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MacBook Air Supplies Constrained Ahead of Refresh?

So sad to say, but I read this article and the main thing I thought of was, "just say no to Best Buy."

Also, the new Sandy Bridge MBAs are going to be phenomenal, as long as you don't buy them from Best Buy...
 
johneaston said:
It'll be even slower on your new one when you realise there's no Thunderbolt external drives...
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Maybe he is just a little bit forward thinking and knows that very soon there will be plenty of Thunderbolt devices to choose from ....
 
How many of you actually use the cpu or graphics power available on current MBA's ? There never was a greater discrepancy between cpu power and software than today, in favor of the cpu this is. There's hardly any software out there that actually uses all your cpu cycles, and the software that does : you don't want to run that on a MBA - or any other notebook for that matter.

Graphics are the complete opposite story : there's never been a greater discrepancy between gpu power for notebooks and software than today, in favor of software this time. Almost no notebook can adequately run the latest games on its built in resolution, on adequate quality settings. Those that can have no battery life whatsoever, and behave more like a computer with an UPS system than anything else.

So Apple upgrading to Sandy Bridge : great, but not really necessary. Apple downgrading the gpu : ouch! My 2c as always...
 
kpm1301 said:
when they announced the same thing about the imac being constrained, it took i believe less than 2 weeks for the new one to arrive in store
from comparing similar previous articles on 9to5mac.
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2 weeks makes sense really, next week is the keynote and they probably do not want new hardware stealing any of the thunder of the new software announcements so probably see it in the store on the 14th.
 
ts1973 said:
Graphics are the complete opposite story : there's never been a greater discrepancy between gpu power for notebooks and software than today, in favor of software this time. Almost no notebook can adequately run the latest games on its built in resolution, on adequate quality settings. Those that can have no battery life whatsoever, and behave more like a computer with an UPS system than anything else.

So Apple upgrading to Sandy Bridge : great, but not really necessary. Apple downgrading the gpu : ouch! My 2c as always...
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I'd agree with your point in general, but before Steam came along, there really was no real incentive for Apple to worry to much about a gaming spec laptop. Even now, I think they are perhaps only paying lip-service, although it's a step in the right direction.

But if anyone is buying a MBA under the impression they can game on it, it's being mis-sold in my opinion. High end gaming graphics will chew through a battery like a hot knife through butter - not what you want for a highly portable laptop that is advertised as having a long battery life.
 
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powtail said:
The new ones better come with back-lit keyboards, otherwise they will be a big disappointment. I know for a fact, I'm not the only one that thinks that way.
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A backlit keyboard is one of the most useless "features" on a laptop ever. The light from the screen provides enough illumination to see the keys even with no other light source present. It also drains battery life and adds unnecessary complexity. Finally, learn how to type and you won't need to look at the keys!
 
Karnivore said:
Huh? Backlit keyboard is not a differentiating feature, otherwise it wouldn't be present on previous MBA's. MBP users and MBA users are in entirely different categories and having a BLKB is not going to sway people either way.
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The several comments here and elsewhere to the effect that "if it doesn't get a backlit keyboard I'm buying the 13" Macbook Pro" belie that statement. I'm sure that's why Apple removed it in the first place, battery life being a beneficial consequence of a marketing decision.

We'll know soon enough. I predict no backlit keyboard.
 
ChrisFaw said:
I already ordered a maxed out MBA 13" and it will arrive next week. So i will have the current model for a good 5-6 weeks. a w e s o m e.
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You have 30 days to return it. I bought my current 11" MBA on May 5 before I heard about the Sandy Bridge upgrade so I'm returning mine pretty soon here.
 
It doesn't appear to have been pointed out yet, but *ALL* Macs are on sale at Best Buy.

This must mean new iMacs are coming out new Tuesday too. Rumor is they will have temperature sensors on the Keyboard, Mouse and Memory, enforcing that all accessories are Apple certified. News at 11.
 
iStig said:
A backlit keyboard is one of the most useless "features" on a laptop ever. The light from the screen provides enough illumination to see the keys even with no other light source present. It also drains battery life and adds unnecessary complexity. Finally, learn how to type and you won't need to look at the keys!
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I disagree. On a late night flight, it can come in handy, particularly if you switch back and forth between multiple computers (e.g. a work PC or a desktop). Remember, function keys, arrow keys, etc. are often arranged slightly differently from model to model.
 
sishaw said:
The several comments here and elsewhere to the effect that "if it doesn't get a backlit keyboard I'm buying the 13" Macbook Pro" belie that statement. I'm sure that's why Apple removed it in the first place, battery life being a beneficial consequence of a marketing decision.
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The 13" MBA costs more than a 13" MBP. What would be the benefit of keeping it for the MBP, if it's a marketing decision? They wouldn't be upselling you if you decided to go for the MBP instead.

The battery life for a LED backlight is inconsequential. It was a design decision, plain and simple.
 
Cougarcat said:
The 13" MBA costs more than a 13" MBP. What would be the benefit of keeping it for the MBP, if it's a marketing decision? They wouldn't be upselling you if you decided to go for the MBP instead.

The battery life for a LED backlight is inconsequential. It was a design decision, plain and simple.
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And anyway, if someone goes for a MBP instead of a MBA based on the backlit keyboard, he wasn't a customer for the MBA anyway. You'd think the extra portability would matter more than whether or not the keys light up when choosing a MBA...
 
Way to hype a non-event

ALL Apple laptops and desktops have been on sale at Best Buy for several weeks now. I got my 15 inch Macbook Pro for $1739 instead of the regular $1799 price... WOOP-DE-DOO. 😉

What seems more news worthy to me is that my local Targets are all out of all Apple products... They only had 1 iPad on the shelf, and a couple of black iPod classics, but no touches, or nanos on their shelves. 😉
 
KnightWRX said:
And anyway, if someone goes for a MBP instead of a MBA based on the backlit keyboard, he wasn't a customer for the MBA anyway. You'd think the extra portability would matter more than whether or not the keys light up when choosing a MBA...
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That's a false assumption... People who use the MBA are always on the go and find themselves in dark lit situations such as on an airplane at night, or in a classroom with the lights off during a slide show presentation... During these events, I can assure you the backlit keyboard is very necessary... EXCEPT for people like me who have always been able to type without looking at the keyboard. 😉
 
As long as MBA doesn't support at least 6GB RAM, it's difficult for a heavy user of VMWare Fusion like myself to switch. If they support at least 6GB RAM, I will go line up and switch the first day. I have to use at least 5 other OS'es for work so 6-8GB RAM on MBA would be ideal. I don't care if I have to throw in extra $500 for it.
 
djrobsd said:
That's a false assumption... People who use the MBA are always on the go and find themselves in dark lit situations such as on an airplane at night, or in a classroom with the lights off during a slide show presentation... During these events, I can assure you the backlit keyboard is very necessary... EXCEPT for people like me who have always been able to type without looking at the keyboard. 😉
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So for these people that value portability, they would forgoe the portability to get a much heavier and bigger MBP based only on light-up keyboards ? Because that's what I was saying, not saying the backlit keyboard is useful or not. Just that people shopping for a MBA usually don't look at it for the keyboard, but for the portability.

You're saying I'm wrong in thinking that buyers of the MBA value portability above all else ?
 
I'm guessing nothing but an update to SB ... that's it.

4gb ram will be the max offered ... they don't want to kill 13" MBP sales anymore than they already have and no backlit keyboard, (of course)

Everything else will remain exactly the same, including the standard 2gb ram unfortunate but I'd bet that will be the case.

Want more sacrifice the portability and buy a Pro ... that will be Apple's recommendation as it is now.
 
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