More MacBook Air Details and Notes

[Whoa67]

MacBook Air pollution

The non user replaceable battery is extremely stupid.

Don't Apple think that we actually do something good with our laptops.

What makes them think that I have the time to ship my computer to Apple, leave it there for a few days and continue working with??? What. A piece of paper??

Or perhaps they wants us to buy two of them. Since they are so inexpensive. NOT....

I can live with buying a new Ipod when the battery gets crappy. But I can't wait for my MB to be sent around the country to get the battery replaced.

But perhaps this problem only exists in Sweden.

I want a small MBP not a thin disposable Mac without possibilities.

 

[HLdan]

I've never been around for an apple product release (yeah, I'm that much of a newb) so, when will we see these things in the Apple stores to play with? Would they be there now? I live a couple hours away from my closest store, so I need to know when to plan my visit.

Here's a thought, how about calling your local Apple store, they should know better than MR forums.

 

[Whoa67]

But Hey..

The new Time capsule seems great. That i'm gonna buy. Thanks for that one. Solves my backup problems.

 

[Whoa67]

I would if I could.

Here's a thought, how about calling your local Apple store, they should know better than MR forums.

For your information. We don't have Apple stores in Sweden.

 

[HLdan]

The non user replaceable battery is extremely stupid.

Don't Apple think that we actually do something good with our laptops.

What makes them think that I have the time to ship my computer to Apple, leave it there for a few days and continue working with??? What. A piece of paper??

Or perhaps they wants us to buy two of them. Since they are so inexpensive. NOT....

I can live with buying a new Ipod when the battery gets crappy. But I can't wait for my MB to be sent around the country to get the battery replaced.

But perhaps this problem only exists in Sweden.

I want a small MBP not a thin disposable Mac without possibilities.

I think your post is very premature. You most likely will not need a replacement for at least 2 to 3 years. The local Apple stores might even do the replacement there.

 

[MikeyMinimo]

Disappointed and excited.

Man i sold my MBP the day before Macworld thinking that they were going to release new MBP's! Well luckily i did not send my MBP yet =) Anyways, i am planning on getting the new MBA. I'm tired of carrying heavier laptops around everywhere. Although the MBP and the MB are not that heavy. But for me lighter, thinner, and smaller is always better when i'm on the road.

By the way does anyone have any clue at all when the new Penryn MBP's are coming out!?

 

[Whoa67]

Doesn't work in Sweden

I think your post is very premature. You most likely will not need a replacement for at least 2 to 3 years. The local Apple stores might even do the replacement there.

We don't have Apple stores in Sweden. And my previous MacBook have had the battery replaced two times in one year. My MB Pro is fairly new and the battery lives so far.

But my previous experience is that the batterys are not to be trusted. But maybe I have had bad luck.

I can't take the chance.

 

[queshy]

What does everyone think of the commercial? I think it's awesome, like the rest of their commercials. I love their song choices.

 

[azon]

Apple store in Sweden, yes we have!

For your information. We don't have Apple stores in Sweden.

What are you talking about, of course we have apple stores in Sweden, maybe not i Kiruna , or where u might live.
-Du kan inte mena alvar att du inte sett en apple store i varje större stad i Sverige!

 

[HLdan]

For your information. We don't have Apple stores in Sweden.

Cool, but my reply wasn't quoting you, take care.

 

[koobcamuk]

It would have to be one hell of a thin fan. But if it doesn't, having a totally silent Mac would be near perfect for the corporate setting

I bet people still type loudly. With no fan to create ambient noise - it'll seem louder! joking you losers

 

[Templex]

Ummm, why does Engadget compare the Macbook Air to the MacBook Pro? That's like comparing the new AL iMac to a Mac Pro + Apple LCD instead of the previous white iMac. The size and specs would make the MacBook a much better comparison.

I think the main point of the picture was to show just how thin the Air is.
MBPs are thinner than MBs anyways.

 

[jayducharme]

What does everyone think of the commercial?

It's good. Apple seems to have hit their stride on commercials.

One thing that puzzles me though: every preview I've seen of that multi-touch pad shows fingers swiping a picture left to right -- and the picture moves right to left. That seems an oddly counter-intuitive choice for Apple. Why not have the picture move in the direction you swipe?

 

[Dustman]

I feel no excitement about this product. All I see is a concept that shrinks the storage size back to where we were seven years ago with the 12" PB so that we can spend the next seven years getting a hard drive the size of what we have in the MBPs into this form factor. Same with Flash memory in the iPods - we get to the stage where there is enough storage for what people want to do and then the rug is whipped from under us and we start again. And the same with processor speeds. We get a 2.x GHz into a laptop and this is cut to 1.6/1.8 GHz so that we can progress and build back up to the 2+ GHz. The same with battery life being cut too and firewire, etc. being removed as well - took a long time to get FW800 on all the MBPs.

