One of the benefits of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion is that you don’t have to stand in line to buy it or order the software online. Instead you just click over to the Mac App Store and hit “download.” While that’s awfully convenient for many of us, what about those who don’t have a consistently decent Internet connection? Or the ability to get online at all?

Well, Apple isn’t about to miss out on those sales. The company is going to put its brand-new operating system on a USB stick and sell it for $69. That is quite a bit more than the $29 it costs to download the application. Alternatively, Apple is also offering the option to go into an Apple Store and download Lion to your computer.

This should make the transition to Lion easier in emerging markets that have less-than-reliable web infrastructure. Those are markets in which Apple is starting to find some traction, as Apple CFO Peter Oppenheimer explained on Tuesday during the company’s third-quarter 2011 earnings report. He noted that the surge in Mac and iPhone sales during the quarter were boosted by new Apple customers in China, other Asia Pacific region countries, the Middle East and Brazil.

Sales of the new Lion-on-a-stick will come some time around the end of August, though no specific release date has been announced.

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Each cable has a controller at either end, which is used to regulate the speed of data transfer and boost the signal to make Thunderbolt’s extremely low-latency transmission possible. Each end contains 6 chips, including 2 Gennum GN2033s and 4 smaller ones, making for a total of 12 chips in each cable. This makes the Thunderbolt cable an “active” cable that has its own internal firmware and allows it to manage the high two-channel independent 10 Gbps transmission speeds.

But it also isn’t cheap. And for right now, Apple is the only game in town when it comes to Thunderbolt cable suppliers. As Ars Technica points out, the situation bears some similarity to the early days of FireWire, which was initially very costly and limited to Apple because of unfavorable costs when compared to USB. Apple didn’t help things by initially requiring licensing fees for the use of the FireWire trademark and logo. Ars argues that the similar high costs of Thunderbolt could limit its ability to gain a real foothold.

I see the similarities between Thunderbolt and FireWire, but I think it’s too early to assign them the same ultimate fate. For one thing, Apple is well aware of how the FireWire situation panned out. The Mac maker isn’t likely to repeat the same missteps with Thunderbolt if it really does intend for the tech to have wide applicability. Second, Thunderbolt is like FireWire, but they also can’t really be compared in terms of what they allow a user to potentially do. Display connectivity, along with speeds that basically allow Thunderbolt to act as an external PCI connector, give it a much broader scope in terms of applicability. Want to set up a server with upwards of 50 terabytes of storage running through a Mac mini? Easy (and relatively cheap using the new Pegasus RAID drives), once an updated Mac hits the market. Plus there’s always the scenario of the computer-on-a-drive that can be booted from any Mac, apps, files and settings intact.

Apple is also in a much different position than it was when it introduced FireWire. Its share of the PC market has never been stronger, and it continues to experience growth in that sector. It also has a huge chunk of the rapidly expanding mobile industry, thanks to the iPhone, iPod and iPad. While Thunderbolt tech hasn’t yet made an appearance on the mobile side of Apple’s business, I think it’s only a matter of time before it does. And then it doesn’t matter who else embraces it.

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Connecting Apple TV to Your Computer

1. First unplug your Apple TV. Unplug both the HDMI capable attaching it to your home theatre setup, and the power cord. If you’re using an optical audio cable to connect to an A/V receiver, disconnect that, too.
2. Now plug your Apple TV into your Mac, using a Micro USB cable. These ship with a lot of accessories with internal batteries these days, but if you don’t have one, you can grab one very cheap at Monoprice.
3. Open iTunes if it isn’t open already. The Apple TV should appear in your source menu.

Now that you’ve got your Apple TV connected to your Mac, there are two options depending on what you’re trying to do.

Update Your Apple TV

1. Get the latest firmware using a direct download link. These are usually pretty easy to find using a Google search. Here’s the link for the latest software (4.2) for Apple TV as of this writing. It should be a “.ipsw” file.
2. Option+Click the “Restore” button on the Apple TV screen in iTunes. A dialog box will open asking you to specify the location of the Apple TV software file you downloaded in Step 1. Once you select the file, click “Choose” to continue.

Restore Your Apple TV

1. Simply click the “Restore” button in iTunes on the Apple TV screen.
2. iTunes will ask you to confirm, so click “Restore and Update” to continue.

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DigiTimes is reporting that the Chinese-language Economic Daily News claims the iPad 2 will definitely include five new features, including a video phone, better mobility (presumably a smaller form factor), USB port, Retina Display and 3-axis gyroscope. USB is really the only surprise on that list.

