Apple Charges Customers Up to £800 Extra For New Macbooks When Compared To Windows Laptops

Apple has just updated its whole range of Macbooks with the aluminium Brick models likely to create the most buzz on the market.

However, Steve Jobs has also decided to up the price of its entry level white Apple Macbook from £699 to £719, a sure sign that the company is uber confident during those troubled times

We've carried out our own research in the wake of Apple's new releases and found out that prospective buyers will be paying nearly £800 more to get the MacOSX and Apple's trademark stylish treatments (backlit keyboard et al); given the current economic conditions, going Apple might not be beneficial to your bank account.

And before Apple fanboys start sending us hatemails and death threats, we've tried to match the Macbooks with whatever laptops were readily available on the market with the nearest specification.

So, how much are you paying for Apple's Style

Sony Vaio VGN-CR11GH/L, Laptop

This laptop comes with Intel 1.8GHz Core2 Duo Processor, 1GB DDR2 RAM which is upgradeable upto 2GB and 80GB HDD. It has a DVD Writer, 14.1-inch widescreen display with a resolution of 1280x800 dpi. The laptop also has an integrated Graphics Media Accelerator X1300 video card, integrated sound card,

Price Range : Rs. 54,990

Sony Vaio VGN-C31GH/W, Laptop

This laptop comes with Intel 1.6GHz Dual Core Processor, 512MB DDR2 RAM which is upgradeable upto 2GB and 80GB HDD. It has a DVD Writer, 13.3-inch widescreen display with a resolution of 1280x800 dpi. The laptop also has an integrated Graphics Media Accelerator 950 video card, integrated sound card

Price Range : Rs. 44,990

Sony SZ 58, Laptop

This laptop comes with Intel 2.4GHz Core2 Duo Processor, 2GB DDR2 RAM and 160GB HDD. It has a DVD Writer, 13.3-inch widescreen display with a resolution of 1280x800 dpi. The laptop also has an integrated NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS video card, integrated sound card, Wifi, Touchpad mouse, In-Built Speake

Price Range : Rs. 124,000 to 124,900

Laptops Sony Vaio VGN-AR69GU

Sony Vaio VGN-AR69GU laptop comes with Intel 2.4GHz Core2 Duo Processor, 2GB DDR2 RAM and 500GB HDD. It has a Blu-Ray Disc Writer, 17-inch widescreen display with a resolution of 1920 x 1200 dpi. The laptop also has an integrated NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT video card, integrated sound card, Wifi, Touch

Price Range : Rs. 167,500 to 169,900

Stephen Fry Lambasts Vista and Sony Laptops, Become Biggest Twitter Outside US

One of UK's favourite comedians, Stephen Fry, demonstrated once again that he's as witty in real life as he is in movies thanks to the power of Twitter (where he's about to reach 29.000 followers) and that's he's actually a very savvy geek.

He spent $4000 on a Sony Vaio laptop (probably purchased in the US) with Windows Vista (I guess it was a Vista Business model) and blasted it as the most useless $4000 he ever spent (ed: Someone at ITproportal also spent £1750 on a Sony Vaio laptop last week and we're waiting for his feedback).

Fry was asked to review a PC-only application by the Guardian and the idiosyncrasies that marred Vista during its short life, made Fry's blood boil after which he apologised for being less than temperate.

He later explained on his "posterous" blog - which has now been viewed 16,000 times - that he was not trying to set up a new network, merely trying to connect a new computer to an existing network that had already got a G1 phone, 2 Blackberry smartphones, a few iPhones, an iPod touch and two Macs on it

Intel Targets Schools With Classmate Tablet Laptops

Intel has launched a new convertible "Classmate" laptop that can double as a tablet PC in the UK as from next month which will be sold directly to schools and through Amazon and Argos. It is likely that the Classmate will be sold through Education tech specialists like Elonex.

The Classmate design first came to light as a direct response to the $100 laptop, originally called OLPC and later XO. Classmate version 2 is build by Computer Technology Link and comes with a rotating screen that easily converts from a traditional laptop format to a resistive touchscreen tablet.

The device is built around an Intel Atom CPU and comes with 1GB RAM, a 60GB hard disk drive, a card reader and a 8.9-inch LCD screen capable of displaying 1024x600 pixels. CTL offers a choice of either Windows XP Home or Linux with one year warranty on parts and labour.