Wednesday, April 16,2008 @ 3:40pm
Reports question Mac clone maker Psystar
Just over 10 years ago, Motorola, Umax, and Power Computing were active members of the official Apple clone community, and the recently popular Psystar is looking to offer the same sort of service, but it could be too good to be true. The Psystar Corporation seems to have materialized out of thin air, and that investigation reveals that the company could be little more than a potential fly-by-night operation.
Allegedly based in Miami, the The Guardian's Charles Arthur probed the company's background history to find out that despite being registered in 2000, several search engines revealed absolutely zero information on Psystar before the recent announcement. A call to the Miami Chamber of Commerces and the Better Business Bureau told Arthur that they hadn't heard of the company.
Some time Tuesday, Psystar had relocated its address from a three-bedroom house in a suburban area to an industrial park, where further inquiry exposed a packing supply firm, USA Koen Pack, with the manager claiming he had not heard of Psystar.
Arthur also finds it peculiar that Apple – a company famous for its control over product integrity, leaks, and other things – has remained mute on the subject. Arthur theorizes it could be waiting to see what happens before exhausting energy into the matter.
Blogger Gene Steinberg of The Mac Night Owl noted earlier that the Psystar's claim to offering a more powerful computer than the Mac mini at a cheaper price comes at a cost, lacking a $200 Firewire card. Some of the specifications are superior, but it also lacks iLife, one of the Mac's best selling features for home users.
MacNN contacted Psystar via email and phone on Tuesday, but had not received any response by publication time.