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Apple's Ultra-Slim 12-Inch MacBook Air Rumored to Enter Mass Production in Early 2015

I’d love an Apple macbook running OS X that I can remove the keyboard from (or twist under) and it becomes an iOS iPad. Surface done right.
 
maflynn said:
The question is, prior rumors had this machine using Apple's processor and not Intel's.

I also think 12", like the 11" is just too small but that's just me.
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Me too. I quite like the 13" and I thought Apple had it just right in offering the 11 and 13. Not sure why they'd go to a 12. Doesn't seem to make any sense. I wouldn't be surprised if there were much more to this product than is being suggested.
 
ctyrider said:
It's not just about the weight, to me it's mostly about the footprint. 11" MBA is substantially smaller than 13", and that makes a huge difference in many situations.. For instance, while flying and using a laptop in a seat tray.

The way I look at my 11" MBA - it gives me a full computing power while offering portability and mobility of an iPad. That combatton cannot be beat by any other computing device on the market.

My only gripe about MBA (which applies equally to 11" and 13" models) - lack of retina and relatively large besels. If both of these can be addressed in 12" update (while preserving current 11" footprint) - that would result in a perfect mobile computer to me.
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I bet these things could be addressed if Apple was okay with the Air being a bit thicker.

I hear you on the footprint on flights. I find my 13" fits, but it is a somewhat tight fit.
And I'm talking about my laptop and seat back tables.:mad:
 
TallManNY said:
I think so.

Maybe they will discontinue the 11". I wonder how many of those they actually sell. I don't think I've ever seen one in the wild. I'm in New York and in coffee shops probably 80% of the laptops I see are Macs. Maybe even a higher percentage than that. I see more old 17" ones than 11". The 11" is light, but besides that it is inferior to the 13" because of screen size. But if they make the 12" even lighter, then what is the point of the 11"?
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I'm on the west coast, and I've never seen a 17" in the wild, though I do have a friend that claims they use one. Everyone I know (and the folks I see in the coffee shops) has the 11" MBA, the 13" MBP, or a Surface. IMO 11" is perfect for toting around and more than big enough to do anything including photoshop and lightroom work.

Maybe it's a coast thing?

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ctyrider said:
It's not just about the weight, to me it's mostly about the footprint. 11" MBA is substantially smaller than 13", and that makes a huge difference in many situations.. For instance, while flying and using a laptop in a seat tray.

The way I look at my 11" MBA - it gives me a full computing power while offering portability and mobility of an iPad. That combatton cannot be beat by any other computing device on the market.

My only gripe about MBA (which applies equally to 11" and 13" models) - lack of retina and relatively large besels. If both of these can be addressed in 12" update (while preserving current 11" footprint) - that would result in a perfect mobile computer to me.
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THIS.

Given that the 11" has an 11.6-inch screen and about an inch (or more) in bezel on each side, they could easily go to a 12" screen (or maybe even slightly larger, such as a 12.3) without changing the footprint.
 
Houdini528 said:
Yeah just what we need a thinner MacBook Air. Of course there will be no room for connecting peripherals…...you will have to use the Jedi mind trick in order to connect any USB device.:rolleyes:
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When people start using a thinner MBA they sure as hell won't want to use a fatter one.
 
flur said:
I'm on the west coast, and I've never seen a 17" in the wild, though I do have a friend that claims they use one. Everyone I know (and the folks I see in the coffee shops) has the 11" MBA, the 13" MBP, or a Surface. IMO 11" is perfect for toting around and more than big enough to do anything including photoshop and lightroom work.

Maybe it's a coast thing?

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THIS.

Given that the 11" has an 11.6-inch screen and about an inch (or more) in bezel on each side, they could easily go to a 12" screen (or maybe even slightly larger, such as a 12.3) without changing the footprint.
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it heavily depends on your demographics/social economic level. I used to have 17 inch MBP before it died on me. Most of my friends (in the industry) use 17 inch for graphic designs/movie processing. I miss it, wish Apple brings it back

currently on 15 inch rMBP, it's not the same.
 
