And then there were 2: Need to hear from someone who chose MBA > Zenbook Prime please

[Barche]

Originally Posted by skaertus

Is SSD a requirement? What's your budget?

Yes, SSD is required, having seen what it does for my desktop
128 GB should be enough, provided there is USB3.0 as well for fast external storage if needed.

My budget is ~ 1300 EUR.

[skaertus]

Originally Posted by Barche

Yes, SSD is required, having seen what it does for my desktop
128 GB should be enough, provided there is USB3.0 as well for fast external storage if needed.

My budget is ~ 1300 EUR.

Well, you have the Acer Aspire S7, the Samsung Series 9, the Sony Vaio Z and the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon. The Sony Vaio S is also an ultraportable, but it comes with an HD that can be replaced with an SSD. Most of them come with 4 GB RAM, but I guess you can upgrade. I don't know the price in Belgium, though, not even if they are available there.

Take a look at this list: http://ultrabooknews.com/product-databank/

[waa1futs]

It's strange but I just got an email yesterday that an electronics place near me has the Zenbook Prime UX31A-DB51 ($1099 version) on sale for $999

So this has a 1080p IPS display + 128gb ssd drive for the + 4GB ram for $100 cheaper than I could get the Macbook air 11.6 inch, and $200 cheaper than I could get the 13.3 inch with comparable specs? Sold

I'm not tied down to a particular OS so the OSX vs Windows isn't a huge deal breaker for me either way.

The only problem? When I get it home I find out it has Windows 8 on it!!!

God dammit, if only it had Windows 7

I ****ing HATE the Metro UI gimmick. I wouldn't use the touchscreen feature even if the laptop had one. Just give me a damn desktop and let me be!

Sigh, this was a surprise to me since I figured that without a touchscreen they would keep Windows 7 on the device and allow you to upgrade to Windows 8 if you wanted (which I don't). The advertisement didn't say anything as to what OS it had and the sales guy didn't know either (kind of a, you've gotta open the box to find out sort of thing).

So now I'm at a crossroads. I probably will return the device for a refund unless I can either A) Find a way to downgrade to Windows 7, but unlikely since it seems only the pro version of Windows 8 is allowed to do this, or B) Find a way to set the desktop as the default instead of Metro.

God I ****ing hate Windows 8

[JoelBC]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

So now I'm at a crossroads. I probably will return the device for a refund unless I can either A) Find a way to downgrade to Windows 7, but unlikely since it seems only the pro version of Windows 8 is allowed to do this, or B) Find a way to set the desktop as the default instead of Metro.

God I ****ing hate Windows 8

Easy to do...there are a number of ways to do this, just search the internet...the easiest that I have seen is to add the "desktop exe" to your startup group which will make windows 8 boot into the desktop as described http://www.pcworld.com/article/20128...nd-tricks.html

[skaertus]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

It's strange but I just got an email yesterday that an electronics place near me has the Zenbook Prime UX31A-DB51 ($1099 version) on sale for $999

So this has a 1080p IPS display + 128gb ssd drive for the + 4GB ram for $100 cheaper than I could get the Macbook air 11.6 inch, and $200 cheaper than I could get the 13.3 inch with comparable specs? Sold

I'm not tied down to a particular OS so the OSX vs Windows isn't a huge deal breaker for me either way.

The only problem? When I get it home I find out it has Windows 8 on it!!!

God dammit, if only it had Windows 7

I ****ing HATE the Metro UI gimmick. I wouldn't use the touchscreen feature even if the laptop had one. Just give me a damn desktop and let me be!

Sigh, this was a surprise to me since I figured that without a touchscreen they would keep Windows 7 on the device and allow you to upgrade to Windows 8 if you wanted (which I don't). The advertisement didn't say anything as to what OS it had and the sales guy didn't know either (kind of a, you've gotta open the box to find out sort of thing).

So now I'm at a crossroads. I probably will return the device for a refund unless I can either A) Find a way to downgrade to Windows 7, but unlikely since it seems only the pro version of Windows 8 is allowed to do this, or B) Find a way to set the desktop as the default instead of Metro.

God I ****ing hate Windows 8

Don't do that! Windows 8 is way better than Windows 7. You just need a way to set the desktop as default. In addition, there are add-ons that bring back the start menu. I particularly liked Start8, from Stardocks (http://www.stardock.com/products/start8/).

[coldjeanzzz]

Personally I would never buy another Windows based system ever again. Before I started using OS X, I used Linux (Ubuntu specifically) and that's where I started to realize how primitive and far behind Windows was. OS X and Ubuntu destroy Windows

The lack of smoothness in just about every way is such a deal killer for me. I hate the fonts on Windows, I hate the scrolling, I hate the obsession with ugly transparent windows, ugly icons and buttons, basically I just find Windows hideous to look at. I know a lot of people don't care about that kind of stuff, but I like the stuff I use for hours a day to look nice. Another deal breaker is that Windows doesn't have multiple workspaces built in, such a basic feature and they still haven't put it in. So much of my productivity is based on multiple work spaces.

I could honestly live with a nice ultrabook running OS X, but I'm just not interested in doing all the work needed to set something like that up.

[Mrbobb]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

Sold

Now u realize u can't come back here no more to ask questions, you are OUT of the Mac Club!

[halledise]

this is a Mac forum yes?
then why, for goodness' sake, are we talking about anything related to:

Windows/Zen/Asarse.

please?

[waa1futs]

Originally Posted by Mrbobb

Now u realize u can't come back here no more to ask questions, you are OUT of the Mac Club!

