Just got the new Macbook Air 2.0

[cbflip2000]

K fed-ex just delivered. I am taking any questions that you guys would liked answer and I will post my review and pics in a couple of hours. Ill try to answer as many questions as I can.

[DjAmTraX]

Is it your first Air?

A full review would be nice.

[FFTWarren]

how is the speed of it? do you think a lil slower 1.6 would be a good purchase? also how is the screen is it completely free of defects (dead pixels, stuck pixels, dust, etc.)

[tigres]

how is the speed of it? do you think a lil slower 1.6 would be a good purchase? also how is the screen is it completely free of defects (dead pixels, stuck pixels, dust, etc.)


Please do xbench ASAP. Kthx in advance.:D:D:D:D:D:D

[cbflip2000]

Is it your first Air?

A full review would be nice.

No this is not my first macbook air. I had the 1.6 ghz 80 gb pata hdd macbook air that i returned after 32 days of having it due to fan problems. Working on an early review right now.

[smakofs]

Yes! XBench ASAP (before review).. May need to run out to apple store today!!! :)

[mullerit]

yeah, please do Xbench (http://xbench.com) and post the results to there website. This would be great, really,really great! :D

[bain]

My old PC laptop is on its last leg and time for a new laptop. Not excited about learning Vista and decided if I have to essentially learn a new OS, great time to switch. After researching the different MacBooks, I have opted to go with the Air. Simply because it meets my needs (light) and I have the money to afford it (stylish). Looking forward to your reviews and details.

[mullerit]

Yes! XBench ASAP (before review).. May need to run out to apple store today!!! :)

I ran to the Apple store yesterday night ...didn't have the Air and did not know, when they get it :(

[cbflip2000]

Yes! XBench ASAP (before review).. May need to run out to apple store today!!! :)

k ill try to get that done asap. the packaging is nice and small.

[Scott6666]

Are the fans blaring yet? Is it quiet?

[tigres]

Are the fans blaring yet? Is it quiet?

LOL fans blaring... Did it explode and burn your leg yet?

[NC MacGuy]

Display same as old one or downgraded to MB panel?

[mac jones]

Display same as old one or downgraded to MB panel?

I seriously doubt they would do this.

After all, the display in the new MB is not so much of a shock - the previous Macbook was pitiful also.

[Scott6666]

LOL fans blaring... Did it explode and burn your leg yet?

OP's not responding. Hope the explosion did not require the paramedics.

Obviously, 20W in a small enough setting could generate a nuclear fusion reaction - causing the fans to spin up to 6,200.

Especially with a lame ass GPU. Known fusion catalyst.

The rev A air PROVED that.

[NC MacGuy]

OP's not responding. Hope the explosion did not require the paramedics.

Obviously, 20W in a small enough setting could generate a nuclear fusion reaction - causing the fans to spin up to 6,200.

Especially with a lame ass GPU. Known fusion catalyst.

The rev A air PROVED that.

or doing a migration... if wireless, we should hear back tomorrow.;)

[twist2b]

MMAAAAANNNN I want some xbench results PRONTO. I want to know how much better the graphics card does, and I REALLY want to know how well the new SSD works.

[jessica.]

I think I missed something. What are the specs of the OP's machine? 2.0 is just suggesting it's the new MB Air. So I'd be curious to know.

I mostly want to know about the display.

[twist2b]

I think I missed something. What are the specs of the OP's machine? 2.0 is just suggesting it's the new MB Air. So I'd be curious to know.

I mostly want to know about the display.

Well, the New MBA has an improved graphics card, SSD drive is 128 instead of 64 which is VERY nice, and I think the display is improved. Though that is yet to be decided :)

[tigres]

Jeeze, how long to open that Greener white box.

On with the show already, crowds gettin ressless!

Schnell!!!!!!!;)

[Cynicalone]

They had the display units (1.86ghz 128SSD) out here at the Apple store. The display on the demo unit's at least was the same as the first generation.

[tigres]

I think I missed something. What are the specs of the OP's machine? 2.0 is just suggesting it's the new MB Air. So I'd be curious to know.

I mostly want to know about the display.

They have only shipped the 1.86 SSD so far, so that is what the OP haz, and what I wantz.

[twist2b]

Yea I would go with the SSD, its totally worth it!

Just thinking though, and I did not hear anything about this:

Since the graphics card works diff, wouldn't the display be somewhat diff? At least its connections. So updating might be a pain!

[mullerit]

They had the display units (1.86ghz 128SSD) out here at the Apple store. The display on the demo unit's at least was the same as the first generation.

and they are connected to the internet @ Apple Store right? ...what held you up to run Xbench there? ;)

[twist2b]

and they are connected to the internet @ Apple Store right? ...what held you up to run Xbench there? ;)

I am hoping to go to an apple stores sometimes soon. If its not xbenched by then I don't mind :)

[mullerit]

I am hoping to go to an apple stores sometimes soon. If its not xbenched by then I don't mind :)

it is, it is!!!

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc2=316751

and

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc2=316749


...just seconds ago :)

[tigres]

it is, it is!!!

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc2=316751

and

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc2=316749


...just seconds ago :)


OMG NO WAY!! Is that correct???? HOLY %&^%*() batman.

[NC MacGuy]

Reminds me of the case in Pulp Fiction. "It's beautiful. Is that what I think it is?":

[twist2b]

THOSE SCORES ARE SEXY AS HELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I LOVE IT! The writes are not beautiful but the reads are AMAZING! I LOVES IT! I am so happy right now :)

[cbflip2000]

OMG NO WAY!! Is that correct???? HOLY %&^%*() batman.

yes i just did both of those.

[tigres]

How can these benchmark scores be higher than my 2.5 mbp, and 75pts higher than the other benchmarks on MBA's at 41-47???

What is going on here?

[cbflip2000]

k early review will be up soon hopefully by 12:30 PM EST

[twist2b]

Guys, remember this is a SSD drive. FASTER then a HDD. If you get the 128 SSD for the pro, it would be faster.

That is so cool though, it being faster then the pro in some areas :)

[mullerit]

How can these benchmark scores be higher than my 2.5 mbp, and 75pts higher than the other benchmarks on MBA's at 41-47???

