefit for memory intensive application loads. While we were at it, we also tested another brand 8GB memory kit and found it consistently caused kernel panics and non-boot issues. Even though both are the same spec of DDR3 1066MHZ SO-DIMM, sometimes quality does have its result.

Thus, when we talk about how OWC brand memory meets or exceeds all Apple requirements for memory, it’s not just idle chatter or marketing-speak. Our on-premise testing lab enables us to physically confirm this fact for every machine listed in our compatibility charts.  Then, we back our quality assurance with a lifetime warranty.  How can you go wrong?

So often we are asked in reference to our OWC Instructional Series of Videos, “How exactly am I supposed to ‘Use proper anti-static precautions when performing this upgrade’?” The real answer is…it depends.  There are actually several different ways, depending on your situation, that you can help to control static electricity in order to avoid damaging the electronically delicate components found inside your computer.

According to Wikipedia: Static electricity refers to the buildup of electric charge on the surface of objects. The static charges remain on an object until they either bleed off to ground or are quickly neutralized by a discharge. And it’s that discharge that can ‘zap’ or ‘fry’ your computer components, rendering them inoperable.

To give you an idea of how little static electricity needs to be generated to cause harm to your computer components, it takes as little as 5 to 10 volts to cause damage inside your computer.  In order for you to even feel the presence of  static electricity, the level needs to be above 1,500 volts.   You can accumulate an average of 10,000 to 12,000 volts just walking across carpeting.  Rubbing a balloon on dry fur (or hair) generates about 20,000 volts. Did you know the average person can carry up to 25,000 volts of static energy at any given time? So discharging any built up energy before you begin is important.

So, how are we to be safe when working in our precious machines? more…

There are few constants in life. Death and taxes are the cliché ones. I’ll also add to the list the Chicago Cubs not making it to the World Series, movies based off of video games being terrible, and memory upgrades from Apple costing way too much.

That last one is a big one in the Mac community; it can cost up to $1100 to upgrade the latest model iMac, MacBook or MacBook Pro to a full 8GB if you get your memory from Apple.

That’s just plain silly.

As we have mentioned time and time again, adding more memory is—dollar for dollar—the most cost-effective upgrade you can perform on your Mac, a constant that is even more true now that Snow Leopard is on the scene. That is, of course, as long as you don’t fall into the trap of buying your memory from Apple.

OWC now has 8GB upgrade kits for $519.99. That’s less than half of what it would cost to upgrade your Mac to 8GB at the factory. Making this deal even better, an additional $45 Rebate is available with the trade-in of the factory standard 4GB memory set (two 2GB chips), giving this upgrade a net cost of well under $500! That’s a heck of a lot better than the $1100 Apple charges. The only difference is that you need to install it yourself. Fortunately, we have free instructions for performing these upgrades easily available.

There are also 6GB Kits for both the latest the latest DDR3 models as well as 6GB DDR2 Kits for previous generation iMac, MacBook, and MacBook Pro models that originally only had up to 4GB possible. Prices for these start at $174.99 for the DDR2 kits and $299.99 for the DDR3 kit, and these are immediately available.

Of course, if you want more RAM but don’t want to max out the machine, there are other options available for iMacs, Mac minis, MacBooks  and MacBook Pros, as well.

Upgrading your machine is a great way to bring out the best in it and allow it to do what you need it to accomplish. Over the years, there have been some common problems that keep popping up. Though most of you probably know them already, it sometimes slips by the wayside in eager anticipation of getting all those benefits the upgrades will bring.

To help avoid the most common problems, here is a compiled list of reminders that we like to call “The Golden Rules of Upgrading.” We’ve broken it into two parts: things to consider before buying your upgrades and things to consider after you have received the new goodies and are ready to put them to use.

more…

May saw a few updates in Apple’s arsenal of products. As a courtesy to our customers and readers, we’ll recap them here with links to pertinent information.

As of May 29th, some Intel-based Mac models have firmware updates available for EFI Boot ROM or SMC firmware (System Management Controller). The most recent updates are for the most recently released products; none of the older Intel-based Macs seem to have updates, yet. According to Apple, Software Update may not alert you that a firmware update is available. Click this page, EFI and SMC firmware updates for Intel-based Macs, and check your firmware version as explained in the support article. Download links and full instructions appear on that page.

