Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

The real point of MacBook Air - and why everyone is missing it.

garethlewis2 said:
I'm missing the point because Apple want to show the world what a great laptop they can build? Don't be naive. Apple don't build this, ASUS or Acer are building this.

Is it a good design? Yes. Does it make it worth buying? No.

Is the Ferrari Enzo a good design? Yes. Could you drive this monster car to work and back and also do the shopping in it? No.

If they wanted to show the world how good they are at pushing the envelope, they could start by fixing their god-awful build quality, then putting proper 24-bit displays in their laptops instead of some tired old 18-bit displays. If they did that I would buy a new laptop, actually I need one as some bastard stole my laptop on Friday in Brussels. I want from Apple, a no compromise 17" 1080p 4gig, 320gb monster that can do anything a desktop machine can do, not a piece of cack that looks good on a coffee table in StarBucks.
Click to expand...

i know this is back from page one, and i havent check all 200 plus posts but serioulsy, did anyone... especially gareth read this!! haha

talk about nit picking... the OP used the word "build" but that hardly makes him naive, possibly "designed" would be a better word to use but everyone knew what he meant. Maybe the build quality would improve if they didnt use ASUS or ACER whose own branded laptops have lower build and material qualitys than APPLE.

Gareth the enzo ferrari is not designed for your shopping trip, neither is the space shuttle, or a 747. like the them, the MBA is designed for a particular market, if thats not you, dont be upset because..... FYI you can get a MBP 17inch, with 4G ram, 1080p screen and put your own 500g HDD in (samsung about to release).

Naive??
 
Tosser said:
Well apparently you don't understand the word "that".



Yes, rolleyes indeed. Because if someone disagrees enough with another person it's a-okay to make threats and send letters that say they will come and kill you. What logic. Are you living in the middle ages or something?

In reality you're not only saying the above, you're actually saying it is okay to threaten people to silence if they disagree with you. You guys are the best. I really like your understanding of democracy and freedom of speech and how those two go hand in hand.
Click to expand...

you are an oversensitive twit... if you dislike the MBA that much (and yes, i am using your favorite word), then go to one of the threads that just dog down the MBA. this one is trying to defend it, and being a potential buyer, i'm tired of hearing prejudiced rants about how crappy it is.

PS:
and to make sure you understand the word "prejudice" i will explain. you have this outright full opinion about how bad the computer is- without ever using it, or having been in a situation where this computer might be useful, we understand you think it's a piece of crap, move on with your life and let people discuss the upsides for once... go express you "free speech" on one of the many forums that agree with you, i've seen at least five today, go ahead and post there...
 
Stuart in Oz said:
The MacBook Air was released to remind the world that Apple is way ahead of the rest of the industry. It is to plant in the minds of the consumer today the seed that will sprout into a visit to an Apple shop for a new laptop in 2010.
Click to expand...

Enough people will buy it as a novelty item but many more will pop into an Apple store to see this incredible new machine. While they are there they will look at the much more practical laptops. It really is a way to drive interest in your portables -- which are the future of Apple's computers.
 
phoxrenvatio said:
you are an oversensitive twit... if you dislike the MBA that much (and yes, i am using your favorite word), then go to one of the threads that just dog down the MBA. this one is trying to defend it, and being a potential buyer, i'm tired of hearing prejudiced rants about how crappy it is.
Click to expand...

It's not my "favourite" word. I am not a native english speaker, but I _was_ hoping that native english speakers was well aware that the word could be used as a submodifier:

adverb [as submodifier ]
to such a degree; so : I would not go that far.
• used with a gesture to indicate size : it was that big, perhaps even bigger.
• [with negative ] informal very : he wasn't that far away.
Click to expand...

Just like you (although directly opposed), I am tired of people defending a product, simply because "I might buy it, so this 1.0-product is the perfect product".

PS:
and to make sure you understand the word "prejudice" i will explain. you have this outright full opinion about how bad the computer is- without ever using it, or having been in a situation where this computer might be useful, we understand you think it's a piece of crap, move on with your life and let people discuss the upsides for once... go express you "free speech" on one of the many forums that agree with you, i've seen at least five today, go ahead and post there...
Click to expand...

I fully understand the word "prejudice". What's funny is, that you obviously don't. If it's prejudiced to state my opionion, simply because I haven't seen it yet, so it is prejudiced to state your overly enthusiastic opinion about the same machine, since you havent used it yet either.
Can you spell h-y-p-o-c-r-i-s-y?
 
i feel like this computer will be waiting for technology to catch up.

some situations that come to mind...
a client trying to show you his proposal which he burned on a dvd
ANY place with no internet
a client that needs firewire to connect his hard drive

these are basic things that allot of business people come across everyday

not everyone can run over to their pc and sent their projects over thin air.
 
