Essential accessories for an MacBook Air??

[EatsRainbows]

Hi everyone!

I am a university student who travels from home to uni every day, and I was wondering what are, in your opinions, some essential accessories I should have as a future MBA user. I have at the moment an 15" Acer eMachines E525, and it is failing across the board as each day goes by, so I thought I would switch to the wonderful world of Apple products.

I already have some things in mind:

-Applesac/Colcasac sleeve (not sure about this, any experience would be helpful)
-1TB Time Capsule for back ups
-Magic Mouse?

Any suggestions will help

 

[Psilocybin]

Hi everyone!

I am a university student who travels from home to uni every day, and I was wondering what are, in your opinions, some essential accessories I should have as a future MBA user. I have at the moment an 15" Acer eMachines E525, and it is failing across the board as each day goes by, so I thought I would switch to the wonderful world of Apple products.

I already have some things in mind:

-Applesac/Colcasac sleeve (not sure about this, any experience would be helpful)
-1TB Time Capsule for back ups
-Magic Mouse?

Any suggestions will help

the time capsule is great..i don't see the magic mouse all that necessary...and a external dvd drive if you want to install bootcamp or use other dvds

 

[vandoorn]

Well i am planning to buy the air also.

I want to buy:

Magic Mouse
Ethernet adapter
Mini Display to HDMI Adapter
Mini Display to VGA Adapter
Apple Super Drive

To have the complete package

 

[fatlardo]

I dont think you need a drive, if you have another computer, you can share the drive.

 

[Sodner]

You guys see Lion? I wouln't get a Magic Mouse.

 

[redhot47fl]

I'm an Apple rookie who has been lurking here for months as I do my research and get ready to buy an MBA as soon as the refresh comes out.

A quick question before I return to Lurkville:

Why might Lion render a Magic Mouse unnecessary?

 

[Psilocybin]

I'm an Apple rookie who has been lurking here for months as I do my research and get ready to buy an MBA as soon as the refresh comes out.

Two quick questions before I return to Lurkville:

1. Can the MBA (any Mac) share a drive that's on a PC? I ask because I'll want to load Office for Mac on the MBA and that's pretty much the only use I might ever get out of the drive.

2. Referring to another reply, why might Lion render a Magic Mouse unnecessary?

Multi touch gestures. I bought a magic mouse for my air and I barely use it. I am going to sell it since I have one on my iMac already


Sent from my iPhone 4 using Tapatalk

 

[Hankster]

No need for a mouse with the MBA, especially with Lion coming out. External hard drives are okay but usually you can get away with the HD on the MBA or just an extra flash drive.

 

[JasonR]

While I like the Magic Mouse...i prefer other mice (VX Nano). However...unless I'm designing I don't EVER need a mouse. The MBA trackpad is great.

You can almost download any piece of software off the net which makes a superdrive almost useless. I never missed it on my air, and never paired it with my Mac. I also installed Windows 7 from a thumb drive via boot camp.

A 1 TB timecapsule isn't necessary...but it's nice! I have an airport extreme and it works really well.

 

[redhot47fl]

Thanks, folks. Much appreciated.

As for the drive, after initially posting my query, I poked around a little more and found that Remote Disc can be loaded onto a PC. So, I definitely can avoid buying the drive. (I already bought a DVD of Office for Mac under the relatively low-cost academic program, so that would be my preferred route for loading this program in the MBA, which will be my first Mac.)

 

[Psilocybin]

Thanks, folks. Much appreciated.

As for the drive, after initially posting my query, I poked around a little more and found that Remote Disc can be loaded onto a PC. So, I definitely can avoid buying the drive. (I already bought a DVD of Office for Mac under the relatively low-cost academic program, so that would be my preferred route for loading this program in the MBA, which will be my first Mac.)

Keep in mind you can't install windows via bootcamp without an external drive


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[redhot47fl]

Keep in mind you can't install windows via bootcamp without an external drive


Sent from my iPhone 4 using Tapatalk

Thanks. I know that many people do that, but - in my case - the whole point of this exercise to start moving (running) away from Windows and the whole PC world of aggravation.

 

[drewyboy]

X-nah on the magic mouse, at least personally. I have one for my iMac, which I will be selling for buy MBA, and I don't like it at all. At first I did, and the touch motions were slick, but now I'm just sick of it. Always "accidentally" swiping this or that and well, I'm back to my good old Logitech mouse. I'm a firm believer that logitech makes the best mouses. But I do love the apple keyboard. So me personally, essential accessories:

-External Monitor (21",24",27" haven't decided yet)
-Bluetooth keyboard and mouse
-MBA stand to put at same eye level as monitor
-External <- ABSOLUTE MUST! (I'm probably going nas w/ this or up my mac mini hdd which is use for a home server, 2009 cheap one)

Some will say, why don't you just get the iMac? I say cuz I have it right now and there are tons of times I need to be able to take it somewhere, which I can't.(I have actually seen a guy w/ a carry case pull out his 24" imac at a coffee shop once). I had a 2007 macbook and thought, wow, if only i got an imac. I thought i'd do a good bit of video editing for fun... well, that isn't happening. I dabble here and there w/ CS5 production suite, but I'll probably also get FCPX and the new Motion. It will run those programs just fine i'm sure, but encoding will take a bit more, but probably on par w/ my current i3 imac so performance, I honestly don't think I'll see much of a difference.

