Didn't Jobs once say, "Stay foolish?"
This thing is awesome, so I think I'll take his advice over yours
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MacBook Air First Impressions and Notes
- Thread starter arn
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Didn't Jobs once say, "Stay foolish?"
This thing is awesome, so I think I'll take his advice over yours
Straight out of the box, mine sits totally flat. I'll check it again after it warms up and see if anything changes.
Mark
Mark
lol. Come on, aren't we past this price debate? Go play in another forum, little troll.
Can you describe what they had you reset?
1.8 wth SSD
arrived at 10am EST today(monday)
unboxed, charged (about an hour)
used mac synch to populate key apps: mail, cal, address book. safari, settings, keychain
downloaded 1password.
used dongle to hook up to a plasma tv. awesome
loaded max osx disc in my imac and added disk sharing software(haven't tried it)
time to sit down with the book and learn how to use it(finger swirls, ...)
had a group of 4 home theater techs over working on a new setup. they all loved it!
arrived at 10am EST today(monday)
unboxed, charged (about an hour)
used mac synch to populate key apps: mail, cal, address book. safari, settings, keychain
downloaded 1password.
used dongle to hook up to a plasma tv. awesome
loaded max osx disc in my imac and added disk sharing software(haven't tried it)
time to sit down with the book and learn how to use it(finger swirls, ...)
had a group of 4 home theater techs over working on a new setup. they all loved it!
Mine has just arrived as of noon Feb 4. Love it!!
Much better than the original ship date of Feb 6, delivered Feb 18!!
1.8 GHz 64 SSD. USB Superdrive
First Impressions:
SSD (64GB) has 55.58 GB total space, with 38.00 GB free when shipped!
Trackpad button is a little narrow, getting used to it.
USB Superdrive works well, cable is a bit short -12"
New trackpad gestures are awesome, esp screen zoom!
No battery status lights on bottom.
Sit perfectly, no wobble
Much better than the original ship date of Feb 6, delivered Feb 18!!
1.8 GHz 64 SSD. USB Superdrive
First Impressions:
SSD (64GB) has 55.58 GB total space, with 38.00 GB free when shipped!
Trackpad button is a little narrow, getting used to it.
USB Superdrive works well, cable is a bit short -12"
New trackpad gestures are awesome, esp screen zoom!
No battery status lights on bottom.
Sit perfectly, no wobble
Handbrake works with Remote Disc
It is definitely running a little slower, especially when doing initial scanning of the title (took about four to five minutes) but seems to access a DVD in my iMac superdrive through the Air...
Handbrake encoding speed however is pretty decent. Using the AppleTV encoding setting, it is averaging 19 fps.. 30 minute DVD encoding was done in 45 minutes.
It is definitely running a little slower, especially when doing initial scanning of the title (took about four to five minutes) but seems to access a DVD in my iMac superdrive through the Air...
Handbrake encoding speed however is pretty decent. Using the AppleTV encoding setting, it is averaging 19 fps.. 30 minute DVD encoding was done in 45 minutes.
Seems pretty good so far Im just wiping mine and removing printer drivers, languages etc that consume about 10 gb of hard drive lol. After im done ill post some additional impressions. The SuperDrive seems much faster than the internal option but i could be wrong. I started reformatting my macbook pro around 30 minutes before this and im almost onto the second dvd.
In OSX it was pretty snappy but nowhere near as fast as my pro obviously. I got the 80gb 4200rpm drive which I'm sure is the main reason but boot up is noticeably longer than the pro. Also when they fan spun up it was def. audible. I could hear it from the doorway when i walked into my room and thought it was the mbp because I have them side by side but turns out its the air. I'll give a better writeup later, but as of now Im pretty happy with it.
In OSX it was pretty snappy but nowhere near as fast as my pro obviously. I got the 80gb 4200rpm drive which I'm sure is the main reason but boot up is noticeably longer than the pro. Also when they fan spun up it was def. audible. I could hear it from the doorway when i walked into my room and thought it was the mbp because I have them side by side but turns out its the air. I'll give a better writeup later, but as of now Im pretty happy with it.
Got mine (1.6/80g HDD) a few hours ago, and liking it so far.
I read somewhere (it may have been earlier in this thread) that the Air was 'sluggish' on starting it up for the very first time. I would have to say I found this too. For a while, I was worried that I'd been sold a dud: it felt like the problem was the wireless, that the Air just wasn't playing well with the wireless network. As part of this problem, it plain refused to read the iWork disc I had sitting in my MB Pro, ready to install the apps to the new Air. It could see the disc, but kept saying that it 'couldn't find the original' or some such. One quick restart and a software update later, though, and it's working fine.
I report all this just in case someone else finds that their machine just ain't working right when they first get it home. Let it crawl through the software update, restart it, and hopefully things should be working as smoothly for you as they are now.
