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MacBook Air vs MacBook Images (For Size Comparison)

W

w00tini

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Feb 28, 2008
661
62
Just in case anyone was wondering the differences between the two, I have taken the liberty of a few shots of the two of them. Love my Air, but the new MacBook is really hot and will probably be my road dog for a while :)

The new MacBook is very slim and extremely portable. More so than I had thought it would be. I was really on the fence about replacing the Air with the new MacBook but after seeing them in person in a store I was sold. I hope these pictures can help those that aren't near an Apple store in choosing.

In all of the shots, the Air is on the left and the new MacBook is on the right. Enjoy.







 
No problem...

If anyone has any questions on real-world usage between the two, I'd be more than happy to answer. I use MS Office Mac 2008, DreamWeaver, almost every web browser, FTP clients, ect on them both and would be happy to share with the group on my experiences using both the Air and the new MacBook.
 
I have an Air and and seriously considering the MB for increased capacity. I've read lots on here about the new screen - how would you rate it compared to the Air. My Air screen is the best screen I have ever used.
 
The size difference between the MacBook Air and the MacBook is now even more negligible than it was before. The Air is a beautiful machine, but it is really little more than vanity at this point.
 
DaveOZ said:
I have an Air and and seriously considering the MB for increased capacity. I've read lots on here about the new screen - how would you rate it compared to the Air. My Air screen is the best screen I have ever used.
Click to expand...

I think the screen on the air is gorgeous. The screen on my macbook is very nice, but seems a little washed out when compared to the air.
 
det2004 said:
I think the screen on the air is gorgeous. The screen on my macbook is very nice, but seems a little washed out when compared to the air.
Click to expand...

The screen on the MB still has poor viewing angles.

To the OP, how far does the screen tilt back? Which one reclines further?
 
marvel2 said:
The screen on the MB still has poor viewing angles.

To the OP, how far does the screen tilt back? Which one reclines further?
Click to expand...

No big deal, I'm not going to turn my computer sideways when I'm trying to use it. When it's on, I'm looking directly at it. I don't know why people can't just enjoy a product instead of getting microscopes out and looking at it from every angle imaginable trying to find fault with it.
 
thanks for the pics OP. I've more or less decided on the Air but the macbook is a very serious contender as well.

In terms of performance, is there a huge difference? My main tasks will be, word documents, huge spread sheets, youtube, itunes, adium, and safari all running at the same time.

Those tasks above, plus portability are the main things I need. The air will be a secondary machine for me.

thanks!
 
det2004 said:
No big deal, I'm not going to turn my computer sideways when I'm trying to use it. When it's on, I'm looking directly at it. I don't know why people can't just enjoy a product instead of getting microscopes out and looking at it from every angle imaginable trying to find fault with it.
Click to expand...

Vertical viewing angles too. Check this out. Scroll down and look at the comparisons between the MB and the MBP. They are straight on shots and the viewing angles look horrible on the MB.
 
DaveOZ said:
I have an Air and and seriously considering the MB for increased capacity. I've read lots on here about the new screen - how would you rate it compared to the Air. My Air screen is the best screen I have ever used.
Click to expand...

there is no question in my mind that the Air and the MacBook have different screens. The Air looks perfect, clear, no haze... while the MacBook has a bit of that washed out look comparatively. That's the biggest trade off for me. But I'm still digging the MacBook more for my needs now.
 
I'm going to throw my 2 cents in. I have a first gen 1.6/80 MBA and just picked up the new Macbook 2.4G. When I first got the new Macbook I was amazed at the speed doing simple things over the MBA, no delays on the Macbook or spinning pinwheels when I would launch Safari, Firefox or iTunes. I did notice the weight difference between the two, and it is noticeable, but I could probably live with it based on the power of the new Macbook. However after doing a comparison finally on the screen yesterday I couldn't belive how much better the MBA screen was. It's colors and viewing angles are ALOT better than the Macbook. I calibrate both displays for 6500K and 2.2 Gamma using my i1 Display and X-Rite EZ-Color. I almost wish I could swap the screens on the 2. That would give me the best of both worlds. I already ordered more RAM and a faster HDD for the Macbook, but this baby may be going back for a gen 2 MBA. I figure I will get the high end MBA this time. Hopefully they are available soon...Decisions, Decisions...

Y2J
 
zer0tails said:
thanks for the pics OP. I've more or less decided on the Air but the macbook is a very serious contender as well.

In terms of performance, is there a huge difference? My main tasks will be, word documents, huge spread sheets, youtube, itunes, adium, and safari all running at the same time.

Those tasks above, plus portability are the main things I need. The air will be a secondary machine for me.

thanks!
Click to expand...
Great questions...

