MCE Technologies (MCE) is shipping its 2TB internal hard drive upgrade kit for the MacBook Pro, MacBook, and Mac mini. The US$199 upgrade kit consists of a 2TB, 5400 RPM, 2.5-inch SATA hard drive designed to replace the computer's internal drive. An illustrated installation guide and a toolkit are included. What's more, the MCE upgrade kit includes a portable, external USB 3.0 external enclosure to house the original internal hard drive, along with cloning software to ease the transition of your data to the new drive. Go to http://www.mcetech.com for more info.

 DEVONtechnologies has updated all editions of its information and document manager DEVONthink as well as its smart notebook app DEVONnote and bumps their version number to 2.7.4. The update brings interface, usability, and performance enhancements as well as bug fixes. The upgrades are free and recommended for all users. All editions of DEVONthink also allow you to annotate PDFs with lines and arrows. Creation date and user name are automatically added to new annotations. If you need to share documents with friends by email, AirMail is now supported, too. Importing notebooks from Evernote skips already imported items. Copy still images from movies using the contextual menu. DEVONthink and DEVONnote require an Intel-based Mac and OS X 10.6.8 or later (in the Mac App Store: OS X 10.8.3 or later). They can be downloaded from www.devontechnologies.com and be test-driven for free before they need to be licensed. DEVONthink Personal and DEVONnote are also available in the Mac App Store....

WaterField Designs has introduced the CitySlicker Mini Jambox speaker case. It houses the Jawbone Mini Jambox and its cables in one pocket-sized case. The interior is custom-sized with a soft, padded liner that cushions the Mini Jambox. A stretchable, semi-opaque back pocket holds the connector cable and charger, and a self-locking zipper keeps them secure. The CitySlicker’s ballistic nylon exterior is designed to protect the Mini Jambox from accidental scuffs and keep the speaker looking new. At the bottom of the case, a loop lets users slide the Mini Jambox out of its cushioned cocoon. The CitySlicker Mini Jambox Case is available exclusively from SFbags.com. 
It costs US$49 and is available in black ballistic nylon with a naturally-tanned leather flap in chocolate or grizzly brown.

Maintain has served up Cocktail 7.3 (Mavericks Edition). It's a maintenance release of the utility that lets users clean, repair and optimize their Macs. Version 7.3 adds the ability to clear Icon Services caches and saved application states. It also adds an "Allow power button to put the computer to sleep" setting and an Utilities menu that offers quick access to miscellaneous utilities and assistants. Cocktail 7.3 (Mavericks Edition) requires OS X Mavericks 10.9 to run. Cocktail (Mountain Lion Edition) for OS X 10.8, Cocktail (Lion Edition) for OS X 10.7 and Cocktail (Snow Leopard Edition) for OS X 10.6 are available for download from Maintain website. Cocktail costs US$19 for a single user license. You can purchase it at the Maintain web site (http://www.maintain.se/cocktail).

FileMaker authors John Mark Osborne and Steven Blackwell will teach the FileMaker Training Series for FileMaker Pro 13 remotely in May. They say that remote classes offer students the same benefits of a traditional classes like asking questions and in-class exercises but without the cost of travel and time away from work. The FileMaker Training Series (FTS) is the official training curriculum from FileMaker, Inc. It offers a series of 13 training modules that cover a set of topics designed to help you master the essentials of FileMaker solution development. Since the FileMaker Training Series for FileMaker 13 has not been announced yet, the curriculum will come from the FileMaker Training Series for FileMaker 12. Osborne and Blackwell will customize the training for FileMaker 13 where necessary. Class is held twice a week on Tuesday and Wednesday from 1-3 pm (Eastern Standard Time) for 10 straight weeks starting May 6. The remote course is taught via GoToMeeting. The entire course...

iteimprove has unveiled their new PDF document scanning tool that allows users to test PDFs hosted on their websites for broken links, misspellings, and accessibility issues. The tool also helps ensure that hosted PDF documents are fully accessible to users with disabilities, highlighting issues and making recommendations for fixes, says Siteimprove CEO Torben Rytt. It automatically catalogues all PDF documents hosted on a given website, and tests them every five days for errors. Go to Siteimprove.com for more info and a free demo.

JAMF Software has revved Casper Suite, its management tool for large-scale enterprise deployments of Apple products, to version 9.3. The app is designed to allow organizations set up Macs, iPads, and iPhones without IT having to touch the devices. 
Casper Suite 9.3 adds: hands-free enrollment through the Apple Device Enrollment Program (DEP) and better managed app distribution with the Apple Volume Purchase Program (VPP). It's a free update for all customers. A demo is available for download. Go to http://tinyurl.com/n8fesu6 for more info.

Connected Data has released its latest 4-Bay Drobo smart storage solution, which is company says is up to three times faster than the previous release. 
It also sports USB 3.0 support, faster rebuild times, and enhanced support for Apple's Time Machine back-up system on Mac OS X. Finally, Connected Data is introducing a customer loyalty discount program of US$50 off for all first and second generation Drobo customers. The new 4-Bay Drobo has a new low price of $349 and a new architecture, which makes it speedier than its predecessors. In addition, four times faster rebuild times maximize data availability in case of disk drive failure, according to the folks at Connected Data. Go to www.drobostore.com for more info.