What is going on here?

Simple: compare it with your MBP and you see that the overall score is so much higher because of the SSD read and write.

CPU and graphics is slower, but not too big of a difference to my old MBP .....just ordered my new Air-baby now :D

[twist2b]

Simple: compare it with your MBP and you see that the overall score is so much higher because of the SSD read and write.

CPU and graphics is slower, but not too big of a difference to my old MBP .....just ordered my new Air-baby now :D

HAHA, you were happy with the results? Me 2. Unfortunately I will wait till college starts. :'( bummer, a whole semester and finish this one... argh.

[NC MacGuy]

Available disk size?

[lechuga]

So is a score of 137 in Xbench good??

[tigres]

Available disk size?

120 HD vs. 128 SSD

[NC MacGuy]

120 HD vs. 128 SSD

Yeah I know but available is a different story. Around 98GB??

[six.four]

So is a score of 137 in Xbench good??

haha.. better than the ~45 score that the 1st gen MBA score.

But do realize that the score is largely attributed to the video card being significantly more powerful and the second gen SSD - both of which are weighed significantly into the score.

[mullerit]

So is a score of 137 in Xbench good??

Don't give to much value to the overall score ..do a XBench with your existing Mac, upload it and compare ..that will give you a much better picture.

and yes 137 is pretty good ...but the SSD is the main reason for such high overall score.

[aristobrat]

120 HD vs. 128 SSD
The SSD in the original Air was missing space. If you accounted for the space lost when formatting, and the space lost from having the OS installed, there was like 5GB that couldn't be accounted for.

[tigres]

Yeah I know but available is a different story. Around 98GB??


About 113 I believe on the 128 if you do the fresh install and wipe the lang. and other unused packs. Check the stickies there is a lot of information on this exact thing for you.

[iomatic]

This is going to be as fast or faster than my C2D 2.33GHz MBP!!! Those read times are mind-blowing.

[NC MacGuy]

The SSD in the original Air was missing space. If you accounted for the space lost when formatting, and the space lost from having the OS installed, there was like 5GB that couldn't be accounted for.

Bingo!

[tigres]

Don't give to much value to the overall score ..do a XBench with your existing Mac, upload it and compare ..that will give you a much better picture.

and yes 137 is pretty good ...but the SSD is the main reason for such high overall score.

How do you assertain that the reason is primarly the SSD? I am really interested in understanding this. These benchmarks beat my MBP with 4GB on many fronts.

Compare this to the saved xbench BPS macbook pro. Get me your thoughts.

kthx

[Scott6666]

Anyone have a link to an MBA rev 1 Xbench so the rest of us can compare.

[twist2b]

The new MacBook Air is still ultrathin, ultraportable, and ultra unlike anything else. But somehow there’s room to add so much more. A bigger hard drive. A 4x graphics performance boost. And more power for everyday tasks. Mobile computing has yet another new standard.

The air main page is updated.. At leats I never saw it...


Anyways 4x as fast! NIIIIIIIIIICE! Yeah this better graphics card and better SSD solved ALOT of problems IMO.

[NC MacGuy]

Anyone have a link to an MBA rev 1 Xbench so the rest of us can compare.

Just did a restart and ran w. no app.'s open. 1.6 / 80 rev A:
Results 40.73
System Info
Xbench Version 1.3
System Version 10.5.5 (9F33)
Physical RAM 2048 MB
Model MacBookAir1,1
Drive Type SAMSUNG HS082HB SAMSUNG HS082HB
CPU Test 97.98
GCD Loop 189.02 9.96 Mops/sec
Floating Point Basic 83.06 1.97 Gflop/sec
vecLib FFT 74.20 2.45 Gflop/sec
Floating Point Library 99.81 17.38 Mops/sec
Thread Test 127.17
Computation 143.39 2.90 Mops/sec, 4 threads
Lock Contention 114.24 4.91 Mlocks/sec, 4 threads
Memory Test 130.81
System 123.38
Allocate 147.03 539.94 Kalloc/sec
Fill 109.66 5332.06 MB/sec
Copy 119.12 2460.32 MB/sec
Stream 139.19
Copy 128.51 2654.31 MB/sec
Scale 127.53 2634.82 MB/sec
Add 153.38 3267.33 MB/sec
Triad 151.64 3243.91 MB/sec
Quartz Graphics Test 94.90
Line 91.94 6.12 Klines/sec [50% alpha]
Rectangle 107.79 32.18 Krects/sec [50% alpha]
Circle 89.17 7.27 Kcircles/sec [50% alpha]
Bezier 96.08 2.42 Kbeziers/sec [50% alpha]
Text 91.65 5.73 Kchars/sec
OpenGL Graphics Test 13.04
Spinning Squares 13.04 16.54 frames/sec
User Interface Test 100.53
Elements 100.53 461.37 refresh/sec
Disk Test 20.43
Sequential 33.65
Uncached Write 36.33 22.31 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 33.78 19.11 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 26.70 7.82 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 41.15 20.68 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Random 14.67
Uncached Write 4.92 0.52 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Write 43.74 14.00 MB/sec [256K blocks]
Uncached Read 36.50 0.26 MB/sec [4K blocks]
Uncached Read 52.57 9.75 MB/sec [256K blocks]

[mullerit]

Anyone have a link to an MBA rev 1 Xbench so the rest of us can compare.

Just go here: http://db.xbench.com/ and search for "air" the 1,1 with 1.8Ghz will be around 47-48, pick one and click "Set as Comparison Baseline" on the right side and you can compare right there.

[dougelo7]

So, in your albeit short time of using your new Air, have you noticed any of the lag that the 1G machine had?

(BTW, I'm going to buy a MacBook Air BUT not the current one. I'm sorry, but 128GB STILL isn't enough for me [waiting for 256GB SSD] - I don't want to have to leave out parts of my 160GB of files on my iMac when I migrate to a new MacBook Air. Besides, I HAVE to have 4GB of RAM - I run too many apps at once.)

[dehory]

Am I correct in thinking that the 128GB SSD in the new MBA seems quite a bit faster than the 64GB SSD in the original MBA?

