Why do some apple user hate the MBA

[Roller]

Most interesting.

Looks like Apple is trying to adapt to the market these days.

I think that it would be impossible for them to do otherwise and maintain the Air as a viable product. There are HDD, SSD, and processor options that weren't available when the Air was introduced, nor were there competing products like the Envy. One thing I think Apple will leave untouched for now is the external design, so I'm not expecting any additional ports.

Still, for people like me who've been waiting for an updated Air with more storage, a less trouble-prone processor, and maybe more RAM, this could be enough, though it'll be interesting to see how it's differentiated from the revised MacBook.

 

[Sesshi]

I don't know what you are trying to say by your last sentence. The SZ model that I had was SONY VAIO SZ 320 P/B. It is not a premium version of the SZ and I bought it last December 2006. Here is the link for the tech specshttp://esupport.sony.com/US/perl/model-documents.pl?mdl=VGNSZ320PB. When I bought this computer I clearly remember that advertised battery life for it was 3 hours only. In which case it usually last for 2.5 with normal usage.

Yes - I'm not surprised. Which is why I posted in the way I did about the blinkered Born-Again-Switchers predictably comparing obsolete machines against a brand new Apple

That sounds somewhat hostile, but would you compare a 10 year old sports sedan and a new smaller softtop on an equal footing? No, and it's dumb to do so, even if you you realised you wanted a softtop all along.

 

[The Awesome]

One nice thing about the PowerBook G4 12 inch is that it is a full featured laptop with optical drive.

I got my Dad one and he loves it. It has worked well over the years.

One compound word says it all: Full-featured

With Apple's increasing market share, they can satisfy more Apple users by releasing, without removing the Mac Mini and MBA, an expandable Cube and a true replacement for the PB G4 12". I know Steve wants to avoid the Centris/Performa/Quadra mess-up Apple had back then but I think they can pull it off now that they have a better naming scheme and better niche management (e.g. the MacBook Air neither cannibalizing the MB nor the MBP).

For the MBA haters:

I have absolutely no beef against the MBA. I think its reasonably priced for something so thin and elegant. Most people wouldn't need FireWire, an extra USB port nor an optical drive (my Presario's combo drive failed 3 weeks ago and I haven't given any thought about replacing it... I just network my laptop to my brother's cool 24x DVD-RAM drive when I do need to use an Optical Drive... which is rarely).

Hating the MBA for being more expensive and having less power/ports than the MB is out of line. Steve/Apple never said it was better than the MB nor did it say that it was more useful. It SERVES A useful NICHE.

And for the GHz newbs out there: two 1.6 cores with a X3100 with 2GB of RAM are enough for most things... my 1.6 Celeron, GMA 950, 1.5GB Hackintosh can run Tiger and Vista pretty well.

Be open-minded 'cause not every body's a speed freak and some people do prefer form over function.

But yes, you can hate the MBA for the posers out there that just buy the MBA coz it makes them popular/noticeable.

 

[Sesshi]

But yes, you can hate the MBA for the posers out there that just buy the MBA coz it makes them popular/noticeable.

Yup. It's the sole reason it hangs around these days. It may be crap, but it does get looks.

 

[-hh]

The MBA is a wonderful ultra slim, wireless, secondary machine, and better built than any Apple machine next to the Mac Pro and iMac. Anyone that can't see that is very shortsighted.

Because it is a niche product. Those that don't fit into that niche do not understand the point of it....

Exactly right on both.

I think it's a nice Laptop, but you can get a more powerful MacBook Pro for less money.

Great, but is it as light & small?

Nope. That's the trade-off.

I agree w/ the last few posts. Most people don't get why we would pay more for less specs....

What they're missing is that there are different specs, and they're simply not bothering to acknowledge the ones that they don't care about.

The bottom line is that if they're willing to haul 3-4 extra pounds in order to get more "Power" or to save $500, they're free to do so. But that doesn't give them the right to dicate what my personal priorities have to be.

And of course since this is an obvious nod to the MBA, there's going to be readers who think that I'm out of touch or stupid.

