EEE-like MacBook Air?

[gaetanomarano]

the MacBook Air is beautiful but too expensive for many, so, following the Asus EEE trend, Apple could make a smaller, slimmer, ligher and cheaper MacBook Air with a low cost 12 GB solid state disk

a possible alternative is to sell an accessory that fits the 64GB SSD but has a 12-16GB SSD and an extra battery, so, the smaller SSD and the 2nd battery, may give it a stronger operation time

 

[asme]

Or, why hasn't apple used any standard PATA hard drives yet to lower the price of the Air?

OH WAIT

 

[alphaod]

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the MacBook Air is beautiful but too expensive for many, so, following the Asus EEE trend, Apple could make a smaller, slimmer, ligher and cheaper MacBook Air with a low cost 12 GB solid state disk

a possible alternative is to sell an accessory that fits the 64GB SSD but has a 12-16GB SSD and an extra battery, so, the smaller SSD and the 2nd battery, may give it a stronger operation time

.

That's not practical; considering OS X uses 10GB of space, use another GB for iWork/Office, what can you do with a few MB?

 

[gaetanomarano]

That's not practical; considering OS X uses 10GB of space, use another GB for iWork/Office, what can you do with a few MB?

the solution is an OSX "light" version or a 16GB SSD + an external HDD

I doubt the average user could fill 5GB of disk in a few hours' travel

 

[pscoble]

the solution is an OSX "light" version or a 16GB SSD + an external HDD

I doubt the average user could fill 5GB of disk in a few hours' travel

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Not sure what a OSX "light" would mean I know if I were always on the road for business I wouldn't want a "light" version of OSX. Still that's not very practical think about how only 5GBs would last you over the course of several years? It wouldn't be great especially if you are a business man on the road who needs to have lots of important documents over time they would add up. If they were to make a cheaper MBA it would probably be slightly bigger yet still less powerful rather than smaller knowing Apple. Also the "average" user wouldn't want a MBA most likely. They would go for a MB or similar so they could have all of their media. Not so they could travel.

 

[Prometheus2000]

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the MacBook Air is beautiful but too expensive for many, so, following the Asus EEE trend, Apple could make a smaller, slimmer, ligher and cheaper MacBook Air with a low cost 12 GB solid state disk

a possible alternative is to sell an accessory that fits the 64GB SSD but has a 12-16GB SSD and an extra battery, so, the smaller SSD and the 2nd battery, may give it a stronger operation time

.

Maybe apple will counter the EEE Hype with the rumored iTablet, hopefully with excellent battery life, 3G etc. I heard the EEE just has like 3 hours battery life even when you get a mini display and lots of ultra lower power components. But then, there is no much space for a good battery...

Also, for doing long time work, I find these mini notebooks (also these UMPCs) to uncomfortable (I own a Vaio TX5MN/W besides my MBP). And for browsing and email on the go, I find my iPhone far more practically...add the rumored iChat, GPS, 3G and additional apps like Voice over IP in the next Gen and it can compete the EEE. Size the iPhone up to a Tablet with some good onscreen keyboard and let the competition for the ultra portable begin

But I never used an EEE PC, I just get ache in my hands all the time when using the Vaio longer. Its a good pieace of engineering work, excellent screen, great battery life and sooo transportable, but as so often, not very ergonomic...my dream computer gear on the move:

- Macbook Air with 120GB HD or SSD for programming/writing due to its full keyboard.
- iTablet for notetaking, OneNote support (for the beginning before some kick-ass killer notebook app from Apple takes over the world), document reading and annotating
- 3G iPhone which serves as portable wifi hotspot for the devices above, so they are always connected like the iPhone....

Ok, waking up again

And as a true believer in Slate Tablet PCs (can't do without my trusty HP TC1100) I pray to Steve Jobs photograph on my desk everyday that he might give as a multitouch penable Tablet Its so hard to be part of a niche group, but Apple has shown how to bring niches to the mainstream (have you noticed how they evolved the iPod Touch from an MP3 player slowly to a full PDA which can compete WinMob devices, with the app store completing the transformation soon)

 

[Aegelward]

Maybe apple will counter the EEE Hype with the rumored iTablet, hopefully with excellent battery life, 3G etc. I heard the EEE just has like 3 hours battery life even when you get a mini display and lots of ultra lower power components. But then, there is no much space for a good battery...

