My first Mac is the new 13" MBA!

[hammerfang]

Just wanted to introduce myself. I've wanted a Mac for about 15 years and just purchased my first one, a 13" 1.86GHz with a 128 GB flash drive upgraded to 4 GB of RAM. I won't receive it till Thursday since I needed to order online to get the 4GB.

I've had a handful of iPods over the years and currently have an iPhone 3G so it's safe to say I am an Apple fan despite the fact that I build my old desktop PCs for gaming. My brother has a mid-2010 13" MBP and my dad has a mid-2010 15" MBP, so I am vaguely familiar with Snow Leopard, but I'm sure I'll have some questions for you guys.

I've been itching for a Mac computer for years, but finally pulled the trigger when I saw the new MBAs come out. Since I enjoy playing games from time to time and downloading through Giganews, PCs have suited my needs better then Macs. However, since I spend most weekends at my girlfriends and more time then I care to admit on public transit, I really needed a laptop. The plan is to use my desktop PC for heavy stuff (I figured there was no need to have a powerful laptop, especially since portability was paramount) and the MBA for my traveling and light needs.

Looking forward to being part of the forum,

Dan

 

[pfjellman]

Hey Dan, congrats on the move to Mac!

I ordered the exact same config as you (13" MBA 4GB RAM) the day it came out, and it was delivered last Tuesday. I've had it almost a week now, and I LOVE it.

I've been using Macs for over 15 years, and this is one of my favorite Macs I've ever owned. You will love it.

I had a small issue with the battery, but after a calibration, everything is great. I too have a Mac Pro desktop (with 1GB video RAM and tons of other upgraded goodness, SSD boot drive, etc) so I wanted something ultra portable. I have a 64GB iPad but my gf and I always fight over it, and my very old MacBook Pro 15" isn't cutting it anymore.

This new MacBook Air is amazing. It's ultra light, you can just walk around the house with it resting on your palm and your arm will never get tired. So easy to move around. And it's fast fast fast.

I don't know what kind of games you like to play, but I've ran Starcraft 2 on my MBA for funzies to see how it ran, and on medium settings across the board it ran awesome.

It also is whisper silent most of the time (only heard the fan kick on once or twice), and it never gets hot on the bottom! Sometimes it gets warm, but compared to all the other Apple laptops I've owned, this thing is nowhere near as hot on the bottom.

All in all I am very very pleased with this laptop, and I can't wait for you to get your hands on it! You will love it, especially it being your first Mac. Good choice for sure!

The only problem you'll have now is after about 3 months with the new MBA, your PC desktop will look less and less appealing, and you'll have to get yourself a new iMac or a Mac Pro in a year or two because you're hooked. ;p

 

[hammerfang]

Hey Dan, congrats on the move to Mac!

I ordered the exact same config as you (13" MBA 4GB RAM) the day it came out, and it was delivered last Tuesday. I've had it almost a week now, and I LOVE it.

I've been using Macs for over 15 years, and this is one of my favorite Macs I've ever owned. You will love it.

I had a small issue with the battery, but after a calibration, everything is great. I too have a Mac Pro desktop (with 1GB video RAM and tons of other upgraded goodness, SSD boot drive, etc) so I wanted something ultra portable. I have a 64GB iPad but my gf and I always fight over it, and my very old MacBook Pro 15" isn't cutting it anymore.

This new MacBook Air is amazing. It's ultra light, you can just walk around the house with it resting on your palm and your arm will never get tired. So easy to move around. And it's fast fast fast.

I don't know what kind of games you like to play, but I've ran Starcraft 2 on my MBA for funzies to see how it ran, and on medium settings across the board it ran awesome.

It also is whisper silent most of the time (only heard the fan kick on once or twice), and it never gets hot on the bottom! Sometimes it gets warm, but compared to all the other Apple laptops I've owned, this thing is nowhere near as hot on the bottom.

All in all I am very very pleased with this laptop, and I can't wait for you to get your hands on it! You will love it, especially it being your first Mac. Good choice for sure!