Thanks, but FYI: my perspective here comes from the fact that I've accumulated well over a half million real air miles. I've learned to value techniques to travel "Fast and Light", which is facilitated by being willing to carry less weight. Sometimes that costs money. Sometimes it costs features. There is no free lunch.

If you want to carry something bigger/heavier, that's fine by me...just so long as you don't ask me to carry it for you and don't block my way ... because I'll be able to make that tight connection, with all my baggage. What kind of value do you wish to put on that?



-hh

 

[bobjob186]

After reading all the posts in the thread it seems to me that a lot of the posters have not used a macbook air more than just at the apple store. If they had, they wouldn't be writing this garbage. So for the OP I'll answer your question with a quote from George Bernard Shaw.

"Hatred is the coward's revenge for being intimidated"

 

[sushi]

One compound word says it all: Full-featured

Simply put.

The MBA is good and fills a need for a small market area.

 

[akm3]

The MBA sucks and all it does is shows how Apple can sell you anything for a stupidly high price even though they put thinness wayyy over functuality, something Apple loves doing these days.

Why do I say this? Look at the specs for the entry-level MacBook: 2.1GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 1GB RAM, 120GB HD for £700. Now, look at the entry-level MacBook Air specs: 1.6GHz Core 2 Duo, 2GB RAM (which you can get on the MacBook for a extra £30), 80GB HD... For £1,200!

Now, which do you think is better value?

Repeat after me:
"Features are not equal to benefits"
And "Value is not dictated solely by CPU Frequency, RAM and Hard drive space"

 

[ishopukisfake]

Some people don't like it because they see it as massively overpriced for something with limited functionality.

I can see it is for a specific market and I think with the next upgrade of processor speed and hard drive space it will become a really good product. Laptops with disk drives will eventually fade out I think, with apps, music videos all downloadable. 13.3 inches is a little too small though. A laptop with 15 inches, high resolution 1600 x 1200 roughly pixels and without disk-drive, thick and as light as air would be very cool.

 

[The Awesome]

Repeat after me:
"Features are not equal to benefits"
And "Value is not dictated solely by CPU Frequency, RAM and Hard drive space"

Very well put.

I've met people who bought a MacBook over a Dell M1330 just to get the keyboard they felt was better for them...

...then they wondered where the right-click went.

 

[SFStateStudent]

It meets my needs and this is my 2nd MBA...

 

[ishopukisfake]

I think the main reason for any ecessive hostility towards the MBA is jealousy from not being able to afford it is interesting to hear that mac store employees are being told to advise other options, this is because it's not a heavey workhorse computer, and many expect to use it for all of their
Multimedia processing and storage. It's designed primarily for mobility and to be as cutting edge in that department as possible.

 

[quasinormal]

After reading all the posts in the thread it seems to me that a lot of the posters have not used a macbook air more than just at the apple store. If they had, they wouldn't be writing this garbage. So for the OP I'll answer your question with a quote from George Bernard Shaw.

"Hatred is the coward's revenge for being intimidated"

And George Walker Bush said;

"See, we love—we love freedom. That's what they didn't understand. They hate things; we love things. They act out of hatred; we don't seek revenge, we seek justice out of love."

 

[Roller]

I think the main reason for any ecessive hostility towards the MBA is jealousy from not being able to afford it is interesting to hear that mac store employees are being told to advise other options, this is because it's not a heavey workhorse computer, and many expect to use it for all of their
Multimedia processing and storage. It's designed primarily for mobility and to be as cutting edge in that department as possible.

The Air may have been cutting edge (in addition to its slicing capabilities, that is) when it came out, but that's no longer true, as there are a number of capable, lightweight alternatives on the Windows side that sport larger drives, more ports, and so on.

Not that this lessens the value of the MBA for current owners: if the Air is meeting their needs, it'll continue to do so until their requirements change.

But for someone like me who wants a ~3 pound Mac OS laptop and isn't willing to live with the Air's limitations (primarily storage), waiting makes sense. I'm counting on Apple updating the MBA between October and MW Expo, but if that doesn't happen, I'll look at the MB or MB Pro.

 

[jdos2]

Mine just has too many problems for me to use as I'd like. It's not a good desktop for me. Not 'hating' it, but it's not useful when it goes into the heat-lockup-mode during presentations (that was the bad one- embarrass me in front of co-workers).
And then Apple geniuses saying things are as they are supposed to be.


