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Let me know when it can run CS5 (in a pinch) and I'm in

Until then, I'm waiting for a back-lit key board and a faster processor (yah, I know learn how to type, yada-yada. I've been at this long enough that if you could type you became a "typesetter")

Hot type or cold?
 
hmmm

Rev D. has no overheating issues. My CPU doesn't go over 70°C when watching 1080p Flash video in fullscreen. The fan sometimes kicks in but it's still very comfortable to use on your lap, since it's barely even warm. Older MBAs suffered from overheating, that is true.

Shouldn't the flash HD have a significant role in overheating? I would think with the Flash HD with no moving parts it would be hard to over heat unless you sit there blocking the fan the whole time. :confused:
 
Shouldn't the flash HD have a significant role in overheating? I would think with the Flash HD with no moving parts it would be hard to over heat unless you sit there blocking the fan the whole time. :confused:

A hard drive uses less than 2 Watts while reading or writing. Flash uses the same or more when it is used; it only has an advantage when it is not used, where the hard disk drive has to spend energy to keep the drive spinning (less than 1 Watt).
 
A hard drive uses less than 2 Watts while reading or writing. Flash uses the same or more when it is used; it only has an advantage when it is not used, where the hard disk drive has to spend energy to keep the drive spinning (less than 1 Watt).

But that's when modern SSD's do a lot of their housekeeping, stuff like garbage collection. So as SSD's get faster and more advanced you might see the idle power drain get higher.
 
The most interesting thing here is how some people hang on every word over updates to the MacBook Air line.

Some won't touch it without a Sandy Bridge update, others want it left alone to save the NVIDIA graphics.

From dated chips, future proofing, when to buy, getting in at the right time and on and on ...

What gives?

In 90% of the tasks the average MacBook Air owner does are they really going to notice it either way?

Future proofing/saving a few hundred dollars ... there is no such thing ... just look back at the electronics you purchased in the past... how has 'future proofing' worked for you so far? lol

Like it. Buy it. Enjoy it.

People who keep waiting for the next rev will never buy a computer. The "right time to buy" is probably not until the Macbook Air has Skymont in 2015. :p
 
hmmm

A hard drive uses less than 2 Watts while reading or writing. Flash uses the same or more when it is used; it only has an advantage when it is not used, where the hard disk drive has to spend energy to keep the drive spinning (less than 1 Watt).

So I suppose that standby temp would be low. and that operation temp would be about the same as any other lap top. Sounds good to me haha.

All I want is a faster processor and a backlit keyboard and I'll be happy with it.

Already with Flash HD and 4GB ram it should be wicked fast, but I'd like an i5 at least...
 
People who keep waiting for the next rev will never buy a computer. The "right time to buy" is probably not until the Macbook Air has Skymont in 2015. :p

Oh come on dude:) Theres certainly a balance...for instance, youd have been crazy to buy a MBP a 3 months ago (unless of course you NEEDED it). Now, I totally dig your criticism that some folks take that too far.
 
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I have a 13" ultimate of the current generation. The limiting factor for me is the graphics, not the processor. so going to sandy bridge with the intel 3000 would be a less appealing machine for my uses than the current model. It's really too bad the sandy bridge macs are tied to those garbage integrated graphics.

...Or scummy ATI. I love the NVIDIA in my Core2Duo MBP :D
 
sorry but if you're trying to do "pro" work on a MBA, ur doin it wrong.

i'm glad Apple has their MBA line for ultra-portability, plus the MBP line for intensive portable work.
 
What is the obsession with back-lit keys?

Do you actually look at the keyboard when you're typing?

Once you have it, you don't want it without.

ps:I type fastttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttttt

sent from swipe keyboard :D
 
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Does this mean I should cancel my order on the 11" Mac Book Air 1.4GZ, I got it with 4GB ram and it's a refurb so I saved some cash. Should I wait until June.

Thanks in advance for your advise!!
 
You can't please everyone with a tiny 11" or 13" machine. I think people on here expect far too much from such a small package. If you want the best of all worlds go and get the uber 15" with 256GB SSD. If you pay anything less you are in for a compromise.
 
