DEVELOP3D - Technology for the product lifecycle

2009 is going to see designers and software providers getting serious about using Macs; from the latest goings on at Macworld, those serious about jumping the rush have a shiny new toy to add to their list.

This high-performance tablet computer, running Mac OS X, is the latest announcement from Mac-modders Axiotron.The Modbook Pro tablet is available now for pre-order, uses the 15.4” unibody MacBook Pro as its base system.

Introduced at the expo with the help of Apple co-founder and Axiotron board member Steve Wozniak, the Modbook Pro will sport a black luster finish and aluminum construction. Its Synergy Touch screen supports both touch and pen input simultaneously, a feature Axiomatic says is not available on any other tablet, as well as 512 levels of pen pressure sensitivity.

The unit almost exactly matches the MacBook Pro’s feature set, including Ethernet, two USB 2.0 ports, and Bluetooth, with up to a 2.8GHz Core 2 Duo processor and the NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT processor.

The tablet come complete with Autodesk Sketchbook Express 2009, with the option to upgrade to Sketchbook Pro, offering a litany of features ideal for Modbook users, including a streamlined tool palette, and the ability to email work without the need to leave the program.

The Modbook Pro starts at $4,999 for the new 2.4GHz Apple MacBook Pro base system, yet for customers who want to convert hardware they already own, the Modservice Pro option starts at $3,049.

We blogged about this while they were still filming it and I got all excited but the final movie is nearly here.

Come on, anything that features Naoko Fukasawa’s wall mounted CD player for Muji as the opening shot and includes Dieter Rams sketching, Jonny Ive (when did he drop the jonathan?), and Marc Newson, for its trailer has got to be worth seeing.

www.objectifiedfilm.com

According to Applied, UK Dassault Systemes Partner, the Healey 3000 Sports Car is to be re-born and built in the UK with the help of CATIA V5. HFI Automotive, an Anglo-American Consortium of engineers and investors has purchased the Dassault Systemes Catia V5 for use in the design and development of their new Healey 3000 sports car.

News on the latest developments with this seems to stop in late 2007, but according Applied, Healey Automobile Consultants (HAC), owners of the British sports cars brand “Healey”, was purchased by HFI back in 2006. HAC was originally founded in 1955 by Donald and Geoffrey Healey. HFI’s development of the new Healey 3000 is advancing with plans for their manufacturing base to be in the UK.

More details at AutoExpress and AutoCognition.