Truthfully, I bought it because the case is immensely strong compared to the MacBook Pro I have (which bows out in front from simply being used so much), and for the the MBA is awesome. Just too bad it can't churn for a bit on Entourage/Terminal/Microsoft Communicator/Excel/Word/PPT before throttling so badly I can't use it.
Perhaps someday Apple will make one in that form factor that does what I need it to do.

I have found someone to buy mine, though, who, after using it for a weekend, is happy with it.

So... "Horses for Courses," or the "Different Strokes" argument.

 

[MACENZ]

Hate is a very divisive word. It is not about hate- it is about preferences and needs.

Some of us were disappointed because of our expectations. I personally wanted;
- Something smaller- More like the eee pc than a Macbook.
- Built in 3G HSDPA support.
- Firewire port
-a price more like a eee pc than MBP.
- a bigger hard drive.

To me the Air seemed more like an enticement to PC users, than a Mac aimed at committed Mac users. Because it is a portable it will be seen by others and is an obvious status symbol to the typical fashion victim.

That said, I will be buying one when it gets native 3G support, just like I'll be buying a iPhone when having one doesn't mean being held to ransom by the telecommunications companies and Apple.

I totally agree with this because the way Apple moves in the market I will not be surprised if Apple comes out with a iPhone that has a 5.0mp camera and better tools and hardware etc.

That being said the Macbook Air is only geared toward one target market. That is why I will never own one. For a laptop that is not much thinner then the Macbook and has just enough power to run is sad.

If I had all the money in the world I would buy one just to drop it from my condo balcony and watch it explode!

 

[Digital Skunk]

The Air may have been cutting edge (in addition to its slicing capabilities, that is) when it came out, but that's no longer true, as there are a number of capable, lightweight alternatives on the Windows side that sport larger drives, more ports, and so on.

It was that way since the beginning. The Sony TZ was around 2 pounds and it still had an optical drive in it and two USB ports and even a built in broadband card.

Now Sony offers it with an external optical drive and BOTH a SSD and 1.8" HDD. Something I may do with my 17" since I don't burn much.

It's by far the best laptop I have seen on the market for portability and functionality. And after using it for a while it's still quite easy to type on at 11.1"

The Air is still a great option, and in typical Apple fashion it is behind the curve, (buy refurbished for $1500) but still worth the price with a good deal.

The next iteration may just have the atom and a bigger hard drive along with NO bugs, but I doubt much on connectivity will change. Especially since it was really meant to be a wireless machine. Personally, they can take the USB port off and I'd be happy.

On another note, if you are deciding between the MBAir and the MB or MBPro then just grab one of the full featured lappies. If you hesitate, then the Air isn't for you. You have to go in knowing what the machine is all about ENTIRELY, and know that you want it.

 

[aleksandra.]

It was that way since the beginning. The Sony TZ was around 2 pounds and it still had an optical drive in it and two USB ports and even a built in broadband card.

Now Sony offers it with an external optical drive and BOTH a SSD and 1.8" HDD. Something I may do with my 17" since I don't burn much.

It's by far the best laptop I have seen on the market for portability and functionality. And after using it for a while it's still quite easy to type on at 11.1"

Please don't compare 11.1" to 13.3". There're many people out there who wouldn't be fine with as small a screen as you are happy with. My favorite thing about Air is that it has the best proportion of screen size to weight, as far as I know. For you definition of "ultra-portable" might be small size and low weight. For some people it's just size. For me it's weight that makes it. Air is barely bigger than A4 format.

If we take a look at 13.3" computers with similar weight, there're a few conclusions:
1. Most of them have removable optical drive - meaning: they're heavier when you put it in, but they're always advertised with the lowest weight for obvious reasons, so it's practically the same as if they given you an external drive (just substract $99 from the price of the laptop and you can compare to the Air);
2. Most of them don't have better battery life - again, usually the values given show the maximum time you can get with additional battery, but without the weight of this battery (consider the basic option and the time it gives you, then compare to the Air);
3. When you choose options making them similar to the Air (LED, SSD, equivalent CPU and RAM), substract $99 if the CD/DVD drive is attached and go on with basic battery, you find out that most of them are also more expensive.