Further, there are the inbuilt money making techniques (someone has already covered the battery issue), while the demo actually says - you don't need a DVD drive now you can download movies from iTunes. So forget all your movies you already bought - buy them or rent them again. This machine will cost you a lot of money and then cost you even more as you find you can't live without an external drive, that you can't use iMovie with a firewire camcorder. It is a machine that will restrict your options and flexibility in so many ways and this shouldn't be happening in this price bracket - give me an MBP any day, I'd even settle for an MB and keep the change.

..With the lack of a CD/DVD drive and the spectacular Mono speaker, I don't think that the Macbook Air is really meant to be an entertainment centre.

Also, regarding your comment about the processor speed and missing ports, comprimises must be made, and i don't know if you've used a 1.8 ghz Core Duo, but I have, and even though its dated technology, its still more than I need. I can only imagine the Core 2 Duo in the MB-A would be even faster. And seriously, who needs FW800 on an ultraportable? Its not a desktop replacement?

 

[koobcamuk]

I feel no excitement about this product. All I see is a concept that shrinks the storage size back to where we were seven years ago with the 12" PB so that we can spend the next seven years getting a hard drive the size of what we have in the MBPs into this form factor. Same with Flash memory in the iPods - we get to the stage where there is enough storage for what people want to do and then the rug is whipped from under us and we start again. And the same with processor speeds. We get a 2.x GHz into a laptop and this is cut to 1.6/1.8 GHz so that we can progress and build back up to the 2+ GHz. The same with battery life being cut too and firewire, etc. being removed as well - took a long time to get FW800 on all the MBPs.

I feel the same about memory cards.

Phones got smaller, then bigger then smaller, now bigger again. Memory cards went from CF to SD to Mini SD to Micro SD, but the ceiling is still around the same ~2-4GB on average (I know there are 8GB and higher, but bear with me). Why not keep SD size but squeeze 16GB out of it rather than make micro SDs with 4GB on? No sense to me...

 

[MacTheSpoon]

About the battery life... the 5 hours is what Apple estimates with wi-fi and bluetooth turned on. So I'd expect 7-8 hours with them off. It's disappointing for me, because I expected revolutionary battery life, But, it's at the high end for laptops in the US market, anyway, though I know there are 12" Vaios sold elsewhere that Sony says get 9 hours, even 12 with double-capacity batteries.

True, it may be that Apple is overestimating this... their estimates for battery use with wi-fi on for the iPhone were accurate, though. So I am cautiously optimistic, and I'll look forward to reading what reviewers/early adopters have to say about battery life. If battery life is good, I for one will probably forgive them for not having a user replaceable battery.

By the way... I would really like it if they figure a way to trim down the width of the laptop by another couple inches in future models. One of the things I miss about my old PB 12" was the ability to lie in bed with it on my belly and type without my wrists being impeded.

 

[amac4me]

I would love to have a MacBook Air but I can't get it for 1 simple reason:

No Kensington cable lock slot

I take my current laptop to work and school and lock it down to make sure it's secure. I leave my office cube several times during the day knowing that it's locked down. Apple didn't build the MacBook Air with a Kensington cable lock slot so I will not be able to buy one.

 

[w00master]

I think your post is very premature. You most likely will not need a replacement for at least 2 to 3 years. The local Apple stores might even do the replacement there.

And then wait for 5 days when you have a presentation to do that day? Riiiight.

For me, the *real* reason why I'm upset about the MBA not having a replaceable battery is b/c it (possibly) gives a hint about the future of the other notebooks. Sure, right now you could always get a MB Pro or the MB, but if the *entire* line doesn't offer replaceable batteries? This is what I'm worried about.

w00master

 

[jragosta]

I can see arguments for and against the built in battery, but not being an Engineer, I'm curious if having a 'built-in' battery versus a user replaceable battery gives the consumer any real advantage (outside of designing a thinner device)?

Off the top of my head, I can think of a couple of advantages:

In this small a device, adding a door could be a challenge.

Adding a door or other compartment would interfere with the physical integrity of the device.

One more point of failure.

Added complexity in creating a mechanism for the battery to connect.

I've had a MBP for 2 years (2 different ones, actually) and bought an extra battery for each. I never used it.