[dougelo7]

Am I correct in thinking that the 128GB SSD in the new MBA seems quite a bit faster than the 64GB SSD in the original MBA?

I'm guessing that it is, indeed, faster because it's connected to the MBA's logic board by an SATA interface instead of the PATA interface used in the original MacBook Air.

[cbflip2000]

So, in your albeit short time of using your new Air, have you noticed any of the lag that the 1G machine had?

(BTW, I'm going to buy a MacBook Air BUT not the current one. I'm sorry, but 128GB STILL isn't enough for me [waiting for 256GB SSD] - I don't want to have to leave out parts of my 160GB of files on my iMac when I migrate to a new MacBook Air. Besides, I HAVE to have 4GB of RAM - I run too many apps at once.)

no lag so far... i am uploading videos should be up soon

[dougelo7]

no lag so far... i am uploading videos should be up soon

SWEET!!! Do you think the speed increase comes from the wider bandwidth of the system bus, the more powerful graphics card, the new SSD interface (SATA over PATA), or all three?

[KamiNoYadoru]

EXTREMELY nice if this holds up. Now, the only things I need to see before pulling the trigger on one of these bad boys and a 24" LED ACD: benchies of the new 128GB SSD vs. the Intel X18-M and some sort of reassurance on heat, not that it doesn't GET hot but that it won't shut down my cores.

[twist2b]

I'm guessing that it is, indeed, faster because it's connected to the MBA's logic board by an SATA interface instead of the PATA interface used in the original MacBook Air.

Oh there is NO question the SATA is WAAAAAAY better then the PATA. I have no idea why they chose the PATA. As you can see from the benchmarks, it increased 3x in performance. That can't be just the graphics card. Yeah the 9400 nvidia increased performance alot, but the drive is just as important.

BUY THE SSD, its totally worth it guys!!!!

[dehory]

I'm guessing that it is, indeed, faster because it's connected to the MBA's logic board by an SATA interface instead of the PATA interface used in the original MacBook Air.

I was convinced (http://forums.macrumors.com/showpost.php?p=6511245&postcount=58) that the change in interface wasn't going to make any difference in performance... :confused:

[mullerit]

no lag so far... i am uploading videos should be up soon

Awesome! ..can't wait for those videos ...actually "couldn't" ..already ordered the Air :rolleyes:

The heat will also be of great interest for me ..I already have a stove for my morning eggs ;)

[dougelo7]

Oh there is NO question the SATA is WAAAAAAY better then the PATA. I have no idea why they chose the PATA. As you can see from the benchmarks, it increased 3x in performance. That can't be just the graphics card. Yeah the 9400 nvidia increased performance alot, but the drive is just as important.

BUY THE SSD, its totally worth it guys!!!!

I agree. The new $500 price to upgrade to the SSD, which now has an 8GB advantage over the HDD in addition to the qualities of solid state storage, is completely worth it IMO.

For me, these are the things I'd like about having an SSD in my computer:

SSDs are completely silent - you won't hear the hard drive rev up when you wake your Mac from sleep.
You can put the computer into a sleeve, then into your backpack, and then do anything you want - throw the bag, shake it, et cetera - and the hard drive won't be damaged.
SSDs read data MUCH faster, which makes for lightning-fast boot up times.
SSDs are much more power efficient than HDDs - my theory on the tiny difference between MBA SSD and MBA HDD battery life is that Mac OS X hasn't yet been updated to optimize system performance for SDD-based computers.


What does everyone else think?

[twist2b]

dougelo7 - you hit EVERY point perfectly! It's so true!
SSD is more expensive due to being NEW, but its an investment! And totally worth the money. Even if I got a MB or MBP I would choose SSD. Though for college MBA is my choice. I am REALLY happy with the revision, apple did an awesome job. Bravo.


SSD IS THE FUTURE! :)

[epicycle]

How can I tell from the box if it's rev 2 or rev 1 of the Air? The display port doesn't look that different to me than the mini DVI but maybe that is because I haven't seen it side by side.

Sean

[twist2b]

How can I tell from the box if it's rev 2 or rev 1 of the Air? The display port doesn't look that different to me than the mini DVI but maybe that is because I haven't seen it side by side.

Sean

Its a white box instead of Black. And the box should have the specs on it.

[dougelo7]

Its a white box instead of Black. And the box should have the specs on it.

That pisses me off. Apple has turned the sexy black MacBook Air box into a relatively ugly white cardboard behemoth.

My favorite thing about the old MBA box was its plastic wrapping - even if you bought it from a reseller who dared to disfigure the beautiful packaging with a badly placed label (don't you hate it when they do that?!), you could easily peel off the plastic wrap; now, doing that will mess up the box's surface.

[jessica.]

I guess I'll have to wait longer because I am not paying $700 more for a SSD. If it were double the size then perhaps, but $700 is too much of a jump for me to find value in it.

[dougelo7]

I guess I'll have to wait longer because I am not paying $700 more for a SSD. If it were double the size then perhaps, but $700 is too much of a jump for me to find value in it.

Um, Jessica, the SSD on the MacBook Air runs $500.

Anyway, I'm also waiting to buy MBA but it's only because of SSD capacity - I don't care all too much about price.

[dougelo7]

I agree. The new $500 price to upgrade to the SSD, which now has an 8GB advantage over the HDD in addition to the qualities of solid state storage, is completely worth it IMO.

For me, these are the things I'd like about having an SSD in my computer:

SSDs are completely silent - you won't hear the hard drive rev up when you wake your Mac from sleep.
You can put the computer into a sleeve, then into your backpack, and then do anything you want - throw the bag, shake it, et cetera - and the hard drive won't be damaged.
SSDs read data MUCH faster, which makes for lightning-fast boot up times.
SSDs are much more power efficient than HDDs - my theory on the tiny difference between MBA SSD and MBA HDD battery life is that Mac OS X hasn't yet been updated to optimize system performance for SDD-based computers.


What does everyone else think?

I forgot to add that these traits make SSDs PERFECT for students - we'd put the MBA into our backpacks and the backpacks into bicycles and then proceed to jiggle the computer for like thirty minutes straight; this treatment is easily tolerated by an SSD but I'm sure it's only Apple's Sudden Motion Sensor that has protected Macs' HDDs from these kinds of situations over the years.

