The Phenomenal MacBook Air - Post the little things you like/dislike about it

[muronero]

like:
it's a light, snappy and good looking notebook.... the ssd is a must if u want a fast air. the bottom of the case does not get too hot with battery. incredibly silent... it's just great the fact u can bring it wherever u go without a second thought....

dislike:
battery life is not exceptional, but alligned with the previous generation of mbp. graphic glithes with spotlight. the bottom and the top of the case (on the left top) can get hot while it's connected to the power adapter.

in between:
display: Now yes... i believe all the airs displays have these lines.... my GF has a mba 1.86 120hd and i have the 2.13; they both have lines. Mine is better... u really really have to look for them and i am very picky.... my gf's one are a bit more visible but it's still a very acceptable display. I like the display anyway... i find it quite crispy, bright and with nice colors (after a proper calibration).... but i dont like the fact that u can be lucky or unlucky when u buy one...

ssd: it's great.... i'd like to have more than just 128gb.. but i accept the compromise considering how snappy makes the air.

 

[RichardF]

Love the size, form factor, weight.

Hate the lack of power and the lower-resolution-iSight POS they used in it.

Wish the screen resolution were higher and that it had a second USB. Both of these things are not deal-breakers though.

 

[conchshell]

The thing I love most about my MBA is that I can lie completely flat in my bed, hold the computer with a few fingers b/c it is so light and surf the web or watch hulu. Even a tablet doesn't work for this purpose for me personally because you have to hold it up.

 

[leomac08]

i like it that is consider the world's smallest notebook

and that it is small and portable

but i don't like that it does not have a super drive (inside)

and that it does not run on "anti- or dark matter"

but oh well...

 

[macshill]

The Macbook Air needs to be as thin as paper.

Pfft... I'm not buying until it's thin as tissue paper. Why should I settle?

 

[jamesryanbell]

Pfft... I'm not buying until it's thin as tissue paper. Why should I settle?

No Bible-page-thin? No care.

 

[leomac08]

Pfft... I'm not buying until it's thin as tissue paper. Why should I settle?

No Bible-page-thin? No care.

No thinner than a piece of manga paper? Why should I settle?

 

[Cynicalone]

I would like 3G built in, and a standard SATA connection to make it easier to swap out the HDD. Other than those 2 minor things I think the Air is a perfect Apple Netbook.

 

[RichardF]

Today (Oct 2009), in insight, I dislike the fact it still doesn't have 4GB RAM and two USB ports and the crappy iSight resolution (yep, it's pretty bad).

Minor: Apple should shrink the the screen bezel/ the footprint of the MBA, use a higher screen resolution and use the glass trackpad.

Wanted but not expected anytime soon: built-in quad-band HSDPA/ HSUPA antenna.

I really like it otherwise and will probably get the Rev. D when it's avail.

 

[Jpoon]

Today (Oct 2009), in insight, I dislike the fact it still doesn't have 4GB RAM and two USB ports and the crappy iSight resolution (yep, it's pretty bad).

Minor: Apple should shrink the the screen bezel/ the footprint of the MBA, use a higher screen resolution and use the glass trackpad.

Wanted but not expected anytime soon: built-in quad-band HSDPA/ HSUPA antenna.

I really like it otherwise and will probably get the Rev. D when it's avail.

I have no clue why they haven't included the Glass Trackpad yet. It's standard on the MB and MBP now D:....

Definitely coming on the next revision methinks.

 

[draa]

I have no clue why they haven't included the Glass Trackpad yet.

Obviously because it doesn't fit in...

 

[Scottsdale]

Obviously because it doesn't fit in...

I don't believe that for a second. Apple could put a glass trackpad in the MBA if it wanted to, easily! May not have the exact same bottom, but the glass top would be the same for sure.

I believe the bottom line is we have used the same MBA form factor and trackpads because Apple made far too many of these unibodies and the first was a failure due to its component problems. Once the unibody MBA inventory is depleted Apple will be willing to make some changes. Between the price drops and the economic meltdown the market for such a Mac has really changed. Remember that Apple made the MBA as a premium product but the demand dropped when the economy collapsed. I think the MBA's time to shine is years away... in the meantime, we're all the "beta" testers.

I predict a different MBA next year... different form factor and glass trackpads.

 

[scottkifnw]

Ports

I have a Rev A, and
1.it would be really nice to have at least one more USB port.
2. be able to open lid more
3. faster
4. longer battery
5. cooler operation

However, I love it, especially on trips.

I'm smitten. Have been reading this forum with a lot of interest for quite a while, have to say i'm very intrigued by the Air (and even moreso by giga-optimist Scottsdale!), really enjoyed reading a lot of your posts, esp Scottsdale and the guy with Brian in his avatar who seems to know his stuff, and other regulars.

