I want 10 hr battery life in the mba and if it is not offered then I would go 13 MBP. ipad has it and 13 mbp has it the air should also have it. I would not mind a slimed down pro as the new air. take out the optical drive that will save room for a bigger battery.
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MBA getting case redesign possible intel LV processors?
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I want 10 hr battery life in the mba and if it is not offered then I would go 13 MBP. ipad has it and 13 mbp has it the air should also have it. I would not mind a slimed down pro as the new air. take out the optical drive that will save room for a bigger battery.
Just a thought, couldn't we get it all, everybody's dreams, into a wicked ultra thin 15" MBA??. And Scottsdale, any chance at all of a touchscreen?
I know,but it didn't hurt to ask
I know,but it didn't hurt to ask
Just a thought, couldn't we get it all, everybody's dreams, into a wicked ultra thin 15" MBA??. And Scottsdale, any chance at all of a touchscreen?
I know,but it didn't hurt to ask
I doubt both. 15" MBA could "kill" the idea of MBA being ultra portable, but it would be cool indeed. I just don't think MBA is popular enough so Apple would bring new variant, meaning of at least 3 stock models and it isn't free to design one.
Touch screen is also something that I think is ridiculous. There is iPad for people who want it but it runs iPhone OS which is designed for touch, OS X isn't and would thus be painful to use. I don't see laptops getting touchscreen, maybe iPad alike thing with slide keyboard in future but seriously, touch is slow, inaccurate and just useless IMO. It works well on OS which is designed for touch but the bigger the screen, the more pain in your arms
A lot of interesting scenarios concerning the future MBA have been expressed here. I am far more interested in more memory than anything else. In fact, I pray that Apple provides at least 4Gb of RAM and would like for them to add more than that. Extra battery life would be nice, too, but not if it would require significantly increasing the MBA's weight or thickening its case. What CPU and GPU Apple choses for the MBA is anybody's guess. We just have to wait and see. The crystal balls used to see Apple's future designs are now and always have been distinctly cloudy.
yes
i think there is a better than not chance of no MBA update next week or at the conference. i dont think there will be an update this year. this reminds me of the mac mini or how about the larger cinema display, i think the air is on hold while the ipad and iphone are this years story. i hope i am wrong.
i think there is a better than not chance of no MBA update next week or at the conference. i dont think there will be an update this year. this reminds me of the mac mini or how about the larger cinema display, i think the air is on hold while the ipad and iphone are this years story. i hope i am wrong.
But unless I'm mistaken, the northbridge is included in the 9400m package, which is included in the total 29w TDP for the current MBA.
The iPad has an actual battery of about 11 hours, the MBP 13 has an actual of about 6, and I get about 3-3.5 on my MBA, so posted battery doesn't really matter.
sorry scottsdale but there is no way they will have a 3g/4g macbook air with verizon... VZ does not have a 4g network up and running yet, and will not until 2011... an air with integrated 3g card perhaps, most likely att unless apple can get att's floppies out of their backsides and make a cellular decision that is best for the consumers for once...
the air needs an integrated 3g card in it... and if they want 4g, well you guys best be hoping apple buddies up with sprint or you better be willing to wait for next years WWDC for that one...
the air needs an integrated 3g card in it... and if they want 4g, well you guys best be hoping apple buddies up with sprint or you better be willing to wait for next years WWDC for that one...
I have no interest in increasing the MBA battery life. If the efficiency could be improved... I would prefer decreasing the weight of the MBA over a a larger battery.
I have never felt the MBA battery life was insufficient, and I use mine every day.
/Jim
I never quite got the MBA and we don't use them at work. Looking at the specs, I would say it needs a built-in ethernet (you can't use wireless for backups in many enterprise networks), and, 4GB memory. And, you can *always* use longer battery life.
+1
Xcode, CS4, and XAMPP over here. Would definitely take a performance boost over a battery boost. Everybody's situation is different, but I can't imagine a scenario where I NEED 7+ hours of battery life in between charges. Anytime I'm using my MBA heavily or continuously, it's usually at a desk with an outlet somewhere nearby....all other places (on my lap, in bed, on the couch, on a flight, at a coffee shop, etc.), I'm usually doing light work and finish, or at least take a break, within 2 to 3 hours, giving me ample time to recharge the battery if necessary. Again, that's just my situation...everyone uses their laptops differently. I would definitely take a performance boost which would benefit me across the board (especially RAM, graphics, and SSD boost) over a battery boost, for the rare situations where I may need it.
