Modbook Pro OS X tablet gets a pre-release upgrade

If you've long given up on Apple to ever release an OS X-powered tablet, the Modbook Pro might be just what you're looking for, and the device has seen a much-welcomed pre-release upgrade.

The Modbook Pro is a tablet that's built around an existing Apple hardware system. Modbook Inc. takes a MacBook Pro system and converts the system into a tablet using its Modbook Pro Build Kit. The main part of the kit is a specially made 13.3-inch Wacom pen-controlled screen which, along with other custom components, converts the notebook into a tablet.

The first Modbooks are expected to ship by the end of this month, but the company has announced that the base specification of the device has been significantly upgraded. Pen pressures have been upgraded, making the screen more responsive to pen inputs. The solid-state drive has been increased from 64GB to a more spacious 120GB, and the RAM memory bumped from 4GB to 8GB.

The base price of the system is unchanged at $3,500.

The base system comes with a 2.5GHz Intel Core i5 processor -- upgradable to a 2.9GHz Intel Core i7 for an additional $300 -- and there are optional RAM and storage upgrades, with 16GB RAM costing an extra $240, and 240GB and 480GB of storage costing an added $390 and $780 respectively.

Modbook Inc. will also install Windows 7 onto the system into a Boot Camp partition for an extra $200. It's worth noting that as this is not an official Apple product, all warranty issues will have to go Modbook Inc.

This upgrade will apply to new units and those that have already been pre-ordered.

 Source : zdnet