FaceTime is widely expected to make its way into the next iPad iteration, and if it doesn’t, I’ll be very surprised. A smaller physical footprint is in keeping with Apple’s general upgrade strategy. Both the iPhone and the iPod touch continue to get a little bit smaller with each new case update. The Retina Display isn’t as sure a bet, since it could be fairly pricey on the supply side to bring 336 ppi resolution to the 9.7-inch screen, but Apple does seem quite committed to the technology. A 3-axis gyroscope is an obvious choice, since one already ships in both the iPhone 4 and latest generation iPod touch.

Basically, the only rumored feature without precedent among the rest of Apple’s iOS devices is the new USB port. From a UX perspective, obviously, it’s a no brainer. You wouldn’t have to get Apple’s Camera Connection Kit to import photos from your digital camera, and in theory, you could use wired keyboards with the iPad 2, along with potentially many other hardware peripherals.

But USB on an Apple portable has always made good sense from the perspective of the consumer, yet we’ve never seen it before. That’s because Apple’s dock connector has long been the only data-compatible port on any of its iOS devices. It keeps the accessory ecosystem under control, and allows Apple greater say over how, with what, and for what purposes users can access their devices.

If Apple was going to introduce USB anywhere in its iOS lineup, the iPad 2 would be the most likely suspect. That’s because people use the Apple tablet more like they would a PC than a smartphone. A USB port that allows compatibility with more computer peripherals then makes sense, in terms of attracting more potential notebook buyers to the iPad 2 instead. Also, design-wise, there’s much more real estate on the iPad’s case edge than on the iPhone’s or iPod touch’s, so adding a port wouldn’t be as much of a compromise for Steve Jobs’ decidedly minimalist tastes.

I still think USB is a longshot, but if it makes sense anywhere in Apple’s mobile lineup, it makes sense on the iPad 2. Do you think we’ll actually see it included? Existing iPad owners, do you think it would even add that much to your experience?

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My (Too?) Many Monitors

First, you need some extra hardware. Obviously, you’ll need two extra monitors, in addition to the one built in to your computer, but that’s not all. You’ll also need to pick up a USB-to-video adapter. These come in many flavors. I’ve got a Sewell USB-to-DVI external video card ($79.95), but another good cheap option is the EVGA UV Plus+ ($69.99 for the UV16). Both options come with DVI-to-VGA adapters, so you can use either type of connection.

One of your monitors should be connected via your Mac’s video-out port (whether it be mini-DVI or Mini DisplayPort, depending on your machine’s age). You can get an adapter for that direct from Apple, or from third-party vendors. That’s the easy part.

Now, connect your other monitor using the USB-to-video device you decided upon. To do this, first install DisplayLink’s Mac OS X drivers. The latest version (1.6 Beta 3 as of this writing) can be found here. Without these drivers, no USB video cards will work with a Mac.

Once you’ve installed the drivers, plug in your second external monitor using the USB video adapter. Your screen should go blue, then extend to your new monitor. Use Displays under System Preferences to make any necessary adjustments.

Note that using DisplayLink to operate a third display with your Mac isn’t perfect. Because of restrictions Apple imposes on OS access for third-party software, the DisplayLink drivers don’t support 3D acceleration or OpenGL, meaning that keynote presentations won’t work properly, and video will be choppy. But if you’re using that third display to house an extra browser window, or even for photo editing, it’s more than up to the task. Plus, you can add up to four additional monitors over USB using this method (though separate adapters would be required).

DisplayLink’s been around for a while, but I remember when I was first testing a multi-monitor solution, it took me longer than it should have to unearth this solution. Hopefully now you won’t have the same problem.

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There’s nothing a Mac bought a year ago can’t do today, and nothing a Mac bought today won’t be able to do a year from now, just not as well.

That’s the problem for those seeking to maximize the value of their next purchase. If one believes the hype from none other than Steve Jobs himself, Macs are going to “take Apple to the next level” in 2010, and who doesn’t want to level up with Steve?

But even without the hype, there are three–well, really, two good reasons and one forlorn hope–to wait a while before purchasing your next Mac.

While Steve Jobs just pronounced Apple a “mobility” company at the iPad event, it’s actually been one for awhile. More than two out of three Macs sold are laptops, and if you are in that majority you should definitely wait for Arrandale.

That’s the mobile CPU from Intel launched at CES under the Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 variants. Hyper-Threading and Turbo Boost technologies for improved parallelization and increased speed on demand have resulted in double-digit performance increases without a decrease in battery life.