I'm seriously considering the Air with a savage combo of trepidation and immense excitement. Will the RAM limitation ever become apparent, will the heat profile make it unusable for .avi videos/youtube/surfing in bed, will a newer 256SSD/4GB RAM/Processor bump appear in the next few months etc

I absolutely adore the hardware to a degree I haven't seen conveyed here bar Scottsdale and maybe a couple others.

So what are the little things about it that have changed your lifestyle or the things that niggle?

 

[alphaod]

I'd like more RAM. That's all I ask.

 

[chris11]

I have the rev B 1.86GHz SSD model.

I like:

• form factor - this is dangerous, after owning an air all other notebooks (including the mb and mbp13) feel just "wrong" (don't have a better word for it)
• speed - don't know why a lot of you complain, this thing IS fast
• keyboard - every aspect, especially the touch and the backlighting
• multitouch trackpad

I dislike:

• no ethernet
• glossy screen (although I like it way better than the new glAssy screens)

so-so:

• 1 USB port (initially was a bit messy, but since I use the 24" display as a docking station is sort of ok)
• 2 GB (yeah, could be 4)

What I'd like in rev D (would buy a new one NOW if it had these) in order:

• BTO matte screen (I don't get it: what would it cost Apple to provide this as BTO, the MBA has the "old-style" bezel anyway?)
• ethernet port
• 4 GB RAM

-- Chris

 

[duky]

I don't think anyone answered your question about using it on the duvet so I just wanted to chime in. My answer is no, you can't use it on the duvet for any sustained period of time, if you just keep it on your sheets it should remain usable unless you're doing any Flash video watching or video chatting that I do sometimes, then the fans kick into high gear and the whole machine slows noticeably. About likes/dislikes:

Likes:
- weight (outweighs all dislikes alone)
- very speedy unless it gets too hot which is rare
- ability to hold up with one hand and type with the other
- the super slim Incase sleeve is amazing

Dislikes (or rather, quirks I just wish I knew about beforehand):
- no external battery meter like MacBooks
- heats up easily if you don't watch those vents
- the headphone Jack has a whine that only goes away if you jiggle the headphone cord, not sure what it is

 

[caonimadebi]

I hated my MBA in the brief 6 months I owned it, and here are the reasons I disliked it.
-Overheating: On the MBA, anything more complicated than simple word processing and web browsing revs up the fan to 6.2K. Got more than 5 tabs on your browser? Fan goes up. Got flash video on your browser? Fan goes WAY up. Doing a Time Machine backup while you're working on something else? Fan goes up. Watching anything on VLC? Fan goes up. There are few things that you can do that won't trigger the fans to go all the way up. What's worse is if you don't take measures to help it cool down (i.e. actively expose the bottom vents), the processor throttles back and the whole system grinds to a halt. This overheating problem is especially prominent on the 2.13Ghz/SSD MBA.
--More overheating: Overheating createws a big bottleneck over other components such as graphics. The MBA simply cannot handle flash video (such as hulu/youtube) on any external display without significant stuttering. Whoever advocated that the 24" LED ACD completes the MBA as a capable primary computer seriously misled me, as well as many others, on what the MBA is really capable of. The MBA seemed capable of handling Apple's own h264 HD video, even on an external screen (if you can stand the fan), but let's be honest, who buys TV shows from Apple Store when you can watch them for free on Hulu?
--Battery: While I was able to live with MBA's battery life, the time it took to charge the battery was simply unacceptable. A complete charge often took more than 3 hours. Having to carry my charger everywhere I go simply defeats its 3lb profile.
--Trackpad: The thin and long trackpad buttom is yet another ergonomic disaster from Apple. It required a lot of pressure to depress (especially near the center) and I had no choice but to resort to the less-than-responsive tap to click
--Crappy display: It either had lines, or was too yellow. The only redeeming feature was its low resolution, which made it easier on the eyes

There are many other issues that other MBA owners have complained, such as limited memory and ports, but I felt that issues such as overheating were a much bigger bottleneck that already made the MBA a massive failure.
I did enjoy a few aspects of the MBA, including its anorexic profile and the SSD. However, I felt that those features were gimmicky and wore off within a few days of ownership.

I switched to a 15" uMBP and am much happier with my mac experience.

 

[mrgossett]

I like everything about my Air. It's a Rev. B SSD Apple refurb. The size and weight are addictive, and any other laptop that I pick up feels like a lead brick. The display is great (no lines), very fast with the SSD, keyboard, trackpad, build quality, and everything else is great. I never need more than one USB port at a time. It's totally silent and vibration-free (again due to the SSD) and usually cool (thanks to ClicktoFlash on Safari). It's the perfect laptop for my use.