Nooooooo!

I'll be good and take it back. I promise

Actually the only reason I "purchased" it is because they don't have any restocking fee at all on returns. So I can get opinions from others with this thread on what the Macbook Air does better than the zenbook, try it out for a few weeks, then go to the Apple store and compare it side by side against the Macbook Air's screen and, with the help of this thread, make a final decision a few weeks from now. I am in no way committed to either one so I really appreciate the responses others give me in this thread on the benefits of the Macbook Air over the Zenbook prime.

Originally Posted by halledise

this is a Mac forum yes?
then why, for goodness' sake, are we talking about anything related to:

Windows/Zen/Asarse.

please?

The original post is asking those who have wrestled with the decision themselves to explain the benefits/reasons why they chose the MACBOOK AIR over a competitor.

I put capitals and bold to make it easier for you to understand that this is a macbook air question.

Have a great day.

[jterp7]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

I have a 4 year old asus eee netbook (single core atom processor! ) that is on its last legs and needs to be replaced.

I've narrowed my choices down to 2 different options:
1) 13 inch macbook air (4gb ram, 128ssd, i5)
2) 1080p zenbook prime (4gb ram, 128 ssd, i5)

I am sure this decision has come up before for some members here and I'm not so much looking for someone to say to me "well whats better for you?" since both machines could work for me. I would really like to hear your opinions on why you chose the macbook air over the zenbook prime and its 1080p IPS display besides just the obvious "well it runs OSX instead of Windows"

Thank you so much for your help. It's a big money decision for me as I'm a student and could really use your expertise.

if you never used osx, then prime for the ips screen. otherwise the 2012 screen for the MBA isn't bad, but I wouldn't do it for someone trying to switch from pc to mac.

[entatlrg]

Originally Posted by skaertus

I wouldn't buy the MacBook Air right now, as its design dates from 2010 and is currently being copied by several ultrabooks out there.

Fixed that for ya.

Zenbook Prime - poor trackpad, poor keyboard, poor battery life, screen is high-resolution but that does not mean it's good. Build quality is fair. It is no MacBook Air.

Don't take my word for it, read the user reviews over at Notebookreview. There you can read about the user's appointment in windows ultrabooks, not just Asus but also Samsung and Lenovo's offerings. In fact many users there are considering buying MacBook Airs just for the purpose of running Windows because it is a superior laptop.

[skaertus]

Originally Posted by entatlrg

Fixed that for ya.

Zenbook Prime - poor trackpad, poor keyboard, poor battery life, screen is high-resolution but that does not mean it's good. Build quality is fair. It is no MacBook Air.

Don't take my word for it, read the user reviews over at Notebookreview. There you can read about the user's appointment in windows ultrabooks, not just Asus but also Samsung and Lenovo's offerings. In fact many users there are considering buying MacBook Airs just for the purpose of running Windows because it is a superior laptop.

Well, I have no doubt that the MacBook Air is a great laptop, but that doesn't prevet others of being too. My sister has a first-generation Zenbook and she loves it.

The sheer fact that the MacBook Air has a 1440x900 resolution would be a deal breaker for me anyway. I will not consider a laptop with a screen resolution lower than 1920x1080, because otherwise I would lose precious work area and my productivity would be severely reduced.

[Lindberg]

Performance, the MBA is faster according to reviews.

Trackpad, Apple does trackpads like no other computer company.

Better keyboard

Small things like the magnet charger and the relative high volume loudspeaker.

[Lone Deranger]

They always come crawling back. When will people learn.

[halledise]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

Either learn to read or keep your mouth shut.

The original post is asking those who have wrestled with the decision themselves to explain the benefits/reasons why they chose the MACBOOK AIR over a competitor.

I put capitals and bold to make it easier for you to understand that this is a macbook air question.

Have a great day.

nice comment - very polite, very tasteful

[AppleAlfred]

Originally Posted by waa1futs

I have a 4 year old asus eee netbook (single core atom processor! ) that is on its last legs and needs to be replaced.

I've narrowed my choices down to 2 different options:
1) 13 inch macbook air (4gb ram, 128ssd, i5)
2) 1080p zenbook prime (4gb ram, 128 ssd, i5)

I am sure this decision has come up before for some members here and I'm not so much looking for someone to say to me "well whats better for you?" since both machines could work for me. I would really like to hear your opinions on why you chose the macbook air over the zenbook prime and its 1080p IPS display besides just the obvious "well it runs OSX instead of Windows"

Thank you so much for your help. It's a big money decision for me as I'm a student and could really use your expertise.

For me it was all about OS and trackpad. I have heard great things about the zenbook's trackpad, but honestly nothing compares to that of a macbook.

Also, keep in mind apple's superior customer service. I always overlooked that until yesterday when my iPhone was having camera issues, walked into the apple store (on one of the busiest days of the year) and got it replaced, no questions asked! In and out in 10 minutes. No one can offer you the service they do, and in a situation like this that should be taken into consideration.

[sostoobad]

I jumped into the Mac pond about a yr+ ago. I now have a Mac mini, Ipad2 (was a gift) and a 11.6" Air on the way, also have had a 13" air.

All share the same selling point to me that the OP asks....why choose the Air over...even fill in the blank using windows....is because the Air DOES not use windows...although it can. It is the OS that makes it ...then all the niceties after that.

I got SO frustrated using PCs, freeze ups crashes...slowness and the ever popular viruses. I don't know alot about computers but I know what I want and don't want...and pcs and windows have everything i Don't want in a computer.