Also, when the professor/teacher randomly begins saying something important, do you want to wait for your HDD computer to boot up while the person next to you has already typed two paragraphs on their SDD computer? NO!!! You're going to invest in the SDD machine!

I'm telling you, paying $500 extra for this incredibly practical upgrade is WORTH IT!!!

[Maven1975]

Look at these XB scores for the 2.0 MB.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=4083769

BTW.. my new MBA 1.86 SSD is on the truck for delivery. :D

[Lyrrad]

I agree. The new $500 price to upgrade to the SSD, which now has an 8GB advantage over the HDD in addition to the qualities of solid state storage, is completely worth it IMO.


Would the size advantage of the SSD is closer to 16GB? I'm assuming that the SSD has its GB measured as 2^30 bytes, and the HDD as 10^9 bytes. If this is the case, then the HDD has a capacity of about 112 * 2^30 bytes compared with 128 * 2^30 for the SSD, or about 14% more.

[dougelo7]

Would the size advantage of the SSD is closer to 16GB? I'm assuming that the SSD has its GB measured as 2^30 bytes, and the HDD as 10^9 bytes. If this is the case, then the HDD has a capacity of about 112 * 2^30 bytes compared with 128 * 2^30 for the SSD, or about 14% more.

Um, I don't know. All I can say is that your question would be great to ask Apple Technical Support.

[Lyrrad]

Um, I don't know. All I can say is that your question would be great to ask Apple Technical Support.

Weird. Looked at a photo of the box and it suggests that the GB size measured for the SSD is 1GB = 1 billion bytes. Can anyone confirm how the 80GB/64GB was measured for the first gen?

[aristobrat]

Look at these GB scores for the 2.0 MB. Why is there so much of a difference?
Apple must have SIGNIFICANTLY curbed the real performance on these new MBA's.

http://browse.geekbench.ca/geekbench2/view/81708

BTW.. my new MBA 1.86 SSD is on the truck for delivery. :D
Aren't Geekbench and XBench two totally different benchmark tools?

[six.four]

Oh there is NO question the SATA is WAAAAAAY better then the PATA.

Please stop spouting this nonsense. The speed difference has NOTHING to do with the interface. Please stop commenting on how much faster SATA than PATA.

The speed increase is largely due to the SSD being a second generation SSD. And yes, all the new and larger HD will be in the SATA interface, but the interface itself has nothing to do with the drive being faster.

[twist2b]

Please stop spouting this nonsense. The speed difference has NOTHING to do with the interface. Please stop commenting on how much faster SATA than PATA.

The speed increase is largely due to the SSD being a second generation SSD. And yes, all the new and larger HD will be in the SATA interface, but the interface itself has nothing to do with the drive being faster.

Are you sure? I heard that due to its change to SATA, its architecture is better and more efficient in things like HD and etc. And becuase of its efficiency it happens to be faster..... I may be wrong.

[sherthang]

Is the magsafe port still on the left side? If so, what impact will this have on connecting to the new ACD? I would assume that they would work together but i have learned over and over to never assume

[Maven1975]

Aren't Geekbench and XBench two totally different benchmark tools?

OMG! I am such a D-Bag! Sorry for the brain fart.

FYI-MB 2.0 xbench scores...

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=4083769

My MBA just arrived! I will be doing gaming benchmarks for those that are interested.

[ducatidoc]

apple store in novi, mi has 1.86/ssd's in. after seeing those scores, am leaving the house now for my new mba.... VERY excited. :-D

[tigres]

apple store in novi, mi has 1.86/ssd's in. after seeing those scores, am leaving the house now for my new mba.... VERY excited. :-D



Can you return an online order to Apple Store for full credit? i want to go pick mine up, as it has not shipped. I can go to Novi, as Somerset does not have them in yet.

[dcorban]

Look at these XB scores for the 2.0 MB.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?p=4083769

This review states it is for the "2.0 Ghz", but they talk about how great the keyboard backlighting is. The 2.0 doesn't have keyboard backlighting. Either they accidentally reviewed the 2.4 and didn't notice, or they lied. Which is it?

[dcorban]

Um, Jessica, the SSD on the MacBook Air runs $500.
Not outside of the US, it doesn't.

For example, in Canada, the SSD version costs $750 more.

[dcorban]

For me, these are the things I'd like about having an SSD in my computer:

SSDs are completely silent - you won't hear the hard drive rev up when you wake your Mac from sleep.
You can put the computer into a sleeve, then into your backpack, and then do anything you want - throw the bag, shake it, et cetera - and the hard drive won't be damaged.
SSDs read data MUCH faster, which makes for lightning-fast boot up times.
SSDs are much more power efficient than HDDs - my theory on the tiny difference between MBA SSD and MBA HDD battery life is that Mac OS X hasn't yet been updated to optimize system performance for SDD-based computers.


1) I agree that the hard drive in the older MacBook made clunking sounds, etc, but it never "revved up". The default hard drive in my new MacBook is 100% absolutely silent. I haven't heard a peep.
2) I am fairly confident that you could do anything to the standard MacBook (without causing external physical damage) without any effect to the hard drive. This thing is perfect safe to put in a bag, backpack, drop it, whatever.
3) & 4) are up for debate, especially the "much" part.

[Maven1975]

To to put it out there...

The trackpad DOES have 4 finger gestures!

[fredf]

the performance figures sound great.
what's the word on battery life? Has it suffered or has the SSD improved battery life?

[Lyrrad]

apple store in novi, mi has 1.86/ssd's in. after seeing those scores, am leaving the house now for my new mba.... VERY excited. :-D

Thanks for the info. Just called all 3 Manhattan stores: None in stock yet.

[twist2b]

the performance figures sound great.
what's the word on battery life? Has it suffered or has the SSD improved battery life?

Becuase SSD does NOT have moving parts... it lasts longer. Originally apple said with the REV A that the battery life was 5 hours, meanwhile people usually got about 3-3.5 hours. Now its 3.0-4.5 (supposedly) but only time will tell. No question battery life is better.

