To those still waiting for a Macbook Air - Time to wait for rev D? Or the Tablet??

Jobsian · Sep 21, 2009

Having been reluctantly putting off getting the terrific Rev C MBA, personally speaking I now feel past the point of sitting on the fence of whether to get the rev C. I feel that either:

1) A minor update now
2) A full-blown revision with Arrandale etc

is too close for me to justify buying a rev C at this point.

Another point of consideration is whether we'll see the purported Tablet as a device that will compete in the same market as those who would have considered the Air. The only problem with this idea is that I have no concrete facts about the Tablet whatsoever (form, OS, specs etc).

Finally, I have a small fear and that's this: that Apple completely eschew the MacBook Air line for something non-equivalent (like a netbook) in terms of the, imo, supreme and so far untouched balance between function and form of the Air.

thegoldenmackid · Sep 21, 2009

These are going to be two completely different devices?

GoCubsGo · Sep 21, 2009

With your prolific posting of threads like these you should know by now that a rev D MB Air will come before any supposed tablet.

Jobsian · Sep 21, 2009

thegoldenmackid said:
These are going to be two completely different devices?

Presuming the rumors, that's true, which is why I mentioned 'whether we'll see the purported Tablet as a device that will compete in the same market as those who would have considered the Air'

We'd be able to discuss that topic with more clarity had Apple's released information on the Tablet exceeded zero

Jobsian · Sep 21, 2009

jessica. said:
With your prolific posting of threads like these you should know by now that a rev D MB Air will come before any supposed tablet.

I wish I did! The problem is that I'm not sure anyone outside Apple knows for certain.

We have little pointers in the form of roadmaps by component manufacturers eg of possible cpus for a Tablet, or a next gen Air (eg Arrandale shipping late 09/early '10, next gen Nvidia 200m shipping late Q1 2010)

All that I'm saying is I feel that my want for an Air-esque device that meets the rough criteria of being:
1) Ultra portable
2) Decent grunt (exceeding Atom and intel graphics)
3) Great-looking

will be met by the kings, and too soon to buy a Rev C now

w00tini · Sep 21, 2009

I'm with you Jobsian. I was ready to buy my second Air (I owned the Gen 1 model, see the link in my sig) and move back to the lightweight experience once again, but it seems that I've waited so long that we're (hopefully) looking downhill at the next update to the MBA.

I was actually at an Apple store today and after getting reacquainted with the Air once again, I realized that it's just old at this point and has to almost certainly be up for a small face lift in the coming months (glass trackpad, new hinge, memory boost).

Though I toil with this thought because to me, the Air is perfect for what it was seemingly originally designed for. Internet, email and documents on the go... nothing more and nothing less.

I truly do not see an iTablet competing with the Air. Even if it had a full blown version of OS X instead of the rumored iPhone OS on it, the difference in input devices (keyboard vs touchscreen) and footprint (rumors are ~10" inch) is enough to keep the two reasonably well positioned apart from one another.

Rai Saix · Sep 21, 2009

Jobsian said:
Presuming the rumors, that's true, which is why I mentioned 'whether we'll see the purported Tablet as a device that will compete in the same market as those who would have considered the Air'

We'd be able to discuss that topic with more clarity had Apple's released information on the Tablet exceeded zero

Why do people always get this notion the tablet will be anything like the Air? (If there even will be a tablet...)

Scottsdale · Sep 21, 2009

Rai Saix said:
Why do people always get this notion the tablet will be anything like the Air? (If there even will be a tablet...)

I agree with you that the tablet and the Air are NOT competition for each other for Air target group.

There are people who use their MBA as their primary Mac. These are 90% of the people I personally know with the Air. A much smaller percent use the Air as a travel Mac. Some use MBs or a netbook too.

The tablet is going to be focused on web browsing and entertainment. Some will use a tablet as a secondary Mac and others will use as an entertainment and third Mac.

I will continue to use the Air as a primary Mac, and I doubt many disagree and will think the iTablet will be capable of primary Mac computing. Heck the tablet is probably going to have an iPhone like OS not even OS X.

Don't think the Air's primary target buyers will be deciding to buy tablet instead of Air. More likely that some will buy MBA as primary and iTablet as entertainment and browsing device.

Anyone who thinks a tablet could replace an Air has not thought out how limited the iTablet will be.

Rai Saix · Sep 21, 2009

Scottsdale said:
I agree with you that the tablet and the Air are NOT competition for each other for Air target group.

There are people who use their MBA as their primary Mac. These are 90% of the people I personally know with the Air. A much smaller percent use the Air as a travel Mac. Some use MBs or a netbook too.