After this brief hiccup, the remote disc installation of iWork went fine. I didn't really even notice it going slower than you might expect. Since I imagine I'll rarely use the facility, I have absolutely no complaints: easy to set up, and quick in operation.
As to the rest of my experience with it so far:
I love the keyboard. Love it. It feels ever so slightly springier than the MacBook's - at first sight, you might think they're identical, but this has a more responsive feel, I find. (It's not yet dark enough here to test the back lighting, I'm afraid! )
The build of the Air as a whole is nice. Sleek, but not flimsy. The screen does flex a little - but compared to my 17" Pro, I'd say the flexing is not as extreme. The whole thing feels pretty sturdy - and, of course, nice and light.
The screen is bright and sharp, and the 'wake-up' time when opening it is remarkably fast. The whole unit is so light that just pulling the screen open can be enough to move the whole computer! I'd recommend trying to hold down the rest of the machine while you do so.
It runs quiet and cool, too. I can hear the occasional whir of the HD, and a very slight hum of the fans - but nowhere near as loud as either a MacBook or MB Pro.
Start up on this model is slow. We tested start up on both this and the SSD version in the store - the SSD start-up is brilliant and swift, miles ahead of this. But I'm one of those people who very rarely fully powers down their machine, so it wasn't enough of a deal breaker to make me shell out the $1000 more! (Generally, the SSD machine is swifter all round - but again, for my needs, it wasn't worth paying the much bigger price. And, for day to day purposes, the difference in speed - while definitely noticeable - wasn't earth-shattering.)
Everything else seems to run pretty well, though. It's not as fast as my Pro, but then I didn't expect it to be. But it's certainly fast enough when dealing with Safari and Pages, the two things I'll be using most on the Air. So no complaints from me.
I hope other people are enjoying their first experiences with the Air as much as I am!
I read somewhere (it may have been earlier in this thread) that the Air was 'sluggish' on starting it up for the very first time. I would have to say I found this too. For a while, I was worried that I'd been sold a dud: it felt like the problem was the wireless, that the Air just wasn't playing well with the wireless network. As part of this problem, it plain refused to read the iWork disc I had sitting in my MB Pro, ready to install the apps to the new Air. It could see the disc, but kept saying that it 'couldn't find the original' or some such. One quick restart and a software update later, though, and it's working fine.
I report all this just in case someone else finds that their machine just ain't working right when they first get it home. Let it crawl through the software update, restart it, and hopefully things should be working as smoothly for you as they are now.
After this brief hiccup, the remote disc installation of iWork went fine. I didn't really even notice it going slower than you might expect. Since I imagine I'll rarely use the facility, I have absolutely no complaints: easy to set up, and quick in operation.
As to the rest of my experience with it so far:
I love the keyboard. Love it. It feels ever so slightly springier than the MacBook's - at first sight, you might think they're identical, but this has a more responsive feel, I find. (It's not yet dark enough here to test the back lighting, I'm afraid!
)The build of the Air as a whole is nice. Sleek, but not flimsy. The screen does flex a little - but compared to my 17" Pro, I'd say the flexing is not as extreme. The whole thing feels pretty sturdy - and, of course, nice and light.
The screen is bright and sharp, and the 'wake-up' time when opening it is remarkably fast. The whole unit is so light that just pulling the screen open can be enough to move the whole computer! I'd recommend trying to hold down the rest of the machine while you do so.
It runs quiet and cool, too. I can hear the occasional whir of the HD, and a very slight hum of the fans - but nowhere near as loud as either a MacBook or MB Pro.
Start up on this model is slow. We tested start up on both this and the SSD version in the store - the SSD start-up is brilliant and swift, miles ahead of this. But I'm one of those people who very rarely fully powers down their machine, so it wasn't enough of a deal breaker to make me shell out the $1000 more! (Generally, the SSD machine is swifter all round - but again, for my needs, it wasn't worth paying the much bigger price. And, for day to day purposes, the difference in speed - while definitely noticeable - wasn't earth-shattering.)
Everything else seems to run pretty well, though. It's not as fast as my Pro, but then I didn't expect it to be. But it's certainly fast enough when dealing with Safari and Pages, the two things I'll be using most on the Air. So no complaints from me.
I hope other people are enjoying their first experiences with the Air as much as I am!
Also: mine doesn't have the wobbly feet some people's seem to have. Thank heavens!
(The keyboard is illuminated now too. Very bright and clear, though the light spilling from the edges of the keys can be a little distracting... Not a major complaint, though.)
(The keyboard is illuminated now too. Very bright and clear, though the light spilling from the edges of the keys can be a little distracting... Not a major complaint, though.)
Went to the Apple Store to see one.
GOD, I WANT ONE!
They're awesome...
Actually, I love the black MacBook like keys and the Aluminum.