Regarding performance, the desktop Core i5 and Core i7 can already be found in the high-end iMac, which admittedly are quad-core versus dual-core for the mobile versions. Nonetheless, Macworld found the that the “2.66GHz Core i5 iMac is the fastest standard configuration Mac we’ve ever tested,” and can be as fast as Xeon-based Mac Pros.

This is the kind of upgrade worth waiting for, and the wait shouldn’t be long. The MacBook Pros and the MacBook Air were last updated in June, meaning they are due for an update even without significant new technology. Keep in mind the MacBook, last updated in October, may continue to use a Core 2 Duo for market segmentation purposes. Since the iPad is set for launch in late March, and companies like HP are already selling Arrandale laptops, expect an update within weeks, possibly even sooner.

There’s something else HP is selling, the Envy 15 laptop with USB 3, and that’s the second reason not to buy a Mac right now. USB 3 has transfer rates of up to 4.8Gbps, though real world rates won’t be nearly that high, but then USB 2 doesn’t reach its theoretical maximum of 480Mbps, either.

We can expect that USB 3 will be multiple times as fast as USB 2, which is the kind of benefit instantly recognizable to anyone downloading images from a camera or backing up to a USB drive. While there are very few USB 3 devices available today, that will change quickly this year.

As to when to expect USB 3 Macs, a recent rumor in DigiTimes suggested Genesys Logic is sampling device controllers for Apple now, a claim which the company denied. Whether there’s truth in the rumor or the denial, Apple is undoubtedly working on USB 3 for Macs. The new bus could conceivably be part of the next round of updates in the spring, but if not then expect USB 3 Macs in the fall.

Something not to expect this spring, and that is suspect this year, would be Macs with Blu-ray. Just last month, it was attributed to Steve Jobs that Blu-ray is still a “mess,” and that Apple is waiting until Blu-ray sales “take off.”

According to market researcher In-Stat, that could be about 2013, if by “take off” one means exceeding sales of DVD players. Unfortunately, the predicted adoption rate for Blu-ray in PCs is even worse. Metrics firm iSuppli projects that by 2013 only 16 percent of PCs will come with Blu-ray drives.

If, like me, you are waiting for a Mac mini with Blu-ray, you probably won’t be buying this year. However, for those who plan on keeping their next Mac for one to three years, a Mac mini with Core i5 and USB 3 can likely be had this year.

The same can be said for every other Mac, too. While 2010 may or may not take Macs to the “next level,” both Intel’s new Core processors and USB 3 are significant upgrades. That’s why if you need a Mac today, buy one, but if not, tomorrow is definitely worth the wait.

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Before I say anything else, it’s my duty to report that Apple is indeed acting within the scope of the agreement it has with developers in requesting the removal of this feature from apps. As of now, USB syncing is still a private API, which means developers shouldn’t technically be using it. To get around this, many have implemented the feature using the iPhone’s Digital Camera Image Management folder, but that also requires the use of private APIs.

Whether or not developers are violating the development agreement isn’t at issue here, though, really. Apple has quietly acquiesced to the use of USB syncing in many apps, not just Stanza, until now. The timing is not inauspicious. Apple’s only begun to enforce this rule following the unveiling of the iPad, and, more to the point, of the iBookstore.

Ars Technica believes this is only a temporary measure. They point to an alternative apparently in the works in iPhone 3.2:

Though users of Stanza, PDF readers, numerous audio editors and sequencers, and other apps will be frustrated, the good news is that Apple has a mechanism planned to address both syncing and file sharing issues. The beta SDK for iPhone OS 3.2 has APIs for accessing an on-device shared storage folder, which will be mounted as a readable and writable disk when plugged in to a computer via USB.

Ars then goes on to point out that iPhone OS 3.2 is currently only intended for use with the iPad. The same features could later appear in an update for the iPhone, but they may not. We could see an OS forking at this point, and that might mean a significant difference in the available features for each device.

Not to mention that there’s no guarantee the iPhone or the iPad will ever get the same kind of USB syncing functionality back. The iBookstore means that Apple has a monetary reason to prevent other content providers from getting its e-book products onto its devices. And in the meantime, while everyone waits for a potential future solution, Stanza users and others are left completely out in the cold.

The iPad represents many new possibilities for iPhone developers, but at what cost? Will Apple close its iPhone OS platform even further to ensure that it maintains the lion’s share of content control? Will it quietly hamstring legitimate competitors as it extends its power over the media users view on its devices? Not necessarily, but with the advent of a brand new device, we should watch closely to make sure we aren’t losing something irreplaceable in the bargain.