[seedster2]

When Apple released the first iteration on the AIR they included the mini- DVI cable to connect to your existing monitor.

Why do they nickel and dime you this time around and not include, a mini display port adapter. The mini display port connection is more obscure than mini-DVI?

They have history of charging you for accessories that were included the first time around. (e.g. iphone cradle, ipod) It's a shameless.

[HagusofNWN]

MMAAAAANNNN I want some xbench results PRONTO. I want to know how much better the graphics card does, and I REALLY want to know how well the new SSD works.

Background: Mine is a currently in use system and not a fresh out of the box setup.

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc1=316749&doc2=316883

I did an xbench against the Macbook Air that was just uploaded and my Macbook Pro 2.6, 7200RPM, Nvidia 8600 GT system

Not at all shabby......

[Ironic]

I will wait a bit longer for a SSD drive, My new macbook keeps me happy!

[Grimace]

K fed-ex just delivered. .

Britney Spears had another baby? :p

[NC MacGuy]

When Apple released the first iteration on the AIR they included the mini- DVI cable to connect to your existing monitor.

Why do they nickel and dime you this time around and not include, a mini display port adapter. The mini display port connection is more obscure than mini-DVI?

They have history of charging you for accessories that were included the first time around. (e.g. iphone cradle, ipod) It's a shameless.

Apple tax. No Apple remote either. Apple tax.

[mhnajjar]

Apple tax. No Apple remote either. Apple tax.

Apple's version of being cheapass :eek:

[jessica.]

Britney Spears had another baby? :p

FWIW this didn't go without a laugh from me but man, was it a reach!

[epicycle]

I just picked up the new 1.8 w/SSD from the Schaumburg IL Apple Store. Installing stuff now ... hope to get a WoW video and impressions posted soon.

[twist2b]

Background: Mine is a currently in use system and not a fresh out of the box setup.

http://db.xbench.com/merge.xhtml?doc1=316749&doc2=316883

I did an xbench against the Macbook Air that was just uploaded and my Macbook Pro 2.6, 7200RPM, Nvidia 8600 GT system

Not at all shabby......

THAT is what I was looking for! AMAZING! It compares so well.... WITH A PRO!

[mhnajjar]

I just picked up the new 1.8 w/SSD from the Schaumburg IL Apple Store. Installing stuff now ... hope to get a WoW video and impressions posted soon.

Please install iStatPro and let us know what temperatures you get with like 3 YouTube videos running in the background while you are keeping an eye on the widget :)

The old gen reaches 80-90C.

[twist2b]

Please install iStatPro and let us know what temperatures you get with like 3 YouTube videos running in the background while you are keeping an eye on the widget :)

The old gen reaches 80-90C.

WOW, that is hot :o
But due the the change to nvidia 9400 I don't think it will be bad anymore... IMO

[drummerlondonw3]

I really will be interested to see what the differences are real world i.e HEAT, FANS and battery life

I have a terminal script app that limits my max fan speed to 3800 and I HAVE NOT seen my temps go up, actually they went down by 2 degrees! :confused:
This coupled with very fine-tuned settings has meant that I am now much happier with the thermal performance of my rev. A

I went for the refurb rev. A with a whopping 42% discount. For those with the new one I wish you the best of luck and hopefully there won't be any more problems for what is a fantastic bit of kit. :D:D

Bit of a ramble there, love my air! ;):D

D:apple:

[Abstract]

Please stop spouting this nonsense. The speed difference has NOTHING to do with the interface. Please stop commenting on how much faster SATA than PATA.


Yep, SSD speed is why you see the difference. There is high speed SSD and regular "crap" SSD, which is slow as.


Oh, and is the screen a good one?

[fredf]

Becuase SSD does NOT have moving parts... it lasts longer. Originally apple said with the REV A that the battery life was 5 hours, meanwhile people usually got about 3-3.5 hours. Now its 3.0-4.5 (supposedly) but only time will tell. No question battery life is better.

Is this another 'it's better because SSDs are better' comment, or based on a reality testing?
I'm not looking for conjecture but reality. The reality is that the SSD in generation 1 was provided about 10min more battery life.

Anyone have actual world results?
thanks

[dougelo7]

no lag so far... i am uploading videos should be up soon

Where are you going to put the videos? I'd quite like to watch them.

[Philflow]

I don't know if you have installed bootcamp but I'd like to see a HDTune result for the SSD drive.

This is the HDtune for the 64GB SSD in MBA rev.a.

[bobbleheadbob]

Do we have any video or updates from the OP yet? Very interested in first impressions from someone who's got one of the new MBAs. I've been in two :apple: Stores in the Boston area in the past couple days, but neither of them havve had them in yet. :(

[ShALLaX]

Out of interest, does the lid close itself under its own weight when you tip the laptop towards you? (Tilt it until the keyboard is vertical).

[NC MacGuy]

Out of interest, does the lid close itself under its own weight when you tip the laptop towards you? (Tilt it until the keyboard is vertical).

No. Not at all.

I think that's a new MBP "feature.";)

[steve31]

No. Not at all.

I think that's a new MBP "feature.";) My new MBP has this "feature" but the new MB does not. The air will have no problem.
I sold my 1st gen ssd 1.8 air to buy a new 2.4 macbook.....I really still miss my air.

[lucidmedia]

Do we have any video or updates from the OP yet? Very interested in first impressions from someone who's got one of the new MBAs. I've been in two :apple: Stores in the Boston area in the past couple days, but neither of them havve had them in yet. :(

Interestingly enough, over the weekend many stores had the 1.8/SSD in stock and for sale... but did not have any out on the floor....

[NC MacGuy]

My new MBP has this "feature" but the new MB does not. The air will have no problem.
I sold my 1st gen ssd 1.8 air to buy a new 2.4 macbook.....I really still miss my air.

And I bet you REALLY miss the display! That was my big issue w. the new MB. It only lasted two weeks. Good luck.

Interestingly enough, over the weekend many stores had the 1.8/SSD in stock and for sale... but did not have any out on the floor....

I can understand Apple taking their sweet time getting them on display since they are nearly identical to Gen. 1 in appearance. They'll probably make it out when the new 24" display shows up.