AlecZ said:
Was 11" too small and 13" too big for some people?
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maflynn said:
The question is, prior rumors had this machine using Apple's processor and not Intel's.

I also think 12", like the 11" is just too small but that's just me.
Click to expand...

quackers82 said:
Please NO! The 13" is as small as my eyes can take for a few hours of use. Don't ruin the Air and make it 12" only :(
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I'm with you guys. I wanted Broadwell battery goodness and pine for more pixel real estate, but frequently have to zoom in on my 13" - especially when editing text.

So dunno how much the added sharpness of Retina would mitigate that....
 
TallManNY said:
Well I didn't say it shouldn't exist. I just thought that it was likely to not sell nearly in the same numbers as the MBA 13". And that most folks
I suspect you are in the minority of MBA 11" that use it as their only computer. It seems that others have the luxury of using the 11" just for travel and they have another computer that they use most of the time. Or they have another fairly expensive solution, like you have implemented, with two large and expensive displays.
If the 12" weighs nearly the same amount as the current 11", will the 11" still be unbeatable to you? Is there a point where dropping additional weight just doesn't make enough of a difference? Certainly in form factor, I'm pretty sure I've never carried a bag that I could fit an 11" into but not a 13". So the volume size difference seems meaningless to me. The weight difference might make some difference. It seems to make a difference to you.
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I use it as my primary computer.

Yes, I do have a somewhat expensive solution (a 21" monitor that cost... $150(?), and an external keyboard that cost $150 as well). There is definitely a trade-off here (having to plug in and set up my workspace every time I get back), but it's definitely worth it.

When I use it on its own, I do have to increase the zoom in applications. I suppose it's a burden that I have to shoulder.

In regards to the 12" weighing the same as the 11": I definitely would take the 12". Retina display, increased processing power and more affordable parts upgrades (RAM and SSD mainly: I'm dreaming for a 16GB RAM upgrade option, and cheaper SSD upgrades. Hoping for a base 256 GB, so I can upgrade to 512GB or 768GB).

A weight drop wouldn't really affect me, as the weight right now is perfect. It just needs to work on screen size (slightly bigger screen without any significant increase in weight), better parts and more affordable upgrades.

Is it the volume of the MBA 11" that makes it so good for travel or is the weight? I just don't get how the volume makes a difference. Any laptop, briefcase, backpack or nearly any other bag I can think of will easily hold the MBA 13".
But weight is weight, and the more that can be shed the better I suppose.
I suspect Apple can decrease the bezel on the next generation of laptops. So I wouldn't worry too much there. But shedding another few millimeters of thickness isn't going to allow me to fit the device into a bag that it wouldn't fit into before. Again though the weight decrease that comes from thinness is nice.
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It's mainly the weight. The lack of heft.

I had a MacBook (White) 2007" and a MacBook Pro 15" (Unibody, late 2008) and those were incredibly heavy. Not insurmountable, but nevertheless, incredibly heavy in comparison to my MacBook Air 11" (which was meant to be a stopgap until the retina MacBook Pro 15" of 2012).

I've had my MBA 11" since. I use it as my daily driver, but when I'm back home I pair it up with a 21" monitor, a mouse and a mechanical keyboard.

The processing power is perfect. Not a fan of the limited constraints (only 4GB RAM and 128 GB SSD), but it's perfect as a computer. Does a bit of light gaming as well, but I'm hoping for the Broadwell/Haswell edition to improve significantly upon the Intel HD 3000 that it currently has.
 
The notebook I've been waiting for. 12" would be the sweet spot for me. Would like it in gold with smaller bezels. Fanless would be nice, but I have zero engineering knowledge so I'm not sure how feasible that actually is without it becoming a hot iron!
 
