Again rumors about the release of a 13 inch Retina Air in 2014. But why would Apple release a Retina Macbook Air? They already have a 13 inch Retina right? Don't see what is the advantage of a Retina Air over a Retina Pro...
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Why would Apple release a Retina Air?
- Thread starter Rogier1991
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that and the 2013 MBA graphics could run a retina display better than the 13" 2012 retina MBP could, so this isn't a limiting factor anymore
I chose a 13" Air over a 13" rMBP because of the weight and battery life. My laptop goes everywhere with me, so I want something that lasts a long time and is easy on the back. The rMBP is nice and certainly more portable than some other MBPs have been in the past, but the display on the MBA is still fantastic (to me) without having to compromise in the areas that matter.
A rMBA would be neat, but not something I would run out to buy, especially if it had to compromise on any of the features that make an Air what it is.
A rMBA would be neat, but not something I would run out to buy, especially if it had to compromise on any of the features that make an Air what it is.
Thinner implies less weight and slower implies more battery life
Neither of those statements are necessarily true, but I certainly wasn't trying to argue with you either. Just tossing out my perspective.
I just replaced a mid-2011 MBA with a new 13" rMBP. The rMBP is smaller dimensionally than the MBA and about the same width, at their thickest point. After carrying it around the last few days, I really don't notice the extra .5lb.
The main reasons I could see to buy a MBA right now over the rMBP would be price and battery life, and of course if you are interested in the 11" MBA.
The main reasons I could see to buy a MBA right now over the rMBP would be price and battery life, and of course if you are interested in the 11" MBA.
When it comes to modern technology it is. ULV CPUs use lower voltage than full voltage CPUs so there is less power consumption since power depends on current and voltage. Thinner laptops also tend to be lighter since there is less material overall.
If they did, I would suspect that they would then possibly get rid of the 13" rMBP and just have the 13" rMBA and the 15" rMBP. I don't see why anyone would buy an rMBP over an rMBA with most things being equal hardware wise.
I absolutely love BOTH my 13" MBA & MBP with retina. Each serves a unique purpose.
However it's apparent that Apple is bent on convergence of iOS & OS X. They may say otherwise, but outward indicators prove that's where they're headed. I'd sure like to be wrong.
I guess I'm in the minority on this one, but I wouldn't mind a merge of iOS and OSX. I run windows 8.1 in parallels and quite like the merge of the modern ui and traditional desktop. If apple were to do a rMBA with that sort of functionality and include a touchscreen, I would be sold. With the synchronization of all the apps between all of my iOS devices, I think it would be cool to also sync with my Mac.
You sure are in the minority (actually I don't know anyone who likes the Win 8 UI).
Anyway, I guess for touchscreens to work, they (Apple) would need to rethink the whole product - touchscreens suck on vertical screens
I guess I should be more clear.. I like the app integration with the backing of a powerful useable desktop experience. It kinda feels to me like it did back in 2007 when people didn't want to give up their blackberry keyboards for an onscreen alternative (iPhone). It's all about adapting to the advancements in technology and I feel like that is the next logical step for apple.
Just because this is the differentiating factor today, does not mean it will be in the future. Apple does this ALL of the time. Sometimes it is a new feature, sometimes it is an interface or a chip or a drive. Sometimes there isn't a difference and they fully deprecate one of the products. You point out something that would be true today, but it is not likely to be true in the future. Maybe the difference is Iris Pro graphics along with Broadwell. Maybe they add 4G to one of the other computers (Hard to know if this is a "pro" feature, or a business feature).
It is likely true that retina aware wide use applications have yet to be created. The I-Life applications retina aware, with Broadwell, and the new IGP may be enough ship the new Retina Air. It could be IGZO, It could be a slightly different size, it could have different memory/SSD design points. The big reason for increasing memory size is to support the new integrated graphics model and display size. Maybe they don't because of the boost that games would get that would finally make the Air a first class gaming machine that would get lost in the retina improvement and that waiting one more cycle for retina would make more sense for the target air user. (A pent-up need as opposed to a yet to be discovered need). It will be great for most people, and piss off some vocal minority... As usual.
It is likely true that retina aware wide use applications have yet to be created. The I-Life applications retina aware, with Broadwell, and the new IGP may be enough ship the new Retina Air. It could be IGZO, It could be a slightly different size, it could have different memory/SSD design points. The big reason for increasing memory size is to support the new integrated graphics model and display size. Maybe they don't because of the boost that games would get that would finally make the Air a first class gaming machine that would get lost in the retina improvement and that waiting one more cycle for retina would make more sense for the target air user. (A pent-up need as opposed to a yet to be discovered need). It will be great for most people, and piss off some vocal minority... As usual.
This.
The mba is a fantastic machine. I used to lug a 17" mbp with me. Moving to the mba was the best move I made.