I used the Air as my work machine (I'm a sales professional) for the last 8 months and was more than pleased. for what you're using a laptop for from your post, you won't see much of a difference. the biggest thing is load times when opening applications because of the slower hard drive in the Air. I would estimate about 15-20 more seconds to load Word and Excel on the Air compared to the Mac.

I think you would be more than happy with the Air as your second machine given your list of programs. I know I was :)
 
w00tini said:
No problem...

If anyone has any questions on real-world usage between the two, I'd be more than happy to answer. I use MS Office Mac 2008, DreamWeaver, almost every web browser, FTP clients, ect on them both and would be happy to share with the group on my experiences using both the Air and the new MacBook.
Click to expand...

Please do. I'd love to find out how MS Office runs in the glassbook. (This is the one app that drives me nuts, being so slow, with my MBA)
 
silverblack said:
Please do. I'd love to find out how MS Office runs in the glassbook. (This is the one app that drives me nuts, being so slow, with my MBA)
Click to expand...

I'm using MS '08 on my 2.4 Ali Macbook, with no problems.

It's just as quick as loading any other applications..
 
silverblack said:
Please do. I'd love to find out how MS Office runs in the glassbook. (This is the one app that drives me nuts, being so slow, with my MBA)
Click to expand...
hi silverback, as the poster above states... MS word 2008 works great on the new MacBook. I've noticed a lot of improvement in the load times of the applications as well as the overall snappiness of them when editing, saving, ect. Just be sure (when you reinstall office 2008 on your new MacBook) that you get all the downloads for it from the MS website. what a bitch that is, seeing as how the auto updater wont automatically update you correctly (you have to do each update individually) most of the time.
 
im starting to see the screen difference now myself as i have used it in depth.

I think for me the macbook stays as it runs much more quieter and cooler as the main comp. Ill consider if the Air again if they update its looks and keypad to that of the macbook and fixes the fan / core shutdown issues.
 
w00tini said:
Great questions...

I used the Air as my work machine (I'm a sales professional) for the last 8 months and was more than pleased. for what you're using a laptop for from your post, you won't see much of a difference. the biggest thing is load times when opening applications because of the slower hard drive in the Air. I would estimate about 15-20 more seconds to load Word and Excel on the Air compared to the Mac.

I think you would be more than happy with the Air as your second machine given your list of programs. I know I was :)
Click to expand...

thanks for replying to my question. Invaluable advice, i appreciate it.

15-20 second load times aren't a big issue for me. The most important thing for me is that it doesn't stall or freeze or slow to a crawl when running all those apps at the same time.

I might be considering the SSD version so maybe that might help with the load times.
 
bidwalj said:
im starting to see the screen difference now myself as i have used it in depth.

I think for me the macbook stays as it runs much more quieter and cooler as the main comp. Ill consider if the Air again if they update its looks and keypad to that of the macbook and fixes the fan / core shutdown issues.
Click to expand...

great point... i noticed that the Air runs quite a bit hotter than the macbook as well. i picked up the base model macbook so i'll be giving up the lit keyboard and the nicer screen (that the Air has), but the added power for load times, multi-tasking and video stuff is worth it for me. were i using this machine purely for a 'netbook' for light apps work and internet while traveling, i'd probably still go with the Air. they're so closely related, i'm almost confused why apple has them both in the lineup at this time. i mean, i get it... but its somewhat un-apple-like to have two sku's that nearly compete with one another. with that said, they each have advantages and everyone's mileage will vary. i will miss my Air when the eBay auction ends and off it goes to some lucky winner... but for now, i will rest assured that i've made the best decision for my needs at this juncture.
 
zer0tails said:
thanks for replying to my question. Invaluable advice, i appreciate it.

15-20 second load times aren't a big issue for me. The most important thing for me is that it doesn't stall or freeze or slow to a crawl when running all those apps at the same time.

I might be considering the SSD version so maybe that might help with the load times.
Click to expand...

good point about the load times. they're not bad at all, just a bit longer on the Air and a good trade-off for portability IMO. with regards to the SSD drive, keep in mind that it will eat up more battery life than the regular drive does so again, trade-offs. there's a good piece over on Anandtech.com where they A/B'd the SSD and the regular drive and found it not so impressive and a bit of a power hog.
 
zer0tails said:
thanks for the pics OP. I've more or less decided on the Air but the macbook is a very serious contender as well.

In terms of performance, is there a huge difference? My main tasks will be, word documents, huge spread sheets, youtube, itunes, adium, and safari all running at the same time.

Those tasks above, plus portability are the main things I need. The air will be a secondary machine for me.

thanks!
Click to expand...

unless fixed in the 2nd gen, i honestly dont think you can do all that without it running on full blast fans or core shutdowns.

I only used ichat, firefox and as soon as you opened itunes or watched a video on youtube, the laptop would crawl to an halt and you had to close the lid to let it cool.
 
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