Apple Updates MacBook Air and Drops Price to $1499

[Capoth]

A price drop of $700 is nice on one site.
However, it shows as well that they overcharged before.
Otherwise they couldn't drop the price that much.

Then they should of course think about people who just recently bought it, yeah, like me 3 week ago. Purchased the MBA 1.83. And three weeks later it's $700 less.
Somehow I feel robbed.
Now you can leave all your comments away whether the product was it worth after all, the point is that I feel robbed from Apple. And I am sure, most if not all buyers who recently purchased it will feel the same.

What about a compensation for us, Apple????
We are loyal customers as well ready to spend big money for such a Notebook. And now you tell us it's $700 cheaper.
The least what should happen is that Apple somehow compensate the ones which purchased within the last 2-3 months.

A drop of $100 or $200 we could certainly still live with but to see that after 3 weeks the MBA is $700 less worth, that is a tough one. Really tough one.

And hey Apple, I won't forget that one. You shot us in the back!

 

[Isidore]

MBA and ports

Write you off the MBA line forever. It will never have those ports, as it defeats the whole purpose of the MBA. God, please EOL the MBA before you let them destroy the point of the amazing uncluttered design!

I understand your argument but given that you cannot easily remove the drive, diagnostics/ repair are really hard without firewire, although you can boot from an external usb drive. Rather than a plethora of ports, I would like to see just one extra port: an Expresscard slot. I have a rev b SSD and my wife has a rev a HD and they are like day and night but even so, if the MBP 13" had existed with its FW800 (and now much improved screen) when I chose the MBA, I would have gone for that.

 

[f4ll]

I've waited ages in regards to purchasing a Macbook air. But now, due to this price-drop, I couldn't resist 'pulling the trigger' on the SSD model! Don't get me wrong – I'm aware of the Air's lack of ports etc, however, I already own a powerful desktop computer and therefore do not require the ethernet, Superdrive and extra Usb port. So, with that said, portability with a mixture of power is key here, and for what I do, the air will provide for me.

 

[boylovesgirl]

Yeah, although generally I applaud all the updated notebooks today and, especially, the lower prices for the Air, I do think it is very, very disappointing that the RAM limit is still 2Gb.

Firstly, I am, this week, going to buy a new Apple laptop, and it is in all liklihood going to be my primary Mac, and I really do want, need, more than 2Gb. It's a must quite simply, and even though the Air is a very capable machine, I, and I suspect many others, really need for peace of mind if nothing else, 4Gb in order to feel comfortable with using it over the next few years. I am going to be using Photoshop & other graphics packages and it's a shame because the Air is the form factor I want more than any, out of all the MacBooks.

I also feel very strongly now that sometime soon(perhaps when Steve returns)we will see a new model Air, probably with OLED screen, designed to fit in looks-wise with the rest of the notebooks, and specced up with 256SSD, buttonless trackpad, long-life battery, different colours, 3G built-in, and more besides. The OLED screen will be the killer feature, enabling an even thinner Air, yet still as powerful, and crucially, 4-8Gb RAM options.

edit: Also, the screen. Is it still the same as used before? In other words, will it still come with the lines?

edit 2: With each passing minute I am more sure that something is planned for the Air. There's no mention of the improved battery, no mention of the 60% greater-gamut screen, nothing: just the speed bump. Okay the price decrease is fabulous but the Air needs a revamp like no other notebook, and I feel it's gonna get one soon. Right now over here in the UK, if you want the 256SSD option in the MacBook, it's a whopping £520; that will come down and I reckon Apple will, before the Summer is out, launch an Air that will blow people away.

I bed apple will come with a smaller version of the. they just cleaned up their macbook line up to only macbook pro's. they don't want their line up to be messy. next will be the introduction of an air 10'' screen with around the same specs as the old/current one has. then they have a macbook pro family and a air family. remember 'laptops' are genereally choosen above macpro, imac and macmini. the demand is simply for 'laptop' type computers.

 

[boylovesgirl]

MacBook Air must have:

- Firewire port for repairs.
- Video-out port for presentations.
- Ethernet port for networking.
- Two USB ports for remote control.

Even better: make it half the weight (or less) and half the size (or less). If possible, make it even pocketable. The issue is not the price. The issue is the weight, the size and the ports. Or at least make it as an option.

Otherwise, no purchase!

they will. and they will come with more sizes to choose from.

 

[RPHUB]

new mac book pro

I just bought the 13 in. macbook and now learn i could have had a mac book pro for less $
any options!!????

 

[boylovesgirl]

A price drop of $700 is nice on one site.
However, it shows as well that they overcharged before.
Otherwise they couldn't drop the price that much.

Then they should of course think about people who just recently bought it, yeah, like me 3 week ago. Purchased the MBA 1.83. And three weeks later it's $700 less.
Somehow I feel robbed.
Now you can leave all your comments away whether the product was it worth after all, the point is that I feel robbed from Apple. And I am sure, most if not all buyers who recently purchased it will feel the same.