 

[Fargard]

Keep in mind you can't install windows via bootcamp without an external drive

Apple should patch Bootcamp then. Should really be capable of installing an OS from an usb drive, considering the existence of the MBA...

 

[Sheet]

Hi everyone!
I already have some things in mind:

-Applesac/Colcasac sleeve (not sure about this, any experience would be helpful)
-1TB Time Capsule for back ups
-Magic Mouse?

I got the Colcasac Uintah for my 11". It fits great and you don't need to bother because of low temperatures.. warm and furry inside

 

[Scepticalscribe]

The MBA is a sweet machine, and I've been very happy thus far with mine.

Re accessories, I have an external DVD drive (very handy as I still have hundreds of CDs, and the HD on my old MBP failed taking my iTunes library with it, thus I'm in the process of rebuilding my iTunes library.....and also handy for Office for Mac) and I'd recommend that you get one.

Also, get an external HD, or Time Machine; then you'll have back-ups if anything goes wrong. It would have been handy to have when the old MBP HD died.......

Not too pushed about Magic Mouse; I have a Logitech mouse, too, and find it pretty good, but most of the time I use the touchpad.

Cheers

 

[brand]

Also, get an external HD, or Time Machine; then you'll have back-ups if anything goes wrong. It would have been handy to have when the old MBP HD died.......

Time Machine is software that is part of Mac OS X. Perhaps you meant Time Capsule?

 

[hfg]

I do like using the Magic Mouse, and even more perhaps the Magic Trackpad with my Macbook Air. Both are very easy to carry with the Air in a suitable carry case. At a desk, the built in trackpad is great.

When using it in my lap while watching TV, it seems more comfortable to relax with my arm/hand on the armrest of the recliner and using the external mouse/trackpad. I find it tiring to hold my arm up to the Air trackpad on my lap for extended times when almost all of my action is pointer clicks and back-page swipes.

I use the Zagg Invisible Shield on mine for peace-of-mind as well (scratches are annoying!) , and have an Ethernet Adapter as well (wish they would find room to make that internal).

I also carry an "Airport Express" for the few hotels that still have wired ethernet. Much preferred to be using my secure private WiFi rather than the open public one provided by the hotel.

I also find a "lap-pad" useful for bringing the display closer to my eyes (which aren't that good anymore), and I use the same reading-glasses that I use for ... well ... reading.

 

[The Samurai]

Essentials:

- Zagg Invisible Shield
- USB Ethernet adapter (if you plan to travel to different countries, not all countries have decent WiFi connections - most hotels have ethernet cables in rooms)
- Decent sleeve, would recommend the Waterfield MBA Travel Express (plenty of pockets)
- Magic Mouse or trackpad (only if you plan to hook it up to an external display). Will help with those gestures in Lion

Thats the essentials for me

 

[torbjoern]

Hi everyone!

I am a university student who travels from home to uni every day, and I was wondering what are, in your opinions, some essential accessories I should have as a future MBA user. I have at the moment an 15" Acer eMachines E525, and it is failing across the board as each day goes by, so I thought I would switch to the wonderful world of Apple products.

I already have some things in mind:

-Applesac/Colcasac sleeve (not sure about this, any experience would be helpful)
-1TB Time Capsule for back ups
-Magic Mouse?

Any suggestions will help

I have an external disk for backup and for storage (1 TB is partitioned 50/50), and it's self-powered over USB.

Forget about Magic Mouse! If you're going to use an external mouse, you better use one from Logitech instead. Make sure it's on Bluetooth, though - otherwise, you will need a transmitter which occupies a USB port.

 

[Chip NoVaMac]

Not sure why you would need Time Capsule - I would think a portable HDD would be more useful using Time Machine as a back up means.

 

[EatsRainbows]

The only reason I want a Time Capsule is so i can back up everything wirelessly. I already have an external hard drive, but that is bursting with music and movies at the moment, so I need that extra space, especially since all of my media would not fit onto the MBA's HD.

Its mroe a peace of mind thing. if its working correctly i dont have to worry about my data.

@Sheet - I have been looking at the Cusco, they look awesome! have seen some reviews with moulting concerns, how is yours going?

 

[reputationZed]

Essential

Dropbox
External HD for backup
SuperDupper or CCC

Personal Opinion
Apple just does not get mice. If you absolutely need an external mouse find one from Logitech or Microsoft (don't laugh Mr. Softy gets mice). Your best option is to hold off on the mouse and stick with the track pad, which Apple does get.

 

[MartiNZ]

I'm liking my Macvelope sleeve more and more as it loosens up a bit, and that's all the accessorising I've done.

I did get handed on a time capsule recently but have put off doing the initial backup over wifi for a while as it would take so incredibly long. I think I will set it up after a fresh install with Lion (rawr).

In the mouse space I still far prefer the Mighty to the Magic. Dedicated scroll nipple > random unintended scrolling!

 

[42streetsdown]

Well i am planning to buy the air also.

I want to buy:

Magic Mouse
Ethernet adapter
Mini Display to HDMI Adapter
Mini Display to VGA Adapter
Apple Super Drive

To have the complete package

i thought the Ethernet adapter came with the computer....

Keep in mind you can't install windows via bootcamp without an external drive


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This isn't entirely correct. you can make a bootable flash drive to install windows.