Man, there are a lot of whiners here. If you want the MacBook Air buy it, if you don't wan it or i doesn't meet your needs then don't buy it. Why does everyone have to complain about it?
 
kwood said:
Man, there are a lot of whiners here. If you want the MacBook Air buy it, if you don't wan it or i doesn't meet your needs then don't buy it. Why does everyone have to complain about it?
Click to expand...

You're in a thread where pros and cons are (meant to be) discussed, yet you figure that everyone should just shut and buy it if they like, not if they don't?
Why complain about people discussing it? If you don't like that, perhaps you can find something else to pass time with?

What do you figure the purpose of a discussion forum is?
 
Thanks for quoting me - famous for 5 seconds. Meanwhile all the experts got around 3 hrs 30 instead of the 5 hrs stated .... nice to be right but that crappy battery life was easy to spot. I remember when they said MBs would get 5.5 and all I got was 3.5...

Why whinge? Well, the MBA is a laptop that is around 18 months too early. I don't want wifi only, no firewire, no optical drive, no replaceable battery - none of that makes sense RIGHT NOW in business and elsewhere.

What makes people whine is that they were expecting something different:

A thinner updated MBP with new keyboard

A 12 inch MBP form factor type ultra-portable

An updated, thinner MB that still has all its bits

Instead we got this obsessively-compulsive anorexic frisbee that'll look gorgeous in the Apple store but will be steered clear of by most people until technology catches up with it - see you in 18 months.

Why whine? Why not? I've owned 3 powerbooks, 2 clamshells, a Macbook, a Macbook Pro, 2 iMacs, an iBook, 3 iPod Nanos and a sodding iPod Touch (and still own most of them), so clearly there's a lot of love involved here, but just not on this particular offering and so I do feel I have earned the right to have a good squawk. I think it's a mistake as although it's brilliant it's far too niche for most people.
 
stracky said:
Maybe the build quality would improve if they didnt use ASUS or ACER whose own branded laptops have lower build and material qualitys than APPLE.
Click to expand...

No. Just stop right there.

Please learn to differentiate between ASUS and ACER. ACER has mostly targeted the lower end of the market. ASUS caters to all with prices, features and finishes to match.
 
kwood said:
Man, there are a lot of whiners here. If you want the MacBook Air buy it, if you don't wan it or i doesn't meet your needs then don't buy it. Why does everyone have to complain about it?
Click to expand...

kwood hits the exact point. The MacPro is not for everyone, the MacBook is not for everyone (due to smaller screen), the iMac is not for everyone, why would anyone expect the MacBook Air to be for everyone?

I bought one, it won't be my primary computer but it will serve great use of using the internet and mail around the house.

It's a MOBILE computer, not a portable desktop computer. It serves for exactly what mobile computing is about.
 
edesignuk said:
You need to do your research before making statements like that. The battery is not non-changeable, it's just not user-changeable. Apple will replace the battery for you for only the cost of the battery (US$129) - no install fee.
Click to expand...

You also need a little research. The battery is indeed user-replaceable, with a simple screw driver. There are no third party batteries yet, but since this is true, you better believe you will be able to buy a battery and replace it on your own.
 
Tosser said:
You're in a thread where pros and cons are (meant to be) discussed, yet you figure that everyone should just shut and buy it if they like, not if they don't?
Click to expand...

Well, the thread title is "The Real point of MacBook Air - and why everyone is missing it" and it seems to me that you're still missing it.
 
the original premise is wrong

Apple does not produce and sell products it does not expect to sell in volume. The simple economics of amortizing development costs and initial manufacturing costs require significant volume.

I remember someone at Dell saying that the iPod was a joke--it would never sell. Right!

The AirBook has an audience...a big one; people like me.

The complaints are not well founded:
..extra battery on trips
On a 12 hour flight you have to be crazy to have your laptop on for more than 5 hours. How many people ever spend 5 continuous hours pounding away.

battery replacement
I've had laptops since the CompaQ luggable in the 70's. It's rare, very rare,
to need a replacement.

missing a DVD
Hell, if you need one buy it.

Apple does the research to define their products. No single product meets all needs. This one appears to have met mine. :)
 
The Real Point of the MBA...

Great post! Reminds us all that we are not just MacAddicts, but also a slave to their desires to always be first to market. It's a strategy that's working. If not for the iMac and the deletion of the floppy disk... Apple may have been put on life support.

And, although I'm not a fan of the incredible shfit to a retail-focus, I think APple keeps doing things right.

However, I need the new 17" MBP and I NEED ALL THE PORTS I CAN GET... until the day comes when we don't. That day is not now. And the MBP is just a glimpse of the future - not yet a machine for the real user/power user.
____________________
17" PB G4 1.33.... waiting for the update.
 
elmo151 said:
The complaints are not well founded:
..extra battery on trips
On a 12 hour flight you have to be crazy to have your laptop on for more than 5 hours. How many people ever spend 5 continuous hours pounding away.

