MBA Updates Still not impressed

[Wicked1]

I see the price drop=Good thing bc at their existing prices there were a lot of people who would have bought, but they were over priced so Apple fixed that.

CPU updates a better thing but not earth shattering.

HDD - Man does anyone listen, they are still offering low space options and not worth it since the user can not upgrade.

Why didn't they increase the battery on these to 7 hours, it would have made these units really a value priced deal

Overall I think the MBP updates will have a lot of ppl going for the MBP and skipping by the MBA nto sure I guess we will wait and see what happens.

 

[ayeying]

I see the price drop=Good thing bc at their existing prices there were a lot of people who would have bought, but they were over priced so Apple fixed that.

CPU updates a better thing but not earth shattering.

HDD - Man does anyone listen, they are still offering low space options and not worth it since the user can not upgrade.

Why didn't they increase the battery on these to 7 hours, it would have made these units really a value priced deal

Overall I think the MBP updates will have a lot of ppl going for the MBP and skipping by the MBA nto sure I guess we will wait and see what happens.

You're looking at a fantasy for current technology level.

The drive is 1.8", not the standard 2.5" because its too big. Therefore, options are VERY limited. Currently the biggest is 120GB for hard drive and 128GB for SSD.

The battery is updated from 37 wHr to 40 wHr. Again, due to the thinness size, you can't stuff more "capacity" into something that's not big enough.

The CPU is not too impressive, but it is low voltage and again, also limited by Intel's capabilities.

 

[ltldrummerboy]

I think overall it's great for how thin and light it is, but it should have 4GB of RAM by now.

 

[mrrippey]

I think overall it's great for how thin and light it is, but it should have 4GB of RAM by now.

if it were 4GB, I think many people would have jumped on it.....and it would have taken sales aeay from the Macbook Pro 13"

The Air is great especially at these prices but as a main computer, I am afraid of its limitations so I will go get a new Macbook Pro, probably 15" since it will be my main and only computer..

 

[Alchematron]

Wasn't the rumor this would have a internal 3G antenna???

That would have been such a deal maker for me!

Plus a 10" model

Oh well, waiting for ever on Apple is a way of life!

 

[tsubikiddo]

I see the price drop=Good thing bc at their existing prices there were a lot of people who would have bought, but they were over priced so Apple fixed that.

CPU updates a better thing but not earth shattering.

HDD - Man does anyone listen, they are still offering low space options and not worth it since the user can not upgrade.

Why didn't they increase the battery on these to 7 hours, it would have made these units really a value priced deal

Overall I think the MBP updates will have a lot of ppl going for the MBP and skipping by the MBA nto sure I guess we will wait and see what happens.

CPU updates offer no real use, MBA users aren't expected to throw massive number-crunching tasks to their MBAs in the first place

HDD, 50/50. A pity at the 4.2k rpm HDD, but the SSD option is definitely more affordable now, agree?

Battery, it works well for me, see no urgent need to push for a battery update.

RAM, this is where i'm draming off as well, the 4gb ram. But it is totally understandable why AAPL did not do it.

 

[Dreamail]

But it is totally understandable why AAPL did not do it.

Really? Please enlighten me!

2GB is barely enough to run Snow Leopard well. How's that going to work in 1+ year with the next OS X version?
As a result the current MBA has a useful life span of 1 year maximum. It's just a bit too pricey for a product that can only be used for simple email and word processing as well as light web browsing.

With 4GB it would have had at least a chance of lasting 3 years. With 2GB - that is not upgradable - it's a lost cause from the start.

 

[hitekalex]

2GB is barely enough to run Snow Leopard well.

Do you have any references backing up this claim? Apple lists 1GB as a requirement for Snow Leopard.

 

[bloodycape]

You are right, apple could have done way better job on the battery. Just look at the similarly spec Samsung X360, that get close to 10 hours on the extended battery and it just a smidgen thicker than the MBA(most people wont really notice). It be nice if apple was able to do it.

 

[Eric5273]

2GB is barely enough to run Snow Leopard well. How's that going to work in 1+ year with the next OS X version?

My understanding is that Snow Leopard actually uses less resources than Leopard and runs faster on a computer with equal specs.

 

[Scottsdale]

Really? Please enlighten me!

2GB is barely enough to run Snow Leopard well. How's that going to work in 1+ year with the next OS X version?
As a result the current MBA has a useful life span of 1 year maximum. It's just a bit too pricey for a product that can only be used for simple email and word processing as well as light web browsing.

With 4GB it would have had at least a chance of lasting 3 years. With 2GB - that is not upgradable - it's a lost cause from the start.

Snow Leopard is going to run maybe 1.5 times faster on average on this very MBA that Leopard would! RAM is NOT a limitation for the system. The CPU/GPU will both be used for performance. Will work well for MOST Mac users... the people who NEED 4 GB of RAM are people who use a lot of apps or extremely intensive apps.