The only problem you'll have now is after about 3 months with the new MBA, your PC desktop will look less and less appealing, and you'll have to get yourself a new iMac or a Mac Pro in a year or two because you're hooked. ;p

Glad to hear positive things about the MBA. I think it's hilarious about what you wrote about your gf and the iPad. My gf hates technology, except for the iPad, she loves it. So far it looks like that's what she's getting for Christmas

 

[gonzoguy24]

Just wanted to introduce myself. I've wanted a Mac for about 15 years and just purchased my first one, a 13" 1.86GHz with a 128 GB flash drive upgraded to 4 GB of RAM. I won't receive it till Thursday since I needed to order online to get the 4GB.

I've had a handful of iPods over the years and currently have an iPhone 3G so it's safe to say I am an Apple fan despite the fact that I build my old desktop PCs for gaming. My brother has a mid-2010 13" MBP and my dad has a mid-2010 15" MBP, so I am vaguely familiar with Snow Leopard, but I'm sure I'll have some questions for you guys.

I've been itching for a Mac computer for years, but finally pulled the trigger when I saw the new MBAs come out. Since I enjoy playing games from time to time and downloading through Giganews, PCs have suited my needs better then Macs. However, since I spend most weekends at my girlfriends and more time then I care to admit on public transit, I really needed a laptop. The plan is to use my desktop PC for heavy stuff (I figured there was no need to have a powerful laptop, especially since portability was paramount) and the MBA for my traveling and light needs.

Looking forward to being part of the forum,

Dan

Hey man I ordered the same exact version and it is also my first mac ever! My roommate ordered the same thing as well and it is ALSO his first MAC! Needless to say I am super excited about receiving it. I left shanghai at 10 PM Sunday Night and is on its way to Chicago. I currently own a BEAST of a PC desktop (Gateway Core i3, 6 GB Ram, 1 TB HDD) but all i use it for is downloading movies and watching them on my HDTV. I got the MB Air for when I take the train to the city to see my GF and want to watch movies.

I have a feeling a LOT of people's first MACs will be the Air.

 

[w00tini]

My very first Mac was the Rev A MBA back in 2008. It's a fantastic way to get into OS X and the Mac platform. Just be ready to lust over the rest of the Mac lineup!

Enjoy your new Air and be sure to post your thoughts on it (and any questions as a new Mac user) on the boards.

 

[KPOM]

Welcome! I think you'll like the MacBook Air and OS X. There is a learning curve, so don't underestimate it. Most things are pretty similar (particularly with Windows 7), but there are some things different (use the command key where you are used to using the control key in Windows, and use Ctrl-Click or a two-finger click instead of a right click, etc.).

However, once you get past the basics, OS X is better organized than Windows. Apple computers also seem better put together than most PCs. The Air is particularly well designed.

 

[Loonytik]

My MBA 13 will be my first Mac as well. I've had a "Mac" on my wishlist for the last couple of years and the new Air seemed just right.

I already have a workshop scheduled at the Apple Store to get me started. Should get new MBA Friday afternoon, just in time for the workshop on Saturday morning.

 

[rickhorn]

Hey Dan, congrats. I got my MBA 13 a week ago. I fall in love with Mac OS X and performance/quietness of MBA. It's my first Mac too! I've been a heavy PCer for about 15 yrs and now Im ready to dump all of my pc platforms. Trust me, it just took 1 or 2 hrs to get used to everything on Mac.

 

[ninjadogz]

My 13" Air will be my first Mac too! I guess there're many of us who've always wanted a Mac but put it off.. Mine was a tough decision to make because it's not that I'm unhappy with my Dell XPS ('cept it gets hot)... And config-wise I'm actually downgrading ('cept for the SSD technology, and obviously the switch from Windows to OS X).

But, I'm really happy I did buy it, and very excited because I get my Air tomorrow!! And btw, lurking about this forum was a big help in actually making this decision to switch!! =)

 

[hammerfang]

Sounds like a lot of people are in the same boat as I am. From everything I have read Apple really hit a home run with this machine. It fills a pretty big gap in the market very well from what I understand.

