3G - Macbook Air 11"...

[crackbookpro]

Would anyone utilize a Macbook Air 11" with 3G? I would love to see one being manufactured by Apple sooner than later... No need for the air card getting in your way, and slowing your speed. I need the great feature of the keyboard and trackpad functionality from a MacBook blowing away an iPad, definitely for business reasons.

Basically, I'm sure many disagree, but I would rather have a 3G MacBook Air 11" over the iPad 3G for functionality on the whole. They are both just as portable in my opinion, so functionality & feature set is huge for me.

Even if a Apple MacBook Air 3G was offered in iOS(without Flash), would you want one?

Think Apple would ever do it?

 

[Tomple]

iPhone MyWi + MBA 11.6" is my 3G

on topic

I could see Apple going this direction

 

[Hellhammer]

More options are always appreciated, I doubt anyone can complain about extra options since nobody is forcing them to buy them.

I would like to see MBA with 3G, not sure would I get one but if the price was right, I might. Maybe in couple of years when 3G (or 4G) is even more popular

 

[bowlerman625]

I would like to see this too!

 

[virtuatony]

Earlier this year it was a rumour the new MBAs would gain 3G connectivity. I was disappointed when they didn't.

I use a 3G HSPA+ 21Mbps USB stick which effectively halves my battery life on my new macbook air 13".

Wonder if it was because of battery life that they didn't make a macbook air 3g...

 

[KnightWRX]

I use 3G on my MBA already. Doesn't need to be built-in and require a 2nd data plan at all, that's just ridiculous. I just connect it through bluetooth to my iPhone and use my data plan from that.

 

[Toonbay]

i have 3G on my 13 " MBA using the 3UK MIWI, its a fantastic piece of kit, very small and just one button to turn on and connect. Can connect my iphone and Ipad even though its a 3G and up to 5 devices.

I spoke to 3UK as i had the £15 10GB/ month ipad deal. They gave me a new sim with 5gb per month for £7.50, should have been £15 / month but they gave me 50% loyalty discount. They said they could have sold me the MIWI device for £39.99 but i had already bought it in store rather than online.

The MIWI i bought had a 3GB sim for 3 months so i cut this down and have put this in the ipad so still have 3G on this.

All in all im really pleased with the setup and that little device works a treat.

I have been getting fast download speeds

 

[ingramLee]

iPhone MyWi + MBA 11.6" is my 3G

+1. Posting from the back of a car on my 11" & MyWi 4.0

 

[CommanderData]

I use 3G on my MBA already. Doesn't need to be built-in and require a 2nd data plan at all, that's just ridiculous. I just connect it through bluetooth to my iPhone and use my data plan from that.

I see from your profile you don't live in the USA. Here we deal with AT&T, and do not have the option to tether to our iPhones unless we're willing to give up unlimited data access and pay an ADDITIONAL $20/month (on top of your normal data plan cost per month) for the "priviledge" of doing so.

A news story about it from earlier this year:http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2010/06...quires-you-to-ditch-your-unlimited-data-plan/

Or I suppose you can jailbreak if you're desperate for tethering.

 

[johnnymg]

Would anyone utilize a Macbook Air 11" with 3G? I would love to see one being manufactured by Apple sooner than later... No need for the air card getting in your way, and slowing your speed. I need the great feature of the keyboard and trackpad functionality from a MacBook blowing away an iPad, definitely for business reasons.

Basically, I'm sure many disagree, but I would rather have a 3G MacBook Air 11" over the iPad 3G for functionality on the whole. They are both just as portable in my opinion, so functionality & feature set is huge for me.

Even if a Apple MacBook Air 3G was offered in iOS(without Flash), would you want one?

Think Apple would ever do it?

As others have pointed out a mifi interface is a VERY good (JMO, the best) solution. Multiple computers can access the mifi at the same time.

Here's a review of the Verizon 2200: http://mobile.engadget.com/2009/05/13/verizon-mifi-2200-review/

cheers
JohnG

 

[Tomple]

+1. Posting from the back of a car on my 11" & MyWi 4.0

Just got my 11" today

my plane exactly...

 

[Pipper99]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/532.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/4.0.5 Mobile/8B117 Safari/6531.22.7)

Mywi on my jailbroken iPhone works very well with my MBA.

 

[barefeats]

I have a 4G iPhone, a 4G iPad, a 4G MacBook Air, and a 4G MacBook Pro. Prototypes? No. They all simultaneously share the Sprint 4G Overdrive portable Hotspot when I'm on the road -- at a cost of $15/mo each for unlimited data.

 

[crackbookpro]

I hope some don't misinterpret my question of a MBA w/3G like the post below... My intentions are not to need an iPhone & tether, wifi, etc... I am looking for a MacBook Air with 3G...

I have a 4G iPhone, a 4G iPad, a 4G MacBook Air, and a 4G MacBook Pro. Prototypes? No. They all simultaneously share the Sprint 4G Overdrive portable Hotspot when I'm on the road -- at a cost of $15/mo each for unlimited data.