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Does this mean I should cancel my order on the 11" Mac Book Air 1.4GZ, I got it with 4GB ram and it's a refurb so I saved some cash. Should I wait until June.

Thanks in advance for your advise!!

Some at MR asking for hearfelt advice?

My advice: sure; why not wait.

:D
 



094654-mba.jpg


As reported by Fudzilla and HardMac, Intel is about to launch its next generation Sandy Bridge ultra low voltage CPUs suitable for the MacBook Air.

Due to the MacBook Air's thin form factor, it has required the use of particularly low power CPUs from Intel. Apple has stuck with Core 2 Duo processors with a maximum Thermal Design Power (TDP) of 10-17W. Apple is believed to have continued to use this older processor design in order to keep NVIDIA's graphics chips powering their ultracompact notebook. Due to licensing disputes, NVIDIA was prohibited from building newer chipsets that supported Intel's newest processors.

With the release of Sandy Bridge, Intel upgraded the performance of their integrated graphics chipset. This was good enough for Apple to offer in their latest 13" MacBook Pros, so we expect it will be good enough for the upcoming MacBook Airs as well. Apple had been previously rumored to be introducing the "Sandy Bridge" MacBook Airs this June.

HardMac pinpoints the Core i5 2537M (17W) as the possible chip to be used, at least in the 13" model:Meanwhile, the current 11" MacBook air uses an even lower power (10W) processor, but it's not clear how much power savings is offered by removing the need for the NVIDIA graphics chipset, as the Intel solution is integrated within the processor itself.

Article Link: Intel Launching Next Generation MacBook Air Processors

Woo! Something not MacBook Pro or iOS related!

For a programmer dealing with Terminal, Xcode, Netbeans, Eclipse, etc (not graphic intensive softwares), would this macbook air be a better deal than the 13/15" Macbook pro?

Anyone?

Both machines would be fine, though the 13"/15" MacBook Pro is more fully-featured of a machine than the Air, and frankly at that cost, why pay for an incomplete system?

awesome!!! this is really tempting. Should I throw an SSD in my 2010 4GB 2.66 GHz 13" MBP or sell it and wait for the MBA refresh?

If you have to do either, I'd do the former. But I'm in the "screw the Intel HD 3000 bandwaggon" and I also don't think that an Air should replace a Pro unless you have a problem lifting five pounds.

I would love to see a 15" laptop with no optical drive, with the specs and price somewhere between the MBA and MBP.

KEEP DREAMING!

Since you have no clue how the sandy bridge airs will perform, I'll take your statement as FUD.

First off, it's a fair assumption that they won't be more powerful than the current 13" MacBook Pros. Second, it's a fair assumption that the Intel HD 3000 will be in tow, and if the SV HD 3000 is inferior to the SV NVIDIA GeForce 320M, then it's a fair assumption that the ULV versions will probably have a similar result when benchmarked. Then again, who in their right mind is relying on a MacBook Air to play games over say, a MacBook Pro or a P-freakin-C?!

Alas, there are some things that the curated app store will never be able to supply. Case in point: a pokerstars or fulltilt client. And if the ipad's Safari can't do java or flash or allow me to run the applications of my choosing, then it's not sufficiently open for my needs.

Most Flash and Java based sites have App-equivalents. Ideal, no. A true web experience, no. But there's an app for that.

At least I now have a short finite timeline to work with to buy my 13"/2.13GHz C2D/256GB MBA before they "upgrade" it to a vastly inferior Intel GPU.

It's a MacBook Air, for crying out loud! What were you going to use the GeForce 320M for anyway that you won't be able to do with the Intel HD 3000? (Note: Final Cut Studio type things and gaming, which are the only two things that you'd feel the difference between the two IGPs on anyway, are laughable answers.)

I LOL'd. I owned iPad 1 for a year, and while it's nice, it's a FAR, FAR cry from the productivity capabilities of the current gen MBA.

Like it or not, iPad is SEVERELY CRIPPLED for content creation (i.e. real work), but excels at content CONSUMPTION. That's factual and completely undebatable. Everyone knows this.

