A few more interesting items are starting to leak out ahead of CES 2012.
AR Drone 2.0
Engadget publishes a press release for Parrot's new AR Drone 2.0 which sports a 720P HD Camera. The original AR Drone was shown off at CES 2010. It's an iPhone-controlled quadricoptor that uses a number of sensors, including a downward facing camera, to help stabilize its flight. You control the flying machine with the use of your iPhone.
The 2.0 upgrade now offers a 1280x720 resolution camera that can be used to record videos as well as new flight control modes to allow for easier handling. Per Gizmodo:
Perhaps best of all, it's now even easier to pilot. Before you had to rely on the camera to know which way the AR.Drone was facing, and then send commands from the drone's perspective. That option is still available for advanced users, but the AR.Drone 2 now senses where you are, so tilting your phone/tablet away from you will send the drone away, and tilting it to your right will make the drone go that way, too. It's incredibly intuitive.
The 2.0 version of the AR Drone will be $299 and available in the 2nd Quarter of 2012. This video shows the original AR Drone in action:
OCZ Thunderbolt SSD
PCPer spotted this new external SSD coming from OCZ. The company had previously offered a similar external USB 3.0 SSD, but this new model brings Thunderbolt support.
According to OCZ, the Thunderbolt-equipped SSD should have transfer rates as high as 750MB/s and "improved latency and highly accurate time synchronization" for professional audio/video work. No timeframe on release, but more details may arrive at next week.
Friday November 21, 2025 3:53 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple has begun selling the Hikawa Phone Grip and Stand, a new limited-edition iPhone accessory designed with accessibility in mind.
Designed by LA-based Bailey Hikawa to celebrate the 40th anniversary of accessibility at Apple, the grip uses magnets to securely snap onto any iPhone with MagSafe.
Apple says it can be removed with ease, and doubles as a stand with two different viewing...
Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more.
In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date.
Keep reading...
Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by Joe Rossignol
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others.
During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...
Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by Joe Rossignol
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features.
In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features.
Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models.
Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos
Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
Wednesday November 19, 2025 7:26 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include two standout features that could set it apart from the competition.
The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
Black Friday is just over a week away, and iPad deals have finally started to flood in at retailers like Amazon and Best Buy. Below we're tracking discounts on every current generation iPad, including lowest-ever prices on M3 iPad Air and M5 iPad Pro, plus steep markdowns on iPad and iPad mini.
Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a link and make a ...
Wednesday November 19, 2025 4:00 am PST by Tim Hardwick
Apple's iPhone development roadmap runs several years into the future and the company is continually working with suppliers on several successive iPhone models at the same time, which is why we often get rumored features months ahead of launch. The iPhone 18 series is no different, and we already have a good idea of what to expect for the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max.
One thing worth...
oh man if the thunderbolt ssd's are bootable I'm gonna be soooo happy. I bought an iMac but couldn't afford the internal ssd. So a few months down the line when money is saved an external drive would be great if its bootable since it will read faster than the 7200rpm hdd.
Having one thunderbolt port on my iMac, I will automatically pass on anything that cannot be daisy chained, as I need the terminating device to be a display port to HDMI adapter.
Sorry, it just sounded like you were trying to rally consumers into a movement akin to the "We are the 99%", but targeting instead the existence of elitist technologies that are priced higher than the masses can afford.
No, I'm not making such a statement since I'm probably closer to the 1% than the 99% anyhow. I'm saying all these products offer little value to consumers for the price they are at.
You know the saying, you can get 90% of the performance for 10% of the cost, and the other 10% of the performance for 90% of the cost. Consumers don't need the last 10% of performance.
Thunderbolt is that last 10%.
I think you're being a little narrow with your definition of "consumer." I can pick up an Apple TB display from at least 3 different stores at my local mall. And if I peruse the TV section of Best Buy I can find dozens of IPS displays that retail for more than $1k.
*sigh*. And I have a Cisco Pix 501 here in my house which I used for years as my Internet firewall. That doesn't make it a consumer product.
IPS TVs are not IPS computer monitors. There's a reason consumers want IPS in a TV, viewing angles. I don't always sit straight in front of a TV, especially if I'm having a bunch of people over to watch the game or something.
Thunderbolt looks more and more like its being aimed at the prosumer/professional market. Not the consumer. The products reflect that (SSD external enclosures, RAID arrays, 300$ port extenders, IPS monitors with some ports on it).