Macworld UK reports that the SMC firmware update for 15″ and 17″ MacBook Pro laptops adjusts the behavior of the fan under high workloads. The MacBook Pro SMC Firmware Update 1.3 is available for MacBook (13-inch, Early 2009), MacBook Pro (15-inch, Early 2008), MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008), MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2.4/2.2 GHz), MacBook Pro (17-inch, 2.4 GHz), as detailed on the EFI and SMC firmware updates for Intel-based Macs support page linked above.

If you use Keynote, Numbers, or Pages, then you own iWork. iWork 09 was updated to version 9.0.2 last week. Software Update should alert you to the update, but you can also download it. Apple’s download page simply states that the “update improves reliability when saving some iWork documents and when playing some presentations more than once per Keynote session.”  If you don’t yet own the very useful iWork, you can order it today from OWC.

Another welcome Apple update was a speed bump for a new MacBook. This $999 laptop now includes a 160GB hard drive (up from 120GB) and a respectable 2.13 GHz processor instead of the previous 2.0GHz. The RAM is slightly faster now too, clocking in at 800MHz versus the previous 667MHz DDR2 SDRAM. The Apple Store includes the complete specifications.

We do not endorse, certify, or recommend any of these updates – we’re just keeping you informed!

Don’t forget that you can achieve the best performance for all your Macintosh computers by maxing out the RAM. OWC offers RAM for nearly every model Mac made over the past two decades at very reasonable prices. Please check out our OWC Memory page to find the best memory for your machine.

While searching the net for great equipment deals may sound like good entertainment, doesn’t it makes more sense to sign up for email alerts that tell you about those great deals before they hit the proverbial web newsstand? OWC has just such a newsletter and we know you don’t want us to run out of these great deals before you find your wallet!

Sign up for our free OWC Hot Deals Blast Newsletter, which contains a variety of products on sale that range from end of life, discontinued, cosmetically damaged box, open box, one-of-a-kind, or refurbished products, plus Apple trade-ins. You can find RAM, hard drives, enclosures, printers, and even iPod accessories and speakers. While we send the Hot Deals Blast as products become available, you can also sign up for our monthly OWC Tips & Deals Newsletter. This gem is another great source for exclusive specials, tips and reviews.

It Doesn’t Pay to Wait

Today we offer over 150 great deals. Just speed on over to our Garage Sale page and click the filters on the left to see if there’s a deal on goodies you know you want, at a price you can afford.

If you hesitate, you may lose out, but we’ve made the process easier by letting you know the supplies on hand for each limited quantity item. Just to whet your appetite, take a look at a small sampling of what’s available now:

• ATI Radeon 3870 512MB PCIe Performance Video Cards for Mac Pro – $199.

• 40 different model 2.5″ & 3.5″ Hard Drive Enclosures from $25.00.

USB2, FireWire 400, FireWire 800, and/or eSATA interface options!

• 3.5″ IDE/ATA & SATA Hard Drives 250GB and up to 1.0TB from $45.00.

• 3.5” Special – WD 160GB 3.5” IDE/ATA Hard Drive, Preformatted for Mac – Brand New with 3yr for $39.99.

• 2.5″ Hard Drives 80GB and up to 250GB from $29.25.

• G4 Processor upgrades up to 1.4GHz starting from $8.99 and up to G4/1.7GHz.

• SATA, IDE/ATA, and SAS RAID Controller and RAID Controller Cards for Mac from $16.75.

• 802.11n Wireless Network Adapters & Routers from $39.75.

• 1GB memory modules DDR2/DDR3 for MacBook/MacBook Pros, iMacs, Mac Minis as low as $9.50.

• Memory modules for Mac Pro & Xserve – 1GB Kits from $20.00, 2GB kits from $48.25.

Everyone knows that the speed of your Mac’s processor is not the only factor to consider when you need that power to process graphics, sound, or video. How much RAM you have installed is also a critical factor. The new “Nehalem”-based Mac Pro models are no different, and the stock configurations offered don’t maximize your RAM. OWC to the rescue!

