Are you a Mac aficionado who just so happens to think that searching for alternative energy sources - i.e. the sun - is the only way that us humans can hope to extend our stay in this big bad galaxy? If so, then you better hope you have US$ 180 to spare. According to Treehugger.com, that's the estimated cost of the home-made, portable solar kit that Pat, a blogger from Will Blog For Experience, used to power his MacBook. Here's what Pat himself said:

This kit weighs about 2 lbs, costs $180, and will power my Macbook for 1.75 hours (1.83ghz, browsing the web and checking email via Airport Extreme, bluetooth off, screen brightness about 70%) with a little more than 5 hours of good sun.

Frankly, this gadget is one hell of a good idea. An initial expenditure of a hundred and eighty bucks seems like a pretty big amount, but just the thought of how much we'll be able to save in the long run certainly has an appeal, plus, when folded, the whole thing really seems quite easy to lug around. And it's not just for MacBooks and other laptops, too. We reckon you can use this portable power source for a whole host of other gadgets. Check it out for yourself. Images of the environmentally-friendly doodad are available below.

 

You gotta love rumors confirmed. Mac OS Rumors started combing the grapevine and all their sources clean of whatever juice they could squeeze out, until they were able to confirm that the "MacBook Thin" (a) exists, and (b) has specs that (c) would probably make the "Thin" "the fastest, most feature-rich ultraportable laptop on the market". Probably because it's a Pro in a smaller package.

Here are the specs that Mac OS Rumors were, so far, able to confirm from American and Southeast Asian sources. Start drooling.

• "Macbook Thin" -- spec-wise, primarily a variant of the Pro family but will probably be branded as separate from the standard *or* Pro MacBook families. Shipping name is unconfirmed.
• 12-inch widescreen display, 1280x800 resolution.
• 2.16 or 2.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processors
• 1GB of DDR2-667 memory standard. Max. capacity 3GB.
• Standard "Pro" ports: USB2, Firewire 400 & 800, Gigabit Ethernet, Digital/Analog Audio minijack I/O ports.
• ExpressCard expansion slot (believed to be /34 type)
• Similar storage to "Pro": 2.5in SATA HDDs at 120GB & up, 'Combo' or 'Super' optical drive.
• ATi Radeon Mobility X1600 or nVIDIA GeForce GO 7600 graphics systems with 256MB of VRAM.
• Mini-DVI display connector with full second display capabilities
• Of course, Built-in iSight, stereo microphone, Airport Extreme and Bluetooth 2.0+EDR.
• Battery life is expected to be "best in class" at about 6.5 hours real-world, some reports have suggested up to 8 hours is possible.

Final speculation has the "Thin", or whatever they're going to call it, shipping within ten weeks, announced in six. What keeps this speculation iffy is the fact that the upcoming MacWorld Expo is so packed with other high-profile items - such as iTV and the iPhone - that were the "Thin" announced there, it could easily get lost in the shuffle. Not that it won't be noticed by a lot of people who'd love to get a MacBook in smaller dimensions.