MBA Maximum Screen to Body Angle

[jackfrost123]

Hey you guys, I am thinking of getting the mba (or rather the mba 2 hopefully because I wouldn't want any nast core shutdowns and from what I ve been reading apple's awful customer support) and I d like to know one specification that I can't seem to find online. I read somewhere of the "by design" limit of the maximum angle to which the screen can go back wrt the mba's body. I was looking at it in a store and it is rather limited, and as I a used to holding my lappie in a way that requires a somewhat large opening it would great if I could find out exactly what the degrees are. (I usually like to sit on a sofa with legs arched in an upside down V shape and laptop on my lap which requires that the screen be moved further back to get the right constrast - I am sure a lot of people must find this way very comfy).

p.s. another quick question: I tried this in the store where I was checking mba out tell me this is true: You can tap double tap on a scroll bar and move it down with the trackpad, right? I do this all the time, double tap on the trackpad to "get" the scroll bar of the window and move my finger down. If this cannot happen it will have to be one of the dumbest moves from apple (because THE DUMBEST ONE IS THAT ONE BUTTON TRACKPAD INSTEAD OF TWO)

[juro]

You don't even need to double tap to scroll down windows.

Just put to fingers on the track pad and swipe down - this will scroll down windows.

And frankly, I've hardly used the track pad button, or felt the need for a second one. Single tap on the track pad itself for the equivalent of a left mouse click, or use two fingers to tap for the equivalent of a right mouse click. Couldn't be any simpler than that.

[jackfrost123]

Hey thanks for the reply. I can do the scroll thing directly from my averatec lappie too I just prefer to scroll via the bar, from what I can understand you are uncertain if this is possible in the mba. As for the button I don't use it most of the time either but I so use it for the second "mouse" button, sees awkward with two fingers. In any case it's stupid why they don't cut the button in two, I suppose some idiots way of differentiating themselves from the flock, but some people like the second button so they should give them more options.

[juro]

I am certain that you can do it, I just did it a minute ago- but why navigate to the bar when you can scroll from anywhere in the window?

And I don't know about you, but I find it more convenient using a two finger tap to access the second button function instead of awkwardly using my thumb (or two fingers from two hands) to reach for a second button. It may take some getting used to if you've been used to a second 'physical' button, but once you use it for some time, it is the easiest thing in the world.

[jackfrost123]

quite possibly so, I think I ll find out for sure when I get my mba :apple: .

[EspressoLove]

quite possibly so, I think I ll find out for sure when I get my mba :apple: .

Exactly. I was also suspicious of single button design and lots of other things which doesn't work the way they "should".

Truth is now, only one "bad" thing happened to me is : I can no longer stand windows &/or features of "Dells" of this world anymore.

P.S. also looking forward to MBA v.2. Barely holding my trigger.
P.P.S. Just checked MBA again in the store week ago : 15" stress testing, with two cores @ 100% & two youtube vids playing constantly.
No core shutdowns.
What I was extremely surprised about : machine still was pretty usable :eek::confused::)
(yes it was 1.8/SSD, but I could not expect it to be so much different)

[ScottFitz]

trackpad on the air is tight. I love it. I was using my IBM today and repeatedly kept attempting the two-finger scroll. But no bueno.

[EspressoLove]

trackpad on the air is tight. I love it. I was using my IBM today and repeatedly kept attempting the two-finger scroll. But no bueno.

Yeah, happens to me all the time :(

BTW did you notice OCZ just announced new SSD's.
64Gb is quite affordable now at 259$ !!!!!!!!
and real gem is that 128Gb goes for 479$ !!!!!!!!

But, it's all SATA .... nobody cares about ZIF(IDE) and poor Air'isti.

That makes my wait for MBA v.2 much more meaningful.
There's no way Apple could (innovatively :o:eek::mad:) resist industry trend on this one....
(Probably will have to forgo (ZIF'only) HDD's altogether :confused:)

[jackfrost123]

Hey Scott, hey espresso!

