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1.8GHz SSD MacBook Air Drops $500
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Agreed, but personally I don't see the value in the 1.8/80. I doubt under normal usage you'd see 0.2 GHz difference.
I still say just give it one more USB port and give the super drive a standard bridge so that it can be used on any book with a USB port.
Just adding one more port on the MBA would make it that much more desirable.
Yeah, I agree. I just went to the page and it's only a $200 price difference for the SSD with 1.6, and the 0.2 GHz won't matter much when we still have to deal with a 4200 rpm drive. Best to settle for either the base model or the high end.
Personally I'm waiting for gen 2. I think this price drop 2-3 weeks before the Montevina Platform is to be released is a good omen.
Gen 2 MBA may have the 128 GB SSD drive which supposedly is much faster and more power efficient. Couple that with a Montevina higher bus speed, better integrated graphics card, and a Penryn CPU and you will have a killer ultra-portable.
Let's hope for a Gen 2 MBA before end of July.
...no built-in toaster, no purchase.
no vhs player, no purchase.
no electrical outlet for plugging in my toaster that's not built in, no purchase.
no cupholder, no purchase.
no 500 terabyte hard drive, no purchase.
...seriously? like, really?
why don't you just buy a mac pro and carry it around like a laptop? i know it's not exactly "portable"- but at least it has all those damn ports!
still too expensive. but at least it's a move in the right direction. but i love my mbp - and it's not that bulky and heavy.
For me, if the only real difference in what I am carrying is 2lbs, then it isnt that much more desireable than just having a MB or MBP. I want the MBA to be the next level in portability. Have a fair selection of ports, and a very strong battery. The machine sacrifices too much for its form factor. And dont tell me its impossible to do, as several other manufacturers have machines that best the MBA in hardware within the same size constraints.
Of course, if the MBP and MB were not so damn good and relatively compact to begin with, we wouldnt be having this conversation.
This is great. I always thought 1g for a smaller capacity drive was WAY too much even if it is soild state.
I've seen many many many Airs in a public setting. Especially when traveling by airplane. In fact, I've seen more Airs than I have MacBook Pros.
...no built-in toaster, no purchase.
no vhs player, no purchase.
no electrical outlet for plugging in my toaster that's not built in, no purchase.
no cupholder, no purchase.
no 500 terabyte hard drive, no purchase.
...seriously? like, really?
why don't you just buy a mac pro and carry it around like a laptop? i know it's not exactly "portable"- but at least it has all those damn ports!
lmao
no starbucks coffee maker, no purchase
Opening programs for the first time as well as doing a cold boot is noticeably slower on my MBA than on my 24" iMac. Once the programs are open or have already been open once, the difference between the machines isn't very noticeable. As you said, the HD is the bottleneck and not the processor. Granted, if I were to go for the SSD, I'd possibly consider going all the way and getting the 1.8.
I wonder if the X300 from Lenovo will see similar price cuts.
ij3ffy, regarding the displays, Apple must be waiting to go all LED for their next lineup. It wouldn't make sense to refresh the ACD dramatically now without an LED display.
The UK price of the 64GB SSD Macbook Air is £1719 (which is a £309 reduction from its original price)
The 1.8Ghz Core 2 Duo processor costs £130 and the 64GB SSD is £389.99
The 1.8Ghz Core 2 Duo processor costs £130 and the 64GB SSD is £389.99
What I don't think we'll see is a revision that includes any substantial changes to the case, such as additional ports. If Apple can fit a larger SSD or HDD into the current one, though, I think they'll do it. Before end of July would be great, although I think that's overly optimistic. But maybe by fall.
To those who question why anyone would pay a premium for a MBA when they can get more for less from a MB or MBP, two pounds does make a difference if you have to carry the computer over your shoulder all day, at least to some people.
The MBA may be a niche product for now, but over time I think that lightweight laptops (say, less than four pounds) will move into the mainstream as vendors are able to pack more into their small form factor. That's been true historically as laptops went from luxury products to desktop replacements.
Then the MBA isn't for you. What would be the point if you have to be wired to a modem all the time?
I don't know if you're in school on in the workforce yet, but many companies (and almost all gov. installations) won't have anything to do with wireless. The various security conferences have shown time and time again that the wireless protocols are insecure. Sure, they are fine for your home or the coffee shops, but beyond that they just aren't there yet.
The point of the laptops I've owned over the years has been the ability to take my work with me. That's the portable piece and the point of a laptop.
My company's wireless access points are open and without passwords or any security.
They're also configured so that the only IP address that they can connect to is our corporate VPN server pool. When you get the wireless connection, you need to log in through the two-factor VPN authentication, otherwise you can't access anything.
Therefore all traffic is protected by the secure VPN protocols - not the wireless insecurity protocols.
You can just get a router for real cheap and plug it up to one of the home computers, then plug the computer back into the router via ethernet.
Wireless routers aren't really that big of a deal. They aren't hard to get or hook up. Ethernet is still a viable way to connect to the Internet, but having an ethernet port isn't that much of a must have feature anymore. And I'd rather have my MBP not have one to get another FW port or eSATA port in there.
...as long as you don't mind the fact that anyone in the vicinity can intercept your connections and eavesdrop on your activity.
I just noticed that the airport that I'm at is using a VPN for all wireless - so that even the free wifi is safe.
AnchorFree
Public networks (both wired and wireless) are great. After all, what would life be without connecting while at airports, hotels and coffee shops? ...
http://www.anchorfree.com/hotspot-shield
Public networks (both wired and wireless) are great. After all, what would life be without connecting while at airports, hotels and coffee shops? ...
http://www.anchorfree.com/hotspot-shield