Mac Dilemma :S

[MaCamZa]

Right, i feel as if i need to take the plunge into the MBA world. However, i currently have a Late 2009 White Macbook and im not sure as if the current 13" Macbook Air is going to be a good upgrade.

However, im here to ask if the Macbook Air is 'future-proof'?

I know its the 'dreaded' word, but i want it to last through Mac OSX Lion through to the next version (10.8).

Any advice?

EDIT: I do, do photo-editing and basic imovie clips from my iPhone 4. I would mainly use the MBA for student work, creative work and the odd game.

 

[lucashungaro]

Right, i feel as if i need to take the plunge into the MBA world. However, i currently have a Late 2009 White Macbook and im not sure as if the current 13" Macbook Air is going to be a good upgrade.

However, im here to ask if the Macbook Air is 'future-proof'?

I know its the 'dreaded' word, but i want it to last through Mac OSX Lion through to the next version (10.8).

Any advice?

EDIT: I do, do photo-editing and basic imovie clips from my iPhone 4. I would mainly use the MBA for student work, creative work and the odd game.

The maxed out configuration of the 13'' MBA will surely feel way faster than your current machine. I came from a MacBook aluminum with 2.4 Ghz and even with a 2.13 Ghz processor it feels much faster (thanks to the flash storage, of course).

About the dreaded "future-proofing", it's always hard to tell… I bought the "ultimate" config because it fits my needs now (I would be always using swap with 2 Gb of RAM). I think it's a machine that can be used at least for 2 years with no problems whatsoever. I plan using mine for at least 3 years, but then again, my needs are not the most demanding (I develop software with Ruby, using TextMate, a browser, Terminal.app and some databases and libraries).

 

[mac jones]

Future Man here

I heard the distress call "Mac dilemma!"

Solution:

No one knows. Not even Future Man.

sorry

 

[Mr. Savage]

Considering the MBA was intro'd as the "future of laptops" at the same event that previewed Lion OS, I think it's safe to say that it'll run it fine.

 

[qawes]

By the release of Lion a new MBA gen will come out that will be even more 'future proof' than the current one. If you are unsure about the upgrade, I would reccoomend putting an SSD in you current Macbook.

 

[silverblack]

This is an easy problem. Simply give me a copy of your Lion and the yet-to-released softwares that you plan to run in the next few years, I'll quickly run them on my MBA and let you know how it handles them.

Seriously, you have a perfectly fine 1-Yr old MB and you already want something else. Not that there's anything wrong with it, I do it all the time. Let's face it, you know you'll want something new in a year, so why bother?

 

[halledise]

Right, i feel as if i need to take the plunge into the MBA world. However, i currently have a Late 2009 White Macbook and im not sure as if the current 13" Macbook Air is going to be a good upgrade.

However, im here to ask if the Macbook Air is 'future-proof'?

I know its the 'dreaded' word, but i want it to last through Mac OSX Lion through to the next version (10.8).

Any advice?

EDIT: I do, do photo-editing and basic imovie clips from my iPhone 4. I would mainly use the MBA for student work, creative work and the odd game.

there is no such thing as 'future proof' these days, as the future comes upon us far faster than it ever used to.

that said, a new Mac will always have the ability to take you thru the current iteration of OSX, thru the next and well into the following one.
best bet - buy the current model maxed out - or (if you can) wait until the next release.
these new Airs are pretty sharp tho … …

 

[gwsat]

there is no such thing as 'future proof' these days, as the future comes upon us far faster than it ever used to.

that said, a new Mac will always have the ability to take you thru the current iteration of OSX, thru the next and well into the following one.
best bet - buy the current model maxed out - or (if you can) wait until the next release.
these new Airs are pretty sharp tho … …

You are right that there is no such thing as a "future proof" computer. Moore's Law posited in 1965 that advances in computer chip design and manufacturing processes had for many years in the past and would for many years in the future cause computing power and speed to increase at an exponential rate. Moore was right. Thus, in a field that is changing as rapidly as the design and construction of computer processors, it's simply impossible to totally future proof one's self. I have always felt as if I was ahead of the game if any computer I bought gave three years of reasonably satisfactory service..

 

[MaCamZa]

So you guys recommend for me to chill out and wait until next release?

What makes the next release so special? I mean as long as its still got the 13" size, idc. Also, one of my main concerns is that Apple may increase the thickness of the MBA.

I mean surely if their going to make the next release of the MBA any good, they have to 'thicken' it a fraction to fit more 'goodies' in it, right?

I just want a light, thin laptop to carry around with my iPhone. My White Macbook is too 'bulky', for me anyway.

 

[silverblack]

I just want a light, thin laptop to carry around with my iPhone. My White Macbook is too 'bulky', for me anyway.

In this case, just get yourself a new MBA, and don't worry about the futureproof nonsense. Portability is the main reason why most of us get the MBA. You won't be disappointed.

 

[Kauai]

So you guys recommend for me to chill out and wait until next release?

What makes the next release so special? I mean as long as its still got the 13" size, idc. Also, one of my main concerns is that Apple may increase the thickness of the MBA.

I mean surely if their going to make the next release of the MBA any good, they have to 'thicken' it a fraction to fit more 'goodies' in it, right?

I just want a light, thin laptop to carry around with my iPhone. My White Macbook is too 'bulky', for me anyway.

Just as the power of parts increases every year so does their size shrink. So no, it isn't likely that Apple will make the next generation of MBA's any thicker.

That being said I'm a bit bewildered by the people who suggest that you wait till the next improvement. They were JUST updated, -- so if you don't buy one now, when will you? A new iteration is always coming out.

 

[KPOM]

If "future proofing" is of ultimate importance, the Core i5-equipped MacBook Pro is probably your best bet, and you might consider waiting until January or February when the MacBook Pro will likely be upgraded (I'm guessing along the same lines as the MacBook Air, with the 13" sans an optical drive but likely with a Core i5 and discrete GPU).

Consider that the Core 2 Duo in the MacBook Air was initially released in 2006, and is going end of life at the end of the year. It is still powerful enough for most tasks today, but consider the thread here about Civ 5 and its system requirements. With most Windows PCs, the iMac, and MacBook Pro on the Core i3/i5/i7 now, it's easy to predict that new software will be written to take advantage of those chips' capabilities (such as the hyperthreading that makes the computer act as if it has twice as many cores as it really does).

 

[lucashungaro]

So you guys recommend for me to chill out and wait until next release?

What makes the next release so special? I mean as long as its still got the 13" size, idc. Also, one of my main concerns is that Apple may increase the thickness of the MBA.

I mean surely if their going to make the next release of the MBA any good, they have to 'thicken' it a fraction to fit more 'goodies' in it, right?

I just want a light, thin laptop to carry around with my iPhone. My White Macbook is too 'bulky', for me anyway.

Frankly, I don't understand the "wait for the next generation" thing. Under normal conditions, every computer will get better on the next generation and the best period to buy a new computer is right after its launch so you get more time with the current iteration.

The current MBA's form factor will stay around for some time. It'll get some processor/storage updates on the next 2 years and that's it.

All that said, if you need and/or want a new MBA, this is exactly the time to get one. Apple will probably use this kind of flash storage (and other aspects) on the MPB but maybe not so soon.