It's Apple Expo this week, so inevitably there's much interest in the company's latest hardware. This time, the iMac gets a makeover -- read our preview to get our initial impressions. As well as a roundup of instant messaging clients, we have an early review of Motorola's innovative MPx handheld/mobile phone combo. This Windows Mobile 2003- based device has a nifty dual-hinge system that allows it to open in either portrait or landscape orientation.
Charles McLellan, Reviews Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . TOP REVIEWS THIS WEEK: -- Apple iMac G5: a first look -- Top instant messengers compared -- AOL AIM 5.5 -- ICQ 4.1 -- MSN Messenger 6.2 -- Yahoo Messenger 6.0 -- Motorola MPx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *************************** ADVERTISEMENT *************************** Win a Compaq TC1000 Tablet PC Take a moment to enter the ZDNet UK Tablet PC Competition. With all the functionality of a notebook PC and more, this product (valued at �1499) gives you the freedom to type, handwrite, scribble or sketch your notes and ideas whenever and wherever you need to- it�s the ultimate flexible working tool. Enter today: <http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/10971/0/> *********************************************************************** Apple iMac G5: a first look The half-dome base is gone, and the iMac G5 is iPod-white in colour. Get more of our first impressions of Apple's redesigned iMac. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12129/0/ Top instant messengers compared Like email, instant messaging (IM) has become a part of our lives, at work, at home, at school, on the go -- even on our mobile phones. We examine four top IM clients, all of them free, and weigh the relative merits of each. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12130/0/ AOL AIM 5.5 Although it offers more business-orientated features than any of the main IM clients, AIM 5.5 will still appeal mostly to home users. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12131/0/ ICQ 4.1 ICQ, along with Yahoo Messenger, offers the most options for customisation and everyday use at home or in the office. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12132/0/ MSN Messenger 6.2 An intrusive registration process keeps us from warming to this instant messenger. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12133/0/ Yahoo Messenger 6.0 Yahoo Messenger, along with ICQ, offers the most options for customisation and everyday use at home or in the office. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12134/0/ Motorola MPx Motorola's innovative Windows Mobile-based MPx may suit mobile phone users who want a more data-centric device, but handheld owners seeking an all-in-one solution may find the trade-offs a little too severe. http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/12135/0/ . . . . . . . . . . READER RESPONSE OF THE WEEK . . . . . . . . . . . Product: Sean O'Sullivan Reader: FileMaker Pro 7 Response: "I've been using databases on and off for 20 years -- even wrote a database manager a while back. FileMaker Pro is great. It's easy, as far as sophisticated database managers go. And once you learn the somewhat peculiar way FileMaker does things, you can be amazingly productive in a relatively short time (2-3 weeks). A very cool feature is the ability to instantly serve your database over the Web, which means that you can have multiple people in the office with essentially the same interface as if they had the software on their desks, without having to install separate copies of the software everywhere. This makes it easy to have multiple people updating the data too, regardless of whether they're on Macs or PCs. There are problems -- for example, the fonts don't display well in Preview mode (essential!). There are a lot of very beautiful and sophisticated templates that come with the software, but to actually make some data entry screens and reports look great takes a large amount of fiddling at the pixel by pixel level (it'd be nice if it was much more automatic). There are things that should work much better - it should be obvious that a mismatched join using different data types is an error, rather than having to spend countless hours tracking down what the problem is (the first time). It's too difficult to import report layouts, which means you have to exclusively lock the database rather than just being able to work on it remotely, send in the new changes to the front office, etc. Some other problems are that the script language is basically a way to control the interface rather than a 'real' language. But the truth is a 'real' language eventually becomes a big pain to deal with, and these scripts don't become that complex and you never have to remember arcane syntax. However, I would kill for the ability to just be able to use a "SELECT" statement... which you can't do. Overall, though, it's a fantastic piece of software." http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/3063/0/ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . READER POLL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . "What do you think is the AMD Athlon 64's biggest advantage over Intel's Pentium 4?" -- Better price/performance ratio -- Lower power consumption -- Support for the NX (No Execute) feature -- 64-bit capability -- I disagree: the P4 is best To vote in this poll, click here: http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/1309/0/ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . *************************** ADVERTISEMENT *************************** The ZDNet UK IT Priorities Conference 28th September 2004 The Park Lane Hotel, London Who needs GPS? The technology roadmap has never been clearer. Follow the right directions by attending the ZDNet UK IT Priorities Conference. Based on the insight gained through our proprietary IT Priorities research, this event is focused on the 7 most important investment areas as identified by your peers: e-business, mobile and wireless security, software licensing, Voice over IP, hacking, Linux on the desktop and 3G. Register today: <http://newsletters.zdnetuk.cneteu.net/t/31453/1427290/9013/0/> *********************************************************************** ***************** MORE FREE NEWSLETTERS FROM ZDNET ****************** ZDNet UK publishes many more FREE email newsletters on all your favourite topics: Broadband, News, Security, Software Tools, Mobile, Reviews and Prices and more. 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