[finchna]

K fed-ex just delivered. I am taking any questions that you guys would liked answer and I will post my review and pics in a couple of hours. Ill try to answer as many questions as I can.

I'd like to know if the air vents are still located on the lower part of the undercasing? We've experienced folks using the airs on fabric bases that covered up the ventilation holes which shuts down a core and basically brings the machine to a halt.

[jameskohn]

After calling ahead to make sure they had them in stock, I drove to my "local" Apple store to get hands on with the new MBA. Putting it through it's paces, I was really unimpressed. To tell the truth, I could have sworn it was actually slower than my 1st generation MBA. When a software update notification popped up, I became suspicious. Although the sales guys (two of them) insisted it was a revision b, a quick check of the system profile made it clear to me that it was not. They insisted that it was, and that the usb port was the new display port. Even after I pointed everything out that indicated it was an original HDD model, they wouldn't agree. There was one other MBA on display, but we had to wait for it to become available. A quick peak at the ports told the tale in a hurry though: it had (the real) new display port.

When we finally go on the machine, it blew me away. Applications opened so quickly, and everything seemed so much, well... snappier. Even with every application opened it seemed noticeably zippier than my 1.8 SSD. I hadn't planned on buying it, but I was too impressed. Amazing machine and, yes, does run cooler than the first one. If your budget permits, go for it. You will not be sorry.

[MontrealMonger]

After calling ahead to make sure they had them in stock, I drove to my "local" Apple store to get hands on with the new MBA. Putting it through it's paces, I was really unimpressed. To tell the truth, I could have sworn it was actually slower than my 1st generation MBA. When a software update notification popped up, I became suspicious. Although the sales guys (two of them) insisted it was a revision b, a quick check of the system profile made it clear to me that it was not. They insisted that it was, and that the usb port was the new display port. Even after I pointed everything out that indicated it was an original HDD model, they wouldn't agree. There was one other MBA on display, but we had to wait for it to become available. A quick peak at the ports told the tale in a hurry though: it had (the real) new display port.

When we finally go on the machine, it blew me away. Applications opened so quickly, and everything seemed so much, well... snappier. Even with every application opened it seemed noticeably zippier than my 1.8 SSD. I hadn't planned on buying it, but I was too impressed. Amazing machine and, yes, does run cooler than the first one. If your budget permits, go for it. You will not be sorry.

Amazing! Was this the HDD version?

Glad that you persevered on this, btw!

[ghileman]

I'd like to know if the air vents are still located on the lower part of the undercasing? We've experienced folks using the airs on fabric bases that covered up the ventilation holes which shuts down a core and basically brings the machine to a halt.

Yes, same place as MBA version 1.0, although i can't speak to your specific problem you mention.

[twist2b]

I can't believe no one has been able to get the HDD model yet. Though, personally I will be getting the SSD Rev B so...........

[NC MacGuy]

I can't believe no one has been able to get the HDD model yet. Though, personally I will be getting the SSD Rev B so...........

From everything I've read, they haven't shipped yet.

[CoreyMac]

From everything I've read, they haven't shipped yet.

So whats the deal NC....how much do you like the new Air? I keep fumbling back and forth between a purchase of the 1.86/SSD Air & the 2.4 MacBook. A decision will need to be made by November 15th (yes im setting my own deadline)

[ghileman]

So whats the deal NC....how much do you like the new Air? I keep fumbling back and forth between a purchase of the 1.86/SSD Air & the 2.4 MacBook. A decision will need to be made by November 15th (yes im setting my own deadline)

my roommate has the new macbook (2.0 GHZ model) which I’ve used quite a bit before deciding to pick up the SSD Air. my reasons:

-size/weight matters for me. i need to throw this thing on my back when i ride my motorcycle, so every bit of space and weight savings i can achieve is helpful. While the specs make the MB sound close to the air, for me (and maybe this is just perception) there is a huge difference in size/weight of the two machines.

-screen. This has been hammered on in other posts, but the MB’s glossy does bug me in bright light conditions. In darker settings it’s really nice, but the air’s screen is really nice all the time.

-the xbench benchmarks on the SSD Air really surprised me. macbook pro like performance in that size?!* wow. Real world performance for opening apps, boot up/shutdown, safari responsiveness, video playback, etc. is superb! I’m sure the macbook with the SSD would rock xbench too. Has anyone posted any results for a MB with SSD?

-i like the older trackpad with button. at first i really liked the new macbook trackpad without the button, but i then started having trouble with it. i sometimes also like to engage both my hands in scrolling/clicking (it's quicker for me).

-the macbook definitely runs cooler than the new Air. but the macbook warms up, and the new air doesn't warm up nearly as much as the old one. However, if heat sensitivity is a huge issue for you though then you're going to want to give the MB a serious look as it runs noticeably cooler than the air.

-I have another computer and a 1 TB hard drive, so the Air’s missing ports/optical drive and hard drive space limitation don’t bother me.

I like both machines, but ultimately even with the economy cratering I decided to stretch a bit and go for the air.

I’ve had the Air for less than 24 hours so I’ll continue to post as I learn more.

[jameskohn]

So whats the deal NC....how much do you like the new Air? I keep fumbling back and forth between a purchase of the 1.86/SSD Air & the 2.4 MacBook. A decision will need to be made by November 15th (yes im setting my own deadline)

I entertained the same question. I had always wished for a "13" MacBook Pro", and the new MacBooks seemed to more or less fill that bill. I went to check them out the day after they were released, and indeed, they are stunning machines. I thought I could get the MacBook with the SSD, plus the advantage of 4GB RAM, and really have the best of all worlds.

I decided ultimately to stay with the MBA. The display is spectacular, arguably the best out there, and now even the performance is impressive. It's 1.5 pounds lighter than even the newest MacBooks, and every time you break it out you, and everyone around you, goes "wow".

I can think of three reasons to get the MacBook instead of the MBA: 1. budget, 2. you routinely use alot of cd's or dvd's on the road, and 3. there is something you use the computer for that truly requires the additional 2GB of RAM. It is a beautiful and capable machine, no doubt. I just think the (new) MBA's are something truly special.