Parallels, which specializes in cross-platform solutions, has announced results of its commissioned survey of more than 200 IT decision makers about their attitudes toward Macs in the enterprise. The results are telling: almost half of businesses (45%) currently offer their employees Macs, and more than nine out of 10 businesses (95%) that don’t currently provide Macs would be more likely to offer employees Macs if they had a single central management system for both Windows PCs and Macs. Macs are in high demand – and respondents who already support Macs shared the top reasons why:   ° Eight out of 10 businesses (77%) say Macs are more reliable overall than Windows machines. ° Seven out of 10 (65%) say they are easier to support. ° Seven out of 10 (65%) say offering Macs would likely help attract employees (a very important factor given the competition for talent).   However, there are also barriers against bringing Macs onto corporate networks according to survey respondents:   ° ...

einstein's legacy has announced Monochrome 2.0.1 for OS X. It's an upgrade of an application for converting batches of color images to grayscale. Monochrome gives you control over the conversion process and applied effects, so you can create a consistent-looking set of output images. The 2.0.1 update was re-engineered from the ground-up to provide faster GPU-based image rendering, additional conversion methods, 30 new image effects, and new options for previewing, printing and sharing images. Monochrome 2.0.1 is available for US$19.99 from the Mac App Store in the Photography category. It requires Mac OS X 10.8.5 or higher. Go to http://www.einsteinslegacy.com for more info.

Unbabel is a new kind of online translation service that "provides human quality translation at one-fifth the going rate." Unbabel also has released a REST-based API [application programming interface] with which companies can integrate translation directly into their workflow. The service says it currently has nearly 3,000 translators and are translating over 25,000 words per day for over 30 paying customers. Go to http://www.unbabel.com for more info.

MacAppware, a division of 128bit Technologies, has added two new fonts to its commercial use 1000 OpenType Fonts collection for creative Mac users. Each font is in OpenType font format and can be used for any personal and business project on both Mac and PC computers. International character support is standard for nearly every font, though bar code fonts and wingding fonts don't include international character support. For a limited time, the updated font collection is also available for US$29.99, a discount of 70% from the regular price of $99. Go to http://tinyurl.com/nyhzm74 for more info.

RE:Vision Effects has announced Twixtor 6 with GPU support for The Foundry Nuke and Assimilate Scratch. You can now create slow motion shots with Twixtor without the cost of renting a high speed camera. In order to achieve its unparalleled image quality, Twixtor synthesizes new frames by warping and interpolating frames of the original sequence by employing RE:Vision's proprietary tracking technology that calculates motion for each individual pixel. Speedups up to 4x on GPUs when using Twixtor within Nuke and Scratch have been measured over running Twixtor in CPU mode, according to the folks at RE:Vision. Users are advised that their specific speedups are dependent on system configuration, specific GPU, and features of Twixtor that are used. Customers who have used Twixtor 5 should test the demo to make sure they will see the speedups they desire before upgrading to Twixtor 6. What's needed? ° Twixtor v6 for OFX hosts only supports 64-bit host applications. ° Nuke 5.1v2 and up, or...

Ergonis Software has announced PopChar X 6.5, an update to their tool for exploring fonts as well as finding and inserting special characters. With the tool, you pop up the PopChar window, click the desired character, and the character appears in your current document right away. Version 6.5 introduces a new custom insertion technique, which leads to faster character insertion for many applications, and more. PopChar X 6.5 requires Mac OS X 10.5.8 or newer. It can be purchased the Ergonis Software website (http://www.ergonis.com/). The upgrade to PopChar 6.5 is free for anyone who owns a valid license for PopChar X 6. Upgrade paths are available for owners of older licenses. For new users the cost is approximately US$41.

Brotens has announced Illuminando 1.0 for Mac OS X. It's a lighting calculation app. Illuminando is a OpenGL native Cocoa CAD app designed to perform lighting calculations using 3D interactive tools. CAD tools are used to create the scene to perform the appropriate calculations. Apple the sources, and the set will be complete. Illuminando requires Mac OS X 10.8 or higher. It's available for US$499.99 at the Mac App Store. Go to http://www.brotens.com for more info.

After releasing the Windows version of Aiseesoft FoneLab, Aiseesoft has now released the Mac version of this data recovery software for iPhone, iPad and iPod touch. It's compatible with Mac OS X 10.6 or later. Mac FoneLab supports the recovery of lost or deleted files from iOS 7 devices. Supported content includes data from Contacts, Messages (MMS, SMS, iMessages), Call History, Calendar, Notes, Reminders and Safari Bookmarks. Mac FoneLab costs US$35.97. Go to http://tinyurl.com/qezedlz for more info.

Software and Computer System Company has released Scannerz Lite 1.7 for Mac OS X. The new version shares some of the new features that were integrated into Scannerz 1.7. Scannerz Lite is an abbreviated, low cost version of the company's main product, Scanners. It can detect bad sectors or blocks on an SSD, weak sectors on a hard drive, and also detect potential timing problems with the system. Scannerz Lite works with Mac OS X 10.5 and higher. It costs US$21.95. Go to http://tinyurl.com/nehszny for more info.