Espressolove, some here are really pesimistic/negative about mba revisions but I think it can't be much longer (in terms of months of course) where we are going to see a major overhaul - I can't hold myself anylonger than you (esp. after looking at it in stores) but it wouldn't be wise for sure to not wait for a multitude of reasons.

BUT HEY WHAT ABOUT MY ORIGINAL QUESTION ABOUT ANGLE FROM SCREEN TO LAPPIE BODY?:apple:

[juro]

BUT HEY WHAT ABOUT MY ORIGINAL QUESTION ABOUT ANGLE FROM SCREEN TO LAPPIE BODY?:apple:

You mentioned in your first post that you've seen one at the store - so that gives you an idea of what the angle is.

But if you do want a specific number - it's 120 degrees.

[saisrujan]

...I usually like to sit on a sofa with legs arched in an upside down V shape and laptop on my lap... :D

[jackfrost123]

@saisujan :D

@juro, thanks for that number should I double check it online or are you sure about it? Unfortunately it does fall a bit short of my requirements (but possibly that wont change my wanting an mba) by about 25-30 degrees. Like I said I saw it at the store but looks can be deceiving and of course I cound't put it on my lap and lie down.

[trentiles]

Buy a 50 cent protractor, go to the Apple store....end thread.

[juro]

from what I can understand you are uncertain if this is possible in the mba

should I double check it online or are you sure about it?

:eek:

Just check everything for yourself, man - much better for all of us.

[jackfrost123]

double post

[jackfrost123]

@juro, hey man I didn't ask you to reply, but I thanked you for doing so, wtf?...sorry for not taking for granted something someone says on the forums and asking if they are 100% sure or for a link to the specs...get over it though because more than half of what is said here and there in the forums is erroneous so it so happens that one should ask for confirmation.

Buy a 50 cent protractor, go to the Apple store....end thread.

Hey clown I ll be sure to check you out when the circus comes to town.:cool:

[meagain]

Jackfrost - I had the same concerns about angles, etc. because I sit/recline on the sofa like that or put my feet on the coctail table. Also for bed, leaning against headboard, knees up. The most I figured was it was better than the macbook pro and perhaps worse than the Macbook. For some reason, when I bought my first one (that I returned cuz of some shadowing on the screen, the angle was worse than my 2nd one. My 2nd one seems more the norm. Also, I hear they give/slack a bit after some period of time/use.

I find it ok and my worries were needless. I never use the trackpad button.
I think once you get it, you'll be fine. :)

[trentiles]

@juro, hey man I didn't ask you to reply, but I thanked you for doing so, wtf?...sorry for not taking for granted something someone says on the forums and asking if they are 100% sure or for a link to the specs...get over it though because more than half of what is said here and there in the forums is erroneous so it so happens that one should ask for confirmation.



Hey clown I ll be sure to check you out when the circus comes to town.:cool:

Grow up :rolleyes:

Since you think so much info here is erroneous (which I agree with you) you should follow my protractor idea. It will give you the exact answer that you need with no need to search all over the place to see if 120 is actually correct or not.

[juro]

@juro, hey man I didn't ask you to reply, but I thanked you for doing so, wtf?...sorry for not taking for granted something someone says on the forums and asking if they are 100% sure or for a link to the specs...get over it though because more than half of what is said here and there in the forums is erroneous so it so happens that one should ask for confirmation.

Sure. If that's your thinking, then why ask around the 'erroneous' forums to begin with?

[eXan]

Hey you guys, I am thinking of getting the mba (or rather the mba 2 hopefully because I wouldn't want any nast core shutdowns and from what I ve been reading apple's awful customer support) and I d like to know one specification that I can't seem to find online. I read somewhere of the "by design" limit of the maximum angle to which the screen can go back wrt the mba's body. I was looking at it in a store and it is rather limited, and as I a used to holding my lappie in a way that requires a somewhat large opening it would great if I could find out exactly what the degrees are. (I usually like to sit on a sofa with legs arched in an upside down V shape and laptop on my lap which requires that the screen be moved further back to get the right constrast - I am sure a lot of people must find this way very comfy).