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Most modern Macs, except for the MacBook Air and some MacBook models (such as my late 2008 unibody, alas), offer both FireWire and USB connections, so when shopping for an external hard drive you have plenty of options for something that will work with your Mac, notes Macworld’s James Galbraith. And these days, he adds, USB hard drives are more common and less expensive than FireWire or even FireWire/USB combo drives.

True, but even though USB 2.0 has a maximum theoretical bandwidth of 480 Mbps, vs. a nominal 400 Mbps for FireWire 400, via real-world experience I can attest that USB 2.0 lags well behind FireWire 400 — to say nothing of the FireWire 800 used on all Macs still sold today with FireWire support. And adding insult to injury, USB 2.0 doesn’t support incredibly useful Target Disk Mode. I’ve also found that while booting a Mac from a USB 2.0 drive is possible, it’s not nearly as satisfactory and low-hassle (or speedy) as booting from FireWire drives.

My gut-level impressions are borne out by Macworld’s lab testing, which found, for instance, that with a Western Digital My Book Studio 2TB Western Digital My Book Studio drive connected to a MacBook Pro, copying a 1GB file took 23 percent less time over FireWire 400 than over USB 2.0, while duplicating that file using FireWire 400 on the WD drive took 10 percent less time than when run over USB 2.0, and that FireWire 800 proved 35-58 percent faster than USB 2.0 in various tests on the MacBook Pro with the My Book Studio. Similar comparative results were noted using a compact Verbatim portable drive with the MacBook Pro.

However, the report also notes that the imminent release of USB 3.0 products in early 2010 promises speeds greater than FireWire 800 or even eSATA, but suggests that it may be some time before Apple begins supporting USB 3.0 with compatible ports (which will be backwards-compatible for USB 1.1 and 2.0 devices on Mac systems).

In the meantime, even a USB 2.0 only external hard drive is the best choice for a backup medium for most of us, especially using Time Machine in OS X 10.5 and 10.6 But my recommendation is to spend a few more dollars if necessary and get an external drive with multiple I/O interface support. Quad interface drives are becoming quite popular, able to handle USB 2.0 (and hopefully soon USB 3.0) plus FireWire 400, FireWire 800, and eSATA interfaces.

What’s your favorite backup medium and I/O interface?

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Last week at the IDF 2009 Conference in San Francisco, Intel unveiled a new next-generation data transfer technology dubbed Light Peak. It’s basically an optical subsystem comprised of lasers, modules and probably the odd Flux Capacitor here and there. The outcome is transfer speeds of up to 10Gbps. (By comparison, the upcoming USB 3.0 standard will provide maximum throughput of ‘only’ 3Gbps. So-called “Hi-Speed” USB 2.0, in case you’re not yet impressed enough, manages a measly 480Mbps.)

Furthermore, Intel says the technology can support multiple devices on the same port simultaneously, without the need for adapters or extension dongles, and maintain data parity at cable lengths up to one hundred meters. Wow.

So it’s heart warming to know that Apple originally devised the concept for Light Peak. Engadget reports that Steve Jobs presented the idea to Intel’s Paul Otellini back in 2007. Apple was interested in developing an insanely high-speed interoperable standard capable of shifting huge amounts of data and, “…replace the multitudinous connector types with a single connector (FireWire, USB, Display interface).”

Speed Demon

The blistering super-speed of Light Peak makes it ideal for driving bandwidth-intensive devices and peripherals on the desktop — say, multiple HD panels — but the real world benefits to ordinary consumers (after all, most end-users do not have high-end desktop hardware) would obviously lie in handheld integration. Because the technology supports multiple devices on the same port, it means a portable device could potentially do-away with the tradition of providing several different I/O ports. Doesn’t this sound typically Apple? Say goodbye to Ethernet, USB, Mini DV, FireWire, optical audio in/out, HDMI and so on. Light Peak offers to replace them all with a single, super high-bandwidth alternative. Fewer ports means fewer components and smaller, thinner devices requiring less power. Presumably, they would be cheaper to manufacture, passing those savings down to the customers in the shape of lower prices. That said, I wouldn’t expect Apple to factor that into its premium pricing philosophy. Apple’s not exactly known for its low, low prices.

