MacBook Air SSD vs HDD Battery Life Revisted

[fblack]

Worth the additional $999?

I was responding to criticism about performance. For example:

Why is the SSD improvement so small?

I think an extra 31 minutes in DVD playback is not bad. As far as price v.s. performance, to me personally its not worth purchasing an SSD. I don't have that kind of money to blow. I think only people with deep pockets, or a lust for the newest tech are going to run out and get an SSD at this time. I don't think they are the regular consumer, so price may not be an issue for these people. These people may also have speakers in their home to complement the MBA. http://gizmodo.com/search/Gradient Helsinki

I find the technology interesting, but I also recognize its still new and very pricey. In another 2-3 years it should be much more affordable and I expect to find it in a very thin apple touchscreen tablet or slate.

 

[itickings]

maybe you should read my post again. damn, what you people do to have more posts! LOL "compared to the balance between speed and price of the macbook pro". so i think that what macbooks pro have to offer is much more rewarding when comparing price tags.

If you need light portable computing, are you really sure that a MBP would be the more rewarding choice?

If the size and weight of a MBP are acceptable, then it would be foolish to pay premium for a niche device, but it would be equally foolish to get a MBP if it is too large/heavy, just because it has more raw power than the MBA...

There is really no point in trying to debate if it is a MBA or a MBP that gives more value per dollar spent, they are targeting completely different use cases.

...regarding that complaining about others not reading your posts correctly, how well did you read mine that you initially replied to?

 

[achtung!]

posted by itickings If you need light portable computing, are you really sure that a MBP would be the more rewarding choice?

If the size and weight of a MBP are acceptable, then it would be foolish to pay premium for a niche device, but it would be equally foolish to get a MBP if it is too large/heavy, just because it has more raw power than the MBA...

There is really no point in trying to debate if it is a MBA or a MBP that gives more value per dollar spent, they are targeting completely different use cases.

...regarding that complaining about others not reading your posts correctly, how well did you read mine that you initially replied to?

i know that the MBP and the MBA have different niches. i just think that the price gap should be bigger (mba should cost less) considering the specs and the intangible value of each one. from my point of view, apple is asking too much for the intangible value of the macbook air, cause tangibly, the macbook pro beats the air easily. intangibility can't be measure, so we can say it's a revolutionary product and ask for more 'cause of it. being thinner than others is enough reason to charge more? maybe for them, not for me. i think this high price is to cover the 100 macbook air prototypes they did. lol i am curious about the other 99. but hey, if this state of things make those apple guys happy (and i'm sure they're pretty satisfied), who am i to disagree! i won't be buying one, but if you buy one, i won't shoot you, 'cause i will have pity!

...regarding that complaining about the reading, i've read your post "as much well" as you've read mine!

 

[targat]

For me the improvement is just a minor. And upgrading for a $999 is very heavy.

 

[twoodcc]

better news for the Air. the SSD still isn't worth the price, at least to me

 

[peterl1966]

MacBook Air Recharging

Is there any difference in the recharging time between the two? I own a MBA HD and it literally takes longer to charge it than the actual battery time. I am easily looking at 6+ hours to recharge this thing.

 

[Tosser]

Is there any difference in the recharging time between the two? I own a MBA HD and it literally takes longer to charge it than the actual battery time. I am easily looking at 6+ hours to recharge this thing.

From going through various forums, it seems it was designed to be a slow charging wedge. In my opinion, though, there is no reason why it should charge that slowly. They should have given it a more powerful charger and charging circuitry.

 

[Flyer0815]

From going through various forums, it seems it was designed to be a slow charging wedge. In my opinion, though, there is no reason why it should charge that slowly. They should have given it a more powerful charger and charging circuitry.

At work I use my MBP charger for my MBA and i still get pitiful charging time.. upwards of 4 or 5 hours. It's pretty much the same with my MBA charger. I hope this is some minor glitch that can be fixed with a firmware update (like the MBP battery firmware update a few months ago).

 

[Tosser]

At work I use my MBP charger for my MBA and i still get pitiful charging time.. upwards of 4 or 5 hours. It's pretty much the same with my MBA charger. I hope this is some minor glitch that can be fixed with a firmware update (like the MBP battery firmware update a few months ago).

Yup, hence I also mentioned a more powerful charging circuitry (in the MBA, that is) should have been done. And it _could_ have been done. Otherwise we who happen to own MBPs would really have hit a wall.

 

[Analog Kid]

From the article: "NOTE: The 250G, 320G, and 200G notebook drives were empty. The 64G SSD was 31% full. " Hard drives are faster on the outside tracks, which are used when the drive is empty. As the drive fills, the inner tracks will be used which are slower. So the hard drives will be slower once they start getting full.

Anybody know how the SSDs handle dirty blocks? The slowest operation on Flash is erasure, so if that isn't being handled while idle then the SSDs will also slow down considerably when full...

 

[amacisbetter]

Not bad battery life

I'm suprised at the battery life. The typical person buying a Macbook Air would probaly just use it for internet browsing/email/listening to music and when doing that with the SSD it almost made it to 5hrs. I don't think the average user will buy the SSD though so the battery life isn't as great with the hard drive, but still. Not a bad estimate in my opinion.