The tablet is going to be focused on web browsing and entertainment. Some will use a tablet as a secondary Mac and others will use as an entertainment and third Mac.

I will continue to use the Air as a primary Mac, and I doubt many disagree and will think the iTablet will be capable of primary Mac computing. Heck the tablet is probably going to have an iPhone like OS not even OS X.

Don't think the Air's primary target buyers will be deciding to buy tablet
instead of Air. More likely that some will buy MBA as primary and iTablet as entertainment and browsing device.

Anyone who thinks a tablet could replace an Air has not thought out how limited the iTablet will be.

This.

Regardless, I'm waiting for the Rev D. MacBook Air. If it doesn't have 256 GB SSD, and a higher RAM compacity by early 2010, I'll be getting a 13" MacBook Pro. But otherwise Air here I come!

I would LIKE to see a glossy, black bezel screen of the MBP on the MBA, but I don't see it happening anytime soon...

Ace134blue · Sep 21, 2009

Jobsian said:
Having been reluctantly putting off getting the terrific Rev C MBA, personally speaking I now feel past the point of sitting on the fence of whether to get the rev C. I feel that either:

1) A minor update now
2) A full-blown revision with Arrandale etc

is too close for me to justify buying a rev C at this point.

Another point of consideration is whether we'll see the purported Tablet as a device that will compete in the same market as those who would have considered the Air. The only problem with this idea is that I have no concrete facts about the Tablet whatsoever (form, OS, specs etc).

Finally, I have a small fear and that's this: that Apple completely eschew the MacBook Air line for something non-equivalent (like a netbook) in terms of the, imo, supreme and so far untouched balance between function and form of the Air.

I would wait until the end of october and see if there has been an update, or if apple says when their will be a keynote.

Scottsdale · Sep 21, 2009

What is the deal with you Jobsian... you just started a thread about next MBA less than a week ago? Is it really necessary??? There are plenty of threads including your own!

Jobsian · Sep 22, 2009

Scottsdale said:
What is the deal with you Jobsian... you just started a thread about next MBA less than a week ago? Is it really necessary??? There are plenty of threads including your own!

Haha the triple questionmarks...classic Scottsdale

I agree this thread looks similar because it's also about the next Air/Tablet, but I meant this thread to explore whether potential Air buyers now should hold off. I mean I wouldn't have waited one iota if I was in this position the day the Rev C was released. But I think it's best to wait at this stage.

Another issue that's related to this thread would be whether any potential Tablet can possibly be the primary Mac for some users, just as the Air has been. This depends on the final spec, naturally.

You will always get people saying "no, because it can't run x, y and z" just as there are people on the MBP forums who would rather die than use the Air as their primary Mac.

I just wonder whether they'll feature it enough to potentially compete with those users for whom the spec of the Air is sufficient. And no-one can say anything whatsoever with certainty as we have no idea what Apple have in store with the Tablet - who knows what tricks they have up their sleeves in terms of interface.

MacModMachine · Sep 22, 2009

Jobsian said:
Haha the triple questionmarks...classic Scottsdale

I agree this thread looks similar because it's also about the next Air/Tablet, but I meant this thread to explore whether potential Air buyers now should hold off. I mean I wouldn't have waited one iota if I was in this position the day the Rev C was released. But I think it's best to wait at this stage.

Another issue that's related to this thread would be whether any potential Tablet can possibly be the primary Mac for some users, just as the Air has been. This depends on the final spec, naturally.

You will always get people saying "no, because it can't run x, y and z" just as there are people on the MBP forums who would rather die than use the Air as their primary Mac.

I just wonder whether they'll feature it enough to potentially compete with those users for whom the spec of the Air is sufficient. And no-one can say anything whatsoever with certainty as we have no idea what Apple have in store with the Tablet - who knows what tricks they have up their sleeves in terms of interface.

i have never seen anyone use a tablet as a main machine, the input for it is terrible.

try writing a book on a tablet...or how about a resume.

there good for certain input projects , such as inventory control and document signing.

a primary machine....forget about it

Jobsian · Sep 22, 2009

MacModMachine said:
i have never seen anyone use a tablet as a main machine, the input for it is terrible.

try writing a book on a tablet...or how about a resume.

there good for certain input projects , such as inventory control and document signing.

a primary machine....forget about it

I've never used a tablet, so I wouldn't know for definite, but I agree certainly in how I imagine them to be, I wouldn't use one for my primary mac.

