By Alex Villafania
INQUIRER.net

THE APPLE MacBook Air is now in the Philippines and the distributor says the first batch of the latest MacBook incarnation has already sold out.

Already, MSI-ECS is preparing to get another batch of MacBook Airs to be distributed in the Philippines.

The MacBook Air had a small launch with Filipino reporters at the MSI-ECS office in Libis, Quezon City. MSI-ECS Apple product manager Cheche David said the demand is so high that they had closed the pre-order selling during the first batch. Those hoping to buy the device would have to go to an Apple store to order their units.

Here’s a video I took of David demonstrating some of the features of the MacBook Air.

[Read the rest of this entry »]

By Erwin Oliva
INQUIRER.net

THE NEW iPod touch will make its debut in the Philippines in October, an Apple executive said.

The multi-touch, wireless fidelity-enabled iPod will be sold in local stores next month, said Tony Li, director for product marketing of Apple in Asia Pacific. The iPod touch will retail for P19,090 for the 8 gigabyte version, and P25,490 for the 16 gigabyte version, Li said.

The new iPod touch will still cater to the iPod-loving consumers who can now surf using the same device. It is 8 mm thick, features a 3.5-inch display, and has wi-fi support. It runs the safari browser, and can play YouTube videos using the H2.64 format that is supported by the iPod, Li added.

Apple has sold over 100 million iPods worldwide. No figures were given for the Philippines.

The debut of the iPod touch is being timed with the coming holiday season when sales for gadgets are high, Li said.

Li also introduced the new iPod shuffle and nano models in the local market.

No word yet on the local release of the iPhone in the country.

BOY, NBC sure didn’t spend a lot of time getting over Apple.

Just days after ending its love affair with Apple’s iTunes service, NBC has announced that it’s moving in with Amazon.

Who do you think will end up the bigger loser?