p.s. another quick question: I tried this in the store where I was checking mba out tell me this is true: You can tap double tap on a scroll bar and move it down with the trackpad, right? I do this all the time, double tap on the trackpad to "get" the scroll bar of the window and move my finger down. If this cannot happen it will have to be one of the dumbest moves from apple (because THE DUMBEST ONE IS THAT ONE BUTTON TRACKPAD INSTEAD OF TWO)

After using the MBA's trackpad you'll find it vastly superior to the one you used before. The scroll (in any direction) is done just by putting the cursor in any place of the window and moving 2 fingers instead of one on the trackpad. The secondary click is similar: just put the second finger on the trackpad and press the button.

Also, MBA's trackpad has additional iPhone-like multi-touch functionality like zoom, rotate, etc

[jackfrost123]

Jackfrost - I had the same concerns about angles, etc. because I sit/recline on the sofa like that or put my feet on the coctail table. Also for bed, leaning against headboard, knees up. The most I figured was it was better than the macbook pro and perhaps worse than the Macbook. For some reason, when I bought my first one (that I returned cuz of some shadowing on the screen, the angle was worse than my 2nd one. My 2nd one seems more the norm. Also, I hear they give/slack a bit after some period of time/use.

I find it ok and my worries were needless. I never use the trackpad button.
I think once you get it, you'll be fine. :)

Hey Buddy, great reply! Thanks for taking the time. Puts a lot of my worries to rest to hear someone with the same user habits ( I am writing this btw in the headboard knees up way :D) finding the air comfortable. Again thanks for your reply! Now didn't ocz announce these 128 gb ssd $600 beauties? Come on :apple: !

@exan. Great news. That's why I am looking to buy apple to begin with! It's not only for os x.

@trentiles, juro, ok guys let's move on.

[NewGenAdam]

You mentioned in your first post that you've seen one at the store - so that gives you an idea of what the angle is.

But if you do want a specific number - it's 120 degrees.

Whip out my protractor... Set my laptop display to 120 degrees...
Hmm. That's not very far, is it?
Oh well, it's beautiful so all its little flaws become irrelevant. (Am I serious? Even I don't know)

[taphil]

At the UTC store in San Diego, some of the MBAs on display open just a little more than 90, but I found 2 floor models that open up to nearly 180. It was strange, so I took a pic...

[taphil]

Here's another shot.

[meagain]

Wow on that! Was the lid broken or did it work as normal? I'd love to be able to adjust mine to pull that off.

[trentiles]

If I had to guess those MBA's hinges are broken. I just tested the screen angle on my MBA and it gets to a certain point (around 120) and then there is a "stop", you can feel the resistance. I can easily see floor models being pushed past this "stop" and thus opening how you see above.

[SodiumBenzoate]

Wasn't there a recent post where a guy threw his open MBA onto his bed, heard a pop, and the screen could then open to nearly 180 degrees?

[Alan Taylor]

Wasn't there a recent post where a guy threw his open MBA onto his bed, heard a pop, and the screen could then open to nearly 180 degrees?

:eek:

You gotta think that the wires for the backlight, ambient light sensor, isight and such are gonna get strained!

[taphil]

Well the strange thing was that both MBAs were working normally. Also, the hinges were working well too, smooth and tight throughout the full range.

[trentiles]

Well the strange thing was that both MBAs were working normally. Also, the hinges were working well too, smooth and tight throughout the full range.

This may be true but the MBA was not designed to be opened that far. I could see problems creeping up in the future in the form of hinge issues and display issue's due to cabling being stretch further then it was designed to.

[PDE]

This maybe a little of a conspiracy theory, but couldn't it be that they WERE designed to go back that far and Apple artificially restricted them because the other laptops they sell were not designed well in terms of the tilt? It would look inconsistent and bad if the MBA could tilt all the way back and the others couldn't. I bet you the next generation of All apple's laptops will tilt more....