AFAIK the EEE uses standard components since they're cheaper, and an extended battery is available that pushes the life up to 5-6 hours.

an 11" air is feasible, and SSDs are getting cheeper all time now

 

[Foxglove9]

I have Tiger installed on my 4GB Asus EEE PC. It's true the OS does take up a lot of space, but I still get a good 1.5 GB left for extra space. I can also add an SD card which gives me more room if I need it. It's good for basic stuff like web surfing, word documents, etc...

If it wasn't for the screen resolution and timing issues, I like the small form factor of the machine running OS X. I'd love to see a MiniAir.

 

[mkrishnan]

AFAIK the EEE uses standard components since they're cheaper, and an extended battery is available that pushes the life up to 5-6 hours.

Yeah, that's true... the Eee is still lighter than the MBA, I think, even with an extended battery (I don't have an ext battery though).

OTOH, Apple has fantastic growth and profitability playing in the stratosphere of the market. Why should Apple emulate Asus in this regard, even if Asus's strategy works well for them?

 

[speakerwizard]

I thought about an ee, then i realised my iphone is about the same power, more ram and storage and will soon have downloadable apps, and is a hell of a lot more portable.

 

[glitch44]

I have Tiger installed on my 4GB Asus EEE PC. It's true the OS does take up a lot of space, but I still get a good 1.5 GB left for extra space. I can also add an SD card which gives me more room if I need it. It's good for basic stuff like web surfing, word documents, etc...

If it wasn't for the screen resolution and timing issues, I like the small form factor of the machine running OS X. I'd love to see a MiniAir.

waaaa? the guides i read on tiger on the eee made it seem like tiger is too sluggish. did you find a solution for this or are you just living with the sluggish-ness?

 

[5855997]

the MacBook Air is beautiful but too expensive for many, so, following the Asus EEE trend, Apple could make a smaller, slimmer, ligher and cheaper MacBook Air with a low cost 12 GB solid state disk

a possible alternative is to sell an accessory that fits the 64GB SSD but has a 12-16GB SSD and an extra battery, so, the smaller SSD and the 2nd battery, may give it a stronger operation time

Sure they could do that. But why should they? There are already enough companies in the game for subnotebooks. Ok, none of them has OS X, but with such a tiny (also slow) subnotebook, you don't really need the power of OS X. The Air is already pretty good for portable producitvity (though an exchangable battery is missing IMHO). I think the EEE PC is already perfect for the tasks like Skype, Internet and mail. For its price I consider it as a second notebook, for trips and such. But at the moment my MacBook just serves me right.

Apple is already pushing the mobile internet with the iPhone and the iPod Touch.
But who knows, what's coming in the future..with all this Mac tablet rumors floating around. I believe it when I see it.

 

[Aegelward]

The Air is already pretty good for portable producitvity (though an exchangable battery is missing IMHO).

Extending battery life should be the priority of the Air to be honest, performance boosts should be treated as secondary. Who needs 2ghz when your battery life is just 2 hours, give me half that and 6 or 7 hours of wireless use

 

[alphaod]

the solution is an OSX "light" version or a 16GB SSD + an external HDD

I doubt the average user could fill 5GB of disk in a few hours' travel

Well asking users to buy an external HDD is not practical sense. Yes you can install OS X with like 3 GB maybe, but it won't have foreign language files, drivers, etc. Then they can't advertise everything is plug and play.

 

[QCassidy352]

I thought about an ee, then i realised my iphone is about the same power, more ram and storage and will soon have downloadable apps, and is a hell of a lot more portable.

I know others will mock us, but I totally agree with you. I think the eee is a silly device. It lacks the true "pocket portability" of an iphone or a blackberry, but it also lacks the full-fledged usability of a macbook air or lenovo x300. Once I'm taking more than what fits in a pocket (i.e. something bigger than a blackberry/phone) I'll just take a real laptop. The eee is a compromise solution, and IMO, not a good one.

I doubt apple will make something like the eee because they like each mac to be a fully capable machine. Of course, the air is something of a step away from that with its lack of ports and no optical drive, and the renewal of the "tablet" rumor may yet prove me wrong. But I don't see apple trying to compete with the eee, nor do I think they should.

