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Apple Announces MacBook Air

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Solution in search of a problem ... and what's with the thin fetish?

I'd been looking forward to something ultraportable from Apple, be it a laptop, tablet, UMPC, MID, whatever ... let's just say the MacBook Air is not for me. After getting over the initial disappointment I started to wonder - who is this for?

So, what's not to like?

FORM:

Alu - for some reason I have never liked how Apple does alu cases.

Wedge - the strange wedge-shape is so PC. I much prefer the "simplistic" styling of the MB / MBP.

Black keys - meh, just meh.

Still 13.3" - why a new line if the form factor is going to be the same? Granted, it's thin (so what?) and a bit lighter but hardly ultraportable (1.5 kg is pushing the definition, 13.3" is right out. As someone else's already noted - if the MacBook won't fit in your bag / briefcase, this won't either.)

Of course everything is a matter of taste but the thing looks more like a Sony or even a high-end Dell than an Apple computer.

FUNCTION:

ODD gone - finally. Most Apps come in downloadable or network-installable versions nowadays. For those that don't, a remote drive or the external will have to do. As for DVDs ... personally I never got around to using them, switched straight from VHS to storing everything on a media server. Rip once and copy to where you need it. Maybe they should have included a legal DVD ripping app.

NIC gone - "filling" this thing with media before a longer trip is going to be a pain wirelessly. Note that the dongle is 10/100 only and not 10/100/1000. Gigabit was a selling point vs. PC laptops ...

no built-in HSDPA - HSDPA SIMs can be had prepaid from EUR 20 / GB (use within a year), which goes a long way when you're just surfing. Contracts are much cheaper and have started to include multiple SIM cards. Basically I could stick one in everything from my mobile to my toaster and still not break the bank. A HSDPA USB dongle can be had for EUR 100, built-in is likely much cheaper and would spare me having to carry the dongle around.

Expandability in general - while I personally can live without the firewire port, just one USB port is cutting it close. I don't want to have to disconnect the mouse / NIC / HSDPA whenever someone hands me a USB stick ... For me, Apple was about not having to carry an assortment of accessories with me just because I might need them - because near everything was built in. Thats's a VGA / DVi dongle, HSDPA dongle, NIC dongle, USB hub and - looking at the runtime and fixed battery - probably the power brick now. Might just as well lug around the MacBook.

power - the 1.6 is fine, this is not a vido editing device, however the 1.8" hdd is going to be a dog. These aren't meant to be used as regular hdds but to slowly stream music or video. A small additional flash cache (say 4 or 8GB) would have been a cheap way to alleviate that, but no ...

movable parts - even with the SSD option it still seems to have a fan.

The way I see it the Air's only advantage (over the MacBook) is its weight, as long as you can make do with the built-in stuff, and its thinness if you think that's beautiful / cool / classy. Where's the new features, the innovation?

Or in other words: leaving the house for work / uni / a trip / ... and I could take the MB or the MBA with me, why would I or anyone chose the MBA?
 
Vidd said:
Also £639 for 64GB? Seems I'll be waiting a while to own a SSD laptop... :(
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The technology of SSD drives is ready for the mainstream but they are still too expensive to make - still, I think their time will come soon and Apple's intro of SSD drives is forward thinking.
 
B*****ks. Why wasn't this out a year ago. ;). This was exactly what I needed, but had to go down the Wintel route. (Dell D420 FYI)

For those complainign about potential performance, the Dell has a 1.2ghz core duo ULV (note not c2d so 32bit only), 1Gb of ram and a 60gb 1.8PATA HDD. It runs photoshop ok on Vista with aero glass turned on. While the performance in benchmarks isn't good, its fine for a quick bit of retouching etc as a second machine.
 
Decrepit said:
Sweden is a little larger than California. We have a little more work to do for deployments across the country. Some vendors are selling fibre to the home, but only in new neighborhoods where they can lay the fibre before construction.

Sweden also has about the same number of people in the whole country as New York City has alone. We have some density and infrastructure issues to overcome.
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Sweden is pretty much exactly the same size as California, but I hear you on the density issue. On the other hand it's a huge overkill to build this kind of infrastructure for a population of only 9 million, surely if the same thing was done in California the investment would pay off a heckuvalot more than it does here. That's why I don't understand what's holding them back over there, the potential customer base is gigantic compared to Sweden.

We'll get better speeds at some point, but I think it will only come when some really decent wireless technologies come along. You can't exactly dig up NYC to lay fibre to all the different buildings.
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There's fibre all over Stockholm and I'm positive nobody dug up the 600 year old buildings in Old Town to get that done. I'm not sure how they did it, but we have it and all buildings are accounted for... the big fibre rollout happened sometime around 1999-2000. Everyone can't get 100 mbps fibreLAN, but everyone can get 24 mbps DSL.
 
sdds said:
Did you even bother looking at Sony's Vaio TZ offerings and really compare them to Apple's? You, sir, don't have a clue because obviously you didn't. Try this for a start. Then come back and complain. OK?
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Hahahaha for $3,699.99 You got: (click the link to see more)
VAIO® TZ Series Notebook - Premium Model
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo Processor U7700 (1.33GHz, 2MB L2 Cache)
Genuine Windows Vista® Business

Series Features: 11.1" LCD XBRITE-HiColor™, Sprint® Mobile Broadband Wireless WAN, 1.3M camera, Bluetooth®, fingerprint sensor
Upgrade Features: Hybrid 64GB Solid State Drive, 250GB hard drive, external DVD±R/RW DL optical drive

Compare it to air? Definitely going with air!
 