The Air is still a great option, and in typical Apple fashion it is behind the curve, (buy refurbished for $1500) but still worth the price with a good deal.

The next iteration may just have the atom and a bigger hard drive along with NO bugs, but I doubt much on connectivity will change. Especially since it was really meant to be a wireless machine. Personally, they can take the USB port off and I'd be happy.

Well, I hope there'll be a good CPU there and more SSD options .

 

[gooddeal]

Please don't compare 11.1" to 13.3". There're many people out there who wouldn't be fine with as small a screen as you are happy with.

Yeah, I used to use this T(X) back in 2004. It was like $2300 during that time. The screen is a bit too small. It's o.k about 50% of the time.

People just don't understand how difficult it's to make the laptop as thin as the Air. If you think that a 1"+ thick laptop look as nice as the Air, that's good for you.

It's easy and cheap to make a 13.3" laptop around 5 lbs and up. That's why Sony has the Z for around 3.5lbs but for a lot more money than the typical 5-6lbs lappy.

 

[Digital Skunk]

.....

Oh believe me, I'd rather use the 13.3 inch LED of the Air, but when I said: "It's by far the best laptop I have seen on the market for portability and functionality."

I meant both of the things that computer makers have to make a compromise on. The TZ is as good as it gets when it comes to having a full featured laptop that is also small.

I'd rather not have all the bells and whistles of the TZ to lower weight and price, because fully loaded it's $3500 or so. It's still around 3 lbs. and still has a proven 5 hours of battery life with standard battery though. With the heavier extended battery, it doubles it... but the price gets close to that of a loaded Mac Pro.

Nothing really compares to it, even Air admirers should take a step back and think about how the machine was made and engineered to incorporate all of those features and still be 3 lbs. The only downside to it is it's processor running at 1.2GHz.

I think Apple did it right by making the Air 13.3" and giving it a full sized . backlit keyboard. I'd like it if it was a pound lighter, but meh. There's really nothing I'd change with the Air. I wouldn't even make the HDD bigger IMHO. Maybe the option of having a removable battery is all I'd want.

 

[aleksandra.]

Oh believe me, I'd rather use the 13.3 inch LED of the Air, but when I said: "It's by far the best laptop I have seen on the market for portability and functionality."

I'm sorry, but what I meant is that such a small screen defeats any functionality the laptop might otherwise have had, at least for me.

Nothing really compares to it, even Air admirers should take a step back and think about how the machine was made and engineered to incorporate all of those features and still be 3 lbs. The only downside to it is it's processor running at 1.2GHz.

I agree it's well done, though I'm by far more impressed by VGN-Z11 (13.3" and 1.5kg) - unfortunately it's not Sony's idea of portability, so there's little hope of it shedding some weight by making the optical drive external. Though Intel's new SSD would likely work with it... it'd be too expensive, however.

 

[Sesshi]

Nothing really compares to it, even Air admirers should take a step back and think about how the machine was made and engineered to incorporate all of those features and still be 3 lbs. The only downside to it is it's processor running at 1.2GHz.

Not really a downside - since the processor actually works, unlike the Air. In fact, as Coolbook users know to get it to work as well as the TZ you have to ramp it down to practically the TZ's speeds in any case.

 

[xparaparafreakx]

Cause most people who frequent this forums only care about more power. Faster specs is always better.. even if they don't utilize the computer to it's full potential.

And these are the same people that talk of power but don't have a Mac Pro

I think a lot of Macbook users can't leave us Air users alone. Always got to bring up how their machine was only $950 and more powerfull then an Air.

Leave us alone or come over and watch my Mac Pro eat your Macbook for breakfast.

 

[Phrasikleia]

It seems as though laptop manufacturers are trying to find the magic combination of features/portability/price. You can have any two.

 

[puffnstuff]

There is not advantage to the macbook air. It's not that portable the damn thing is the size of a macbook. Not that light it weighs 3 pounds. So why pay $700 more for something that is just thin? The day the air came out I thought it was stupid for the air to be 13.3". Apple needs an ultraportable to have a well rounded line up.