[LeonO]

I think that comparing putting a MacBook 17” in the pocket of a FIRST CLASS SEAT ti using a MBA isn’t quite playing fair... I suspect you could even fit an iMac in the pocket of a seat in First Class.

[Conrad626]

I'm curious which MacBook Air was used for this review? I defiantly getting the HDD but I am on the fence about of the processor. I have heard conflicting reports on whether the 1.8 is worth the extra money.

[Brettcamp]

OlsonBW said:

Quote: I will add that so many urban, business class hotels across the price range spread, that were early adopters of in-room Ethernet broadband, have not switched to WiFi.

For $99 you can buy an Apple AirPort Express Base Station http://store.apple.c...&nplm=MB321LL/A which you can plug into the wired ethernet at hotels/motels and then you have wireless networking.

Just make sure you have some way of remembering to take it with you when you leave. Other people probably have a pretty good idea of ways to remember. Like putting velcro on the AirPort Express and attaching it to your luggage or your wallet and keys.

If you can't afford $99 for this after buying the MacBook Air, my guess is you can't afford to eat so the problem "won't be an issue" for too long.

Well, I'd like to avoid spending $30 on an MBA ethernet adapter if I don't have to, and I thought I could get away with just using my Airport Express, which has served me well through MacBooks and PowerBooks and iBooks for years. But today my wife and I checked into a hotel that didn't have wireless, only an ethernet jack. She tried to sign into the service using an AE network (that is, connecting the ethernet jack to my AE and then picking up the AE network on her MBA). But she could never get the welcome screen to come up. However, when I plugged the ethernet cable into my MacBook's ethernet port, the welcome screen instantly appeared, I signed us on, and then plugged the ethernet cable into the AE, which allowed us both to work via the AE wireless network.

So my question is: is it common for hotel wired networks to require you to sign in with the ethernet cable hooked directly to your computer rather than via an AE wireless network? If so, I guess that means my wife will have to spring for the ethernet adapter. Darn.

I should add that Dan's article, which I'm coming to late, absolutely nails our experience with the Air. I , too, thought it was too much of a compromise for me (but not for my wife), but in a week of traveling on vacation with her, I've seen first hand how little either of us uses things like the CD drive, firewire (not at all), ethernet (the AE serves as a de facto ethernet jack, except for this problem in signing into the hotel network) etc. Storage hasn't been an issue either -- we both have very small, slim external USB drives that hold 300 plus gigs of photos and music, and tiny USB sticks (jump drives) for smaller transfers. The CD drive came bundled free with her MBA and she does use it occasionally, but not when we're actually on the go. About 98% of the time, we're doing everything via wireless and using no accessories whatsoever. And the MBA's amazing screen, keyboard and lightness are a constant joy the whole time. Good piece, Dan.

[Hamranhansenhansen]

I just bought an Air and it is not just faster than a PowerBook G4 1.5GHz, it is also faster than the G5 systems I've used. As small as the Air is, that is a dual 64-bit Core 2 in there (which could be called a G7) on a gigahertz bus, and in Rev. B you have a really nice NVIDIA graphics chip also.
The extra money on top of the MacBook feels a bit weird when you first buy the Air, because you are specifically buying the Air to get less stuff than the basic MacBook. However once you start using the Air you see exactly what you paid for, which is that the computer is so small and light that it fits into almost any bag and you don't mind taking it everywhere with you.
The MacBook and MacBook Air are like iPod and iPod nano. The Air and nano cross a particular line that makes the small size of them a really big feature, bigger than "more hard drive space" or "more ports". You have to give an iPod its own pocket, but you can lose your nano in a pocket with other items. You have to get a MacBook its own case, but an Air can fit into almost any carry bag ... it goes into spaces that are made for paper notebooks, it goes into envelopes, it fits into the pouch in the seat in front of you on a bus or plane or train.

[Hamranhansenhansen]

Quote

These articles and posts totally ignore one point?this computer could have been made just as thin,
light, mobile and sexy without omitting Ethernet, Firewire, and a battery door.

If so, you should design such a beast for Dell or HP, because they don't have anything as small as the Air.

The key thing to notice is that the ports were not left out ... they were never there in the first place. The MacBook Air is not a stripped-down MacBook Pro, it's a notebook designed from the ground up to be WIRELESS. In the same way that the iPod is just the music playing part of a Mac, the MacBook Air is just the wireless part of a Mac. If you are not interested in using a Mac 100% wirelessly, then the MacBook Air is not for you, but there are many, many Mac users whose computing hardware consists of an AirPort Base Station, a MacBook, and a couch. If you build a computer for them it would look like the Air.