Apple’s new pro notebook offering, called “MacBook Pro” (MBP), has been getting a lot of press lately, primarily because it was chosen to be the first Apple notebook to have “Intel inside”. And, no, there are none of those hideous stickers on either the box or the notebook itself.

By most accounts, including PC Magazine’s review that gave it 4 out of 5 stars (with a knock for speed of software not yet “translated” to take full advantage of the Intel architecture), the new notebook is a winner. Although the new processor gets the bulk of the headlines, there are some other changes from Apple’s previous PowerBook offerings that bear illumination. This week we’ll concentrate on a new feature that will soon be available across the entire face of notebook computing.

I’m talking, of course, about the MBP’s ExpressCard slot. And you thought it was going to be the MBP’s brilliant display, or the inch-thick, 5.6 pound enclosure that’s still the style leader in the pro laptop market. There you go reading ahead again.

If you’ve ever owned a notebook (or laptop, or portable, or whatever you want to call it) computer, you may not have used but you’ve at least seen what’s called a PCMCIA (or PC card) slot. PCMCIA stands for Personal Computer Memory Card International Association, which is the international standards and trade organization that oversees the technology. PC cards offer the ability to connect peripherals to portable computers. Common examples of peripherals that can be connected via PC cards are memory, networking, hard drives, wired and wireless modems, and digital camera memory card readers.

PC cards connect directly into the computer’s PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) bus. A “bus” is a conduit that transfers data between the components inside a computer, or between two computers (like USB, which stands for “Universal Serial Bus”). PCI buses are also found within desktop computers.

Although we generally measure a given processor’s power by its clock speed (GHz), the efficiency of the bus architecture is equally important. Intel’s new Core Duo processor that powers the MBP uses a newer bus architecture known as “PCI Express”, which is so different from previous architectures that it doesn’t really even use buses. Without getting too deep into the geek-mire, PCI Express is fast and efficient, and is the way of the future.

To connect with PCI Express in notebooks, the good folks over at PCMCIA developed ExpressCard. ExpressCard comes in two widths: 34 and 54 millimeters. The ExpressCard/34 is almost half the size of the common PC card, but delivers a faster, more powerful interface. Basic PC card functions are currently available, with new capabilities (like TV tuners) in development.

One thing to consider if you’re in the market for a new notebook with an ExpressCard slot. Since Compact Flash memory cards (used in many digital cameras) are wider themselves than 34-millimeters, your notebook will need to have the larger 54-millimeter slot to accommodate a Compact Flash card reader. So, in the case of the MBP, for example, with its ExpressCard/34 slot, digital photographers using Canon cameras will need a USB-based standalone card reader (which is no big deal, really).

Also, if you’re currently a PowerBook “power user” and use a FireWire 800 based external hard drive and you’re thinking of upgrading, you need to know that the MBP doesn’t sport a FireWire 800 port. Apple says that ExpressCard adapters will replace the FireWire 800 port. However, the PCMCIA’s web site states that FireWire 800 ExpressCard adapters will requires the larger 54-millimeter slot, not currently available on the initial version of the MBP.

© 2006 Peter F. Zimowski