So what does it all mean in practical, everyday terms that, you know, matter to ordinary people? Well, right now, it means almost nothing since the technology is still in the developement stage. According to Engadget’s Joshua Topolsky, Apple intends to introduce the new standard (yep, it’s not just a new toy, it’s a whole new standard) in late 2010. Beyond that, 2011 might see low-power variations appear in handheld devices.

The concept behind Light Peak is typically Apple. It offers a real, practical — and aesthetically pleasing — solution to the age old problem of cable-mess while introducing impressive new technology to the industry. Jonathan Ive and Steve Jobs are, it seems, almost pathologically opposed to seeing buttons, ports and other bits and pieces on their devices. In fact, Ive said of the MacBook’s redesign; “We’ve refined and refined every detail in the service of the user, just to get rid of complexity. If something doesn’t need to be there, it’s not there. I don’t know how we could make something any more essential, any simpler…”

And for ultimate minimalism, look no further than the iPhone. It wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if Ive and Jobs considered a zero-button design at one point in the iPhone’s R&D infancy.

According to Engadget, the roadmap for Light Peak, as it stood in 2007, “…includes Light Peak being introduced to the iPhone / iPod platform to serve as a gateway for multimedia and networking outputs.”

Light Peak would offer an incredible data transfer platform to replace the USB standard used with all iPods and iPhones today. Imagine transferring an HD movie from iTunes to a device in mere seconds, or your entire iTunes music library in about a minute. And there’s no reason why OEMs can’t build Light Peak right into their chipsets and motherboards, allowing for ever-higher bus speeds.

Apple was smart going to Intel with the proposal for Light Peak. Introducing a new toy is relatively easy, but introducing a whole new platform is much harder. By handing the task to Intel, Apple can ensure this new standard makes its way into more hardware than Apple products alone.

USB 3.0 has been a long, long time coming, and many OEM’s are, presumably, invested in long-term licensing deals which allow them to build USB support into their products. At launch, Light Peak would be an expensive new platform (those licenses won’t be cheap!) that initially only Intel’s first-tier partners might support (Engadget tips the hat toward Sony as a possible early-adopter). Most OEMs will likely “wait and see” if the technology proves stable, reliable and economical in the long run. But at least they will consider it. They might not give it any attention at all if it were to appear as an Apple-only technology.

And goodness only knows if we’re about to see the start of another format war, pitted between USB 3.0 and Light Peak 1.0.

One More Thing

Engadget adds that Intel has plans for a new low-power Atom chip, due to launch next year, that will be positioned to compete with chips currently found in mobile devices such as iPhones, netbooks and set top boxes. Says Engadget, “The indication we’ve been given is that that product (coupled with the Light Peak standard) could provide the basis for some “big” MID news in 2010.”

I’m gonna watch the evolution of Light Peak carefully, and I think you should, too. Sure, it doesn’t (yet) promise the wireless goodness of the more mature and proven USB 3.0 standard, which, at the very least, won’t require end users replace all their peripherals with Light Peak-enabled alternatives. But it does offer the kind of wideband, high-speed convergence our increasingly interconnected devices cry-out for.

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As someone who has played with the betas of the iPhone 3.0 OS, I was excited to see the availability of tethering that would allow me to share the Internet connection between my iPhone and my Mac. With 3.0 around the corner, the feature is coming, but not in the United States.

Wired or Wireless?

Tethering works via Bluetooth for wireless connectivity or via your dock connector and USB cable (which also conveniently charges your iPhone at the same time). Once you pair your devices and turn the feature on, there’s no more setup. Plus, you can still send and receive data and make phone calls on your device while it is tethered! Tethering is not a feature specific to the new iPhone 3G S and will run on both Macs and PCs.

Extra Fees

Apple is working with different carriers independently to work out plans for tethering options. At the moment, Apple has announced over 20 carriers that will support tethering, including bharti, Telefonica, Tim, Hutchinson Telecom, ‘yes’ Optus, Orange, TeliaSonera, true move, maxis, Rogers, SFR, O2, SingTel, T-Mobile, Turkcell, Glove, Vodafone, VimpelCom, Luxgsm, Chunghwa Telecom, Telkomsel and Telenor. Most carriers will be announcing specific pricing for this feature that is unique to them. Across the pond, O2 in the UK is offering a package based on the amount of data used with options at 3GB for 14.68 pounds ($23.45) per month and 10GB for 29.36 pounds per month.

No Love for the U.S.?

