ASUS Zenbook is perhaps the closest the Ultrabook has gone to Apple's MacBook Air in terms of features and aesthetics. Its makers are saving its successor for the Computex spotlight. It is reported that the second-generation Zenbook will be driven by Intel "Ivy Bridge" Core processor, its compatible 7-series platform, and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M discrete graphics. It will feature NVIDIA Optimus technology that marshals graphics loads between the discrete GPU and Intel HD 4000 graphics, to minimize power draw when on light graphics loads.

Mach Xtreme Technology Inc., a worldwide leader in top performance, high reliability and user-friendly designed PC components, today unveiled Kapsling Series External Enclosure offering MacBook Air 2010/2011 users unmatched convenience.

Mach Xtreme Technology MX-KAPSLING external enclosure is compatible with stock MacBook Air 2010/2011 low-profile SATA SSDs offering users flexibility, reliability and fast data transfer speed thanks to USB 3.0 connectivity. MX-KAPSLING is perfect for adding more storage space to your notebook and freeing-up space on your internal SSD. The USB 3.0 interface supports quick and reliable data transfer to and from any desktop or notebook. The solid aluminum body design is effective against any external shock and offers excellent heat dissipation.

Apple is reportedly toying with the idea of a slightly bigger MacBook Air. This report comes in the wake of several others, pointing that the MacBook Pro of the future will look increasingly like the MacBook Air. Apple is considering this new, big MacBook Air to fully enter the Asia PC market, sources told DigiTimes. 14-inch notebooks are preferred more in the Asian markets, while European buyers, for instance, prefer 15-inch (or bigger) ones. The screen resolution of the new 14-inch MacBook Air is not known. The current biggest model in the series, the 13.3-inch one, packs 1440x900 pixels.

Later this year, Apple will refresh its MacBook Pro line with a new generation, and it is reported that these new products will look increasingly similar to the MacBook Air, as they will get a lot more slimmer. MacBook Pro is Apple's main line of portable Mac computers, and arguably its most popular Mac. Apple has mastered ultra-compact notebook design with the MacBook Air, which its PC rivals are struggling to get even close to. It is now going all out on the ultaslim form-factor by designing ever more powerful MacBook Pros based on it.

The ultra-slim form-factor will also see hardware such as optical drives and hard disk drives leave. Primary storage will be handled by SSDs, there will be an increasing relevance of iCloud for additional storage. "They're all going to look like MacBook Airs," a source familiar with the designs of the upcoming MacBook Pros told AppleInsider. We will get to see MacBook Pros that are as slim as the MacBook Air, but as big as 15-inch and 17-inch, while being backed by powerful hardware, even as PC makers struggle with big Ultrabooks since they're government by specifications laid down by Intel, a move that could limit their success in Europe, creating a great market opportunity for Apple. AppleInsider provided mock-ups of what the new MacBook Pros could look like.

Launched yesterday as a developer-preview, Apple's OS X "Mountain Lion" will support fewer Macs than its predecessor, probably because of increases in hardware requirements for smooth operation that older Macs can't quite guarantee. The support list for Mountain Lion looks like this:

• iMac (mid 2007 or later)
• MacBook (13-inch Aluminum, 2008), (13-inch, plastic, Early 2009 or later)
• MacBook Pro (13-inch, Mid-2009 or later), (15-inch, 2.4/2.2 GHz), (17-inch, Late 2007 or later)
• MacBook Air (Late 2008 or later)
• Mac Mini (Early 2009 or later)
• Mac Pro (Early 2008 or later)
• Xserve (Early 2009)

As you can see, some x86 Mac models are out of the support list, including importantly, the pre-Unibody plastic Macbook Pros. Perhaps Apple will support Mac OS X "Lion" with security updates for a lot longer.

A little earlier this month, Apple discontinued supplies of its 13-inch white MacBook (base) to educational institutions, which it stopped selling to consumers much earlier, last year. Apple has replaced this education variant of white MacBook with a new education variant of MacBook Air. The new variant will be offered to educational institutions at US $999 a piece, when purchased in packs of 5 (costing US $4,995), making it a viable replacement to the white MacBook.

The new MacBook Air variant is also a 13-incher, driven by Intel Core i5 ULV processor clocked at 1.60 GHz, with 2 GB of DDR3 memory, 64 GB solid-state storage (carried on from the 11-inch consumer base model of MacBook Air), but features the larger 13-inch display. Unfortunately, this model is only available to educational institutions that purchase in bulk (those packs of 5), and so the cheapest MacBook individual students can buy is the 11-inch MacBook Air.

