Ultrabooks are Macbook Air clones

[KnightWRX]

I think it's OK for anyone to copy as long as it's not blatant ripping off. I think copying - or rather taking inspiration from others - actually helps. Without it we wouldn't have competition to progress.

So you're annoyed at progress ? Or is it just progress when Apple borrows Sony's ideas ?

 

[AppleScruff1]

I guess you haven't actually looked at almost any of the Ultrabooks. Many are aluminum just like MBPs and MBAs. Most have displays as good as the MBA and quite a few have better screens.

I really don't find the trackpad argument being a major one. I don't have a fancy trackpad on my MacBook and I don't feel like I'm missing anything compared to when I use my work's recent 17" MBP with the glass trackpad. As long as trackpads can handle your average use well, there's little difference past that.

I did mention Ultrabooks in my post. I think that the Macbooks have the best trackpad in the business. I've yet to see its equal on another brand. Try the Asus ultrabook and you'll see how the trackpad is lacking compared to the Mac.

The problem is consumers unwillingness to pay more for higher quality displays, or even overall construction. Higher quality costs more, always. The average consumer goes to Walmart or Best Buy and buys the cheapest laptop for their needs. You aren't going to look for things like display, as that's not mentioned in the specifications (the resolution may be, but that's not enough). If you have two laptops side by side, one with higher quality display costing $100 more, the consumer is most likely going to buy the cheaper one.

Of course, when we enter the premium PC market (+$1000) where Apple is, then people start to think their purchase a bit more. They use forums and other sources to figure out what's the best laptop for their needs. When you buy a laptop because you just need something for checking email and Facebook, you aren't going to spend a lot time on searching for the best deals and so on.

When you buy small quantities of higher quality displays, the price will be more. It seems that OEMs aren't ready to take the risk of buying a million higher quality LCDs to get the price down, because they would still be more expensive than a million low quality ones. You either end up selling them for very low profit or even at loss if the consumers simply won't buy it.

I think the other manufacturers thought the high end was a niche market for many years and didn't even try to compete with Apple. Now that Macs are selling in huge numbers, the other guys can't compete on price. Apple pretty much owns that market.

 

[Rampant.A.I.]

This is really odd.

I'm not sure i can understand most of the responses to the OP!?

How can anyone sit there not be aggrieved by the design choice by Asus? I'd say this is even worse than Sumsungs attempt at the iPad.

Image

The folks ITT refuting the above being an obvious copy of the MBA need to schedule a visit to an optometrist.

Not saying I agree with everything the OP has to say, but

There's a big difference between "taking design cues" from another company, and outright cloning their design.

 

[madmaxmedia]

3 pages and no one gets it. The entire tech industry predicted doom for Apple for releasing a laptop with no optical drive and now the entire tech industry sees the popularity of it and is now doing the same thing. That's called hypocrisy.

It's not hypocrisy, it's admitting to your mistakes and learning from them.

 

[madmaxmedia]

On the topic of MBA clones, yeah I don't think it's a coincidence that many look a lot like MBA's. That being said, I don't think it's a big deal.

I'm actually surprised that such clones have only started emerging. I don't recall any clones of the older aluminum MBP design which was pretty excellent. Instead, everyone was adding all sorts of chrome trim, carbon fiber panels, and all sorts of other extraneous stuff to try to make their notebooks stand out more.

 

[mrsir2009]

The Samsung Series 9 actually looks pretty good... I might get one once I find out how much it costs (no one in NZ seems to stock it).

 

[AppleScruff1]

The Samsung Series 9 actually looks pretty good... I might get one once I find out how much it costs (no one in NZ seems to stock it).

I've played with a Series 9 at Best Buy. It is a pretty nice machine. I liked the feel of the keyboard, but it was locked down so I couldn't access control panel to change any trackpad/keyboard settings to see if I could set it up to my liking. I also like the looks of the Lenovo Ultrabook, but I have yet to see one in person.

 

[mrsir2009]

I've played with a Series 9 at Best Buy. It is a pretty nice machine. I liked the feel of the keyboard, but it was locked down so I couldn't access control panel to change any trackpad/keyboard settings to see if I could set it up to my liking. I also like the looks of the Lenovo Ultrabook, but I have yet to see one in person.

Hows the trackpad? Because it looks of a similar size to the MacBook Air one and on Samsung's website it advertises its multi-touch features.

 

[AppleScruff1]

Hows the trackpad? Because it looks of a similar size to the MacBook Air one and on Samsung's website it advertises its multi-touch features.

It seems decent. I would have liked to have been able to tweak the settings a bit, but they had restricted access on the computer. Also, the trackpad isn't centered like it is on the Macbook Air.