[twist2b]

"impressive" numbers in things like Processing speed (2.4 ghz) is really not what drives a computers speed the most. Of course it IS important. But the air proves that things like SSD and the fact that it has a 50% increase just from L2 cache just shows you how amazing it is. It totally compares to last model of PRO in some aspects, THATS how amazing it is.

I was not that impressed in the performance of the air in the A but in this B, it is WAAAY better then the MB, IMO. But again, its really personal preferance. I always recommend people go to a Mac store and test drive each laptop themselves before purchase. :)

[Maven1975]

I don't know if you have installed bootcamp but I'd like to see a HDTune result for the SSD drive.

This is the HDtune for the 64GB SSD in MBA rev.a.

Here ya go... 1.86 SSD

[NC MacGuy]

So whats the deal NC....how much do you like the new Air? I keep fumbling back and forth between a purchase of the 1.86/SSD Air & the 2.4 MacBook. A decision will need to be made by November 15th (yes im setting my own deadline)

I don't like to influence how people spend their money.

Personally, I've been an owner of the Gen. 1 since day it was released for sale in Feb. The Gen. 1 Air even though performing okay for me had design issues. These have been well documented. I adapted.

Bought a 2.4 MB day it was available thinking it would finally be a replacement for my beloved 12" PB. The screen quality combined with glass on the MB were a disappointment for me. Having come directly from my Air and a MBP, the MB wasn't cutting it and was returned.

I was picoseconds from pulling the trigger on a MBP when I read here that the SSD was being shipped. Literally reading MR at an Apple store while they were in "the back" getting my MBP. Put that MBP back mr apple sales guy, I want to try a gen. 2 Air.

Waited a day and got lucky. Next day picked up a SSD model. It's been great so far. Time will tell how she fairs in the long haul. The best screen in any of Apples new laptops is on the Air - that much we know. As for the heat, video, limited storage and other issues, Apple looks to have remedied many of them as hoped with Gen. 2.

Downsides are it still has a fairly low res. iSight, mono speaker (which still sounds great), lack of ports, long charge times and limited RAM but all in all, I'm very pleased. 3 lbs., NVIDIA GPU, 45nm CPU, adequate storage, same screen as Gen. 1, faster bus speed and upped Cache have make the new Air a great portable and worth considering.

[prefabsprouter]

I haven been using my Air 2.0 for 24 hours now. What is up with the fan?? It's at 6,200 most of the time, even when CPU and memory consumption are not that high. It also gets pretty warm. This was an issue with my Air 1.0 that I was hoping would be resolved with the 2.0...

[Maven1975]

Well.. I purchased the 2.4 SSD MB the day it was released. I was hoping it was going to be the right computer for me because my 1.8 Air was frustrating me. I knew that the Air was going to get an upgrade, but I didn't bank on it being anything more than a small refresh because Apple loves to down clock things.

The MB was nice and had and awesome feel to it. It had a second USB port and a dust collecting drive. The track pad was nice, but was not enough to seal the deal for me. The size did not bother me, but when compared to the Air, the size difference was noticeable.

The MB screen just does not compete with the Air. This was something I noticed right out of the box. While comparing the screen with my 1.8 Air, I also found the glass highly annoying. It is sweet indoors under perfect light conditions, but the Air has a better screen for ALL conditions. I work outside in the AZ sun, and I can tell you when the sun hits that glass, its absolutely horrible on your eyes. So, that being said, I feel the Air has the best screen Apple offers.

I know I said this in another post, but this is the best computer I have purchased in a LONG time. I took it with me to the genius bar and everyone was floored when I ran COD4 and HL2 on it without a hitch.

If Apple activates bidirectional features of the Display Port (HDMI Successor) it may have USB and another LIGHTING fast transferring solution.

My ADD 2 cents :)

[Scottological]

NC Mac Guy,

Do you now use the Air as your primary computer? Personally, i'm thinking of upgrading from my ancient coal-fired 1.33 Ghz PowerBook G4. Like you, I was considering the MB, but the screen was just awful - not so much the black levels as the glass. (I'm a writer and I work on the run a lot - airports, bars, even outside - and the glare would drive me batty.) Anyway, the Air seems like a good, if expensive, alternative. It would be my main computer, but all I really do is write, surf, watch videos, and occasionally take the red eye out of snapshots of my girls. I hear strange, wide-eyed tales of people running serious games on the MBA 2.0 as well as Creative Suite, Photoshop, et al... Makes me wonder if I really need 2.4 Ghz of horsepower.

[NC MacGuy]

NC Mac Guy,

Do you now use the Air as your primary computer? Personally, i'm thinking of upgrading from my ancient coal-fired 1.33 Ghz PowerBook G4. Like you, I was considering the MB, but the screen was just awful - not so much the black levels as the glass. (I'm a writer and I work on the run a lot - airports, bars, even outside - and the glare would drive me batty.) Anyway, the Air seems like a good, if expensive, alternative. It would be my main computer, but all I really do is write, surf, watch videos, and occasionally take the red eye out of snapshots of my girls. I hear strange, wide-eyed tales of people running serious games on the MBA 2.0 as well as Creative Suite, Photoshop, et al... Makes me wonder if I really need 2.4 Ghz of horsepower.

Yepp, it's my main computer. Actually about 90% of the time from Feb. until today the Air has been it. I'm liking the portability and display. New Rev. means I'll even load up Windows. Didn't want to push first one but Rev. 2 looks like it can handle it easily. Get the superdrive if you do get one. It does come in handy on the occasion you need it.

[Scottological]

The superdrive, huh? My wife has a Mini 2.0 Ghz and there's a program on there to transfer files from CD/DVD to the Air. Is it insufficient or unreliable?

[Maven1975]

I have noticed throttling issues on my 1.86 SSD with MAMEOSX. CPS3 games lag real bad and are unstable.

I used CoolBook on my 1.8 SSD to handle this issue in the past. I had to adjust the throttling higher so the system could keep up with demand. I guess this has not changed.

[Philflow]

Here ya go... 1.86 SSD

Thanks. Nice performance, almost twice as fast.