Digital Anarchy has announced Flicker Free 1.0 for Adobe After Effects, Premiere Pro, and Apple's Final Cut Pro. It gives video editors and visual effects artists a tool that fixes a wide range of footage affected with flicker or strobing. Flicker Free analyzes on the fly, renders quickly, and easily produces beautiful flicker free footage, says Jim Tierney, president of Digital Anarchy. There are presets for many different types of flicker, allowing it to fit into any editor's workflow, he adds. Flicker Free is resolution independent and will work on any sized footage from 30 megapixel image sequences to film, 4K, and HD. Support for Avid, Assimilate Scratch, Davinci Resolve, and Sony Vegas is coming soon. Flicker Free is regularly priced at US$149, but will be on sale for $99 until March 31. It runs in After Effects CS and above, Premiere Pro CS5 and above, Final Cut Pro 7 and Final Cut Pro X 10.5 and above. The product runs on Mac OS X 10.6 and above, Windows XP and above, and 32...

Kinivo has announced the WID380 Wireless Enhanced USB Adapter, an all-in-one solution for enhancing existing Wi-Fi capabilities or adding the freedom of wireless Internet to your desktop or later laptop models. It adds dimension, increases speed, improves signal strength and heightens overall wireless Internet performance, establishing a more reliable network between your Internet router and laptop or desktop, according to Kinivio's Andy Karuza. He adds that it provides your signal a boost with speeds up to 300 Mbps. The WID380 connects by plugging directly into your laptop or desktop’s USB port. Or it can be placed up to three feet away with the included extension cable. It's available at an introductory price of $19.99 at Amazon.com. Go to www.kinivio.com for more info.

Basil Salad Software has announced Speech Timer 2.0, an update of the free oration timekeeper software for Mac, iDevices, and Android devices. The upgrade includes native support for the Mac and iPad in addition to the iPhone. Speech Timer is designed to help public speaking enthusiasts orchestrate their regular chapter meetings and send out timer's reports to all participants. It features large colored time indicators, a numerical timer display and graphical progress bar. This second major release of Speech Timer Speech Timer 2.0 is available for download from the Mac App Store and iTunes App Store. Go to http://basilsadad.com for more info.

Searchware Solutions has revved Print Window, its window printing utility for Mac OS X, to version 5.0. It's now a fully Cocoa-based application. Version 5.0 also sports a new user interface and faster performance. A drop window has been added so file listings can be initiated via drag and drop. It also adds the ability to save multiple file listing settings. Print Window 5.0 is available in two versions through Searchware Solutions online (http://www.printwindowapp.com). The standard edition is free. The advanced edition, which provides more features, is US$20 for a single-user license. Upgrade pricing is available. Volume licensing is available as well. Users that purchased a license to Print Window Advanced Edition, version 4, in the last 30 days will automatically receive a free upgrade to version 5.

Autodesk has unveiled the 2015 versions of its ]3D animations tools: Autodesk 3ds Max, Maya, MotionBuilder, Mudbox, Softimage, and the newest addition to the lineup, Maya LT, a 3D animation and modeling tool for professional indie game makers. Autodesk also announced the availability of the 2015 Entertainment Creation Suite for 3D animation and visual effects. According to Chris Bradshaw, senior vice president, Media & Entertainment at Autodesk, highlights of the 2015 releases are: ° Autodesk Maya 2015 software adds new capabilities to the toolset such as the new Bifrost procedural effects platform which provides an extensible, artist-friendly workflow for complex simulation and rendering tasks, initially applied to near photorealistic liquids; XGen Arbitrary Primitive Generator for the easy creation of richly detailed geometry such as hair, fur, and foliage; Geodesic Voxel Binding method for skinning characters; ShaderFX, a new node-based visual interface for shader programing...

CalDigit says its CalDigit Thunderbolt Station now has extra functionality. It can now fully charge iOS devices such as iPads and iPhones. What's more, the CalDigit Thunderbolt Station is now fully capable of powering the Apple SuperDrive CD drive. The majority of other Thunderbolt expansion docks aren't capable of powering this device, says Kosta Panagos of CalDigit. Customers who have already purchased the Thunderbolt Station can add this functionality by installing the driver update for OS X 10.9.2 from the CalDigit website. The CalDigit Thunderbolt Station is available to purchase now from the CalDigit Online Store (www.caldigit.com) and CalDigit Resellers worldwide. Pricing for the CalDigit Thunderbolt Station is US$199.

Apple has announced that the iPad with Retina display replaces iPad 2 as the most affordable 9.7-inch iPad at US$399 for the 16GB Wi-Fi model and $529 for the Wi-Fi + Cellular model. The fourth generation iPad features an 9.7-inch Retina display, the Apple-designed A6X chip, Wi-Fi, a 5MP iSight camera which also captures 1080p HD video, a FaceTime HD camera, support for LTE carriers worldwide, and up to 10 hours of battery life. It comes with iOS 7, of course.