Apple closed the chapter on the white MacBook (base), after it ended its distribution to educational institutions (schools, universities, students). The company had discontinued its sale to consumers back in July, 2011, but it continued shipping it to educational customers to honor its supply commitments, which has just been met. The relatively affordable white MacBook ran out of shelf space on Apple, as it got replaced by the MacBook Air, the products in the new series cater to both affordable price-points and more premium ones.

Other World Computing (OWC), a leading zero emissions Mac and PC technology company, confirmed at Macworld today its OWC Mercury Aura Pro Express 6G SSD is now available in a 480GB model size for the latest Apple MacBook Air 11.1" and 13.3" models which incorporate 6G (6Gb/s) data rate capabilities. The new Mercury Aura Pro Express 480GB model combines award-winning SandForce technologies and Tier 1/Grade A Toggle Synchronous NAND to deliver data rates up to 3x faster than factory 3G (3Gb/s) options and up to 8x the storage capacity of the factory's base 64GB SSD model. The new, built-in-the-USA Mercury Aura Pro Express SSD and other OWC Mercury SSDs will be shown in Other World Computing's booth #513, Moscone Centerl, at Macworld held in San Francisco this week.

Apple reportedly started ground-work on developing a design with which future Macbooks can be powered by fuel-cells, pushing the battery life envelope further up. Apple has applied for two key patents with USPTO, titled "Fuel Cell System to Power a Portable Computing Device", and "Fuel Cell System Coupled to a Portable Computing Device."

The filing states "Our country's continuing reliance on fossil fuels has forced our government to maintain complicated political and military relationships with unstable governments in the Middle East, and has also exposed our coastlines and our citizens to the associated hazards of offshore drilling." It continues "These problems have led to an increasing awareness and desire on the part of consumers to promote and use renewable energy sources."

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced of 8GB and 16GB DDR3 memory upgrade kits for Apple Mac desktop and laptop systems.

Mac systems with two memory slots have traditionally been limited to only 8GB of memory. By increasing the individual module capacity to 8GB, Corsair's latest memory upgrade kits allow Mac owners to upgrade to 10GB, 12GB, or even 16GB of memory.

Western Digital today introduced its newest generation of My Passport portable hard drives specifically designed for use with Mac computers and Apple Time Machine, featuring compact, elegant Mac-inspired designs with high capacity storage options and exceptional security for today's active lifestyles.

My Passport Studio boasts the all-metal design and performance needed for today's discerning Mac user, serving as an ideal companion for the on-the-go photographer, videographer, graphic artist, or creative professional that produces, shares and consumes massive amounts of digital content daily. Offering up to 1 TB capacity, the My Passport Studio also provides multiple connectivity options with two FireWire 800 ports and a USB 2.0 interface.

Corsair, a worldwide designer and supplier of high-performance components to the PC gaming hardware market, today announced worldwide retail availability of 4GB DDR3 memory for Apple Mac desktop and laptop PCs.

Corsair's Mac memory kits are tested at Apple Developer Compatibility Labs and are guaranteed to work with any Mac desktop or notebook PC that supports 4GB DDR3 SODIMMs, including iMac, Mac mini, Mac Pro, MacBook, and MacBook Pro models. This includes virtually all models offered by Apple since 2010.

Kanex, maker of audio-visual solutions for Apple computers, is excited to announce the C24DL, a full resolution dual-link digital video inverter (DVI) to 27 inch Apple LED Cinema Display (ACD). The C24DL is a simple dual-link DVI with USB to Mini DisplayPort converter designed for users with legacy Macs (2006-early 2008 MacBook Pro, 2005-mid 2007 Mac Mini) or PCs with high-end graphics cards to connect specifically to a 27 inch ACD.

The Kanex C247DL supports the native HD resolution (2560x1440) of the ACD not available with other standard DVI adapters. The innovative converter actively converts the video signal from the dual-link DVI delivering pixel perfect resolution. The included USB cable powers the C247DL, allows for audio transfer to the ACD speakers, and supports all USB 2.0 functions including use of the iSight camera.

Active Media Products, a leading manufacturer of SSDs and DOMs, today announced three new ZIF SSD upgrade kits for the first generation MacBook Air, most Sony Vaio models and other popular laptops that include a ZIF SSD, a cloning device, a mini screwdriver and an illustrated installation booklet. AMP's cloning adapter enables customers to quickly clone their existing ZIF drive onto the new ZIF drive through a USB port.