What about a compensation for us, Apple????
We are loyal customers as well ready to spend big money for such a Notebook. And now you tell us it's $700 cheaper.
The least what should happen is that Apple somehow compensate the ones which purchased within the last 2-3 months.

A drop of $100 or $200 we could certainly still live with but to see that after 3 weeks the MBA is $700 less worth, that is a tough one. Really tough one.

And hey Apple, I won't forget that one. You shot us in the back!

instead of complaining here. did you try to get a deal of this? like some money back, free software or simply return because it doesn't live up to your expectations?

 

[RPHUB]

any ideas about what to do if just bought a mac book
now you get a pro for less$???

 

[Sounds Good]

A price drop of $700 is nice on one site.
However, it shows as well that they overcharged before.

Absolutely true.

 

[Sambo110]

any ideas about what to do if just bought a mac book
now you get a pro for less$???

Yes. Only post once. And how long ago was it bought? Was it from the Apple store?

 

[BillyBobBongo]

Somehow I feel robbed.

Go back to the store (or call them up) and explain the circumstances. Maybe they'll understand and do something for you. Of course they may not. Price drops happen all the time and they have to have a cut-off point as to when it's acceptable to offer money or compensation for this sort of thing.

You won't know til you try!

 

[raccoontail]

MacBook Air must have:
- Firewire port for repairs.
- Video-out port for presentations.
- Ethernet port for networking.
- Two USB ports for remote control.
Even better: make it half the weight (or less) and half the size (or less). If possible, make it even pocketable. The issue is not the price. The issue is the weight, the size and the ports. Or at least make it as an option.
Otherwise, no purchase!

I fully agree. I have a $400 10" Netbook that has all of those ports (minus FW) and includes an SD slot. I travel frequently (isn't that who the MB Air is for?) and I can't tell you how convenient it is is not to have to carry dongles/ cords for connecting to a projector, wired ethernet, my camera, mouse, printers, etc. The USB ethernet adapter for the Air requires reminds me of the mid 1990s when powerbooks had AAUI ports that requried an external ethernet dongle. Seems like a huge step backwards.

Of course I'd much rather have OS X and a 13" screen for the same weight, but for travelers, compared to quality netbooks like the Samsung NC10 or MSI Wind, at 3x the cost, the Air is just not a very practical product. Most Netbooks use the 1.6 Atom, which with 2GB RAM runs XP pretty quickly and I Photoshop, code, etc without too much trouble. I think the 13" MB Pro is a great value, but I think the Air has a very limited audience. Apple needs to use its engineering brilliance to find a way to get some more ports into the Air and get the cost down even further.

 

[jdechko]

Two quick things.

1) I am thinking that they probably had a lot of logic boards already prepared with the 2GB, they just put the 2.13 on instead of the 1.6 and it's a cheap upgrade. That alone would save Apple a lot of money.

2) The other really expensive component is the SSD. Prices have come down a lot in the past 6 months/1 year, so that helps even more.

 

[Capoth]

@BillyBobBongo

You are certainly right, price drops happen all the time.
However, take the percentage of this price drop.
$700 from ... approx $2,400
That's a rough 30% price drop.

As I mentioned, nobody would complain if it is $100 or $200, maybe even $300 but that would be the limit. $700 however is really a lot.
Give me one sample of any electric appliance which had such an incredible price cut. Not in several smaller cuts, just one single cut like Apple did.
Actually the price drop is even more than $700 as we need to consider the CPU upgrade as well.

Going back to the store is not an option.
I purchased it in Thailand and this is one of the most customer unfriendliest countries I ever experienced.
They won't care at all. You could threaten them with legal actions, with demonstrations in front of their shop, you could even stop with a tank in front of their shop. They would still smile and say "Sorry, can't help".

I will however call the Asia Pacific Headquarters in Singapore tomorrow and complain there.

@Boylovesgirl
I not post here as a complain but to express my frustration about this.
Of course that might sound like a complain.
But even if it is a complain, why not? Apple gives me a good reason.
I would also like to know if there are other people who recently purchased a MBA and how they think about it. What are they going to do. Don't forget, together we are strong

 

[Sounds Good]

...quality netbooks like the Samsung NC10...

Great netbook!

 

[Eidorian]

Looks like HP dropped the price on the dv2.

I can't wait to see the dual-core Congo version.

 

[Pigumon]

I just bought the 13 in. macbook and now learn i could have had a mac book pro for less $
any options!!????

It depends on how "just" you bought it. If less than 14 days, you can return it and get your money back, then turn around and get the new one.

My friend got her 15" MBP 5 days too soon.

 

[richard.mac]

why doesnt the new MBA have a button-less trackpad? you would think in one of the last couple of they would have added it to match the rest of the MacBook range.

 

[Zargot]

USB Ethernet now included...

So the Air has that going for it, which is nice...

 

[zedsdead]

why doesnt the new MBA have a button-less trackpad? you would think in one of the last couple of they would have added it to match the rest of the MacBook range.

From what I have heard, the Air is too thin to have the glass trackpad.