I also used one in the Apple Store on 14th stree NYC that could go back all the way. It worked perfectly and normally at all ranges: no wobble or collapse of the bezel backward or forward. In short, it was exactly as I would like it to be all the time and way most PC laptops are.

[meagain]

I just read on the Apple forums some guy tossing his open Air on a sofa, the lid opened wide - he claims the lid can now open like the pic but still works perfectly and stays in place where he puts it.

Hmmm..... So who's going to try it? :)

[jackfrost123]

I bet you the next generation of All apple's laptops will tilt more....


Great prediction buddy, do you have a glass ball somewhere?:)

[Lumpydog]

Wow on that! Was the lid broken or did it work as normal? I'd love to be able to adjust mine to pull that off.

That MBA in the picture is clearly broken. Several forum members have posted that they've accidentally made this mod by opening the display too far - usually accompanied by a loud crack. I would not recommend it.

[n0de]

The ones in the pictures must be broken.

Apparently, from other reports, there is a small plastic clip on the inside of the hinge that restricts the opening. It apparently breaks quite easily and has no additional negative impact to the hinges if removed. I would only be afraid to do it intentionally in case the piece that breaks off gets caught in the hinge.

I suppose you could open it up and remove it safely if you were so inclined.

[jackfrost123]

The ones in the pictures must be broken.

Apparently, from other reports, there is a small plastic clip on the inside of the hinge that restricts the opening. It apparently breaks quite easily and has no additional negative impact to the hinges if removed. I would only be afraid to do it intentionally in case the piece that breaks off gets caught in the hinge.

I suppose you could open it up and remove it safely if you were so inclined.

But how? Is there a take it apart guide to do such a thing. If it doesn't affect the air in terms of structure or durability but only in screen angle i know a LOT of people that would just LOVE to see the air being...well air-y and bend bakwards as much as possible and give them the possibility to use it more comfortably on their lap or even flat out and looking at it from the top, I used to do that all the time with my ubuntu lappie.

[Molopo]

Hey you guys, I am thinking of getting the mba (or rather the mba 2 hopefully because I wouldn't want any nast core shutdowns and from what I ve been reading apple's awful customer support) and I d like to know one specification that I can't seem to find online. I read somewhere of the "by design" limit of the maximum angle to which the screen can go back wrt the mba's body. I was looking at it in a store and it is rather limited, and as I a used to holding my lappie in a way that requires a somewhat large opening it would great if I could find out exactly what the degrees are. (I usually like to sit on a sofa with legs arched in an upside down V shape and laptop on my lap which requires that the screen be moved further back to get the right constrast - I am sure a lot of people must find this way very comfy).

p.s. another quick question: I tried this in the store where I was checking mba out tell me this is true: You can tap double tap on a scroll bar and move it down with the trackpad, right? I do this all the time, double tap on the trackpad to "get" the scroll bar of the window and move my finger down. If this cannot happen it will have to be one of the dumbest moves from apple (because THE DUMBEST ONE IS THAT ONE BUTTON TRACKPAD INSTEAD OF TWO)

And just what is the point of this thread?

[jackfrost123]

And just what is the point of this thread?

why don't you ask the rest of the 1500 people that read and/or contributed moron? Anyway I will humor you, It's about a spec a lot of people find very useful and some recent revelation that it might NOT be an inherent design limitation of the air but rather a (reversible) design choice. It's why as another user expertly predicted apple took care of it in the macbook and macbook pro and enabled the new unibody design to open further back than they used to.

[BobF4321]

From the MBA late 2008 user guide:
"Adjust the angle of the display to minimize glare and reflections from overhead lights
and windows. Do not force the display if you meet resistance. The display is not
designed to open past 125 degrees."

[jackfrost123]

From the MBA late 2008 user guide:
"Adjust the angle of the display to minimize glare and reflections from overhead lights
and windows. Do not force the display if you meet resistance. The display is not
designed to open past 125 degrees."

Great so we have an official number too, but it's worth exploring what "is not designed to means", does it mean it will cause irreperable harm and hinder performance if you do break that plastic impediment or not.