 

[gaetanomarano]

But I don't see apple trying to compete with the eee, nor do I think they should.

it's not to compete with the EEE but to have "something" in the market's segment between the MBA and the iPhone, with (about) HALF the dimensions and weight of the MBA, evidenced in the (possible) "eeeAir" specs shown in this article and clearly visible in this image:

however, are you sure the rumored "MacTablet" isn't an EEE-like micro-notebook with (also) a touch screen?

 

[gaetanomarano]

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just to add one point missed in my article (and here) about the advantage a low cost "eeeAir" may give to Apple to enlarge its notebooks' market share, since, an economy's law, say that, when the price of a product "falls to half", it's seeling "more than doubles"

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apple will counter the EEE Hype with the rumored iTablet

or (simply) the rumored "iTablet" will be an EEE-like MBA with touch screen and some iPhone features

.

 

[deputylove8]

Personally, I love the Air. However, I fall into the group who find
the Air overly priced for its features. But dang! I do like it a lot though.

I understand that this thread is comparing the AIr to the EEE. Here, I would like to add another contender. The HP 2133. Yes the specs are different but here, they serve the same type of consumers.Those who want mobility, light, wireless connectivity minus the optical drive.

The pirce is aslo a big diff. Its about $600 I reckon....the drawback...its running on windows. Haha.

http://h40059.www4.hp.com/hp2133/

Hehehe..yeah like what everyone has said. The Air suits some but not others

 

[twist2b]

what you are suggesting is useless.... why not get a iphone or itouch if you want that little GB space..

THE WHOLE POINT of making a mac air was to make it the smallest, withought taking away from a basic laptop..... they were close, I admit that they missed the mark slightly, but any smaller thinner crappier then why not just make a garage sale at apple and bring some hippies?

Seriously, if you are not satisfied with what they released, want smaller or cheaper:

GO iPhone or iTouch!!!!!!!! That simple.
its a niche market product, accept that.

 

[gaetanomarano]

I understand that this thread is comparing the AIr to the EEE. Here, I would like to add another contender.

not exactly... it's about suggesting Apple to sell (also) a notebook with HALF the size, HALF the weight and HALF the price of the MBA

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...why not get a iphone or itouch if you want that little GB space...

the "eeeAir" design and specs I suggest are exactly those that make the EEE a large and worldwide success

.

 

[Foxglove9]

waaaa? the guides i read on tiger on the eee made it seem like tiger is too sluggish. did you find a solution for this or are you just living with the sluggish-ness?

You can tweak and speed the OS up using 3rd party apps. It's not blazing by any means but it's definitely usable for small tasks and that's about it until they work out the kinks.

 

[Aegelward]

not exactly... it's about suggesting Apple to sell (also) a notebook with HALF the size, HALF the weight and HALF the price of the MBA

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Half is too much to expect, lets go with a more conservative 25% (or so) reduction in proportions and cost

11 or 10" will be far more acceptable, and a thinner bezel. i know i keep saying this but even the 2cm (at the top and sides) reduction of the 13" models bezel will make a huge difference to its size

 

[wordmunger]

Well, as an actual MBA owner I thought I'd weigh in here. I don't think there's actually much of a gap in Apple's line between the iPod touch / iPhone and the MBA.

In fact, all Apple would really need to do to fill the gap is to offer an external keyboard for the iPhone / touch. (or allow a third-party vendor to offer one). Problem solved.

Maybe I'm a bit biased, but I wouldn't want a slightly smaller, crippled version of the MBA. It's awesome as is, and I love having a full size screen and keyboard in a tiny package.

 

[gaetanomarano]

lets go with a more conservative 25%

every new product needs a giant investment, so, if the new MBA can't be smaller than -25%, the better choice is to don't make it

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I don't think there's actually much of a gap in Apple's line between the iPod touch / iPhone and the MBA.

probably you're right, but it's the market that wants it... the EEE-lke notebooks are a success, so, if Apple don't sell its model, the users could buy the product of a competitor

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[wordmunger]

probably you're right, but it's the market that wants it... the EEE-lke notebooks are a success, so, if Apple don't sell its model, the users could buy the product of a competitor

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Hmmm... I've seen more MBAs in the wild than EEE PCs... and TONS more iPhones. The iPhone has sold over 4 million and the EEE has sold around 350K. We don't have sales figures for the MBA but I suspect it's sold at least as well as the EEE.