AT&T, mysteriously absent from the aforementioned list, is not allowing tethering on its 3G network in the United States. While tethering disappeared from recent betas, the underground community brought support back through jailbreaking. It’s reasonable to assume that, while AT&T has not announced pricing or plans for tethering, it will still be possible to tether in the United States either via jailbreaking or via a future deal announced by Apple and AT&T.

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DisplayPort got a big boost as a video connection standard when Apple decided to use it across its entire notebook line.

Of course, being Apple, they couldn’t use it as is, and instead introduced the Mini DisplayPort version, which was more compact, and, sadly, would also require special adapters to be purchased by MacBook owners. Now version 1.2 of the standard is poised to bring some improvements that will likely make it more attractive to consumers and manufacturers alike.

One of those improvements is the possible standardization of the Mini DisplayPort form factor, which could be a definite boon for MacBook owners, since the market for adapters would become much more competitive. Apple currently offers a free license for the Mini DisplayPort standard, but it has the right to refuse this license to anyone for any reason. Were it to become an official standard supported by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), any manufacturer could use it, without Apple’s say so.

That’s not all that’s in store for the promising young standard. Version 1.2 should also bring twice the available bandwidth, allowing for 3840×2160 resolution on a single screeen, two at 2560×1600, or four at 1920×1200, and support for 3D video playback.

More bandwidth could also be used for USB support, allowing the DisplayPort connector alone to power and run displays with built-in cameras like the iSight, and with integrated USB hubs. That would mean that a monitor like the 24-inch LED Cinema Display wouldn’t require a separate USB cable connection.

Support for functions beyond display is a definite advantage, but, as MacUser points out, DisplayPort brings with it the built-in DRM that’s responsible for the HD playback woes of new MacBook owners. Broader use of the standard should expand the list of supported monitors, so this problem could be somewhat mitigated by the time revision 1.2 arrives.

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For a concrete example of what a huge deficiency that is, over several days last week I booted and ran my G4 PowerBook from a clone of my hard drive and system on an external FireWire drive while I dealt with a stubborn issue afflicting the OS X Leopard install on its internal hard drive. If a similar issue cropped up with one of the new, FireWire-less Macbooks, dealing with this problem would have been far more difficult, inconvenient, time-consuming, not to mention disruptive of my be ability to continue using the machine for production work in the meantime.

I would like to think that Apple has listened to the howls of dismay over their misbegotten decision, and will restore a FireWire port on the Revision B unibody MacBooks. After all, the original Clamshell iBook was initially released without FireWire support, but it was added with the final revision of that model. However, that was in 2000; this is now, and I’m not inclined to be holding my breath waiting for Apple to blink on this.

One reason is that USB 3.0 is coming. Now I hasten to emphasize that there is no indication I’m aware of that USB 3.0 will support any analog of FireWire Target Disk mode, but there is probable cause to imagine that Apple may be working on making it conveniently bootable. The MacBook Air, for example, can boot from its optional proprietary external USB optical drive.

A company called Symwave Inc. demonstrated what it claims to be the world’s first consumer application of SuperSpeed USB 3.0 at the Computer Electronics Show at Las Vegas last week.

USB 3.0 will reportedly be about 10 times faster than USB 2.0 with a maximum throughput of 4.8 Gbit/s, which should make it faster than even FireWire 800, which is still supported (plus FireWire 400 through an optional adapter) by the unibody MacBook Pro.

Symwave says it is collaborating with leading test, cable, components and hard drive manufacturers to demonstrate the transfer speeds of USB 3.0 and will showcase streaming data to and from external storage devices at speeds previously unattainable, predicting that SuperSpeed USB 3.0 is poised to become the most pervasive high-speed connectivity technology over the coming years, and it is backwards port compatible with the more than 10 billion USB devices shipped to date.

Presumably, Apple will be getting on board with USB 3.0, and it should be an exciting technological advance in some ways, but they still were too quick pulling the plug on FireWire with the MacBook.

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Like the X-Fi (xtreme fidelity, in case you were wondering) external audio card whose technology it uses, the Sound Blaster for iTunes is an external, USB peripheral. It’s main purpose is to enhance the quality of your iTunes music library, and anything else you may use iTunes for, including internet radio streams and movie audio. Curiously, it also claims to improve the quality of things like Pandora, and basically any sound your computer makes, so I’m not entirely sure what the difference is between this and, say, the X-Fi Go.

