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Posted: 22 Oct 2011 03:13 AM PDT
These two are undeniably the thinnest laptops in the world today.
Asus UX21 ...  and Macbook Air 2011 11-inch.  And when you have two notebooks that look almost alike (and will probably have similar price tags), naturally, people would ask, "Which of the two is better? Which one to get?" --- So TP Versus Series presents... Asus UX21 vs. Macbook Air 2011 11-inch We'll compare them in 3 departments: Design, Innards and Ports, and Usability Design: Both Macbook Air and Asus UX21 flaunt a unibody aluminum case. This means that their bodies are crafted from a singular block of aluminum. However, Asus UX21's shell comes with a slightly more glossy, brushed metal look compared to Macbook Air's matte finish. As for they keyboard, Asus UX21 features metal keys (yes, real metal) vs. Macbook Air's plastic black keys. The opposite goes for the frame around their screens; Asus UX21's is black while Macbook Air's display frame is metallic. Although both notebooks have the same 11.6-inch screen size and 17 millimeters thickness, Macbook Air is ever slightly lighter at 2.38 lbs vs. 2.4 lbs for Asus UX21 (perhaps because of the metal keys). So which laptop flaunts a better design? As they say, beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. Asus UX21 looks a tad shinier but there's also something attractive about Macbook Air's restrained, minimalistic look. Innards and Ports: For me, this department belongs to Asus UX21 if only because it has more built-in ports. Asus UX21 is powered by a 1.7 GHz Intel Core i5-2557M processor and there's even a variant that's comes with a Core i7 chip. The notebook, which comes in 64GB and 128GB versions and 2GB and 4GB DDR3 RAM options, has two USB 3.0 ports, mini-Display Port and a mini-HDMI port. On the other hand, Macbook Air 11-inch, which also comes in 64GB and 128GB versions and Core i5 and Core i7 powered variants, features only two USB 2.0 ports, and a Thunderbolt port. Like Asus UX21 Macbook Air also comes with 2G and 4GB DDR3 RAM options. Usability: Well, this department warrants a lengthy Windows 7 vs. Mac OS X Lion discussion. Which operating system is better? Really, it depends on the individual user. For me, Mac OS X looks really sleek and refined and it has a lot of features that can make you go WOW but there's just more things you can do with Windows simply because there are more software made specifically for it. TP Verdict: Asus UX21 vs. Macbook Air 2011 11-inch?! Call me corny but for me, it's a tie. But how about you? Which of these two ultra-thin notebooks do you prefer?     |
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Posted: 22 Oct 2011 01:33 AM PDT
I usually spend my weekends answering tech questions that my blog readers had sent me over the week via the TP Mailbox. Yes, that's how much I love my TP Friends.
This question that Aldrin D. emailed me last Thursday is pretty interesting (it actually got me talking to my friends in the tech industry to get the answer): "Hi TP! Does Apple have an office in the Philippines?" TP Answer: Thanks for getting in touch with TP, Aldrin! If you're talking about a full-fledged Apple office in the Philippines with various departments (sales, advertising, PR, marketing, etc.) similar to Nokia, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, or LG's local offices, nope, we do not have that. I believe Apple Singapore handles the company's operations in the Philippines. (Note, however, that I have a few friends telling me that Apple has a sales and marketing team in the Philippines with an office in Global City in Taguig. I've yet to confirm this though.) Nonetheless, Apple does have official retailers like Power Mac Center and Digital Hub, authorized service centers and an online store made specifically for consumers in the Philippines. So there. Again, Apple Philippines is practically non-existent. (I'd love to be proven wrong though. I mean, the Philippines is the Gadget Capital of the World for the most obvious reasons and I think Apple should definitely consider opening an office here.)   |
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Posted: 21 Oct 2011 10:59 PM PDT
One of the questions I usually get from my readers who've just decided to start their own blog is "How important is a good Alexa Rank? Should I work hard my *** off to make my blog a top 100,000 Alexa site?" On the other hand, in casual meetings, my friends from PR and Media Agencies would usually ask, "It's 2011. Is Alexa ranking still all that reliable in determining a blog or website's relevance? Alexa sounds old."
TP Answer: Well, in answering that question, the first thing we have to do is to revisit what Alexa is all about. Alexa is a web information company known for its traffic ranking system. Alexa computes traffic rankings by analyzing the Web usage of millions of Alexa Toolbar users and data obtained from other, diverse traffic data sources. The information is sorted, sifted, anonymized, counted, and computed, until, finally, we get the traffic rankings shown in the Alexa service. [source] So with that, here are my answers to the above-mentioned questions: 1. How important is a good Alexa rank? Should I work hard my *** off to make my blog a top 100,000 Alexa site? To tell you frankly, these days, Alexa rank does NOT always reflect the actual traffic of a blog or a website. A blog with high traffic can have a low Alexa rank and vice versa. And that's the truth. Why is this so? It has something to do with the way Alexa collects information. I mean, how many of you here actually have an Alexa toolbar installed on your browser? If you don't, are your visits affecting a site's Alexa rank at all? You tell me. Also, it's important to note that there are schemes and programs that you can subscribe to that can help augment your Alexa rank without working too hard to increase your actual traffic. That's the truth. I say don't work your *** off for a high Alexa rank. Work hard for a good traffic; Achieve that by creating content that actually benefit people. Now, if your Alexa rank increases as a result of your efforts to increase your traffic, well and good. If not, don't feel bad. This is TechPinas' current Alexa rank. Does it reflect my actual traffic? I don't know and honestly, I'm starting not to care anymore. :) 2. It's 2011. Is Alexa ranking still all that reliable in determining a blog or website's relevance? Alexa sounds old. For PR and Media agencies, Alexa rank should still be useful IF they want to know a blog or website's relevance and popularity in a specific target market: those who are using an Alexa toolbar. That's how it is. Otherwise, I'd suggest they look at the site's unique visits, actual pageviews and social media relevance. These days, social media clout is king. There you go. I hope you find this helpful.   |
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