The more I think about it, the more I think the MBA will get a case redesign.
The original MBA was the first to use the unibody structure, which eventually worked it's way into all of apple's mobile product line. With the new iPhone getting a more squared design with the possibility of using other materials (glass, ceramic, carbon fiber, etc.), I think the MacBook Air could see a similar design in the next iteration. Even the iPad looks more like the 4g iPhone than it does the current MBA.
If I had to hazard a guess, I would say the MBA will see a case redesign with uniform thickness and be made of something other than aluminum. I wouldn't be surprized to see carbon fiber like the Sony Vaio Z series, or even some form of polycarbonite. This could then be offered in an array of colors, starting with white and adding black a few months later when sales slow.
The case redesign would only be possible when the cooling system is reworked or the TDP is lowered. Right now (for better or worse), the aluminum body acts like a giant passive heatsink... I would hate for this to be the case in the future MBA. It could happen only if they used some sort of glass or ceramic for the case, as those would be the best conductors.
I would bet that the case redesign is eminent, but maybe not until later this fall. When all of the other MacBook lines have been updated (although minimally), I think it makes a better case for a full-redesign of the MBA. If it were only a ram and gpu update, we would have seen it already.
I know these ideas are all pure speculation, but if we do see a case redesign, we can also expect a much higher price point than we see now... probably closer to the original launch price.
The original MBA was the first to use the unibody structure, which eventually worked it's way into all of apple's mobile product line. With the new iPhone getting a more squared design with the possibility of using other materials (glass, ceramic, carbon fiber, etc.), I think the MacBook Air could see a similar design in the next iteration. Even the iPad looks more like the 4g iPhone than it does the current MBA.
If I had to hazard a guess, I would say the MBA will see a case redesign with uniform thickness and be made of something other than aluminum. I wouldn't be surprized to see carbon fiber like the Sony Vaio Z series, or even some form of polycarbonite. This could then be offered in an array of colors, starting with white and adding black a few months later when sales slow.
The case redesign would only be possible when the cooling system is reworked or the TDP is lowered. Right now (for better or worse), the aluminum body acts like a giant passive heatsink... I would hate for this to be the case in the future MBA. It could happen only if they used some sort of glass or ceramic for the case, as those would be the best conductors.
I would bet that the case redesign is eminent, but maybe not until later this fall. When all of the other MacBook lines have been updated (although minimally), I think it makes a better case for a full-redesign of the MBA. If it were only a ram and gpu update, we would have seen it already.
I know these ideas are all pure speculation, but if we do see a case redesign, we can also expect a much higher price point than we see now... probably closer to the original launch price.
It makes sense. Apple goes away from the roundedness with the next iPhone, and if they do so, we get square corners (more space for ports) and more volume (more space for battery) with the same footprint and thickness.
Unfortunately, I dont think that it will happen, because there is absolutely no rumor and no leak, and you'd think that there would be one - recently, no major case revision went without leaks.
Because of the graphics conundrum, Apple might choose to transplant the specs of the 13in MPB into the MBA, which would be sufficient for many of us. But if that is the plan, Apple could have done it several months ago already. To do it in summer does not make much sense, because Intel is EOLing the C2D pretty soon. It would have been more salient to update the MBA alongside the MBP, leave the MBA alone in summer, and switch to Arrandale for Xmas.
LMAO... stuff makes sense all the time, but rarely does Apple follow what makes sense to us. A 13" MBP with C2D and Nvidia 320m GPU made sense six months before it was updated. We can make sense out of anything we want with Apple, because they don't follow conventional wisdom, EVER.
I think that even if there's no update at WWDC, a C2D plus Nvidia 320m, plus 4 GB RAM MBA makes a lot of sense. It did make more sense to update the MB first with its back to school ad program. The MB is the number one seller in the education market. Apple could have the MBA lined up next to get the Nvidia 320m update.
An MBA update at WWDC makes just as much sense, but it's going to have to be a bigger update than just 320m and 4 GB RAM. An MBA presented at WWDC needs to be revolutionary in some way. It could have a redesign and same Nvidia 320m but include a new 3G/4G service, or it could be a redesign and have Core i7, or it could be the same design but get a new CPU and GPU combination. Anything makes sense to us as long as it's an update.
