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The Intel CPU in the MacBook Air was developed over the past year; it's state of the art and an enormous accomplishment.
The motherboard in this computer is not much larger than a typical soundcard!
There is also the machined aluminum case; if it's anything like the new iMac, this tiny notebook as as solid as a rock.

Will the next generation consumer Mac be nothing more than a keyboard with a Quad-core Mac, 4GB of RAM and SSD built-in, as well as an iPod Touch (or optional iPhone) that also functions as a wireless multitouch mouse?
In many respects, the framework for this speculation already exists.

Personally, I think the MacBook Air is essentially a flagship product from which future products will be developed.
The philosophy behind the development of the MBA is the key to it's relevance in the current mac lineup, not it's technical performance, per se.
There's more to computing than gigahertz and gigabytes; the device should fit into the lifestyle of the consumer, not the other way around.


I see it the same way. Technology that was developed for the Air will make it into new machines and influence all future Macs. Much like car manufacturers. Most people can't afford a Porsche but they sure do like the innovations that the German brand have filtered down over the years.
 
I hate the MBA, but for the sake of my son's college fund, I am hoping that a few hundred thousand people with spare change in their pockets will love it.
 
I take offence to you cutting my post in to a Rant when it was completely factual and unbiased.

If by factual and unbiased you mean wrong and opinion then you are correct.

Can you explain to me how a computer with such low specifications can cost so much? - Even in the Apple world where we pay a premium for high quality products the MacBook Air is a monstrously overpriced machine.

No it isn't. You are comparing desktop and normal laptop product pricing with the MacBook Air. If you compare it to similar speced Sony ultraportable laptops it is well priced.

You are giving away so much money for such little product it is as if they are selling you a box of matches at the price of a life-time warranty insured Zippo lighter. Clearly the Matches are smaller, they are lighter, they are also impractical for extended use and anyone in there right mind would choose a Zippo over a box of matches.

The MacBook Air makes a great companion to a Mac Pro. Do the heavy work on the home computer and then use the MacBook Air for presentations etc. There is a large market for this type of machine.

I own iPods, a top of the line maxed out MacBook Pro 17" an older generation 15" PowerBook G4 and I paid through the nose for all of these products, because they were worth the price. For the premiums I paid, I received back an insanely great product. But the MacBook Air is not worth its price infact I would personally value the MacBook Air at no more then £700. It is the children's toy version of a MacBook in a MacBook Pro enclosure.

Sorry what was it you were saying about fact and being unbiased?

And hey if you don't use your Optical drive that's fine. But I gotta wonder how do you reinstall the operating system? How can you boot from a networked shared CD drive to install Leopard? - I guess you need to fork over the extra $99 right? Which just ups the tally even more.

Most ultraportables if not all do not come with an optical drive. Compare like with like and get over the fact that this is not a standard MacBook / MacBook Pro.

Has the whole world gone insane? It's a glorified EeePC it has an iPod hard disk, the very same hard disks that apple recommended users not to use as Operating System boot drives because it could severely diminish the life of the drive. Now I just have to wonder, whats the failure rate on these drives?... I know people will say "but the iPod is a closed in device and the heat is contained and builds up aggressively with no outlet" And yet I see the MacBook Air and I think its a giant iPod. The cooling is dedicated to that miniature motherboard.

Hard drive failure rates are obviously an issue, but bear in mind that there is better cooling in the MacBook Air which does make a difference, even if you wish to play it down.

Anyway I won't be buying one because I'm not a sucker but if you want to buy a MacBook Air thats your choice.

Excellent.
 
If by factual and unbiased you mean wrong and opinion then you are correct.

Which part of my Facts were wrong? - None of them were wrong. And I am unbiased I have no issue with this type of machine from other OEM's Apples is even more crippled then comparative products from Sony. Sure it has a great processor but as you say yourself "Do all the good word on a Mac Pro at home" so why does the MacBook Air need a 1.8GHz C2D or 2GB of RAM?

Why would anyone buy the MacBook Air over a MacBook? - I mean I'm being dead serious I cannot see why anyone would. For 1 thing the MacBook Air is larger then the MacBook in Width and Height. only in depth does it have the edge and yet people are saying "I need it for its size, its great for the road".

Like I said before, if you can fit a MacBook Air in your life you can fit the better specced more upgradeable CHEAPER MacBook. And I really don't consider it a Sub-Notebook because it has a full sized keyboard and screen which is the whole point of a Sub-Notebook to be tiny, the MacBook Air is thin, not tiny. It's bigger then the MacBook as I said above.

Apple have convinced you that the MacBook Air is smaller then the MacBook in every dimension. Did you see the Gizmodo size comparison between the MacBook Air and the Sony? The MacBook Air was way larger in width and height. And in displacement it was also larger. Sure its thin but so what? Were not living under a bus, you need around a square foot of space to open any laptop and at that time they are all the same size.

