14 DAY TRIAL // With Apple simply refusing to deliver a Mac tablet, the folks at Axiotron have actually made modding MacBooks a thriving business, even appearing at the Macworld Expo three years in a row. This year, the company had some pretty cool hardware to show off, including the latest and most powerful ModBook ever created – the ModBook Pro!
While Apple used its SVP of Worldwide Product Marketing to finally introduce the unibody 17-inch MacBook Pro, Axiotron had its newly-appointed advisor, Steve Wozniak, detailing the capabilities of the aforementioned product (and more) at the company's Macworld booth (#502).
Woz – as he is referred to in the Mac blogosphere – is an American computer engineer, and the co-founder of Apple Computer (now Apple Inc.). He was tight with Steve Jobs when they made the first Apple computers, and still is to this day.
“Introducing the new standard for excellence in tablet computing. [...] The 15.4-inch Modbook Pro is the ultimate tablet computer,” Axiotron says. “Constructed from a unibody Apple MacBook Pro base system, Axiotron’s Modbook Pro combines blazing speed and power with new cutting-edge hardware and software features. From its sleek aluminum enclosure to its innovative tablet tools, the Modbook Pro reimagines the tablet computing experience,” the modder adds.
The new ModBook Pro differs in design from its 13-inch cousin, which Axiotron crafts out of regular Apple MacBooks. The device is a bit bulkier and square-ish, but what design law says every edge has to be rounded? Moreover, unlike the new-generation of Apple portables, the Modbook Pro features a “multibody abstraction design” achieved (surprisingly) through the same process employed by Apple when making its unobodies – that is to say precision machined aluminum. “There are no exterior sheet metal or plastic parts, providing unprecedented structural strength,” Axiotron reveals.
Another notable difference between Apple's Pro and Axiotron's is the user-replaceable battery, in the latter's case. The ModBook Pro's battery (although probably not as durable as Apple's) is “easily accessible on the bottom of the device,” and “provides power,” according to Axiotron. We reckon it does, otherwise the ModBook would just be a coffee-table from Star Trek.
Interested parties can check out the ModBook Pro over at Axiotron's site. Those sold on the features can pre-order one right now. If you decide on the Pro before January 12th, 2009, you will automatically receive a $400 discount on your purchase.