"Our cloning adapter will help customers get up and running that much faster because now they don't need to reinstall the OS and all their applications. We included a detailed installation guide and a mini screwdriver in the box to simplify the upgrade process," stated Active Media Products VP of Sales, Jerry Thomson. AMP does not include a USB cable or cloning software in these kits.

Apple today unveiled the new Apple Thunderbolt Display, the world's first display with Thunderbolt I/O technology and the ultimate docking station for your Mac notebook. With just a single cable, users can connect a Thunderbolt-enabled Mac to the 27-inch Apple Thunderbolt Display and access its FaceTime camera, high quality audio, and Gigabit Ethernet, FireWire 800, USB 2.0 and Thunderbolt ports. Designed specifically for Mac notebooks, the new display features an elegant, thin, aluminum and glass enclosure, and includes a MagSafe connector that charges your MacBook Pro or MacBook Air.

"The Apple Thunderbolt Display is the ultimate docking station for your Mac notebook," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "With just one cable, users can dock with their new display and connect to high performance peripherals, network connections and audio devices."

Apple announced that Mac OS X Lion, the eighth major release of the world's most advanced operating system with more than 250 new features and 3,000 new developer APIs, will be available to customers in July as a download from the Mac App Store for $29.99. Some of the amazing features in Lion include: new Multi-Touch gestures; system-wide support for full screen apps; Mission Control, an innovative view of everything running on your Mac; the Mac App Store, the best place to find and explore great software, built right into the OS; Launchpad, a new home for all your apps; and a completely redesigned Mail app.

"The Mac has outpaced the PC industry every quarter for five years running and with OS X Lion we plan to keep extending our lead," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "The best version of OS X yet, Lion is packed with innovative features such as new Multi-Touch gestures, system-wide support for full screen apps, and Mission Control for instantly accessing everything running on your Mac."

Mach Xtreme Technology Inc., a worldwide leader in top performance, high reliability and user friendly designed PC components, today unveiled the SATA MX-KATANA Series SSD modules. Based on an innovative design, the sleek KATANA Series modules deliver an enhanced mobile computing experience with much faster application loading, ultra-fast data access, shorter boot-ups, and longer battery life of today's and future laptops and netbooks with new type low-profile SATA interface.

This series maintains the highest level of read and write performance though the life of the SSD. In addition, highly intelligent wear leveling design optimizes longevity of MX-KATANA series drives. This SSD module is the ideal upgrade option from standard storage of some popular notebooks like MacBook Air Rev.3.X series, making it a must have item for any serious notebook DIY enthusiast. The MX-KATANA drive delivers best-in-class read and write speeds clocking in at up to 275MB/s read and 225MB/s write along with the stunning maximum of 20,000 IOPS, low power consumption and superior durability (1.0 million MTBF) compared to rotating hard disk drives.

PROMISE Technology today announced Pegasus, the industry's first-high performance hardware RAID solution designed to unleash the raw speed of the all-new Thunderbolt technology. Designed from the ground up for media and entertainment customers, Pegasus offers superior speed and throughput in a form factor small enough for a desktop, and is available in 4-bay and 6-bay aluminum enclosures with up to 12TB of raw storage.

"Intel is excited about the superior performance and simplicity Thunderbolt technology and PROMISE's Pegasus family of products will bring to consumers and media professionals trying to keep up with the explosion of digital media," said Jason Ziller, Director, Thunderbolt Planning and Marketing, Intel Corporation.

LaCie today announced the LaCie Little Big Disk featuring the all-new Thunderbolt technology, developed by Intel and brought to market with collaboration from Apple. Designed to store large audio and video files, the LaCie Little Big Disk will bring a new level of performance to creative workflows with ultra-fast data transfer, complete system backup in minutes, and faster content editing than ever before.

"Thunderbolt technology is a breakthrough in I/O technology and represents the future of mobile computing. Soon you will be able to carry workstation-class power and functionality in compact devices," said Philippe Spruch, Chairman and General Manager, LaCie. "LaCie is excited to be one of the first to deliver Thunderbolt technology with the LaCie Little Big Disk."

Intel Corporation today announced the availability of Thunderbolt technology, a new high-speed PC connection technology that brings together high-speed data transfer and high-definition (HD) display on to a single cable. Running at 10 Gbps, Thunderbolt technology can transfer a full-length HD movie in less than 30 seconds. This Intel-developed technology is coming to market through a technical collaboration with Apple, and is available first on Apple's new line of MacBook Pro laptop computers.