But all of this depends on what Colonel Jobs pulls out of the hat... who knows what interface he'll conjure?

nishishei · Sep 22, 2009

They really need to add an extra USB port too in any future revision of the Air. I don't understand why it needs to be so thin, it could be half a cm thicker and far more functional (properly ventilated), and still be without the bulk of the MBP.

thegoldenmackid · Sep 22, 2009

Scottsdale said:
There are people who use their MBA as their primary Mac. These are 90% of the people I personally know with the Air. A much smaller percent use the Air as a travel Mac. Some use MBs or a netbook too.

Besides people on this forum, of the 11 that I know off of the board, I only know one that uses this is the primary computer.

yoak · Sep 22, 2009

Seems to me there are quite a few using it as their primary computer. This is all subjective of course

Veinticinco · Sep 22, 2009

I'm as keen as anyone to see a new MBA revision, but getting really bored of seeing the same question asked time and time again (and has been pointed out by a certain singular poster

) Honestly, there's some definite ADHD going on here I think.

Reminds me of my old prof and some of his experiments...a few students would ask what they thought the outcome would be, to guess. Cue lots of different opinions. His response was along the lines of 'Why bother guessing? Only morons 'guess'. It doesn't inform your observations, affect your results or alter your conclusions. You'll have your answer once you've completed your study, by which time any guess from the outset is rendered pointless and obsolete anyway.'

Suffice to say I don't think the old man is/was a poster here on MR

Jobsian · Sep 22, 2009

Veinticinco said:
Reminds me of my old prof and some of his experiments...a few students would ask what they thought the outcome would be, to guess. Cue lots of different opinions. His response was along the lines of 'Why bother guessing? Only morons 'guess'. It doesn't inform your observations, affect your results or alter your conclusions. You'll have your answer once you've completed your study, by which time any guess from the outset is rendered pointless and obsolete anyway.'

Haha I'd agree with your prof, but not quite with it being analogous to this forum. We're not trying to surmise something almost as impossible as inter-atomic reactions in different states, we already have highly probable templates (eg 256G SSD, 4GB RAM etc) and as such, preemptive evaluation might negate or at least reduce such evaluation later.

And notwithstanding at all the fact that it's actually fun to do so for some people, here on a forum called "MacRumors"

Gadgetman99 · Sep 22, 2009

MacModMachine said:
i have never seen anyone use a tablet as a main machine, the input for it is terrible.

try writing a book on a tablet...or how about a resume.

there good for certain input projects , such as inventory control and document signing.

a primary machine....forget about it

A tablet with a built in stand can be VERY usable with a bluetooth keyboard. The problem with most tablets is, they tend to be underpowered. But, I have always felt a "iPod touch" type tablet with a good CPU/memory/storage and a detachable keyboard would be a KILLER machine. Imagine a Macbook air with a detachable keyboard. The screen could become a BIG iPod Touch experience.

cowboy55 · Sep 24, 2009

Get Rev C!!

I just bought 2.16 SSD and with SL it is fantastic. It appears faster than my MBP 2.66 on most tasks. Haven't done video yet but for my purposes this works.

w00tini · Sep 24, 2009

Congrats!

Us Carolina Macheads are strong on MacRumors

adamjackson · Sep 26, 2009

to be honest, I'd wait at this point. IDK once Oct 1st rolls around if you don't have to get an MBA, just wait. Even if it's spring 2010, you'll be glad you did. The MBA is on rev C so it's time for some external and internal big updates, not just these little speed bumps.

I'd vote for sitting tight.

LAS.mac · Sep 26, 2009

adamjackson said:
to be honest, I'd wait at this point. IDK once Oct 1st rolls around if you don't have to get an MBA, just wait. Even if it's spring 2010, you'll be glad you did. The MBA is on rev C so it's time for some external and internal big updates, not just these little speed bumps.

I'd vote for sitting tight.

You're probably right. However, it always depends upon the needs of each individual. For instance, I'm waiting for a laptop upgrade to my Dell since last...April? I almost decided for the MBP 2.26 back in June, however when I went to buy it, I started playing with a rev C. MBA. I got so confused, that I didn't buy anything. I like MBA more, however my brain says that MBP has more bang for the buck. So I decided I can wait until October, to see if something happens. Some small improvements in MBA will...allow my to burn my American Express!
What I don't know, is what I'll do if in October (max November) MBA won't see any upgrade. Will I be able to wait, say, January?

ntrigue · Sep 26, 2009

:amazement:

Are we really having a discussion about Rev. D?

The timing's right, few months before January, but come on now. If you're that dissatisfied just sell it in January and swallow a marginal loss. The Rev A was worth waiting to see what Rev B would do but it's been superior for two revisions.

To those still waiting for a Macbook Air - Time to wait for rev D? Or the Tablet??

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