Considering that few people are going to use the Air as their only computer, it's a reasonable compromise. For example, I travel heavily. I could picture using the Air when I travel (5 hours battery life is way more than I need) and my iMac in the office. If it needs a new battery, I'd send it away a week I wasn't traveling.

 

[jragosta]

I would like to see some speed comparisons between the MB and MBA. I doubt Apple would make this thing if it were much slower than the Macbook. The processor speed doesn't bother me, but the harddrive may be an issue. Anyone have any input?

What do you do with your computer?

Launching of apps will be a bit slower (but remember that the stock MBP drive is only 5400 rpm, so it's not that big of a difference) and saving files will take a moment more, but for many day to day tasks, you won't notice the difference.

 

[jragosta]

Mr Jobs, please remove your head from your arse. We need replaceable batteries.

Not having a replaceable battery on an iPod is acceptable
Not having a replaceable battery on an iPhone is very annoying
Not having a replaceable battery on a laptop is unacceptable and down right idiotic

I have had 7 replacement batteries in 2 laptops in 2 years

What the heck are you doing to your laptops? I've had 2 MBPs in the past couple of years and bought a spare battery for each - and then never used it.

I'm almost never away from a power socket for more than a few hours. I don't work on airplanes because of security (and because I just don't want to), but you can get an air power adapter if you want one.

Consider, too, that the MBA is almost certainly not going to be your main computer. If the battery fails, it's probably going to fail gradually - and you can send it in when you're not traveling.

I don't think it's an unreasonable compromise.

I actually like the look of the MacBook Air, I just think it is a little overpriced. After adding the super drive and upgrading to the 1.8GHz, it is actually cheaper to purchase a MacBook Pro. The only thing the Air has as an advantage is the size and "cool" factor. Any person seriously looking to buy an Apple notebook that doesn't have storage and weight as a top priority should go with a MacBook Pro instead.

Which is exactly the point. The MBA is for people who DO care about size and weight.

Oh, and the entry MBA is a couple hundred dollars less expensive.

Pointless ... why have a ultra portable version thats not fully suitable to those on the road.

Those who aren't making a big deal about it don't travel for business

Wrong. I travel about 50% of the time for business and the MBA would be just fine for me. I'm never away from a power outlet for more than a couple of hours and would appreciate not having the extra weight and bulk.

Don't generalize.

If you check the specs for a MacBook Pro Apple claims it gets up to 6 hours of battery life. How many MBP owners actually get 6 hours of battery life? I'm lucky if I get much over 2 hours with mine.

You need to stop abusing your computers.

I routinely get > 5 hours on my 17" MBP - with WiFi on, but not using the optical drive.

 

[MacTheSpoon]

The non user replaceable battery is extremely stupid.

Don't Apple think that we actually do something good with our laptops.

What makes them think that I have the time to ship my computer to Apple, leave it there for a few days and continue working with??? What. A piece of paper??

Or perhaps they wants us to buy two of them. Since they are so inexpensive. NOT....

I can live with buying a new Ipod when the battery gets crappy. But I can't wait for my MB to be sent around the country to get the battery replaced.

But perhaps this problem only exists in Sweden.

I want a small MBP not a thin disposable Mac without possibilities.

I hear you, if the MBA is your only computer, and you need it every day for work, you are bumming for five business days if you need the battery replaced. I guess the niche market for this computer is people who want a satellite computer, to complement another computer, like David Pogue said. If I bought one of these, I would hang onto my MBP to use for firewire camcorder video capture, as well as stuff that required heavier graphics card use, so i could always use that for a week and be all right.

Maybe Apple could start a program where they mail you a "loaner" computer to use while your MBA is being serviced, the way car dealerships give you a loaner car when your car is being repaired. You can transfer the files and programs you need to use to the temporary computer. Would that solve your problem?

 

[boss1]

Here's a point I think everyone is overlooking in the midst of attempting to justify if Apple's Macbook Air is the right move/ product.

Ever wonder what the form factor for next generation Macbook Pros will be? Your looking at it

 

[koobcamuk]

I would love to have a MacBook Air but I can't get it for 1 simple reason:

No Kensington cable lock slot

I take my current laptop to work and school and lock it down to make sure it's secure. I leave my office cube several times during the day knowing that it's locked down. Apple didn't build the MacBook Air with a Kensington cable lock slot so I will not be able to buy one.

This, in my mind, will be important for insurers! I wouldn't get one either. It's not perfect, but it's a deterrent.

 

[joemarioz]

macbook air IS awesome BUT....

I personally love the new MacBook Air but i notice there is no front row?Why the sensor can be locate on the upper par where isight is;but Why doesn't it have it then waiting for answer.or probabilities.