Upon closer inspection, the Sound Blaster for iTunes does boast the somewhat ambiguous quality of “enabl[ing] you to use the iTunes interface.” Also, it works as a transmitter for Sound Blaster’s wireless stereo system components, including regular speakers connected to their Creative Wireless Receivers, and directly to the Creative T20W Series II speakers, which have a receiver built in. I actually have a pair of the Creative T20 Series II speakers (the non-wireless ones), and I’m more than happy with them, so the prospect of wireless ones is intriguing.

When it’s released later this year (target is Spring 2008), Sound Blaster for iTunes will retail for $99.99. Considering the Sound Blaster X-Fi Notebook is the only current option for laptops that comes with the wireless transmitter built in, and requires an ExpressCard slot, all for $89.99, it’s not too bad a price.

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So, are you, like many, taken with the new MacBook (and there are plenty of reasons to be), but wondering how you could get along without FireWire? A new product from Targus could be your solution.

That is if your main concern about going FireWire-less is how to handle fast, computer-to-computer file transfers. The Targus USB 2.0 High-Speed File Transfer Cable for Mac can’t help you with connecting to your FireWire video camera or scanner, but it’s a surprisingly slick and satisfactory substitute for the file transfer aspect of FireWire Target Disk Mode, in some respects even more convenient.

Supports Both USB 2 and USB 1.1

The High-Speed File Transfer Cable is designed to facilitate transferring large (or small) amounts of data from computer to computer via their USB ports, and its arrival on the scene is timely for those with FireWire-bereft MacBooks and MacBook Airs. It works with either USB 2.0 or USB 1.1 ports alike. USB 1.1 is pretty slow for moving large files, although I found it works just fine for moving a document or two from one computer to another on my old Pismo PowerBooks which support only USB 1.1, either connected to each other or to my USB 2-equipped PowerBook G4.

This cable can also substitute for other forms of media like CD’s or DVD’s for data transfers and it’s a lot faster and more convenient that burning to disks. A maximum nominal transfer rate of 480 Mbps is claimed but unlikely to ever be attained in real world use, with something like 260 Mbps more likely on most machines. However some testers have reported that USB throughput on the unibody MacBooks seems to be faster than we’re accustomed to.

The genius of the Targus High-Speed Data Transfer Cable is that it includes built-in file transfer software called EasySuite in versions that work with both Mac OS X and Windows OS, and can be used to transfer files cross-platform as well as from Mac-to-Mac or Windows-to-Windows, the latter which is of course not supported by FireWire Target Disk Mode, and one of the computers doesn’t have to be shut down and restarted in order to set up file transfers, so connect/disconnect is quick and convenient. The EasySuite software requires no installation, as it lives stored on 2MB of flash memory inside the larger of the cable’s two USB connector plugs.

Easy File Transfers

When you connect the cable, the EasySuite “CD-ROM drive” icon appears on the computers’ respective Desktops. Open the drive window and double-click the EasyMacCopy icon to start the file transfer application. Once EasyMacCopy has started up on both computers (takes but a few seconds), file transfer windows open showing the remote computer in the top panel and the local computer in the bottom panel.

Now you can select the file(s) or folder(s) you want to transfer using standard OS X Finder navigation, and drag & drop it to the destination drive window. When all transfers are complete, quit the EasyMacCopy applications and eject the virtual “drives.”

All versions of Mac OS X are supported, as well as Windows XP and Vista. The Targus File Transfer Cable has a MSRP of $49.99.

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This hub allows you to connect up to four USB devices through a single USB port on your computer.

“So what?,” you’re probably saying, “there are dozens of 4-port USB hubs that do that.”

However, what makes the Bend-a-Hub distinctive is its literal flexibility plus its two specialty connectors; one of which can adjust to a 90-degree angle for better accessibility — able to be oriented either horizontally or vertically, making it ideal for connecting a flash thumb drive or iPod. Moreover, another of its four USB ports folds out to reveal a mini USB connector of the sort used by many digital cameras, mobile phones, and PDAs. The Bend-a-Hub’s flexible form factor makes it easy to accommodate a variety of larger USB devices.

It may also be possible to charge devices through the mini USB port if the connecting device supports charging through a mini USB connector. The unit works with both USB 2.0 and USB 1.1 ports and supports both Mac OS X and Windows (2000, XP, Vista).

The Bend-a-Hub’s flexibility makes it convenient to roll it up and tuck it in your pocket, laptop case, or backpack for road warrioring, and it weighs just an easy-to-carry 1.8 ounces.

Note, however, that there is no provision for self-powering using an AC power adapter, so the device is dependent upon whatever amount of power your computer is able to supply through a USB port. The amount of power output by many computer USB ports may get spread a bit thin with multiple devices attached, especially on certain Mac laptops, including recent Intel models.

