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Steve Jobs Introduced the MacBook Air Exactly 10 Years Ago Today

I really think if Apple put a Retina display in the Macbok Air and included the latest specs it would be a BIG seller! They won’t do it because the MacBook will replace it when the price point is right.
 
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I remember this, couldn't believe how much they squeezed into the machine. Then I remember the Rev A issues. I remember the freak outs about portability, dongles, lack of ports. And while I'm not fan of Tim Cook, I remember in 2016 when the new MacBook pros came out and people would reference the past and say that stuff never used to happen...

Selective memories... I have them too!
 
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sdz said:
"I think the iPad Pro is what it is today based on the progressive nature of the Air."

Those are two completely different product lines. As if Porsche for example thinks about the evolution of the 911 Carrera while looking at their Bicycle offerings...
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You don't think an ultra portable removing legacy tech had any influence on Apple's vision for the iPad? Steve Jobs himself was pretty clear that iPad was the future of computing. Different products, heading towards the same goal.
 
Count Blah said:
Think of all the limitations of the iPad, remove them, and you have the Macbook Air.

My mother, 76 years old, uses one every day.

I tried showing her the iPad, and she asked those nagging questions the 'iPad is a computer replacement' folks shy away from...
  1. Can I get the same apps as the MBAir?
  2. Where are the files stored?
  3. What do I do if I DON'T want my files in "the cloud"?
  4. How do I use my USB devices?
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I used an iPad for a few years, but grew frustrated by the inconvenience of card reading, file storage, etc. So I got rid of it and bought an 11" MBA. Love that thing because it effectively answers all those questions you pose. I can run Office, store files, access stuff from my NAS, edit photo video, etc. With education discounts and some Best Buy reward points, I didn't pay much either.
 
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I also think Apple should add a 14” version of the MacBook which with Retina display would be able to replace the MacBook Air.
 
It would seem that the rate of progress has slowed somewhat...

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sgorneau said:
My mid-2013 13" i7 1.7Ghz 8GB RAM is hands down the best Mac I have ever owned ... and I've had iMacs, Mac Minis, PowerBooks, and MacBook Pros. It is super light, portable, performant beyond expectations, still has great battery life, boots in about 6 seconds (only occasional reboot anyway), and runs on the latest OS.

It really is the best investment I ever made.
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I had the exact same computer and I have the exact same feeling. Hands down the BEST laptop ever!
 
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Apple is having me depress. Everything they are doing is useless. iPhone X is garbage, they just moved things around to sell it at $1000. The mac book pros... less port, more dongles. The iMac Pro, ok... pretty expensive. All the softwares are clumsy, iTunes, Quicktime... They ask you to upgrade every time. Why do I have to upgrade my OS in order to back up my phone?
 
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chrono1081 said:
So you obviously don't own a MacBook Pro, they're hardly "crippled". I own one, I know they're beefy as hell.
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I think what they mean is that for the price, the MacBook Pro is way behind, although some configurations of the 15” are better off, other companies offer much better performance for 1/3 less price.

We’re still waiting on KabyLake-R and 32GB of DDR4 support (which we are unlikely to get this year). By the time KabyLake-R MBPs are released, IceLake will be right around the corner.

Apple should have quietly spec-bumped the MBP in November, like it has done with the iMac in years prior.
 
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riverfreak said:
As I recall, it had a single large trackpad button. I don’t remember many laptops of that vintage that had a full trackpad button. Did they exist?
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The proportions of the button and the trackpad made it ugly. I thought it was ugly at the time. I bought the redesigned 11" a few years later and that's still a great looking laptop.
 
Relentless Power said:
Technology (Laptops) in general was ugly 10 years ago. But it's refined nicely today as far as aesthetics are concerned with design.
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My 17" non-unibody MacBook Pro from that year is still objectively far more beautiful than that awkward thing. So is my 2000 G3 iBook, for that matter.
 
Typing this from my 2012 MacBook Air: best laptop ever.
The one before that I was less luckier with: internal exploded battery, turning my MBA in egg shaped device.
 
I owned a Rev C of the original design (2009). It was funky and finicky machine with limited appeal. The 2010 refresh was a much better version in every way. I think if Apple updated the screen to Retina and updated the processors it could march on for a while longer. They're just so much better than the 12" Macbook which is way too thin and very underpowered.
 
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Apple "could". Apple "should". Apple won't. Why bother when the iPhone model brings in the $$$.

iPhone 8 (retro style) iPhone X (updated style) IPad (big retro style). Watch (mini-retro). Er. That's it.

What is the secret?

The name. Not the products. What other multi billion company can boast that?

Thanks!
 
I replaced my 2011 11” MBA (purchased in 2011) just a few months ago and got a refurbed 2016 MBP (touch bar).
That 2011 was a cracking good laptop!
 
Love my 11” 2012. Bought it to use as an offloading footage from my camera on set. The 2 usb3 ports make it perfect. Can dump my 240gb cards in 10-15 min. And as opposed to an iPad I don’t have to hold it with my hands when I lie on the sofa to read
 
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