What makes ZERO sense is leaving Macs stagnant for a year at a time with $1800 to $5000 price tags like MBA and MP. Any update in the world makes sense right now...
Most people don't. There are always people who make the difference but that's not the group Apple will concentrate on
That was just my opinion. Battery life is important for me and I think 5 hours isn't enough if I can get MacBook with better battery and specs for less
HonestlyApple is just to damn focused on the iPhone OS. I think they see the future on that and not OSX anymore. They see the mainstream moving to iPhone OS from OSX in the future and iPad is the first step of this strategy. OSX will become just like the MacPro has become now - a dinosaur waiting to be extinct. It sucks big time but it is Apple... Thats how they roll. If there wont be any Mac updates during WWDC then we should all know that this is it for the MAC as we know it... Your next air will have a 1 ghz A4 chip and 256 mb of ram only because that will be enough to run the iphone os
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Thermal conduction can also be improved by a case design that manipulates surface-area-to-volume ratios. For example, having the area that most needs to shed heat - be one or more small patches shaped in cross-section like an unwarped corrugated potato chip, would increase surface area. And doing it within the alum.'s typical thickness (by CNC milling deeper) would make the alum. wall less thick there, which gives the heat less alum. to get thru. (Locate carefully to not weaken slab.) Also, adding some HAND-GRIP SHAPING (to a rectalinear case) has the same effect of increasing surface area. ---- Plus, every added JACK can be an extra vent hole (see Apple patent on that).
Thermal conduction can also be improved by a case design that manipulates surface-area-to-volume ratios. For example, having the area that most needs to shed heat - be one or more small patches shaped in cross-section like an unwarped corrugated potato chip, would increase surface area. And doing it within the alum.'s typical thickness (by CNC milling deeper) would make the alum. wall less thick there, which gives the heat less alum. to get thru. (Locate carefully to not weaken slab.) Also, adding some HAND-GRIP SHAPING (to a rectalinear case) has the same effect of increasing surface area. ---- Plus, every added JACK can be an extra vent hole (see Apple patent on that).
I completely agree... the recent fight with google makes me wonder if Apple is focusing on the iPhone OS because consumers want it, or because they want to show up Android. For the future of the company and the shareholders, I hope it's the former.
I really do not hope you want our MBAs blow up or get deep-frozen (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbonite) .
For the time and the general design being this is the only way the MBA can maintain reasonable temperatures. I for one rather have a slightly warmer casing than any annoying fan running amok.
Actually increasing surface area only makes sense if you get significant natural convection, that is air streaming past the surface taking away heat. On a laptop (it's well outdated that term, isn't it?) that sits on top of a lap, bedsheet or even table this would not help much if not done on the sides and frankly I would not want an MBA looking like a vertical vehicle radiator grill from the sides. You *could* introduce air ducts from underside front to underside back, but I'm willing to bet they wouldn't be very effective to start with and would become really unpoular with users ("Don't block that air inlet under any conditions").
I think the reasoning behind the unibody heatsink design is using as much mass needed anyway for load-bearing structure as possible for heat-storing, not heat transferring. And milling it down would only lower mass and thus the ability of the unibody to store heat.
How much does Apple advertise the power versus portability of the MBA? In the sake of portability (power consumption and component size), do any of you think Apple may just opt for the Intel integrated graphics only in a MBA with iCore processor?
But at the heart of the MBA is a MacBook. The point of the MBA is to have MacBook like performance in an "Air" portable Mac version. I do believe it's important to have similar performance to the MB (not the MBP).
It would be very strange to have an ATI discrete GPU in the MBA which would be more powerful than a 13" MBP. However, it could be a big upgrade sell for Apple if it could sell MBAs to would be MBP buyers. All that has to happen is a Core i7 with ATI 5430 and a $1999 price point, and Apple makes an extra $500 in revenue over high-end 13" MBP.
I guess the point is there are many arguments to make but if it's about money, and we know it is with Apple, selling Macs that cost the least but sell for the most offering the greatest margin is the point of its Mac sales. Therefore, the MacFive theory I have makes the most sense to me - C2D and Nvidia 320m in the MBA. But Apple could differentiate the MBA with a 3G/4G Verizon card. Or it could differentiate the MBA with a carbon fiber case that gets weight still at 3 lb but allows for another 1/3 lb of battery.