New Macbook Air 11 (Early 2015) - Thoughts

[BigMcGuire]

My wife and I just got Macbook Airs 11 (2015) yesterday. We've been living off of Chromebooks for the last three years and wanted something a bit nicer. We have Windows desktops at home for gaming but iPhones/iPads for mobile. I owned a Macbook Air 13 (2011) for about a year. When I had my Macbook Air 13 in 2011 I always thought it was too big and wanted the 11 inch.

Thoughts:
Loving the form factor and size of the Air 11. It's almost so small that it's hard to keep on my lap so I bought a lapdesk. I noticed that most lapdesks have terrible reviews so it was difficult finding one. So, ended up getting: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004SOMAWA?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00

Chrome vs Safari. Chrome seems very laggy and slow but I need it for Hangouts. Safari has clearer/sharper text especially when I'm HDMI'ed to a Dell Ultrasharp. Safari is noticeably faster - battery life seems heavily affected when I'm running Chrome. I use Hangouts a lot so I have to use Chrome. I find I'm using Chrome JUST for the Hangouts app and Safari for most of my browsing. Safari imported everything from Chrome really nicely. Hangouts app seems buggy and crashes now and then.
The Chrome lag and text not being so sharp is really disappointing. I use Chrome on all my devices (iPad, iPhone, Macbook). Chrome lag is driving me to Safari. Being able to see all the webpages on all my devices from any device (via Chrome) is a huge huge plus. Does Safari have this?

Absolutely LOVING the ability to send/receive texts from my phone via my Macbook. That alone is one of the biggest features I love. I see this applies to my iPad too.

Coming from Windows - I did a ton of reading on whether or not an Antivirus was necessary. I've used Eset and Avast on my Windows desktops (never got a virus) in the past along with regular Malwarebytes/Ccleaner scans. But from what I see, an antivirus isn't necessary -- I do have AdwareMedic installed and will run that now and then. I installed Ccleaner as well. That sound good?

Last:
Can anyone recommend a good sleeve? I had a 11' sleeve for my Chromebook but it's just a tad too small (zipper rubs on Macbook) for the Macbook.

Would love any suggestions/input. My past life is 99% Windows.

Thanks!
-Paul

 

[MRrainer]

I think they said they fixed a lot of the Chrome issues in a recent build of Chromium. There was an article either here or over at AI about it some time ago.
Don't know when this stuff will hit Chrome. I personally don't even have it installed.

 

[Appurushido]

Last:
Can anyone recommend a good sleeve? I had a 11' sleeve for my Chromebook but it's just a tad too small (zipper rubs on Macbook) for the Macbook.

I have the same (2015 MBA 11"). After extensive research, I ended up with the Incase 11" Neoprene Classic Sleeve for MacBook Air. The only place I can seem to find them is at the Apple store (where I bought mine). They have 3 colors; Black, Blue, and Pink. I use it with a separate 14" Asus laptop bag. I am able to fit work documents, my iPhone and chargers, as well as the charger for the MBA.

It has fine soft padding on the inside, which I didn't find on some others. If you have an apple store nearby, you should check it out. There is a bag version as well, but I think that product has been discontinued.

 

[MRrainer]

I think they said they fixed a lot of the Chrome issues in a recent build of Chromium. There was an article either here or over at AI about it some time ago.
Don't know when this stuff will hit Chrome. I personally don't even have it installed.

https://www.macrumors.com/2015/06/12/chrome-os-x-performance-improvements-safari/

 

[BigMcGuire]

Wow awesome - thank you MRrainer - that's good news. I like Safari and its speed but I've been using Chrome for so many years it's hard to give up old habits. I will patiently wait .

Thank you Appurushido - I will check that out next time I hit up an Apple Store.

 

[SSD-GUY]

I have a Booq 11 case and it's perfect. I've also invested in a STM Blazer 11 as it has a strap, I picked it up off eBay for about £10 so have a look on there.