The vision for Thunderbolt technology (formerly codenamed "Light Peak") is to move media faster, simplify connections between devices, and foster new and exciting ways to build and use PCs. Combining high-speed data and HD video connections together onto a single cable is instrumental to achieving that vision. Thunderbolt technology delivers this via two communications methods, or protocols -- PCI Express for data transfer and DisplayPort for displays.

Freecom, a Mitsubishi Kagaku Media company, today unveiled the Mobile Drive Mg - an elegant mobile hard drive designed specifically for the Mac market. Encased in an ultra-lightweight and strong magnesium enclosure, the Mobile Drive Mg is an ideal match for the Apple MacBook - perfect for those style-conscious Mac users and at just 10mm is also the thinnest mobile hard drive available in the world, allowing users to reliably expand their storage capacity with a complementary product that is elegant, portable and easy to use.

The drive also features the latest USB 3.0 interface standard, which offers rapid data transfer speeds of approximately 130 MB/s. Ideal for both home and professional users who want to transfer large files quickly and carry their data on the move, the Mobile Drive Mg is significantly faster than traditional USB 2.0 solutions, enabling users to back up and upload information in a matter of seconds. The drive is backwards-compatible and will work with all USB 2.0 enabled computers and notebooks, as well as forthcoming USB 3.0 models.

Verbatim, the information storage pioneer, introduces two brand-new portable hard drives that combine high-style with high-speed, allowing consumers to quickly and reliably back-up and transfer files anytime, anywhere. The company will showcase its diminutive and durable Titan XS SuperSpeed USB 3.0, the smallest portable hard drive available, and attractive and efficient Store 'n' Go SuperSpeed USB 3.0/FW 800, its first USB 3.0 device created specifically for Mac users, alongside its latest range of unique computer peripherals, diminutive flash drives and more, at Booth #36634 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center, January 6-9, 2011.

"We're thrilled to debut our innovative line-up of portable hard drives at CES 2011 and to deliver exciting new options in this rapidly-growing category for both Mac and PC users," said Charles Klinker, Verbatim's Director of Marketing, HDD Products. "Verbatim's timely new portable solutions capitalize on the ongoing transition to USB 3.0 and connect consumers with the fastest transfer speeds to safely store and share favorite photos, music, files and more at home and on-the-go!"

Matrox Graphics Inc. today announced connectivity improvements to the Matrox DualHead2Go DP Edition and TripleHead2Go DP Edition Graphics eXpansion Modules (GXMs) benefitting Apple Mac notebook and desktop users. The DualHead2Go DP and TripleHead2Go DP products now come packaged with a Mini-DisplayPort to DisplayPort cable that allows Mac users to connect these external multi-monitor modules directly to the mini-DisplayPort output of their systems to swiftly drive multiple monitors or projectors. Mac professionals and enthusiasts now benefit from the convenience of a true plug and play platform while experiencing the productivity-enhancements gained across an advanced dual- or triple-monitor workspace. In addition, an upcoming firmware release will enable the support of a dual 1600x900 resolution on DVI monitors, further expanding the list of supported resolutions for greater flexibility when choosing displays.

For the first time Verbatim is launching an external hard drive which has been specifically created for the Mac community: the Verbatim Store 'n' Go Mac Portable Hard Drive. The sleek, minimalistic design in a black or white glossy finish will fit with any MacBook. It comes with a combination of FW800 and USB 3.0 SuperSpeed and HFS+ formatted, while a second version offers USB 3.0 SuperSpeed interface and FAT32 for PC users as well. Both models are available in stores with storage capacities of 500GB. The 1 TB version will be available in Q1 2011.

Portable storage has never looked so good with the new G-Technology G-DRIVE slim from Hitachi GST. Just in time for the holidays, and making a perfect external storage companion to the Apple Macbook, MacBook Pro or Macbook Air, the new G-DRIVE slim external hard drive gives users 320GB of storage and ubiquitous USB 2.0 connectivity in an amazingly slim form factor. The new drive is designed from the inside out to emulate G-Technology's known quality and style for the Apple Mac market, providing simple, reliable and affordable external storage for college students, business professionals and consumers on the go.

The new G-DRIVE slim leverages Hitachi GST's rugged, 7mm Travelstar Z5K320 drive, making it the thinnest, 2.5-inch external hard drive in the world. With its diminutive footprint - just a mere 128.6 mm (L) x 82 mm (W) by 9.9 mm (H), - sleek design and recyclable aluminum enclosure, users now have a stylish drive to help them move, work and play with their digital content. Lightweight and compact, weighing in at approximately 144g (5 oz), users can easily carry up to 80 hours of high-definition video, 320 hours of standard video, 114 movies, 80,000 songs or 160 games wherever they go.