Twice The RAM vs. Factory Options

OWC offers up to three 4GB module-based upgrades not offered by the factory for the Mac Pro Quad-Core and 8-Core that allow you to pump up your RAM to 12GB (3-4GB RAM sticks), 16GB (4-4GB RAM sticks), or even 24GB (6-4GB RAM sticks, 8-Core Mac Pro models). The 16GB kit from OWC offers double the memory of the highest factory installed option (8GB) for the Quad-Core models. These high performance multi-channel 1066MHz DDR3 72-bit ECC memory upgrades represent a savings up to 70% on similar upgrades available from factory installs. Choose the RAM you want from our Qualified Upgrades for Apple Mac Pro web page.

Save up to $4300

For example, the 32GB factory installed memory upgrade for the Mac Pro 8-Core costs $6,100, compared to the $1799.99 OWC 32GB Memory Kit  - a savings of $4,300. In addition to the increased choices and savings offered by OWC Memory Upgrades, Mac Pro owners can retain their original factory memory modules for future use or send the modules to OWC for a cash back trade-in of up to $20 per Apple factory memory module.

It’s so simple, just slide out the processor tray, snap those new sticks in and you’re good to go. If you need help, never fear, our free online instructional video takes you through the upgrade steps; just click the Memory tab.

OWC Memory Upgrade Kits for the 2009 Mac Pro “Nehalem” models are engineered with premium quality components and are designed to meet, if not exceed, Apple Design Specifications, including use of Apple required thermal sensor equipped EEPROM, JEDEC board design, and chip components; and are fully RoHS and JEDEC compliant.

Performance Tested Proven

If more options and huge savings don’t already have you convinced on the value of upgrading with OWC, then check out our performance benchmarks for these upgrades.  Up to 51% faster performance from “the fastest Mac ever!”

Lloyd Chambers of diglloyd.com has posted a comprehensive upgrade guide to the newest Mac mini (Early 2009), titled: Apple Mac Mini 2009 — the Green machine. This new Mac mini offers the NVIDIA GeForce 9400M integrated graphics card, the same as was introduced with the aluminum “Unibody” MacBooks.

Apple touts it as “the world’s most energy efficient desktop, drawing less than 13 watts of power when idle.” Lloyd takes it out for a ride and confirms the lower power use when the base RAM is installed, but notes energy consumption is a bit higher when you max out the memory.

The article gives you all the information you need to turn your new Mac mini into a server or to upgrade it with a faster hard drive and more RAM. We make it easy to do these upgrades with a one-stop-shop page complete with installation videos.

The best news is the missing MacBook FireWire ports are found as an 800-FireWire port on the new Mac mini. Using all the OWC tools, RAM, and hard drive updates options; this machine comes highly recommended for many types of needs.

Plus, if you’re missing FireWire 400 ports for those legacy desktop accessories, no problem, our miniStack line gives you plug and play connectivity for those devices plus external storage.

We already noted in a previous blog post that page 56 of the Mac Pro (early 2009) manual may not correctly explain in which RAM slots new DIMMs should be placed, but there is another issue RAM issue too.

While some memory looks like it should work in your new Mac Pro, it may not, because there are specific requirements for memory to meet Apple’s full RAM specifications.  Don’t waste your time and money by purchasing RAM that doesn’t meet Apple’s specs.

The screen shot here shows the Apple Hardware Test (version 3A153) error results when incorrect RAM is used in the new Mac Pro.

Apple requires a special EEPROM on their RAM modules that isn’t standard in the industry. This EEPROM and its design requirements add to the module cost, but are necessary for the RAM to properly operate in Apple’s latest flagship machines. OWC’s Memory for Macs is built adhering to Apple’s design requirements, which saves you time and unnecessary headaches both up front and down the road too.

For complete RAM specs and cautions from Apple, read page 41 of the Mac Pro (early 2009) manual, linked as a PDF here.

• 2.0GB Upgrade Module $65.99
  
• 4.0GB Upgrade Kit (2.0GB Modules x 2 Set) $129.99
• 4.0GB Module $699.99
• 6.0GB Upgrade Kit (4.0GB + 2.0GB Module Set) $759.99

View the OWC MacBook and MacBook Pro “unibody” memory and hard drive upgrade page>>