They are going to sell a butt-load of these systems. However-- The lack of ethernet is the big negative for me. And... no dock?! Are they insane? This device screams for a dock, and without it, despite its size and weight, I don't consider it very portable.
$1699 with edu discount... but the flash drive is a whopping $899 upgrade..
I'd still rather get a normal Macbook Pro at the moment.. but let the price of flash HDs fall and I might bite in a few years.
Very interesting method to resolve the lack of an optical drive.. share another computers over wifi.. Steve is pulling another iMac.. getting rid of a disk drive before we'll really miss it. Time will soon tell if this is the right time for that.
[QUOTE=melgross;1198233]I'm going to crosspost part of another post I made on another, older, thread, because I think it fits here as well.
Quote:
There is very little here that we weren't hearing about, though without the detail and accuracy.
Thin. About 13/16" at its thickest, which is what I've said. Actually, most of the computer is almost that thick, tapering at the edges.
No optical drive. Pretty obvious for an ultrlight. But, one IS optional at a fair price, and will be small, and weigh little.
Drives!!! The biggest contention. A 1.8" 80 Gb standard. That shows that Apple does believe tha people will want more than a 32 GB SSD as standard—at a much lower price point.
The price for the 64 GB upgrade to that is what is expected. Those who niavely thought that Apple could just buy cheap Flash chips and solder them to the board were so far out on this it's a joke.
The price is a bit more than I expected. I was with the $1,500 estimates on this. But, as I said, the thinner it is, the more expensive it is.
But, the aluminum enclosure also adds to the cost, as does the all built-in status of WiFi, Bluetooth, lighted keyboard, LED backlighting, multitouch pad, etc.
So, even though it doesn't carry the moniker of "Pro", it clearly is in that line.
I think you are wrong! I wouldn't at all say this is a pro machine. No internal optical drive (production people need to burn on demand), small screen and no independent GPU chip.
Are they targeting the midrange business user with this. Sure it's sleek, light and well featured but it has no firewire port so no video in for imovie, fcp express, or idvd creation on location.
Haven't been watching apple stock very long I take it?
I can't think of a keynote where the stock didn't go down several dollars immediately after. That's just the way it is, and always shall be.
Well, I was disappointed in the lack of any info about Penyrn upgrades for any of the other machines. I also expected Apple to take advantage of that to offer better graphics for the iMac. My daughter and I waited for this keynote before buying her a new machine, and now, I don't know what to do.
I'm wondering just what Wallstreet was expecting. The movie rentals is really BIG.
I wonder if it was the lack of some sales numbers? The Air costing $300, or so, over expectations? The lack of other Penyrn announcements? More movie sales? No talk of more DRM-free content for iTunes?
Could be a bit of all the above, including what I've forgotten to put in to this post. Haven't checked my realtime stock account so far today. Could be the markets are down too.
The Apple website says this has a special custom-built Intel Core 2 Duo processor in it, which is 60 percent smaller than the regular one. Is it true that Intel made it specifically for Apple? Did it cost Apple much, you think?
In retrospect I'm glad I didn't wait for this Macworld announcement hoping for a MBP upgrade. I bought a MBP in early Dec. I absolutely detest the chiclet keyboard...too bad Apple feels the need to use it on all their new computers.
This new name is going to cause confusion....the MBA....
Don't forget, no Firewire port either. So there's just no way to import video at all without using another computer.
Not if you get an AVCHD camcorder, then you just connect it to the USB port and you get random access too, unlike tape. miniDV and HDV had a good run, but they're losing out now.
As I look ahead at the spending plans for the next few months: Step 1 -- Time Capsule (1TB) and @TV (40GB) \; Step 2: MBA (the base version; would be nice if they came out with 3 or 4 GB RAM and 120 or 160GB as options) + External optical drive. .
I purchased @ $170 now it's a little over $166. Figured all the news would have sent it up?
I'm sure over the next few weeks it will be back up to $200 or so.
Count on $200.00 PLUS within the next few weeks. The drop ALWAYS happens. It sucks, but I've never sold any shares when this happens. I have several hundred. Of course I did purchase at UNDER $7.00 BEFORE the split
I HAVE been a Mac fan a long time.
Skip
PS Heck I was the founder and past President of what was Maine's largest Mac group (LA MUG) years ago, which is when I bought the stock. The group isn't going so strong now ? but the stock is doing fine
Hey maybe I should see if the Mac group in CA wants to buy the URL (www.lamug.com)
I'm a bit dissapointed. While I think it looks really nice, the price doesn't justify the specs. I'm sure there will be some people who drop $1799 (minimum) for the cool factor, however.
I'm going to crosspost part of another post I made on another, older, thread, because I think it fits here as well.
I wouldn't at all say this is a pro machine. No internal optical drive (production people need to burn on demand), small screen and no independent GPU chip.
I'm not calling it a pro machine. But, with the aluminum case, and the pricing, it does fit into the Pro line, even though, as I said, it doesn't carry the name.
Besides, Pro is a funny designation. I know pro's who use MacBooks, and non pro's who use MBP's.