Also about your Price thing, just because other notebook providers are charging over the odds for sub notebooks too it doesn't make it right. They are giving you less computer for a higher asking price which is wrong and if you buy these products your just keep getting screwed with the next revisions.
 
The MacBook Air is a great product. It's for people who truly live a mobile lifestyle. The majority of people only really do 2 things, check email and browse the web. This laptop is more than capable to do that as well as normal (non-3d work). I wouldn't mind having one if I was on the go alot, but since I'm not it doesn't really fit me as well as my MBP.

I do like the parallels between the MBA and the first iMac. Ten years ago the iMac appeared and didn't come with a floppy drive. Now we have the MacBook Air and it gets rid of the DVDROM. All you need now is a USB key drive or just wifi (of which there are plenty available). This is what a laptop is supposed to be!

Thank you Apple! Thank you Steve Jobs! :D
 
The MacBook Air is a great product. It's for people who truly live a mobile lifestyle. The majority of people only really do 2 things, check email and browse the web. This laptop is more than capable to do that as well as normal (non-3d work). I wouldn't mind having one if I was on the go alot, but since I'm not it doesn't really fit me as well as my MBP.

I do like the parallels between the MBA and the first iMac. Ten years ago the iMac appeared and didn't come with a floppy drive. Now we have the MacBook Air and it gets rid of the DVDROM. All you need now is a USB key drive or just wifi (of which there are plenty available). This is what a laptop is supposed to be!

Thank you Apple! Thank you Steve Jobs! :D

Drank the Kool-aid today, did you?

Real ultraportables have been shipping without optical drives for years.

And a 13" notebook just isn't an ultraportable.
 
Also about your Price thing, just because other notebook providers are charging over the odds for sub notebooks too it doesn't make it right. They are giving you less computer for a higher asking price which is wrong and if you buy these products your just keep getting screwed with the next revisions.
To develop the technology that will fit inside such a slim body takes time and money. Hence why small model trains cost more than larger ones - the parts inside are more expensive to manufacture because of their size.
 
hey, im no expert of laptops n stuff, but i believe that the macbook air, IS a wonderful device. Yes it doesnt have the worlds greatest specs, yes it is expensive (well not compared to sony) BUT i believe it paves the way for the future. It is a wondeful design and once the rev B and C of the laptop come out im sure it will be amazing! In the future this is gonna be a great laptop. . . we just need to give it some time. . . . Now wheres my penryn Macboon Pro!?!?!?!
 
I love it how people just blab for nothing. Every time a new product comes out, it gets this weight of bad criticism sitting on it's face.

I was really looking forward to the Macbook Air and still do, i'll just wait patiently and learn a bit more about the product and get a feel of it, once it's placed in stores. But i'd like to say something here.

I understand people out there when they say that the MBA is overpriced because of the it's lack of performance compared to the competition. But those who have a fully decked out desktop sitting comfortably at home and are frequently on the road (school, work etc.), will actually consider this product. Nevermind the price. I paid $2200 for my Dell 700m because AT THE TIME, it was considered to be one of the smallest/fastest ultra portables on the market. That was 3 years ago. Today, it's the same story, no matter what company (offering ultra-portables) you look at, they all stand around $2000. The difference would be, the persons needs.

I'll take myself for example:

- Considering the HDD: I have 750Gb of space in my iMac, 500Gb backup HDD and carry an 8Gb iPod Nano. My 700m (which i still use btw) has 60Gb and i only have 15Gb used (windows, office, saved files, saved emails, presentations, notes, pictures for work, videos for work and movies).

- Considering the CPU/Ram/G card: If i'm able to run photoshop, itunes, firefox and a presentation, running on a 1.6 pentium M/ 1Gb 333Mhz /64Mb integrated graphics card...then you can run a boat load a crap on the Macbook Air.

- Considering performance per watt (battery!): This is the most important piece of any ultra-portable. I'm only able to run 2 1/2 hrs on this 700m (with those minuscule specs i mentioned before), having a 5hr battery while surfing the net is pretty good. And compared to the competition, it's nice to see that.

It's a great product for those who are in need of it. You have to think it through before jumping to conclusions. Yes, some of you are right, "might as well spend $200 more for a MBP..." or "just get a Macbook, it's $400 less" but we're not all the same. Some people are willing to sacrifice here and there. But then again, you'll have those who use their lappys as their primary computer. My advice, stop looking! It's not meant to be a primary computer.

Already their isn't much of a market for ultra portables, it's a hard market to deal with, so having to know that a company offering an ultra with impressive specs at a "better than average" price, well, you'll see what will happen...

Just my 2 cents...thanks for reading :)
 
so somebody is willing to pay 3k just to check email and broswe the internet?
audio is only mono as well in 2008? lol..i wish i had 3k to spend on a web surf checkj my email device with the amazing sound of mono running through my headphone wire and pleasing my dts ears.



lol................i hope apple sells well of this to the beta testers
i woulndt mind seeing how it evolves t osomething more then the crap we got know.
 