The Bend-a-Hub is nicely finished, looks well-constructed, and the cables that connect the ports and plug to the central distribution module are generously sized with husky anti-fatigue collars where the cables enter the port and plug modules.

While it may look a little odd, the Targus Bend-a-Hub offers substantial versatility advantages over conventional USB hubs, especially for road warrioring, with the caveat above-noted regarding bus-powering. The only thing I found not to like about this product was that the female USB port modules were a bit snug, requiring more effort to insert and remove than I would prefer, but that will probably improve with repeated use.

The USB 2.0 4-Port Bend-a-Hub with Mini USB Adapter is 9″ in length, weighs 1.8 oz, and sells for $19.99.

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• Why iPad 2 Will Lead Consumers Into the Post-PC Era
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My enthusiastic use and promotion of Growl should come as no surprise to regular readers of The Apple Blog. While some dismiss it as an annoyance reminiscent of the Windows notification popups, others — like myself – view it as a way be informed without stopping what I am currently doing (and that is definitely not the case with its Windows pseudo-counterpart).

Even though many of the applications and utilities that help me with my daily workflows have embedded Growl support in some fashion, there is one use of Growl that may help convert even the most stalwart Growl skeptic: Hardware Growler.

Setting Up Hardware Growler

You’ll find this handy utility in the “Extras” folder on your Growl installer disk image. It’s main purpose is to fire off a Growl notification each time devices are connected or disconnected from your Mac, and includes support for FireWire, USB and filesystem volumes (i.e. disks) as well as Bluetooth devices and network interfaces. Unfortunately, to make the best of use of Hardware Growler, you will have to do some work to get it installed properly.

First, copy the “Hardware Growler” application to either “/Applications” or “/Applications/Utilities” on your Mac. The application itself is nothing to write home about. Double-click on it to see a very sparse menu and an innocuous Dock icon. The “Preferences” window is even sparse, only providing a means to enable or disable a notification about what devices are currently connected upon startup of Hardware Growler (not very useful, at least for me).

You can leave Hardware Growler running this way and it will go about it’s job quite nicely. However, since it is not really an interactive program, it would be best to “make it go away”, especially if you happen to miss-hit a Cmd-Q and accicentally cancel out of it. The easiest way to accomplish this is to modify one of the Hardware Growler configuration files.

Depending on where you decided to install Hardware Growler, either open /Applications/HardwareGrowler.app/Contents/Info.plist or /Applications/Utilities/HardwareGrowler.app/Contents/Info.plist add the following two lines after the <dict> line:

   <dict>
      <key>LSUIElement</key>
   <true/>

You will need to quit and re-start Hardware Grolwer for this setting to take effect. (CocoaDev has more good info on the LSUIelement propery.)

Next, to make it even easier to ensure Hardware Growler is running after you login, go to System Preferences > Accounts and add it as a “Login Item” and check the “Hide” checkbox just for good measure.

Using Hardware Growler to Spy on Your System & Applications

Because Hardware Growler hooks itself into the device events on your system, you now have the opportunity to see some of what happens underneath the pretty OS X GUI. While you should be aware of when you connect FireWire and USB devices, Hardware Growler still notifies you when those devices are inserted or removed and having a notification of that may help troubleshoot issues.

For me, it is very handy to be notified when my Option Express 3G card suddenly decides to disconnect itself from the card slot and it has saved me a ton of grief. Expanding on that particular example, you will see that many PCI ExpressCard adapters show up as USB devices. This is actually the most common way for vendors to utilize the ExpressCard slot and you really are not getting much benefit out of using the card versus an external adapter, apart from freeing up an external USB slot for other uses.

One activity that is especially interesting to have a view into is when your applications that are set to auto-update are downloading and mounting disk images. I managed to “spy” on the Google updater (no screen capture, though) doing it’s work just this past week (I had actually forgotten I let it auto-update).

Gaining a view into network-related events is also pretty handy. Not only will you see which adapter is connecting, you will also see the current MAC (unique hardware) address and all changes of IP address. This can be especially handy when you are attempting to diagnose connection issues.

If you do decide to give Hardware Growler a try, let it run in the background for a week as you go about your workflow. I think you’ll find the experience illuminating and you may just gain more insight into how your system and many of your applications work.

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• Why iPad 2 Will Lead Consumers Into the Post-PC Era
• The Near-Term Evolution of Social Commerce
• Content Farms: The Players, The Benefits, The Risks