[lenselijer]

How do games like Red Alert 3, COD4 and HL2 run? Would be nice if you can enable the ingame fps counter, maybe the new air will be good for games after all.

[jnc]

Why do they nickel and dime you this time around and not include, a mini display port adapter. The mini display port connection is more obscure than mini-DVI?

Simple - they want you to buy the new Cinema Display

[NC MacGuy]

The superdrive, huh? My wife has a Mini 2.0 Ghz and there's a program on there to transfer files from CD/DVD to the Air. Is it insufficient or unreliable?

The Air's have Remote Disk which allows sharing an optical drive. It works pretty good but there are times when I choose not to tie up two computers to say, rip a DVD..

I also just reformatted and loaded OSX on my first Air and the Superdrive was a godsend. I don't use it a lot but every time I do use it, I'm glad I ponied up the $100.

[ntrigue]

My overall adaptation of the Air-lifestyle is positive. One place it continues to fall short is it's wireless connectivity. I played right into all aspects of Apple marketing and have the AppleTV - Time Capsule - MBA all in the same room. Syncing these devices is unimpressive.

Downloading a TV Show on MBA and a movie on ATV is unbearably slow. Trailers on the ATV take about 2 minutes to buffer and play while the MBA is using the Time Capsule.

[ntrigue]

Could someone please run the xBench without Hard Disks checked.

[Young Turk]

I haven been using my Air 2.0 for 24 hours now. What is up with the fan?? It's at 6,200 most of the time, even when CPU and memory consumption are not that high. It also gets pretty warm. This was an issue with my Air 1.0 that I was hoping would be resolved with the 2.0...

What kind of battery life are you seeing on the new v.2 MacBook Air?

YoungTurk

[Cynicalone]

What kind of battery life are you seeing on the new v.2 MacBook Air?

YoungTurk

I can tell you I'm seeing the same or nearly the same battery life on my new Air as I was getting on my 1st Generation Air. Only 3 day's of use so far but the battery seems unchanged to me.

So about 3 to 3.5 hours on a full charge.

[Daveway]

I can tell you I'm seeing the same or nearly the same battery life on my new Air as I was getting on my 1st Generation Air. Only 3 day's of use so far but the battery seems unchanged to me.

So about 3 to 3.5 hours on a full charge.

Is that with wireless and full brightness? Web surfing? Movie?

[Cynicalone]

Is that with wireless and full brightness? Web surfing? Movie?

Wireless with full brightness and Firefox, Mail, and iWork.

[bigjnyc]

My overall adaptation of the Air-lifestyle is positive. One place it continues to fall short is it's wireless connectivity. I played right into all aspects of Apple marketing and have the AppleTV - Time Capsule - MBA all in the same room. Syncing these devices is unimpressive.

Downloading a TV Show on MBA and a movie on ATV is unbearably slow. Trailers on the ATV take about 2 minutes to buffer and play while the MBA is using the Time Capsule.

Interesting... since apple markets this as the ultimate wireless device. I mean without good wireless this thing is useless (no ethernet port)

[shen]

My overall adaptation of the Air-lifestyle is positive. One place it continues to fall short is it's wireless connectivity. I played right into all aspects of Apple marketing and have the AppleTV - Time Capsule - MBA all in the same room. Syncing these devices is unimpressive.

Downloading a TV Show on MBA and a movie on ATV is unbearably slow. Trailers on the ATV take about 2 minutes to buffer and play while the MBA is using the Time Capsule.

wow. do you have a steal mesh cage around one of them? or is time capsule really that big a hog?

i have an airport, a mini connected on wireless, an emac on wireless, and an ibook and appletv and wii all on the wireless, and i never see any real slow downs doing anything. even when watching streaming movies from apple i have fair internet speeds. movies never take more than 2-3 minutes of loading before they start streaming. and mine are very much not in the same room. very odd......

[aristobrat]

Interesting... since apple markets this as the ultimate wireless device. I mean without good wireless this thing is useless (no ethernet port)
IMO, it's the Time Capsule that poops out when a lot of info is flying around wirelessly, not the Air.

[twist2b]

IMO, it's the Time Capsule that poops out when a lot of info is flying around wirelessly, not the Air.

Thats true to an extent. But then again, if your multi-tasking on the AIR, that will slow down data considerably. ESPECIALLY if your using the internet, Air or not.

[aristobrat]

Thats true to an extent. But then again, if your multi-tasking on the AIR, that will slow down data considerably. ESPECIALLY if your using the internet, Air or not.
What do you mean? I had no problems with iTunes on my version 1 Air playing music via Airtunes on my AppleTV while I was torrenting in Transmission and surfing MacRumors.

Now if another Mac in the house did a TC backup wirelessly, then Airtunes would start skipping, etc.

[eba]

Just got the new MBAir from my local Apple store today. Only spent an hour so with it so far, but I really like it. Installed MS Word using my MBP optical drive via Remote Disk, which worked great. Very happy so far.

[BornAgainMac]

I want to get one of these with the new 24 inch display. Looking at the cable, I don't see how it will work well. The power connector is on the opposite side of the USB and video. The splitter seems too short to connect the cables to both sides.

[fyrefly]

My overall adaptation of the Air-lifestyle is positive. One place it continues to fall short is it's wireless connectivity. I played right into all aspects of Apple marketing and have the AppleTV - Time Capsule - MBA all in the same room. Syncing these devices is unimpressive.

Downloading a TV Show on MBA and a movie on ATV is unbearably slow. Trailers on the ATV take about 2 minutes to buffer and play while the MBA is using the Time Capsule.

Wow. I have a Mac Mini HTPC connected to an AEBS and I can quicklook movies wirelessly to my Air in any room of the house and they play as if they are local. No worried. The Mini can even be downloading files and I have my MBP and My roomie's MB also on the wireless network - no problems...

[jnc]

Wow. I have a Mac Mini HTPC connected to an AEBS and I can quicklook movies wirelessly to my Air in any room of the house and they play as if they are local. No worried. The Mini can even be downloading files and I have my MBP and My roomie's MB also on the wireless network - no problems...

Are you using Leopard? Also, are you running Time Machine over AirDisk, as Time Capsule would(if you can even do that)? if not I guess they're not comparable environments....