So, no, it's not "something better". It's a more viable choice for entertainment and consumption. That's it.

The MacBook Air is crippled for content creation purposes. It is no MacBook Pro. The iPad is not crippled for content consumption. Sure, the iPad isn't yet the most stellar option for content creation purposes, but it's not crippled for what it's intended to do. With a 13" or 15" MacBook Pro, there's little practical use for a MacBook Air unless you have a problem lifting the two extra pounds, and really, if you do, either exercise or invest in physical therapy.

What is the obsession with back-lit keys?

Do you actually look at the keyboard when you're typing?

It's more that a feature was taken away and the natural psychological response when that happens is "Why did you do that? Give it back!"

The current nvidia chip is also integrated so it's not that much of a step down. As a 13" Pro user I can happily tell anyone that for what the product is made for, it's perfectly usable. At first I was pissed at the idea but it turned out the Intel HD 3000 were more powerful than the graphics in my old laptop.

It's a step down from the GeForce 320M, but a step up from the GeForce 9400M and the Intel GMA IGPs used before it.

By game I mean a modern title at full settings. Otherwise it's just 'making do'.

+1

sorry but if you're trying to do "pro" work on a MBA, ur doin it wrong.

i'm glad Apple has their MBA line for ultra-portability, plus the MBP line for intensive portable work.

This.
 
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@yebubbleman

You keep talking about the MBA being "crippled" - how so? What can't it do other than play optical media? Why can't you do "real work" on it?

As for the graphics, I'm under no illusion that it can play games like a mbp let alone gaming PC. And I don't need that. But the current MBA can play some modern games (SC II for example) at decent settings and frames. I wouldnt want to lose the ability to do casual gaming by going to the intel integrated.
 
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@yebubbleman

You keep talking about the MBA being "crippled" - how so? What can't it do other than play optical media? Why can't you do "real work" on it?

As for the graphics, I'm under no illusion that it can play games like a mbp let alone gaming PC. And I don't need that. But the current MBA can play some modern games (SC II for example) at decent settings and frames. I wouldnt want to lose the ability to do casual gaming by going to the intel integrated.

A 13" MacBook Pro has a hard drive that can be easily replaced and upgraded (even with an SSD if you so fancy), RAM that can be easily replaced and upgraded, a standard-voltage (read: more powerful) CPU, and yes (love it or hate it) an optical drive, along with a FireWire 800 port, an Ethernet Port, an IR sensor (which granted, isn't the most useful feature out there) and battery life to spare even given the faster speed. And yes, even with a Sandy Bridge MacBook Air, the benefits that a Sandy Bridge 13" MacBook Pro have over it, especially for the price, make it a much better machine. You are grossly limited with a MacBook Air by comparison.

I don't mean to say that with a 27" iMac at home, one couldn't be happily mobile with a 13" MacBook Air if they so desired, I just don't think it has enough going for it to make it worthy of being stand-alone to anyone who isn't either (a) bat-**** crazy about about the MacBook Air or (b) very simple in their computing needs.

I didn't go through all the pages of replies, but in case some one hasn't corrected them yet, the bus speed of the 13" is 1066mhz.

Already covered, but kudos regardless.
 
This insight is not very far-fetched: The 17W Sandy Bridge processor will be used in the next gen 11" Airs, not the 13" which will use the 25W version of Sandy Bridge. I can bet on this...

Next Air will see a DRAMATIC speed improvement CPU wise and a minor decrease in GPU performance.

Cheers
 
I guess I just assumed that anyone who has used a computer for more than two weeks would be capable of typing without staring at the keyboard.

That is highly limited thinking. It might be time to open your mind and learn how and why other people might actually want a particular feature rather than assume that they are the person who is limited.

I, and many others, use our computers for way more than typing.

A simple example is when I use my MBPro on stage with any number of apps for musical performances.

Also the sound engineers use MBPro for audio cues,audio mixing, recording, effects processing. The lighting guys use them.

When you are heavily involved in multitasking you need to be able to see something, identify it and use it, all within a fraction of a second. You are not sitting there touch typing.
 
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