Anuba said:
Sweden is pretty much exactly the same size as California, but I hear you on the density issue. On the other hand it's a huge overkill to build this kind of infrastructure for a population of only 9 million, surely if the same thing was done in California the investment would pay off a heckuvalot more than it does here. That's why I don't understand what's holding them back over there, the potential customer base is gigantic compared to Sweden.


There's fibre all over Stockholm and I'm positive nobody dug up the 600 year old buildings in Old Town to get that done. I'm not sure how they did it, but we have it and all buildings are accounted for... the big fibre rollout happened sometime around 1999-2000. Everyone can't get 100 mbps fibreLAN, but everyone can get 24 mbps DSL.
Click to expand...


They did it because the fibre roll out was largely handled by local authorities and other public sector organisations - this meant that they were able to use existing piping and sewer systems to lay new cable along.

They were able to do this because Sweden is one of the highest taxed countries in the world and they can afford to. In other countries the cost is prohibitive for the public sector. This means it's left to private companies to do so, but there is no financial incentive for them to do so right now here in the UK or the US.
 
k2director said:
It's strange. You and others think that because people are doing "lighter applications" (like word processing, email, internet, listening to media) that they are going to want to pay less for a computer than if they were using the computer for video or 3d rendering.

That doesn't make sense at all. For many people, the value of the machine is NOT to run higher-end apps, because they have no use for such software. The value of the machine is that it's VERY LIGHT and VERY SMALL, which is something that higher-powered computers definitely are not. It's like you're taking your own value system (which does not value size and weight above hardware performance), and you're applying it to other people that you don't understand.

Imagine that you're a professional writer who's on-the-go a lot. Are you really going to stop yourself from getting a $1799 Mac that will lighten your load BY HALF (which is very important to you), when no other Mac in that price range can do that? Just think: are you going to insist on paying $1200 or $1800 on a Macbook or Macbook Pro, which has features you never use, but weighs too much? Or are you going to choose the machine that suits your work habits and needs more closely?

For many people, the Macbook Air is going to suit their needs better than a Macbook or Macbook Pro. When a machine suits people's needs, they're willing to pay for it, as long as its price is reasonable. And compared to other 3 pound computers, the Macbook Air's price is reasonable...

Really, I think the problem with this thread is that it's populated by too many teenagers and college students that who have a skewed sense of value...
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When you say half ("that will lighten your load BY HALF" - you) you realize that means two pounds. Two pounds. That's it. Nothing else. This thing is thinner than a MB, but it's still 13". It doesn't conserve much space, and the lower weight is negligible to most people who have any sort of muscle in their arms. This is nothing more than a vanity product. Sure, some pro-writers will buy 'em, but the point is the average person looking for a machine for e-mail, chat, music listening, video watching, etc. will not be interested in this machine. It doesn't even have a friggin' optical drive.
 
God it's thin but it looks so fragile. I would be scared to break it in half lol.
I think I'll just stick to my MBP.
 
Unbelieveable Letdown

So it's thin. So it has backlit keys. Bravo.
NOTHING ELSE. Better off with regular MacBook or MacBook Pro.
Bottom line.
 
hierobryan said:
what are you? a 3 foot tall midget with muscular dystrophy?

seriously, anyone who is willing to pay that much for a minor 2lb. drop in weight and a half inch drop in size is CRAZY!
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Tell that to many of the customers I've sold lightweight ThinkPad X60s, Latitude D430s, and really lightweight Sonys to. Again, especially in an academic setting that I worked in where people are carrying lots of books and stuff, weight does matter, even if it is only a couple pounds.

Now ease up on the rhetoric. Not everyone thinks like you or has your priorities.
 
me_94501 said:
Tell that to many of the customers I've sold lightweight ThinkPad X60s, Latitude D430s, and really lightweight Sonys to. Again, especially in an academic setting that I worked in where people are carrying lots of books and stuff, weight does matter, even if it is only a couple pounds.

Now ease up on the rhetoric. Not everyone thinks like you or has your priorities.
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Quoted for truth.

I've got to say that the custom silicon(e) from Intel is quite something.
 
CaptainScarlet said:
Regardless if the product is good or bad. The product defines what innovation is.
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Innovation is to remove features and functionality?

Any damn PC manufacturer can butcher their machines to make them thinner and lighter. If you remove Firewire, Ethernet, optical drive, 2.5" HDD and battery door and leave only a single USB port, how can it not be thin and light? There's nothing left!

I can do that with my car too. I'll just remove the engine, the gearbox, the passenger seats and the ACC, then I'll flatten it with a tank. It's so thin and light now, where's my Innovator of the Year Award?
 
What a pile of crap.. im sorry but the macbook air is pointless.. aimed at the pretentious consumer - definately a very peecee move in my opinion and most probably a contribution/demand from apples exec board..
i dont even want to talk about it-i dunno where to start! :confused: i was expecting big today..
let down
 
wilmor42 said:
What a pile of crap.. im sorry but the macbook air is pointless.. aimed at the pretentious consumer - definately a very peecee move in my opinion and most probably a contribution/demand from apples exec board..
i dont even want to talk about it-i dunno where to start! :confused: i was expecting big today..
let down
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I completely agree.
 
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