I went into an apple authorized reseller to gather info on the MacBook Air, because my Apple store was not helpful at all. After talking to the staff for a while I decided to reserve my air. The catch: I said I would only pay if I was guaranteed to have my air within a week. They guaranteed me my air by Jan. 31, 2008 or they would give me an additional $500 off the price. Bonus! Since I pre-ordered from their store I got $200 off ($100 student discount + $100 air pre-order discount (store promotion)). I'll let you know if they hold true to the Thursday contract.