 

[ayeying]

I hated my MBA in the brief 6 months I owned it, and here are the reasons I disliked it.
-Overheating: On the MBA, anything more complicated than simple word processing and web browsing revs up the fan to 6.2K. Got more than 5 tabs on your browser? Fan goes up. Got flash video on your browser? Fan goes WAY up. Doing a Time Machine backup while you're working on something else? Fan goes up. Watching anything on VLC? Fan goes up. There are few things that you can do that won't trigger the fans to go all the way up. What's worse is if you don't take measures to help it cool down (i.e. actively expose the bottom vents), the processor throttles back and the whole system grinds to a halt. This overheating problem is especially prominent on the 2.13Ghz/SSD MBA.
--More overheating: Overheating createws a big bottleneck over other components such as graphics. The MBA simply cannot handle flash video (such as hulu/youtube) on any external display without significant stuttering. Whoever advocated that the 24" LED ACD completes the MBA as a capable primary computer seriously misled me, as well as many others, on what the MBA is really capable of. The MBA seemed capable of handling Apple's own h264 HD video, even on an external screen (if you can stand the fan), but let's be honest, who buys TV shows from Apple Store when you can watch them for free on Hulu?
--Battery: While I was able to live with MBA's battery life, the time it took to charge the battery was simply unacceptable. A complete charge often took more than 3 hours. Having to carry my charger everywhere I go simply defeats its 3lb profile.
--Trackpad: The thin and long trackpad buttom is yet another ergonomic disaster from Apple. It required a lot of pressure to depress (especially near the center) and I had no choice but to resort to the less-than-responsive tap to click
--Crappy display: It either had lines, or was too yellow. The only redeeming feature was its low resolution, which made it easier on the eyes

There are many other issues that other MBA owners have complained, such as limited memory and ports, but I felt that issues such as overheating were a much bigger bottleneck that already made the MBA a massive failure.
I did enjoy a few aspects of the MBA, including its anorexic profile and the SSD. However, I felt that those features were gimmicky and wore off within a few days of ownership.

I switched to a 15" uMBP and am much happier with my mac experience.

I'm surprised you had so much overheating issues on your MacBook Air. I'm actually using my Air right now on my bed, vents are blocked and I know that, and still my CPU is only hovering around 74-85 deg C. I even have folding@home running, which pins both of my cores at 100% completely. The system gets hot, the CPU will throttle down, but it doesn't grind to a halt at all for me.

My battery charges from 0%, completely dead to full in about 2 hours. I don't think you'll get any better charging times from any of the other systems either. You have a longer usage, due to a larger battery, but charging times would more or less be the same.

And the person you're talking about is Scottsdale. I also agree that, even paired with the 24" ACD, it is nothing like a MacBook Pro. A Pro is a Pro, the air is a completely different laptop and should not be compared to something larger and more capable. Throwing on a 24" ACD is very stressful to the Air and I don't doubt that you'll suffer performance problems.

And I do buy TV shows on iTunes because Hulu sometimes don't have shows I watch, or movies I watch.

 

[Scottsdale]

I hated my MBA in the brief 6 months I owned it, and here are the reasons I disliked it.
-Overheating: On the MBA, anything more complicated than simple word processing and web browsing revs up the fan to 6.2K. Got more than 5 tabs on your browser? Fan goes up. Got flash video on your browser? Fan goes WAY up. Doing a Time Machine backup while you're working on something else? Fan goes up. Watching anything on VLC? Fan goes up. There are few things that you can do that won't trigger the fans to go all the way up. What's worse is if you don't take measures to help it cool down (i.e. actively expose the bottom vents), the processor throttles back and the whole system grinds to a halt. This overheating problem is especially prominent on the 2.13Ghz/SSD MBA.
--More overheating: Overheating createws a big bottleneck over other components such as graphics. The MBA simply cannot handle flash video (such as hulu/youtube) on any external display without significant stuttering. Whoever advocated that the 24" LED ACD completes the MBA as a capable primary computer seriously misled me, as well as many others, on what the MBA is really capable of. The MBA seemed capable of handling Apple's own h264 HD video, even on an external screen (if you can stand the fan), but let's be honest, who buys TV shows from Apple Store when you can watch them for free on Hulu?
--Battery: While I was able to live with MBA's battery life, the time it took to charge the battery was simply unacceptable. A complete charge often took more than 3 hours. Having to carry my charger everywhere I go simply defeats its 3lb profile.
--Trackpad: The thin and long trackpad buttom is yet another ergonomic disaster from Apple. It required a lot of pressure to depress (especially near the center) and I had no choice but to resort to the less-than-responsive tap to click
--Crappy display: It either had lines, or was too yellow. The only redeeming feature was its low resolution, which made it easier on the eyes

There are many other issues that other MBA owners have complained, such as limited memory and ports, but I felt that issues such as overheating were a much bigger bottleneck that already made the MBA a massive failure.
I did enjoy a few aspects of the MBA, including its anorexic profile and the SSD. However, I felt that those features were gimmicky and wore off within a few days of ownership.