Your back must be thanking you! I moved from a mid 2010 MacBook Pro to a MacBook Air. I sometimes get worried that I left it somewhere when carrying around my bag haha
He said he wouldn't mind seeing a convergence of iOS and OSX, not Windows Mobile and Windows.
You're never going to get full OSX on current iOS devices. However, there is no reason the iPad couldn't run full OSX with the addition of a keyboard and similarly, there's no reason why OSX couldn't have the OPTION of a touch interface for at least part of the GUI.
Launchpad needs improved, but I've already found that it can be useful if you group all of your similar software into category boxes. I've fit all my software into ONE Launchpad screen that way by category and I can find a lot of things a lot faster that way than using an application folder. Yes, you could create sub-folders, but then you're really heading down the Windows dark side start-menu path and with Launch Pad, you can leave the folders alone and just create categorical start icons. They just need a simpler way to organize this stuff to start as it can be a real PITA with 4-6 screens worth of icons to organize. They should automatically move over to the first screen as space is freed up or something. But the point is that the SAME people that think the iPad interface is awesome think that LaunchPad for OSX was just a horrible idea. Why is that? Fear of change of something they already like and are familiar with using.
As long as the user has the option to use the preferred interface for the input hardware they are using (some of us like the keyboard/mouse better), it shouldn't be an issue to offer additional options that work better for other interfaces (e.g. touch pad or touch screen). I'm sure voice input will eventually be a way to control the GUI fully as well. Why not use what YOU want it to use rather than what someone else thinks you should use? Thus, as long as they don't force one interface over another, I'm fine with it. If you watch Star Trek: The Next Generation, they could control most things with voice command, but they also had touch terminals and touch screens to speed things up when they needed faster input. Does that mean they should have disabled voice input? No. Why shouldn't OSX have more input options? Similarly, why shouldn't I be able to use a mouse and keyboard with an iPad, especially that new iPad Pro coming out? If that's what I get work done with faster sitting at a desk or table, I should be able to use them if I want to.
They might suck for doing "everything" on a vertical screen, but I can think of plenty of games where a touch option would be welcome (e.g. flight simulators to select cockpit controls). It would be a simple matter to have a future iPad have output to an external monitor and you could have input on the iPad and display information on the monitor (e.g. the iPad could become a full size keyboard for one application and instantly turn into a giant touch pad for something else).
I actually like the Windows 8/8.1 UI, maybe I'm in a minority. I also own a Windows Phone, but my laptops are all Macs.
I recently purchased the Dell Venue 8 Pro which is a Windows 8.1 tablet, for $229. It has 32GB of eMMC (plus I added a 64GB SD card) and 2GB of RAM. I really do think it's the future of generic computing, it's a complete PC in a 8" tablet form factor that actually doesn't suck. I can easily use the Modern apps which are more tablet friendly, but then I can hook it up to a monitor via HDMI (or via Miracast wireless display) at 1080P with a BlueTooth mouse/keyboard and use it as a full PC just like any other computer. The fact it runs real Windows, there are no app limitations. The browser runs Flash, Java, whatever you want, and it does it all pretty damn fast. Way faster than the crappy netbooks of old. I can even play real PC games on it like Civ 5, Diablo, etc.
I would KILL for the same thing in an Apple device, an iPad running OSX I could take anywhere and then also use full OSX when I need to. However Apple hasn't really embraced touch as an input method for OSX.
I recently purchased the Dell Venue 8 Pro which is a Windows 8.1 tablet, for $229. It has 32GB of eMMC (plus I added a 64GB SD card) and 2GB of RAM. I really do think it's the future of generic computing, it's a complete PC in a 8" tablet form factor that actually doesn't suck. I can easily use the Modern apps which are more tablet friendly, but then I can hook it up to a monitor via HDMI (or via Miracast wireless display) at 1080P with a BlueTooth mouse/keyboard and use it as a full PC just like any other computer. The fact it runs real Windows, there are no app limitations. The browser runs Flash, Java, whatever you want, and it does it all pretty damn fast. Way faster than the crappy netbooks of old. I can even play real PC games on it like Civ 5, Diablo, etc.
I would KILL for the same thing in an Apple device, an iPad running OSX I could take anywhere and then also use full OSX when I need to. However Apple hasn't really embraced touch as an input method for OSX.
+1 this is what I was talking about earlier. Options are great for consumers. Just like you can tweak windows 8.1 to run without the modern ui element, I would expect apple to also include that option if and when they introduce touch into their laptop lines.
What advantage would an iOS / OSX merger bring? They keep denying they have plans to do so, yet so many people think it will happen next year.
If they did merge them, they might power the next MBA with an ARM processor (and then your ability to run Parallels would disappear). That would be my worst nightmare for a new MBA.
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