I would really rather have an Aluminum MacBook with the same Alumimum enclosure (not thin obviously) and the black back-lit MacBook keys. Tired of the "white" and the extra $ for black isn't worth it to me.
I need the larger hard disk and built-in optical.
I hope the MacBook line becomes Alumimum - I would get one..
The MBA is awesome too!
GOD, I WANT ONE!
They're awesome...
Actually, I love the black MacBook like keys and the Aluminum.
I would really rather have an Aluminum MacBook with the same Alumimum enclosure (not thin obviously) and the black back-lit MacBook keys. Tired of the "white" and the extra $ for black isn't worth it to me.
I need the larger hard disk and built-in optical.
I hope the MacBook line becomes Alumimum - I would get one..
The MBA is awesome too!
You know, it's funny. I did a cold startup (from power off to desktop) on the SSD and the HDD in the Charlotte store today twice on each machine. Got 28.5 and 29.0 seconds on the 1.8 SSD and 45.0 and 48.5 seconds on the 1.6 HDD.
How many times are people going to do that test in real life?
How many times are people going to do that test in real life?
That's surely only a matter of time? If you don't count the Mini, it's the only Mac line that isn't aluminium/black now...
I guess they'll let the MBAs bed in for a while, and then do a revision to the 'babies' of the line. That would be my guess, anyway.
You know, it's funny. I did a cold startup (from power off to desktop) on the SSD and the HDD in the Charlotte store today twice on each machine. Got 28.5 and 29.0 seconds on the 1.8 SSD and 45.0 and 48.5 seconds on the 1.6 HDD.
How many times are people going to do that test in real life?
I get about 35 seconds on my Macbook Pro about 45 seconds on my 1.6 Air
I got mine today, and it's...
AMAZING!
It's everything I was hoping for and so much more. No problems yet. It started up quickly, doesn't wobble, works great. I'm in love!
AMAZING!
It's everything I was hoping for and so much more. No problems yet. It started up quickly, doesn't wobble, works great. I'm in love!
Just got my 1.8/80. I had an IBM Thinkpad X41t that also used a 1.8" hard drive and lagged horrifically on basic tasks such as loading the start menu (widely attributed to the HD speed) so I had fears about ordering the HDD instead of the SSD. Thankfully, the MBA doesn't seem to be anywhere near that bad.
External Drive
I think I will have to succomb and get an SSD MBA. I travel a lot and could really use the weight saving. I was thinking I would get the HDD, but after trying the two yesterday at 14th street, the SSD is a lot faster.
Question - what is the best, small, USB powered external drive I could get to pair with it when I need more storage (something highly portable). I am thinking that I could could have Fusion or Parallels with XP on it with a decent sized partition (don't think you can do Bootcamp from external). Any suggestions?
I think I will have to succomb and get an SSD MBA. I travel a lot and could really use the weight saving. I was thinking I would get the HDD, but after trying the two yesterday at 14th street, the SSD is a lot faster.
Question - what is the best, small, USB powered external drive I could get to pair with it when I need more storage (something highly portable). I am thinking that I could could have Fusion or Parallels with XP on it with a decent sized partition (don't think you can do Bootcamp from external). Any suggestions?
love the little beast
I have had the Air apparent to my laptop needs for two days and I am infatuated. Possibly by tomorrow Ill be in love . The machine is super and I never thought I would be this impressed. The air is running fine no problems ,speed is excellent, Office '08 works flawlessly still wish there was outlook but entourage is is growing on me. This Mac is a small apple with a lot of good tastes. 1.8, 80 gig HD
I have had the Air apparent to my laptop needs for two days and I am infatuated. Possibly by tomorrow Ill be in love . The machine is super and I never thought I would be this impressed. The air is running fine no problems ,speed is excellent, Office '08 works flawlessly still wish there was outlook but entourage is is growing on me. This Mac is a small apple with a lot of good tastes. 1.8, 80 gig HD
I finally got to the apple store and checked the air out, and it really is amazing.
amazing enough to want to sell my 17in mbp. I love my mbp, but carrying it around all day is a haul. I currently use it for some editing, but most of that is done on my mac pro. A smart move would be to ditch the mbp, lose some editing ability, but have a much easier time traveling. I don't need a cd drive, i just need to be able to look through photos on the road, maybe do very basic ps stuff ( like crop...) and mostly type a lot of crap in class. opening safari and other programs was super fast. anyone want to be a 2.16ghz mbp? ... contact me!
amazing enough to want to sell my 17in mbp. I love my mbp, but carrying it around all day is a haul. I currently use it for some editing, but most of that is done on my mac pro. A smart move would be to ditch the mbp, lose some editing ability, but have a much easier time traveling. I don't need a cd drive, i just need to be able to look through photos on the road, maybe do very basic ps stuff ( like crop...) and mostly type a lot of crap in class. opening safari and other programs was super fast. anyone want to be a 2.16ghz mbp? ... contact me!