[buuuudy]

True, but does it bevel up at the edges to give the appearance of being smaller than it actually is?

I think NOT :P

I think, for the cost, it is a profoundly useless product. The smaller screen is supposed to add to its portability, but the insanely huge bezel negates that completely.



And there's no sense talking specs with this thing...it's on par with the MBP.

Whoop-de-doo.

Bring on my 32 GB iPod Touch!!

[buuuudy]

So's the MBP.

Also nice for watching a movie you bought at the airport or reviewing the disk the client gave you in the meeting.

Doubly so, since as the glass screen creates glare and you can't control your ighting situations when travelling, the matte LCD makes viewing on the go MUCH easier.

I have an Aluminum iMac, and I LOVE the glass screen...because I can control the light. I specifically placed it where it is BECAUSE I can control the lighting. Not so when you;re sitting on a bus or in the passenger seat of a rental car.

This device is a GRAND victory of form over function, and nothing else. Disk Share (or whatever it's called) is nice, but unnecessary, had they been able to cram an optical drive in there somehow.

[buuuudy]

Hmmm...G3 iMac was the first one to lose the 3.5" floppy drive...

I think that argument would make sense, had Apple chosen to include a card reader in the Air.

[TenaciousN8]

buuuudy said:

$1799?!?!??!!??!?!?!?!?

I'll wait for a skinny book that does all that, has a nice screen, and can play DVDs.

Oh wait... http://www.apple.com/macbookpro/

Only $100 more (with the Optical drive).

:rolleyes:

Worst. New. Product. Ever.

How can you call this the worst new product ever? How bout the 1st gen Zune? This thing LOOKS amazing. It is so thin and they managed to pack a pretty powerful computer in there. When you consider the total volume (dimensionally) of this product, that makes it about 50% smaller than a MacBook Pro. The lack of an optical drive is not a deal breaker either- I am impressed by the software they included to use a shared computer's drive, and 100 bucks is really cheap for the slick looking super drive. Battery life also seems to be way better than the MacBook Pro- I'm lucky to get 3 hours out of mine. I won't be migrating to this computer immediately, but I could definitely see getting one after they've been out for a year or so. As far as pricing goes, consider that this is a new product and that lots of money went into R&D for it. The price will no doubt go down as time goes on, and they will also be upping the performance as that happens. Also, there are many ways to get your DVDs on your computer, and it doesn't take too long either. You're absolutely out of your mind if you think this is the worst new product ever. I think there is a large market for people who want a laptop that is as small as possible, and Apple is just starting to tap into that.

[greg30307]

The MBA is beautiful but unfortunately for me it is not what I was hoping for. I like my MacBook but miss my 12" PowerBook. I wanted something that I could tote with no problem but also set up on a desk, plug into an external monitor, hook up keyboard and mouse via USB, external HD via FW, and plug in ethernet, all of which I do with the MacBook, but at a smaller weight. I do not need an optical drive and was hoping for the Mac version of the IBM/Lenovo X series rather than the Mac version of the Sony X505 (I think was the name). The MBA is too stripped down for me, though I am sure it will the needs of others. This is where I wish the Mac world was able to support more niches. I wish there was something between the MacBook and the MacBook Air as there is in PC world.

Greg

[alansky]

As for the eco-friendliness of this model, I think it's fair to say that organizations like Greenpeace have played a role in pushing Apple to be more conscientious about this. I don't think that's a stretch in the least. ?jmincey

You don't know what you're talking about. Greenpeace is an eco-terrorist organization. They'll stone anybody to get attention. Relative to the rest of the electronics industry, Apple was already as "green" as anyone when Greenpeace chose to go after the company, forcing Apple to become conspicuously eco-responsible to offset the damage done by Greenpeace's unjustified hatchet job.

[People_Eater]

This is a fine machine.

However, it saddens me that this lacks Firewire. Not because you can't use it without firewire. Not because of the "death of firewire" or anything. Simply because this is the first Mac produced in a looooong time that doesn't have firewire.

What this means is that we can no longer assume a Mac has firewire. It's just like the PC world, where it's a gamble that any given machine has a firewire port. It was a very nice "network effect". Great if you needed to help someone with their machine and you have a firewire drive. Great for people buying video cameras. I wouldn't be surprised if somebody bought this, and then later realized that they can't use their new digital video camera with it. I've seen this problem many times with PC users who buy a camera and then find out they can't plug it in. Fortunately for them, most can just drop in a firewire PCI card (and of course deal with any setup issues). But for Macbook Air owners, this isn't even an option. The "just plug it in" ease of use with firewire caused many PC users to be envious and look at buying a Mac after having problems with their own machine.

Sure, it's not a deal breaker - and most users of this will probably have another Mac as well. There's just an intangible "goodness" about having Firewire on every single Mac. About having a video camera, and being able to borrow any random laptop and show people the footage in iMovie.