I switched to a 15" uMBP and am much happier with my mac experience.

I have to conclude from your post that you owned an original MBA.

The original MBA was a complete failure. The v 2,1 MBAs have been a completely different breed. Nvidia GPU paired with a Penryn CPU, SATA-II, and 1067 MHz RAM completely changes the experience.

I love the MBA. I really think most people would far more enjoy the mobility and usability of the MBA over the "power" of the MBP. A lot of people get caught up in "power" and the MBP definitely wins that game. But most people would find the MBA plenty powerful enough as most don't need more than 2 GB RAM, a 2.13 GHz CPU, and an SSD to boot. The weight and thickness differences are difficult to understand how big of a difference the MBA is and how it works out on the go and on the couch... yet still plenty of capabilities while plugged into a 24" ACD on the desktop.

 

[ayeying]

I have to conclude from your post that you owned an original MBA.

He stated connecting to the new 24" LED displays. That would require a Air with that new Miniport Display, which is only available on Rev B and C.

 

[cfitz7111]

I dont like not having one.

Seriously, I think from what I have seen first hand using a couple of friends MBA is the lack of memory issue and the heat.

I am waiting for 4GB to be standard, then the Visa is coming out of the wallet.

 

[sparkie7]

Like
Form factor
Screen
Silver bezel
Lightweight

Dislike
only 2GB RAM - must have at least 4GB-8GB next rev to be viable
black keys
no ethernet port
no firewire 800

I have been holding off at least 1.5 yrs just b/c of the RAM issue alone

If  released an AG MBP 13" tomorrow, Id buy that instead

 

[caonimadebi]

I have to conclude from your post that you owned an original MBA.

The original MBA was a complete failure. The v 2,1 MBAs have been a completely different breed. Nvidia GPU paired with a Penryn CPU, SATA-II, and 1067 MHz RAM completely changes the experience.

I love the MBA. I really think most people would far more enjoy the mobility and usability of the MBA over the "power" of the MBP. A lot of people get caught up in "power" and the MBP definitely wins that game. But most people would find the MBA plenty powerful enough as most don't need more than 2 GB RAM, a 2.13 GHz CPU, and an SSD to boot. The weight and thickness differences are difficult to understand how big of a difference the MBA is and how it works out on the go and on the couch... yet still plenty of capabilities while plugged into a 24" ACD on the desktop.

I have owned both the Rev. B (HDD) and the Rev. C (2.13Ghz/SSD). In my experience the Rev. C was more prone to overheating, even though it was definitely more capable of demanding computing tasks.
I did not actively check the temperature with iStat Pro, but monitored the fan speed instead (I assumed the fan speed is directly proportional to the internal temperature). I live in the cooler part of NorCal (temperature doesn't spike above the 70's), and have always had my MBA raised up on a laptop stand with the rear vents exposed. Both MBA's I have owned had seriously overheating issues (constant 6.2K fan on just basic multi-tab browsing, flash video viewing, and basic scientific graphical analysis (ImageJ)), and it seemed unlikely to me that both of my MBA were defective models.

 

[NC MacGuy]

I have owned both the Rev. B (HDD) and the Rev. C (2.13Ghz/SSD). In my experience the Rev. C was more prone to overheating, even though it was definitely more capable of demanding computing tasks.
I did not actively check the temperature with iStat Pro, but monitored the fan speed instead (I assumed the fan speed is directly proportional to the internal temperature). I live in the cooler part of NorCal (temperature doesn't spike above the 70's), and have always had my MBA raised up on a laptop stand with the rear vents exposed. Both MBA's I have owned had seriously overheating issues (constant 6.2K fan on just basic multi-tab browsing, flash video viewing, and basic scientific graphical analysis (ImageJ)), and it seemed unlikely to me that both of my MBA were defective models.

Overheating or running hot?

Yes, they run hot but the fan kicks on and should keep it useable. If you do have some tasks that use the 9400, it'll get hot but shouldn't overheat.

I classify overheating as massive frame drops, spinning beachball, cursor unresponsive or laggy and eventually a shutdown.

I've ripped via HandBrake a few dozen movies and mine never overheated though reaching into the 80ºC's for long periods of time. The Rev.A did throttle a little more than I would have liked but they both worked without shutting down.

I like the MBA's screen much better than the MBP's as well as the silver bezel.

My only dislikes would really be the non-upgradable RAM and the funky 1.8" drive. A SD cardslot would be nice in lieu of an additional USB port, more SSD space & RAM are necessities. Some more battery juice would be nice too.