The need for an ultra portable, reasonably priced laptop with more power then your run of the mill netbook is an untapped market. Sure Dell makes the Adamo, but it isn't quite as good as the new MBAs, not to mention I have never had a good experience with Dell laptops.

I'm not sure this will convert me to a Mac user for life, although only time will tell, since I do enjoy playing PC games and dollar for dollar you can still build a far faster PC for significantly less then a Mac Pro.

However, for my daily internet, e-mail, media, and portability requirements the MBA is perfect.

 

[shelby77]

This is also my first Mac (not counting my iPad). I am actually waiting for my maxed out 13" after returning the standard model I bought at the local Apple store. So my question is what do I need to make sure to load on this? I did get iWork. What else do I need or where should I go to to find out?
Thanks.

 

[Macdctr]

This is also my first Mac (not counting my iPad). I am actually waiting for my maxed out 13" after returning the standard model I bought at the local Apple store. So my question is what do I need to make sure to load on this? I did get iWork. What else do I need or where should I go to to find out?Thanks.

Shelby,

This is a hard question to answer without knowing what you want to use your Mac for. I don't use any of my MACs for gaming since I don't have much time between work and college. The maxed out 13" MBA is a powerful machine. I compared my recently purchased MBA to my White MB 2.4GHz and on most cases my MBA outperformed it. This is an amazing machine!

I primarily use my MBA for college and work so I have the Office suite loaded as well as VMWare Fusion w/ Windows 7 for some of my college work. Most of my work for school is done using my MACs though.

Some software you can use for backing up your music & movies are Toast Titanium/Jam, Rip It (DVD backup), DropDMG for file compression. There are more out there. If you are into games then I'm sure you can google for some good software as well. If you have an iPhone then you can get the program iToner from Ambrosia software to custom load ring tones into your iPhone. I'm sure you will find software that interests you...:^)

 

[hammerfang]

It's on the truck! Too bad I'm at work and will need to wait till tonight to see it.

 

[Loonytik]

Mine is on the truck as well! Originally scheduled for delivery on Friday afternoon the update this morning showed it out for delivery today!

Got mine delivered to my office so no waiting...

 

[hammerfang]

Mine is on the truck as well! Originally scheduled for delivery on Friday afternoon the update this morning showed it out for delivery today!

Got mine delivered to my office so no waiting...

Mine was originally due to my house on Thursday, but according to the FedExp tracking it should get there sometime today .

 

[johnnymg]

Just wanted to introduce myself.
snip........

Looking forward to being part of the forum,

Dan

Congrats on the new machine.

JohnG

 

[pfjellman]

very awesome to see so many new Mac owners! definitely post your thoughts on the new airbook when you get your paws on it, and post any questions you have. i'm sure we'll all be happy to answer any questions for you. i know i will. =)

 

[ImperialX]

Always good to see new Mac users. Next thing you know you'll buy an iMac to replace your workstation too.

Enjoy your MBA, awesome machine.

 

[alias99]

Ive ordered a maxed out 13 inch. First time mac owner as well!! been wanting one for a while but was only going to settle for a core i series 13 inch but when the air launched i was sold immeadetley as its everything i need.

I have a o/c core i7 desktop rig for gaming but needed something portable to take on the move as i travel a lot and the MBA ticked all the boxed I had listed.

Now im just reading all the forums and reviews to keep me going until mine arrives which looks like it will be after the weekend! I really cant wait!

Just had a quick question, could anyone point me in the right direction to where i can find info on home sharing and networking between the MBA and a windows 7 pc?

 

[ImperialX]

Just had a quick question, could anyone point me in the right direction to where i can find info on home sharing and networking between the MBA and a windows 7 pc?

http://macs.about.com/od/filesharing/ss/file-sharing-win7-snow-leopard.htm

 

[hammerfang]

Got it yesterday and played around with it last night. Very nice machine, still need to assimilate myself with OS coming from so many years with Windows, but I'm learning pretty quickly. The only problem I ran into was trying to get my wireless Logitech keyboard and mouse to work. Apparently Logitech doesn't like Apple as they do not officially publish and drivers for OS.

Anyone have any thoughts?