It will be a nice Mac for three years easily.

I believe the new high end will become the middle range. The next high end will have the "other" updates we were looking for... my two cents... three to six months out!

 

[Scottsdale]

if it were 4GB, I think many people would have jumped on it.....and it would have taken sales aeay from the Macbook Pro 13"

The Air is great especially at these prices but as a main computer, I am afraid of its limitations so I will go get a new Macbook Pro, probably 15" since it will be my main and only computer..

Apple would MUCH PREFER selling a MBA over ANY 13" MBP! Look at the MARGINS! Less components, less $$$ to build, equals more profits at higher prices! Apple WANTS AND NEEDS the MBAs to sell. Apple lowering the price is giving the MBA a chance to really perform and step up and replace the MacBook!

 

[Scottsdale]

My understanding is that Snow Leopard actually uses less resources than Leopard and runs faster on a computer with equal specs.

I really don't think RAM will be affected one way or another. What will affect how this MBA runs Snow Leopard is the CPU and GPU... BUT the RAM affects how well applications will run. Want to use more than 2 GB of RAM, the system will be slow. Snow Leopard itself will use the same or less physical RAM. I don't believe there is any other changes to RAM capabilities... other than 64-bit OS will support up to 16 billion GB of RAM???

So, Snow Leopard will have apps within it that use RAM, and you will use apps that use RAM. Use less than 2 GB worth, and your system will run optimally. Leopard will not use the CPU/GPU as efficiently, but doesn't use less or more RAM.

Snow Leopard SHOULD kick some major ASS! And it uses HALF the drive space 6 GB LESS (according to keynote). Maybe that means that these refinements and recodes will use LESS RAM when the apps/processes are being used in Snow Leopard!

Snow Leopard is NOT a reason to avoid the MBA. If anything, it's precisely the best reason to buy the MBA!

Try going into a MacBook or MacBook Pro with 4 GB of 1066 MHz RAM. Open a bunch of apps and use them. Go into "Activity Monitor" within apps/utilities. Check and see how much physical RAM you are using. If those are the apps you normally use, and they're using less than 2 GB of physical RAM, the MBA will be fine!

 

[Veinticinco]

Apple would MUCH PREFER selling a MBA over ANY 13" MBP! Look at the MARGINS! Less components, less $$$ to build, equals more profits at higher prices! Apple WANTS AND NEEDS the MBAs to sell. Apple lowering the price is giving the MBA a chance to really perform and step up and replace the MacBook!

Scottsdale, you know we've agreed on a lot of things MBA-wise, but this - above - has you stepping into padded room/thorazine drip mode.

The MB was Apple's biggest volume seller by miles and therefore biggest profit maker overall - they couldn't even churn them out fast enough. The now MB(P) will be no different, in fact, if anything they'll selll even more with such a fantastic spec for the price. Hell I'm even teetering on the edge of buying one, an almost unthinkable scenario 24 hours ago given my love of the MBA form factor.

The price reduction on the MBA is merely reactive to both the economy and their market research feedback, not to mention being realistic given the price and specs of the new MB(P). It's not an aggressive sales tactic, it's a necessary one required to stay afloat - without it the MBA would be all but dead in the water.

"Really perform and step up to replace the MB" ?! It's barely struggling to keep up in the MB(P)'s wake at the moment spec-wise....the latter having CPU out at 2.53GHz, upto 8GB RAM, 7-hr battery, 256GB SSD, new display etc. Aside from the significant SSD price drop, the MBA has barely updated at all, as much as you pretend otherwise.

If anything the next MB(P) will probably replace the MBA next year, once Apple have the time and components to "thin" everything down, by which time I fully expect them to drop the 'Air' branding.

 

[hitekalex]

"Really perform and step up to replace the MB" ?! It's barely struggling to keep up in the MB(P)'s wake at the moment spec-wise....the latter having CPU out at 2.53GHz, upto 8GB RAM, 7-hr battery, 256GB SSD, new display etc. Aside from the significant SSD price drop, the MBA has barely updated at all, as much as you pretend otherwise.

Well, MBA is not MBP, it's in a different laptop class altogether. 2.13Ghz CPU is a good balance of performance and power usage, given the form factor. It's a 33% clock increase from my original MBA, which is still little over a year old.

8GB RAM is plain unnecessary for 99% of the users, and 99.9% of what MBA is intended for.

256GB SSD doesn't exist today in 1.8" form factor, and I don't care for it if it pushed the MBA price above $2K. 128Gb SSD is perfectly fine.

MBA battery is rated at 5hr, MBA battery physically cannot compete with MBP given the size differences.

 

[Dreamail]

Do you have any references backing up this claim? Apple lists 1GB as a requirement for Snow Leopard.

Really depends what you want to do with your Mac and what you consider 'normal use'.

