MBA 2011 Refresh: Would you prefer a Vaio Z-like dock or more powerful internal GFX?

[Jobsian]

I have to say, Sony's latest Vaio Z with its "Power Media Dock" excites me a lot (MacRumors news thread).

Basically it seems to be a dock you can connect an external graphics card to your notebook with, in addition to other things eg powering additional displays.

I would love to see one of these for the MBA, with an optical media player too. It would mean we can get our treasured extra battery through less power consumption but also extra space.

To me it makes a lot of sense in that if I ever want to knuckle down to some serious lifting eg video compression etc I can do that at home, as I would have anyway, meanwhile allowing good battery for other non-intensive activities when I'm on the go. I don't tax the graphics much normally.

Some though would not like to see less powerful internal graphics as it will be a step down in many ways over NVidia's chipsets. How? Maybe AMD, or some unknown workaround to the Core i-chipset incompatibility.

Which would you prefer?

 

[Hellhammer]

Well, if the Power Media Dock wasn't a $70 GPU and $20 DVD drive with $500 price tag, it might be interesting. I would use the $500 towards a separate gaming rig instead, $1000 builds miracles.

 

[Jobsian]

Is Sony's one going to be $500? That would seriously put me off.

Ty for the edit!

 

[Hellhammer]

Is Sony's one going to be $500? That would seriously put me off.

Ty for the edit!

Yeah, £400, which translates to ~$500 when you take away UK's VAT.

 

[endhalf]

I have just read that Sony power dock will cost $640... Not that bad thought, who wants to game AND portability NOW, he must pay the research... It would be great if you could hook up that dock to MBA... I was seriously considering that Sony instead of MBA, but starting pricetag $2300 put me off...

 

[Hellhammer]

I have just read that Sony power dock will cost $640... Not that bad thought, who wants to game AND portability NOW, he must pay the research... It would be great if you could hook up that dock to MBA... I was seriously considering that Sony instead of MBA, but starting pricetag $2300 put me off...

Those prices are direct translations of UK's prices with VAT. You don't have VAT in the US, you have sales tax, which varies depending on the state/county. The difference is, sales tax will be applied on top of the total price. E.g. the 1799$ MBP isn't 1799$ with tax but the 1799£ MBP is 1799£ because that price includes the VAT.

As UK's VAT is 20%, the price of the Power Media Dock is roughly 500$ and the price of the laptop is 1900$.

 

[hcho3]

I read that Sony's Vaio Z laptop is priced around 3000 dollars in Japan.

You are comparing this to MBA (Costs 999 dollars to 1599 dollars)

I will spend 200-300 dollars on xbox 360 or PS3.

 

[jlblodgett]

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Didn't apply try the "dock" route once before - with the PowerBook duo line?

I don't think apple has any interest in such a system. If you want a graphics workhorse, get a MacBook Pro. If you want thin and light - get an MBA.

 

[Cynicalone]

If there was an option I would prefer an internal graphics solution.

 

[peskaa]

Based on reality, which is that you can't even fit a decent GPU in an MBA, I'd much rather have an optional external GPU available. Sony's is a good start, just stupidly expensive.

 

[miamirulz29]

I would love for apple to release an external GPU dock for all of their macs, but I would never buy it for $500.

 

[FX4568]

If you are going to carry an external doc, and an MBA... why not just buy a MBP 15??
I dont understand... whatever happened to portability.

 

[peskaa]

If you are going to carry an external doc, and an MBA... why not just buy a MBP 15??
I dont understand... whatever happened to portability.

You're not supposed to carry the dock. The dock lives on your desk, possibly with a monitor plugged in to it, as well as anything else you need (printers, scanners, mouse etc). When at the desk, you plug the laptop in and get the power of the GPU and all the other bits.

When you're on the move, you just have the skinny laptop with integrated graphics.

 

[Duke15]

id prefer an internal dGPU cus what if your away from home for an extended period of time, travelingfor work, you dont want to carry that around because its not like you wont want to use it. its ok to leave it at home if your gone for a day or two maybe but more than that id rather have it.

 

[drewyboy]

External of course! If ppl really wanted internal, that's what a MBP is for. The external would offer more power at the desk, but same great low power for the road, which is the main purpose for the MBA in the first place.

 

[Ijustfarted]

I read that Sony's Vaio Z laptop is priced around 3000 dollars in Japan.

You are comparing this to MBA (Costs 999 dollars to 1599 dollars)

I will spend 200-300 dollars on xbox 360 or PS3.

lol x2. Forking over so much for the vaio z is just retarded

 

[Duke15]

External of course! If ppl really wanted internal, that's what a MBP is for. The external would offer more power at the desk, but same great low power for the road, which is the main purpose for the MBA in the first place.

No the current MBA has an internal one, ppl just want a more current CPU as well in it. We want the MBA for the size and weight, getting the MBP would defeat that purpose.

 

[Young Spade]

I voted for a more powerful internal. Although it would be great to sit down at a desk, plug the thing in, and get more power and drive an external monitor, I'm a college student and I don't always have that luxury. What do I do when I go to the 24hr local coffee shop? What about when I'm at a friend's house?

I currently have a Blackbook that's blazing fast and great at what it does, however the graphics card sucks. That's the only thing I would change with this machine. A better graphics card.

 

[Duke15]

the reason im buying a laptop is so that i dont have to use it at a desk if i dont want to, i can move it around my house as i do. dont want to have to carry along the dock and plug it in and so forth everytime

 

[ntrigue]

Apple wouldn't pull something like this...ever.