Sprint's 4G is a marketing ploy and is not technically 4G. So, before you go praisin', you should know that LTE coming to networks such as Verizon is 4G...

What you have is 3G with a lil boost at times... Sprint's WiMax is not something I would even consider.

 

[johnnymg]

I hope some don't misinterpret my question of a MBA w/3G like the post below... My intentions are not to need an iPhone & tether, wifi, etc... I am looking for a MacBook Air with 3G...

snip.............

No misunderstanding in the responses. We are giving you suggestions for 3G connectivity with a MBA that you can use NOW.

There is absolutely ZERO reason to expect a 3G native MBA.

As Rodney Dangerfield said in Caddy Shack: "you'll get nothing and like it!"

JohnG

 

[KnightWRX]

I see from your profile you don't live in the USA. Here we deal with AT&T, and do not have the option to tether to our iPhones unless we're willing to give up unlimited data access and pay an ADDITIONAL $20/month (on top of your normal data plan cost per month) for the "priviledge" of doing so.

I don't see why I should be paying more for my MBA because of some joke carrier in the US. Sorry.

Let's face it, there's already a lot of permutations for the MBA. Combine all the different configurations and you're already above iPad's 6 possible permutation. Throwing in 3G as an option doubles the permutations.

It would make inventory management a nightmare considering the MBA will sell less units than iPad.

With all the 3G connectivity for PCs already out there as external adapters, there is just no reason to double up your inventory or charge consumers who don't need 3G extra.

So, before you go praisin', you should know that LTE coming to networks such as Verizon is 4G...

LTE coming to Verizon at the end of this year is not 4G either.

 

[ReallyBigFeet]

I own a netbook with built-in 3G. I found it an absolute waste of hardware. Why do you want to pay for 3G connectivity with a device that is ONLY usable by the machine that carries it? I have been a MiFi owner for over a year now and there are very few times when its not running in my backpack (I bought an extended battery for it...get almost 10 hours out of it) and creating a WiFi bubble for my iPhone, my iPad, my laptop and providing 3G WiFi for my business colleagues as well.

 

[aristobrat]

If Apple made this a option for CTO machines (so that you'd only pay the extra price for this hardware if it's specifically chosen, vs incorporating it into all Airs and bumping the price for everyone), I'd be all for it.

Personally, I don't see any value in paying a US wireless carrier $60/month (which seems to be the going rate for laptop data plans) for as infrequently as I'd use it.

 

[KnightWRX]

If Apple made this a option for CTO machines (so that you'd only pay the extra price for this hardware if it's specifically chosen, vs incorporating it into all Airs and bumping the price for everyone), I'd be all for it.

And yet another CTO option would just add to their inventory management and make for even more permutations. It didn't make sense.

 

[aristobrat]

And yet another CTO option would just add to their inventory management and make for even more permutations. It didn't make sense.

Add to their inventory management system? Make for even more permutations? You're talking about the company that made BlueTooth and WiFi CTO options for their top-of-the-line system (Mac Pro) for years.

Personally, I don't think there's enough demand for Apple to consider 3G in notebooks yet. But if it ever gets to that point, I have little doubt that Apple won't find a profitable way to introduce them into its notebook lineup.

 

[T4R06]

iP4 MyWi + MBA = awesomeness!

 

[WardC]

$45.00 a month to pay for 2GB tethering service? I don't think so...

 

[johnnymg]

$45.00 a month to pay for 2GB tethering service? I don't think so...

FYI: The US Verizon plans are a better deal than what you posted. It's also not too difficult to get a 20+% discount from these prices. I have a 22% corporate discount. As usual, these prices do not include taxes.

$20 1 GB
$35 3 GB
$50 5 GB
$80 10 GB

I've been using the 5GB plan for over a year. Use it pretty heavily (no movie downloads though) and am always under 3GB/month.

JohnG

 

[SamTheeGeek]

yea i was wondering about the same thing, i really wanted 3G on my 13" macbook air but i guess not.

I have added an internet pre-paid USB stick to my MBA case so i can get connected everywhere it is ugly though.

Im waiting for my cellular carrier to restock the MiFi devices as iam totally gonna replace the USB stick and enjoy a clean looking macbook air


Have Fun Everyone

 

[KnightWRX]

Add to their inventory management system? Make for even more permutations? You're talking about the company that made BlueTooth and WiFi CTO options for their top-of-the-line system (Mac Pro) for years.

Yes, because the Mac Pro requires a different motherboard entirely to add Wifi and Bluetooth.

Seriously, that's your comeback ? This, again, would introduce yet another motherboard permutation to the inventory they have to either keep or produce. Makes. No. Sense.

No to mention, 3G what ? With all the standards floating around, that's even more permutations. Carriers already provide all the tools to connect your computer to their network if that is what you want. Apple doesn't have any plus value into shipping these tools.