Sexy body rubbish keyboard

Try out an old generation MacBook Pro (the one with the DVD drive), and the keyboard is way way nicer to type on. I had a 2012 MacBook Air 13", and the keyboard was worse than my previous MacBook, and now I'm on a 2013 MacBook Pro 2013, and the keyboard is worse than that. Hurts my fingers, so i have to mount my Logitech solar powered keyboard on top to use it's better keys - and numberpad, although the latter is not as important as full or deaper throw keys.

Apple are putting style over ergonomics. A pity, as the trackpad and built quality of the MacBooks blow the Windows 'competition' out of the water. I have a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro 13.3", probably the best Windows laptop ever made, but it's ruined by a useless confused Windows 8.1 OS, failure to adapt it's apps to the 3200 x 1600 pixel (or so) touch screen display and constant crashes, bugs and annoying security prompts in the OS. But the hardware, in particular, the keyboard, is very nice. Lenovo's specialty.

If only I could run a touch screen version of OS X on it!
 
flur said:
I'm on the west coast, and I've never seen a 17" in the wild, though I do have a friend that claims they use one. Everyone I know (and the folks I see in the coffee shops) has the 11" MBA, the 13" MBP, or a Surface. IMO 11" is perfect for toting around and more than big enough to do anything including photoshop and lightroom work.

Maybe it's a coast thing?

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Interesting. Maybe it is a coast thing. I really rarely see the 11" and I don't think I know anyone who has one. Folks that I know tend to buy the Air or the Pro but always in the 13". And yes I do still see the ancient 17" out and about.
I tend to do a few hours of work every weekend in one of my local coffee shops. So I get a chance to see what folks are using. And since I'm doing work from my corporate job, I'm usually the one guy in the place using a PC.
 
flur said:
I'm on the west coast, and I've never seen a 17" in the wild, though I do have a friend that claims they use one. Everyone I know (and the folks I see in the coffee shops) has the 11" MBA, the 13" MBP, or a Surface. IMO 11" is perfect for toting around and more than big enough to do anything including photoshop and lightroom work.

Maybe it's a coast thing?
Click to expand...

I know of two people who still regularly use their 17'' MBP out in the wild. I am shocked every time I see how big it is compared to my 15''.

However, I think there's a limit to how big a laptop can be and still be comfortable to carry around. I'd much rather have a 15'' to carry around than a 17'', and I am someone who likes big displays.
 
I don't understand you who complain about the new supposed 12' being to thin, to powerless etc etc etc. Just buy a Pro or maybe switch to another brand, my mother's HP weighs like a brick and is 15' - amazing machine!
The majority of Air users use it for browsing, writing, storing pictures, playing music, maybe connecting it to their TV to watch a movie etc - they want it to be portable, light and with a decent battery. If this new Mac offers more than 5 hours battery time, retina, decent speed etc - I'm buying it in a heartbeat. If it doesn't suit YOUR needs than buy something else, for me it'll be just perfect.
 
Aside from the introduction of the 11" model, the MacBook Air has barely changed in its form factor since its inception back in 2008. That, to me, is a true testament to the quality of the design. I'm skeptical that making the machine even thinner is actually going to increase utility.

But one thing is for sure -- get ready for yet another new display port and the requirement for yet another new dongle that you will forget to bring to every meeting.
 
Skylitfly said:
Mavricks was good OS, way better than Mountain Lion for example. iPhone 6 is a good phone. And I don't have any problems with iOS 8 since 8.1 update.

Get your stuff right.
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Ha ha. As if you know what I've been going through since installing Mavericks and 8.1.

I've never had this many problems with software from Apple ever. Hardware yes (and that happens.) I've been using Apple machines for almost 19 years now and iPhones for 5.

Oh, pardon me... I should go get my stuff right. Lord knows I've been trying, but Apple has not.
 
Would be amazing, a 12". I think it's the perfect size for a MacBook air as the 11 is just a little too small, and if ur going to go w a 13, might as well get the MacBook pro. Scoff not: this product would CATAPAULT them into 2015.

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AlecZ said:
Was 11" too small and 13" too big for some people?
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Believe it or not... Yes!!! Wait and see
 
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