So it's a MacBook that is 2 pounds lighter, less than half an inch shorter and $200 (more likely $400 or so) more expensive.

Brilliant. I was sweating lugging around that brick of a Macbook all day.



Anyone have an envelope on hand that they can take a picture of with their Macbook in it?
 
The thing that suprised me most was the way the made the keyboard black. I found that rather interesting, because they don't do that in anything else. I can't decide whether I like or not either.

I kinda want it to not be black. But then again..... it still looks like an amazing piece of design. Gotta love Apple's designs.

It looks like a great product. Only one USB would get rather annoying though. Its too bad technology wouldn't let a computer that size come about with 200GB hard drives and 2.2Ghz processors, and 5 USB's and 4GB memory. That'd rock.
 
I never saw what's so non-portable about the regular MacBook. The MB Air has lower system specs than my 14 month old MacBook, and costs $500 more. Therefore I don't see much of a purpose.

Your MacBook has a multi touch trackpad, LED backlit screen, SSD and weighs 3 pounds?! :eek:
 
so somebody is willing to pay 3k just to check email and broswe the internet?

Is that all you can do on a MacBook? These things share the same GPU, right? And with a SSD access speeds won't be too shabby - the chip is 2-400 MHz slower than current MacBooks, but it is a newer build. Plus 2GB standard instead of one. I'm guessing there will be no discernable difference in performance between MBA and MB.

audio is only mono as well in 2008? lol..i wish i had 3k to spend on a web surf checkj my email device with the amazing sound of mono running through my headphone wire and pleasing my dts ears.

Whoa, hang on... it's mono through the headphone jack? I just figured they meant the speaker is mono - that wouldn't bother me at all. This is news to me. Now that IS unacceptable... a iPod can do stereo ffs.
 
... wow, I seriously don't know if I can take this community of blind Apple apologists much longer. It's this sort of ridiculous "Apple can do no wrong" attitude that makes me ashamed to be a Mac owner.
 
Women, Men on the Go, and Fashion Conscious are going to snap these up like crazy.

Apple will really create a new market for themselves with MBA.

Google MacBook Air under Google News and see what the wall street analysts are saying.
 
It is a vanity product. I have to say I am impressed. That does not mean I want one. The pic on the front page comparing it to the MBP was obviously supposed to make me think of the size savings, but honestly, I was apathetic about it.

I was hoping for a glorified iphone with a 7" - 10" multitouch tablet form factor for around $1000. If there was a way to pair a BT keyboard, I would have been in love.

Now I am hoping the SDK brings a way to pair a keyboard to the iphone, and that will be enough for me.
 
The Air is all about the portability, and coming in to the completely wireless age. Its really innovative, but could have been rolled out better.
 
... wow, I seriously don't know if I can take this community of blind Apple apologists much longer. It's this sort of ridiculous "Apple can do no wrong" attitude that makes me ashamed to be a Mac owner.

Apple is just a business seeking to expand its marketshare with unique new products.

It is not that they can "do no wrong," it is just that your perspective on judging a business may be flawed. Remember Apple is no longer "Apple Computers," but "Apple Inc."
 
... a computer that size come about with 200GB hard drives and 2.2Ghz processors, and 5 USB's and 4GB memory. That'd rock.

That's the point, in the not too distant future you will get much higher specs. Lets face it, who wouldn't want an ultralight, (if not strictly ultraportable) laptop? Better specs are on the way as we speak.

The MBA is a prototype device to meet the desires of all laptop users. Once the price of SSDs comes down, and they will, this *will be* a great machine. I hope all the wealthy mofos out there buy it up, as I want the principles of this computer to charge on - it is the way of the future!

We might need them now, but who wants cables and DVDs?

Bring on the wireless world
 
The MacBook air doesn't really fill in a "gap" in their line up - a 12" MBP would do it better, but I still think it will appeal to a lot of people; business people and students alike.
 
There is a certain segment(those who commute a lot, esp. on public transport for instance) that are willing to pay a pretty large premium for these types of notebooks.

One place where I think it will be a huge hit is Japan, a market that Steve Jobs specifically mentioned in the last investors conference thing. The subnotebook market in Japan is HUGE and Apple can now finally compete with the likes of Sony and whatnot.

I think this will be a huge boost for Apple abroad, maybe not so much in the US though.

Well i've lived in japan for 2 years and I highly doubt this thing is gonna take off there! What the japanese need is small footprint, so that they can use their laptos's on public transport without intruding into other's space! The vaio TZ is more like what they want.

PS: I quite like the MBA, but would never consider buying one. I never have more than one computer at home at a time, and the MBA would not fit in for me!
 
14 inches seems pretty small to me...it's about the size of an average lap, or smaller, so how small does it really need to be? That's why I think Apple did the right thing by cutting down weight but not the footprint...as I said somewhere else earlier, 2 fewer inches means a lot less than 2 fewer pounds.
 
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