My feeling on this has always been that a pro machine, computer, camera, or anything else, is what a pro uses. Pro means professional, and that term means a lot. A doctor is a professional, so is a lawyer, engineer, accountant, etc.
Not all pro's are movie makers, and photographers.
Comments
I'd still rather get a normal Macbook Pro at the moment.. but let the price of flash HDs fall and I might bite in a few years.
Very interesting method to resolve the lack of an optical drive.. share another computers over wifi.. Steve is pulling another iMac.. getting rid of a disk drive before we'll really miss it. Time will soon tell if this is the right time for that.
There is very little here that we weren't hearing about, though without the detail and accuracy.
Thin. About 13/16" at its thickest, which is what I've said. Actually, most of the computer is almost that thick, tapering at the edges.
No optical drive. Pretty obvious for an ultrlight. But, one IS optional at a fair price, and will be small, and weigh little.
Drives!!! The biggest contention. A 1.8" 80 Gb standard. That shows that Apple does believe tha people will want more than a 32 GB SSD as standard—at a much lower price point.
The price for the 64 GB upgrade to that is what is expected. Those who niavely thought that Apple could just buy cheap Flash chips and solder them to the board were so far out on this it's a joke.
The price is a bit more than I expected. I was with the $1,500 estimates on this. But, as I said, the thinner it is, the more expensive it is.
But, the aluminum enclosure also adds to the cost, as does the all built-in status of WiFi, Bluetooth, lighted keyboard, LED backlighting, multitouch pad, etc.
So, even though it doesn't carry the moniker of "Pro", it clearly is in that line.
I think you are wrong! I wouldn't at all say this is a pro machine. No internal optical drive (production people need to burn on demand), small screen and no independent GPU chip.
AND it is 1ghz SLOWER than the top MacBook Pro
i think they should call it as
Mac Book Expensive
it is more expensive than 12" PB
Haven't been watching apple stock very long I take it?
I can't think of a keynote where the stock didn't go down several dollars immediately after. That's just the way it is, and always shall be.
Well, I was disappointed in the lack of any info about Penyrn upgrades for any of the other machines. I also expected Apple to take advantage of that to offer better graphics for the iMac. My daughter and I waited for this keynote before buying her a new machine, and now, I don't know what to do.
I'm wondering just what Wallstreet was expecting. The movie rentals is really BIG.
I wonder if it was the lack of some sales numbers? The Air costing $300, or so, over expectations? The lack of other Penyrn announcements? More movie sales? No talk of more DRM-free content for iTunes?
Could be a bit of all the above, including what I've forgotten to put in to this post. Haven't checked my realtime stock account so far today. Could be the markets are down too.
Don't forget, no Firewire port either. So there's just no way to import video at all without using another computer.
Would you do video editing on this machine? I think this is aimed at business travel, and iMovie is just there because it's standard.
This new name is going to cause confusion....the MBA....
Don't forget, no Firewire port either. So there's just no way to import video at all without using another computer.
Not if you get an AVCHD camcorder, then you just connect it to the USB port and you get random access too, unlike tape. miniDV and HDV had a good run, but they're losing out now.
As I look ahead at the spending plans for the next few months: Step 1 -- Time Capsule (1TB) and @TV (40GB)
Ouch. Ouch.
Screw the impending recession.
I still think they'll be necessary (installing the OS without another computer) but external might be the way to go...
I'm impressed with the Air, and from a UK-based perspective, it's not that bad value, even with Apple's odd idea of exchange rates...
Apple stock has dropped.
I purchased @ $170 now it's a little over $166. Figured all the news would have sent it up?
I'm sure over the next few weeks it will be back up to $200 or so.
Count on $200.00 PLUS within the next few weeks. The drop ALWAYS happens. It sucks, but I've never sold any shares when this happens. I have several hundred. Of course I did purchase at UNDER $7.00 BEFORE the split
I HAVE been a Mac fan a long time.
Skip
PS Heck I was the founder and past President of what was Maine's largest Mac group (LA MUG) years ago, which is when I bought the stock. The group isn't going so strong now ? but the stock is doing fine
Hey maybe I should see if the Mac group in CA wants to buy the URL (www.lamug.com)
Anyone think there will ever be a 2nd revision?
I'm going to crosspost part of another post I made on another, older, thread, because I think it fits here as well.
I wouldn't at all say this is a pro machine. No internal optical drive (production people need to burn on demand), small screen and no independent GPU chip.
I'm not calling it a pro machine. But, with the aluminum case, and the pricing, it does fit into the Pro line, even though, as I said, it doesn't carry the name.
Besides, Pro is a funny designation. I know pro's who use MacBooks, and non pro's who use MBP's.
My feeling on this has always been that a pro machine, computer, camera, or anything else, is what a pro uses. Pro means professional, and that term means a lot. A doctor is a professional, so is a lawyer, engineer, accountant, etc.
Not all pro's are movie makers, and photographers.
Where are the Macbook / Macbook Pro Updates???
Probably waiting for Penryn chips to be widely available, which should be end of January I think.
Hopefully updates to iMac and the portables will come then.