[Moof_in_Charge]

I hate your ignorance and laugh at your summation and reasoning.

Lets start with:

..............What is this going to do for me that my G4 12" macbook pro doesn't do?.........

I don't know, it seems your MacBook Pro was "targeted" to your demographic and it seems like Apple did a good job at that. I don't get it, what does the MacBook or MacBook pro (since the G4) do that your notebook doesn't.. If we were to take this asinine reasoning, we should just hang up everything after Macintosh Portable!

That extra 2 pounds count a great deal, they have manged to shave a whopping 30% off the weight of a 12" G4. The machine is the perfect fit for salesreps, presentations or on the road warriors. Let me clarify it for you, just because something doesn't make sense to you it doesn't mean it doesn't make sense to everyone. There is a market for this machine and people are clamouring for it including me who is going to be one of the first in line to buy one. I have been looking forward to the 2400's resurrection.

...........in a computing world where the tablets ARE coming.............

Are coming? Excuse me? WTF are you talking about.. Table computing has been here for over 5 years! Their market share in portable computing is a scant piece and I assure you none of them are gamers... oh on second thought, what's the point in telling you anything, you quantified the iPhone as a tablet! .... you're so far ahead of everyone telling what Apple should or should not be doing to part you with your 12" G4.

ohh well, as you were, enjoy your blissful state!

[jkross22]

Yawn.
While this product sure looks nice, this is a disappointing announcement. Apple is a company that innovates where others have not. This addition to the Macbook line would have been fine as an additional product, but taking center stage is overkill.
What about a mid level desktop between MiniMac and iMac with no monitor?
Maybe it will sell, but $1800 for a thinner version of what already exists seems like a waste. I'll be sure to lurk on eBay looking for the poseurs who want this and will dump their perfectly good MacBooks.

[icerabbit]

The MB Air is light but it is not a subnotebook.
I would love an ultra portable / subnotebook from Apple. High feature portable akin the 12" PowerBook, except a little smaller. Say 10".


There has been growing enthusiasm about various UMPCs, and I think people were hoping Apple would join in with a different product than they have, something smaller than a MacBook and relatively low cost that would run OS X. The Air is a more exclusive device. I respect that it doesn't compromise on keyboard size & cpu. Those wanting something smaller will still have to wait.

[mozart11]

And why Apple stock dropped 10 bucks. And also why Apple leaked the whole thing before hand.
A big Who Gives a Crap.
Apple lives by the sword and dies by it too. There buzz wasn't this time. And I'm a Mac addict so don't go there.
MB Air? Nice. But not a must have. Sell what I have and get one? Nope. This is the 2008 version of the Cube.
AppleTV? Have one. 40GB original version. Where is the plug a hard drive into AppleTV via it's USB and play my OWNED ripped movies and play? Sorry this sucks. Movie rentals. OK. Had to happen. So what.
Airport with HD? Time Capsule? If it works (or doesn't work as Air Disk doesn't) who cares again. FIX AIR DISK APPLE! This is a straw that breaks the camel Apple. Sucker us ALL into BUYING the new Airport N with Time Machine backup via Airport and then don't implement it. ONLY so you could make us all look like chumps with this crap today.
iPhone? I own 4. NO iChat OR COPY/PASTE? Another who gives a crap Apple.
All in all a bust of a MacWorld. BUST! Stock dropping is the evidence from investors too.
You're losing me Apple. I will never go to Windows of course. But your shit does stink too sometimes. Today? Whew!
NO 16GB or more iPhone.
NO copy/paste
NO iChat
NO all in one Inbox for email
NO multi-delete of email
This was Steve Jobs WORST MacWorld Keynote EVER.

[nasw]

Most of those Yuppies, as you call them, are buying hybrids these days and you should thank God with every breath of clean air you take that they are doing so.

[People_Eater]

Ummm, Apple's stock always drops after a keynote. It's simply profit-taking. Nothing to do with the products.

As for "Apple leaking ethe whole thing beforehand" - what exactly are you talking about? I never heard about that. Do you have a link, or any evidence that Apple deliberately leaked product information?

[Edgejr]

pcharles said:

I'd love to see the SSD specs because I had read in previous articles that you get almost instant-on with the solid state systems. Somewhere on the internet someone added a solid state hard drive to an existing Powerbook and ran a boot test. It seemed to boot in about a quarter of the time it took for the hard drive based machine.

And you know that some third party will offer upgrades from the hard drive to an SSD drive for less than Apple. I suspect that MacResQ or TechRestore will be offering an upgrade in no time, and I bet they do it for considerably less than Apple. I guess my big question is whether the hard drive and SSD drive are swappable. I thought SSD drives had the same interface and connections, so it should be possible. Thoughts?