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Let's talk 2012 MacBook Air - what would you like to see?

Personally, I'm not trading my MBA in until I get a retina display and 12+ hours of battery life.

Those two things are the largest x-factors as far as UI and performance that impact my real-wold use of the device.

I can't think of other features that would give me something I don't already have on a scale that would make me sell my current machine.
 
Keeping in mind this is more of a wishlist than anything else.

8gb of RAM (at least an option) on both the 11 and 13. I would settle for the 13 if necessary. :)

Maintain the 11inch form factor but equip the computer with a screen that is large enough to remove most of the bezel around my current display. This would go a long way to address any fatigue I have on the 11inch screen.

Extended battery life on the 11inch. Anything they could do here, would be great.

15inch option. This would be ideal for my wife and should be far lighter than her current Macbook Pro.
 
When would the next revision be likely released with ivybridge? what month?

I see intel has begun mass production of ivybridge chipsets for OEM's already. So I'm sure some PC company's will be adopting this board before Apple does.

I'd like to see

- USB 3.0 ports (because like it or not, usb 3.0 will out number thunderbolt devices.) I like the speed of thunderbolt but the adoption is not as quick as usb.

- 8 GB ram for virtual machines.

- 6 MB L3 cache

- Less Heat than current models.
 
My only priority is more RAM. Everything else is just nice-to-have on my end. Can't upgrade until they have 8GB available, and would hope for a faster processor at the same time.
 
8 gigs of ram - 4 gigs while cozy and comfortable isn't roomy

Better Wi-Fi - Sensitivity and range are limited. Possibly because of lack of third (3x3) antennae

More screen brightness range - particularly on the low end, the lowest setting is still quite bright...
 
No more fan

hansimglueck wrote: "No more fan, making the MBA into a noiseless machine"

That would really be both possible (doable) and fantastic! And I would also like to have a white model as an option.
 
I don't get it with this obsession with 8gb of memory in an Air

when there was 2gb many were urging 4gb
now there's 4gb people are urging 8gb

so when there's an 8gb option available in perhaps the next revision or so, some people will be squealing about how it should be standard and not an expensive option or else saying we need 16gb to have room to move.

the current iteration of 13" Airs are sufficiently specced up for just about any user's tasks - because of the sensible matching of graphics, memory processor and flash storage.
if you require more, then buy a MBPro with dedicated graphics and option to upgrade the memory
 
i would like to see..

ivy bridge

8gb ram user upgradable or 8gb ram cto

faster ssd

trim support (third party ssd )

usb 3.0

cache 6mb

large vent (ivy bridge runs hotter than sandy )

:apple: 50% discount apple care, when buying in apple store :apple:
 
Thunder82 said:
Only improvement i'd really care about would be a better and/or dedicated GPU. This will boost overall system performance because of OpenCL & also hopefully bring us back to a respectable gaming system on the go.

A 15" air would be cool too :)
Click to expand...

Ivy Bridge GPU is 2 times faster than the Sandy Bridge GPU. So you'll see a big upgrade in GPU performance.
 
bill-p said:
More battery life (10 hours?)
Higher resolution (1080p)
Smaller body/less screen bezel (around .5" is good)
Bigger trackpad
Glass screen (current plastic layer seems flimsy)
Less weight
Less heat + less fan noise at same power level as 2010 model

I'm willing to pay $2000 or more for that kind of device...
Click to expand...

You want a glass screen and less weight? What fantasy planet are you living on? Glass weighs substantially more then plastic. And would make the MBA screen into a mirror just like the MBP screens. No thanks.

giolicious said:
Here are my top wish list for the next Macbook Air:
  1. Retina Display or better pixel density
  2. FaceTime HD
  3. USB 3.0
  4. Better keyboard lighting - illuminate the letters/numbers/characters ONLY please!
  5. Siri
Click to expand...

The problem with all of you guys wanting a "retina display" is that OSX doesn't support resolution independence. Therefore if there was a retina display, all the text and UI element would be 1/2 the size they are today. In short, the OS would be unusable without a magnifying glass included in the box. Until Lion gets resolution independence, it's not gonna happen.

FaceTime HD also seems unlikely, as the MBA screen is 1/2 the thickness of the MBP screens. There's currently no sensor out there that can produce hd video and fit in such a small, thin screen.
 
mrsir2009 said:
•Better GPU
•Bigger SSD options
•8GB RAM option

If it had that in the 2012 release I might choose it over the MBP...
Click to expand...

+1 .... For me the most important factor is the lack of 8GB option. I run VMs and eclipse etc and I can see my memory requirement go up and swapping to the SSD is not acceptable as it shortens the life of the SSDs.
 
I want a full sized desktop eight core processor in it with dual discrete video cards in SLI and a ultra high res display all with 10+ hour battery life. Oh yeah and a finger print scanner to boot. We can all dream can't we?
 
mark28 said:
Ivy Bridge GPU is 2 times faster than the Sandy Bridge GPU. So you'll see a big upgrade in GPU performance.
Click to expand...

Source? I've seen figures of about 10-20% (over the HD3000), which would make about the same speed as the old 320M, if not slower.. Would be nice to have a clear answer about Ivy GPU performance. Hope you're right.
 
3dflyboy1 said:
I don't think 8GB RAM is realistic, but would be nice to have. Personally, I think 4GB is plenty. If you need more, that's what a MBP is for. :D
Click to expand...

For me, Pro = more CPU power and slots. The air is more lightweight, but it still could really use an 8Gb option imo.

On my current 2010 Air, I really have to "micro-manage" the memory. I want to keep all my 10 (or so) apps open that I use all day, but I can't at the moment with 4Gb. I have to close browser tabs, close apps and so on before opening new apps to avoid excessive swapping. On my desktop I have 8Gb and it feels like a "golden spot" amount.
 
KPOM said:
Actually, it should run cooler since it's built on the 22nm process.
Click to expand...
That's what I thought too, but couto stated it as if it were a fact so am now wondering if i've missed something...
 
i'll pretty much like to see:
- thunderbolt peripheral HDDs (affordable ones)
- macOS X to fix the jumble-up launch pad issue
in other words,
the MBA itself is all-good for me, anything additional is a plus:

- hopefully the faster processor won't heat the casing so much that it'll burn my hand
- 17" is too big to be that thin
- 512GB flash storage would likely be über expansive
- any faster graphics would doubtful to have sustainable battery life
please surprise me, apple :D
:apple:
 
CPU
I'd like to see improvements in the power consumption of the CPU. With battery improvements much slower than CPU improvements, this would be the most logical way to increase battery life.

RAM
I'd like to see 8GB as an option. A user up-gradable solution would be a great option too.

SSD
512GB option would be fantastic.

GPU
Open CL should help here. Improvements welcome for me but not crucial.

Screen
Would love to see some more pixels here but something tells me they will be saved for the Macbook Pros to differentiate them/keep costs down. Some big advancements in this area would be a big selling point for me, especially every time I compare the iPhone4 to the iPhone 3

Battery
I think the processor is the best way to reduce battery life. Just sticking a bigger battery in there will just add to the weight.

Integrated LTE/3G
I'm happy using my iPhone with personal hotspot (free in Australia!)

TB/USB3
USB3 should be implemented now that Ivy has it integrated.

Design
I would like to see a redesign with a smaller bezel and other improvements i'm confident Jony can provide.

Siri
I'd like to see this on my iPhone 4 more than my computer, but could still be cool.
 
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