Wrong. Don't judge people about how long they stay on their laptop. Given the delays at airports, and the lack of outlets (as everyone with a computer is already plugged in) not being able to have a spare battery is a BIG GIG BIG mistake. Also, i tend to travel to areas where lectricity is scarce at times and I need the extra batteries....

battery replacement
I've had laptops since the CompaQ luggable in the 70's. It's rare, very rare,
to need a replacement.

But if you need to replace it you will have to shlepp to an Apple store and leave it there (or even worse, package it up and send it) and have to wait a few days or more and pay Apple to replace a battery which you could have done with more CONVENIENCE and with LESS COST if a battery compartment had been included.

missing a DVD
Hell, if you need one buy it.

Which adds more weight. DUH!!!!!!

Apple does the research to define their products. No single product meets all needs. This one appears to have met mine. :)
Click to expand...

Glad you like it. However, you forgot to mention other gripes.
A) 80 Gig Hard drive.. small.....
B) no fire wire... only one USB... Tell me, how do I download my photos and store them into a portable external drive at the same time.

Yes, the product is COOL!!!! Who cares!!!! I'd rather carry 6 pounds in a Mac Book Pro than 3 pounds in an Air if I can have the relative security that i will be able to use it on demand, that I will have input options and that I will be able to use it in the middle of nowhere if I need to. Convenience, security and versatility is what I crave. It makes my Mac Book Pro much more cool than an Air....
 
Tosser...yikes

Tosser said:
What features? It looks like the trackpad (except for shape) is the same as in the MBP, and all that wifi stuff is software based too.

The "features" you speak of is "non-features", except for the weight and the optional SSD. They're nonfeatures, because it really isn't anything more than omissions and downgrades in a pretty shelll. Hell, even the screen is exactly the same as in the current MacBook.
You too speak of size, but the computer has the same footprint as the current MacBook, and it really isn't that thin. No matter how it looks from great angles, it's still not thinner than it's wides point, just like a car isn't, say, 1 metre tall, just because the bonnet (hood for you americans) is at that height. You have to include the roof too, you know.
Click to expand...

Read opening post again....seems to me you didn't read it...:rolleyes:
 
........

neversink said:
Glad you like it. However, you forgot to mention other gripes.
A) 80 Gig Hard drive.. small.....
B) no fire wire... only one USB... Tell me, how do I download my photos and store them into a portable external drive at the same time.

Yes, the product is COOL!!!! Who cares!!!! I'd rather carry 6 pounds in a Mac Book Pro than 3 pounds in an Air if I can have the relative security that i will be able to use it on demand, that I will have input options and that I will be able to use it in the middle of nowhere if I need to. Convenience, security and versatility is what I crave. It makes my Mac Book Pro much more cool than an Air....
Click to expand...

Sounds like you should keep buying Macbook Pro's and those of us who want a Macbook Air can keep buying Macbook Air's....;)
 
gwangung said:
Well, the thread title is "The Real point of MacBook Air - and why everyone is missing it" and it seems to me that you're still missing it.
Click to expand...

Yes, indeed – we are in such a thread. But do you seriously expect people on a discussion forum to just take the OP's word for it? Or perhaps it is yet another example of someone trying to force people that disagree (with basically everything) away. Wouldn't it be swell if we were all drones? The fine art of disagreeing (i.e. debating) seems to be lost on so many around these parts.
 
neversink said:
However, you forgot to mention other gripes.
A) 80 Gig Hard drive.. small.....
Click to expand...

I think the 80GB HDD is just a placeholder for now until the $$$ of SSD's come down, and their capacity increases. It's been mentioned elsewhere that the iPod 160GB HDD is too thick to fit in the MBA.
 
Don't know if anybody is still reading this thread but,
i'm sensing some mis undersstanding here.

I think when folks complain about the replaceable battery, they mean
the familiar routine of
taking an extra one on trips and popping it in using a dime to open the latch.

I think thats separate from the issue of having it fail and having to take it in for replacement.

Also, to answer the question about who needs more than 5 hours on a flight,
don't forget all the time spent waiting around these days before the plane actually takes off. and if you watch a movie or two on a long flight, i could see running out of battery.
I may not be typical of most posters here. I prefer a couple of books over lugging
expensive delicate theftable electronic stuff on trips. i like to travel
light. Most americans bring way too much stuff. Of course i don't travel for buisiness that much.

Don't want to start a flame war here by using the T word,
but the touch/tablet form would be great for travelling. (FOR ME).
If i could do basic editing on docs , bring a powerpoint presentation on board, mail, net,
and bring along movies, music, and photos, that would be awesome.
I bet a lot of folks don't need more than that.
I'm thinking the itouch is a real sleeper. I think it might catch a wave this
summer. I'll probably be getting one.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back