I'd say iLife, as it comes bundled, would be considered 'normal Mac use'. Otherwise why bundle it?
According to the iLife 2009 requirements 'High-definition video requires at least 1GB of RAM', so 2GB could be considered a good 'minimum' to have. (Most consumer video recorders are HD these days.)

But that's the iLife 2009 specifications. What about the iLife 2011 specifications? Two years from now one can upgrade the software to iLife 2011, but can you upgrade the RAM in your MBA? No. So probably no iLife 2011 for you then...

From personal experience I can assure you that Photoshop is not very happy with 1GB of RAM. Again 2GB a bare minimum for more than one open window.

But now consider you want to use Photoshop and iLife at the same time. Not really going to happen with 2GB of RAM (unless lots of virtual memory disk swaps are your thing).

And I'm not even talking about using simple Windows (office) applications via Parallels or VM Ware.


So let's face it 2GB is barely enough today. Depending on your use.

And with upcoming 64bit applications usually requiring more RAM rather than less, this is not helping either.

I'm sure one would want to use a brand new MacBook Air for more than just a year. Yet in two years time 2GB will no longer be enough, I am certain.
And with no way of upgrading the RAM, today's MBA is a dead end by 2011... And that's what's wrong with it.

Nobody says you need 8GB in a 13" MBP today. By all means start with 2GB. But I am sure in 2 years you'll want 4GB and in 4 years you will want 8GB. So RAM upgradability is vital for long usage.
If you're happy to buy a new laptop every other year then today's MBA might suit you fine. If you're like me and you want 3-4 years of usage out of your purchase, then you will very likely not be fine with a MBA that has 2GB of RAM which cannot be upgraded.

 

[Vanilla]

Give me:
2 * USB slots
Glass trackpad
Screen that matches the MBP design 'black bezel' paradigm
256gb SSD
4gb Ram
2.4ghz

and I'll max out my cards to get one...in the meantime I'll stick with my Alu MB...

Vanilla

 

[MrChurchyard]

Give me:
2 * USB slots
Glass trackpad
Screen that matches the MBP design 'black bezel' paradigm
256gb SSD
4gb Ram
2.4ghz

and I'll max out my cards to get one...in the meantime I'll stick with my Alu MB...

Vanilla

Same dream specs here, though for me the 4GB RAM would already do it I suppose. The price cuts have made the MBA a pretty interesting option...

 

[jdechko]

Really depends what you want to do with your Mac and what you consider 'normal use'....From personal experience I can assure you that Photoshop is not very happy with 1GB of RAM. Again 2GB a bare minimum for more than one open window.

But now consider you want to use Photoshop and iLife at the same time. Not really going to happen with 2GB of RAM (unless lots of virtual memory disk swaps are your thing).

And I'm not even talking about using simple Windows (office) applications via Parallels or VM Ware.


So let's face it 2GB is barely enough today. Depending on your use.

I highlighted the important part. If you are doing something that regularly requires more than 2GB of RAM (**coughPhotoshopcough**), get another machine as your workhorse.

Honestly, my VAIO has been stuck at 384 MB of RAM for the past 7.5 years and it still runs XP just fine. Admittedly, I was one who wanted to see 4GB in the Air; it would have been sweet. But none of the machines I use on a regular basis have more than 2 GB, and I'm not dying for more (except on the VAIO, of course ). On my desktop computer, I used to do some 3D building renderings for work and I was fine with Vista as my OS, running AutoCAD 2008 and 3D Studio simultaneously. Since I'm no longer doing any work from home I'm seriously doubting my actual need for more than 2GB at this point.

Since I expect Snow Leopard to be better at managing resources, I expect that 2GB will be plenty for me for several years, but that's only based on my usage.

 

[pellets007]

Need I state that two objects cannot occupy the same space at the same time?

 

[Iphone3gs]

I think next update Apple will put 4Gb ram and 228 ssd in the MBA and hopefully a better screen.

They just did a small incremental update and by lowering the price.

If they did do 4Gb ram and 228ssd it may have been way expensive. They may be hoping the price for 4Gb ram and 228sd to go down and by the time for the next update may be at optimum time to sell.

 

[ncbill]

4GB RAM, sure.

But the 5mm height limit (and 1.8" form factor) precludes many storage options.

It will be a long time before 256GB SSDs are available in 1.8"/5mm tall size.

 

[DLary]

I spend 15 nights a month in a hotel. I use my computer for web browsing and email. Sounds like the MBA is perfect for me. No more lugging my 15" MBP around.

 

[Veinticinco]

4GB RAM, sure.
It will be a long time before 256GB SSDs are available in 1.8"/5mm tall size.

If by "long time" you mean within 6 months, then you are correct

 

[applecultvictim]

Op, If you don't like the updates to the air, then travel to the future for rev. C of the air, because at the moment the air is As Cutting Edge As Can be. What do you want apple to do, the ssds are not there, the cpus are not there, and the battery tec (which btw, they are the only ones who have it anyways....) is not there either. Time travel is not an option.