 

[thekev]

The folks ITT refuting the above being an obvious copy of the MBA need to schedule a visit to an optometrist.

Not saying I agree with everything the OP has to say, but
There's a big difference between "taking design cues" from another company, and outright cloning their design.

This was a troll thread from the start, but you don't really have to add to that. I wish we could all get past the aesthetics of computers. They're functional devices, and even if you think they look cool, your macbook air would look the same as one owned by anyone else. Computers are really very boring in that sense, and purchasing decision should be based around how they operate.

 

[mrsir2009]

It seems decent. I would have liked to have been able to tweak the settings a bit, but they had restricted access on the computer. Also, the trackpad isn't centered like it is on the Macbook Air.

Oh, does the series 9 has a numeric keypad?

 

[AppleScruff1]

Oh, does the series 9 has a numeric keypad?

No numeric keypad, but the trackpad isn't centered. Check out some photos and you can see it.

 

[Rampant.A.I.]

Wirelessly posted (iPhone 4s: Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 4_2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/533.17.9 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.0.2 Mobile/8C148 Safari/6533.18.5)

The folks ITT refuting the above being an obvious copy of the MBA need to schedule a visit to an optometrist.

Not saying I agree with everything the OP has to say, but
There's a big difference between "taking design cues" from another company, and outright cloning their design.

This was a troll thread from the start, but you don't really have to add to that. I wish we could all get past the aesthetics of computers. They're functional devices, and even if you think they look cool, your macbook air would look the same as one owned by anyone else. Computers are really very boring in that sense, and purchasing decision should be based around how they operate.

I can't get past the aesthetics of a portable computer. I don't want to. If all I were concerned with was function, I'd be buying the cheapest possible laptop case and putting the best internals I could in it. But to me, better tech specs in a blocky plastic box don't make a better portable PC.

In fact, why are you even posting in a Mac forum if all you're concerned with is function? There are cheaper pcs with better specs you can get, so why'd you chose apple? If I had to guess, it's because you appreciate the amount of design work Apple puts in to their products. So do other companies, apparently.

I'm not saying they're above reproach when it comes to borrowing design cues. Car manufacturers, for exmple, all borrow from other designs.

Taking design cues is different from producing a nearly identical ripoff of a design, like the photo in the above post. One is innovation from inspiration: "hey, this product is better/more popular, let's make our product more like that one." The other is "hey, this product is better/more popular than ours. Let's copy it, and sell it cheaper."

Which can be a good thing, if it drives prices down. But it probably won't. For now, it's just annoying.

 

[MorphingDragon]

So you're annoyed at progress ? Or is it just progress when Apple borrows Sony's ideas ?

Its progress when it boosts one ego.

 

[belvdr]

In fact, why are you even posting in a Mac forum if all you're concerned with is function? There are cheaper pcs with better specs you can get, so why'd you chose apple? If I had to guess, it's because you appreciate the amount of design work Apple puts in to their products. So do other companies, apparently

Well, you are severely misinformed. Some Apple users (myself included) aren't buying a Mac because of how they look. I bought a Mac because I wanted OS X and iLife and that requires a Mac.

Buying on aesthetics alone is generally a poor decision.

 

[*LTD*]

Well, you are severely misinformed. Some Apple users (myself included) aren't buying a Mac because of how they look. I bought a Mac because I wanted OS X and iLife and that requires a Mac.

Buying on aesthetics alone is generally a poor decision.

Design goes far beyond looks. This is why so few in the industry can understand it, much less pull it off effectively.

But I'm more or less agreeing with what you're trying to say anyway.

 

[belvdr]

Design goes far beyond looks. This is why so few in the industry can understand it, much less pull it off effectively.

But I'm more or less agreeing with what you're trying to say anyway.

I agree that design goes beyond looks. I wasn't trying to say that, but that poster said they can't get past the aesthetics of computers, which deals with the looks. Through the entire post, it appears they were only relating design to looks, not necessarily the marriage of OS, hardware, and other included programs.

He/she specifically said:

In fact, why are you even posting in a Mac forum if all you're concerned with is function?

I was refuting that, as I did buy solely based on function and I am a Mac user. It fit the bill for what was required.

 

[PracticalMac]

LMAO- Ultrabook! Just say we copied the MBA!

From the 2010 CES:
http://www.buy.com/videoclip/intel-ultrabooks/82423.html

"We did research and people where asking for a MBA!"

 

[entatlrg]

Regardless of all the bickering fact remains Apple is the best innovator in the business by FAR. Some call it 'revolutionizing entire industry's'

They've done great things for computers, music, phones, tablets ... without Apple we wouldn't have the excellent tools we have now.

THANK YOU, Apple !!