After reading all the posts regarding what is missing or the one thing that would make it a lot more useful, I think, in my opinion, as a minimalist machine, the MacBook Air fits the bill, although not having seen it in public as yet. As I type this post, I look at my iMac and all its ports and drives and think back to when was the last time I used the drive to install from a disc or copy to one. I look at all the items hooked up to the ports on back - a cable modem to the ethernet, a laser printer to the usb, an external hard drive to the firewire and ready to go but not hooked up Apple's usb modem. Are they items I would really, really need on the road? In my circumstances, no.
I agree -- I love my Powerbook, but the only ports I've ever used are USB, power, and firewire. And Firewire was just for the initial data transfer in, and once to transfer data to a new MacBook Pro. I don't tend to watch movies on a laptop and won't install programs often, so the lack of a DVD drive isn't bad, though I may miss burning discs for other people. I was initially concerned about having only 64GB storage, but then realized that I store most of my active projects on iDisk so that I have access everywhere. The Powerbook weight is obviously much less than my old Dell Inspiron; still, having an ultralight will be a nice improvement. I doubt MBA is the machine for persons on a tight budget, but as someone who wants a very light machine to complement my iMac (and the Powerbook, which I think will still come in handy), I expect to be pleased.
The thing that amuses me about all those crying foul at the lack of a replaceable battery is they fail to remember the Air has a Magsafe power socket. It's rather immaterial to connect a battery to the Magsafe port in much the same way battery packs are connected to the iPod's Dock connector. It's got 5 hours on the battery USING Wi-Fi so you're probably going to get 7 hours with it turned off anyway.
Exactly -- and don't forget to get the airline power adapter, so your air travel usage is unlimited.
I haven't read much about the supposed improvement in MBA's environmental responsibility. Do Jobs' claims that Apple is making true progress hold up? I just finished reading National Geographic's recent article on technowaste http://www.environmentalleader.com/2...er-microscope/ and it made me feel somewhat guilty for having contributing to the problem in the past (but only when I switched from PC to Mac -- my old Macs are all still in use, except for the 20 and 25 year old machines).
ROFLMAO! My imagination is running amok visualizing you with a laptop and something else that requires the use of a KVM switch while flying over the Arctic from SFO to LHR.
If you need a KVM switch with your laptop, then the MBA just isn't the right setup for you.
Once again, AppleInsider has chosen to take a swing at Apple even while musing about the potential of their newest product, the MacBook Air. The title "What's wrong with the MacBook Air?" will be universally interpreted as an indication that there is indeed something very wrong with the MacBook Air—which, of course, there is not. Not according to your article, anyway. But the title makes it appear as though there is.
It's a common journalistic tactic, even if it's a second-rate one, being bait-and-switchy and all.
Quote:
Not very friendly at all. If you want to bust Apple's chops, at least have the decency to change your name to something other than AppleInsider. Insider indeed!
I really don't understand what the problem is. Most of the time, AI writers are practically suckling the teat of Apple.
The thing that amuses me about all those crying foul at the lack of a replaceable battery is they fail to remember the Air has a Magsafe power socket. It's rather immaterial to connect a battery to the Magsafe port in much the same way battery packs are connected to the iPod's Dock connector.
One gaping hole in your suggestion is that Apple isn't letting anyone else use MagSafe at all. The few that have MacSafe devices are cannibalizing an entire power adapter just to get the connector, raising the price by a lot vs. third party PowerBook & iBook adapters. If Apple didn't switch to MagSafe, then maybe a third part power pack would be a sufficient answer to the power supply questions raised.
Quote:
It's got 5 hours on the battery USING Wi-Fi so you're probably going to get 7 hours with it turned off anyway.
Correction, the maker claims it gets five hours. That's different from actually getting five hours in actual use, most computer makers are kind of sketchy with their battery life claims. As far as I've seen, no one has reported getting five hours on the Air, nevermind seven. Walt Mossberg got something like three and a half or so hours on his test. MacWorld magazine got three hours, but they say they're working with Apple to make sure it's not just a broken computer. Computer radios don't consume that much power, I think you'll be very lucky to get another half an hour turning the radios off.
I'm on the side of the 'air' - in terms of it's missing features and market position (the hottest notebook on the planet!)...and understand it's not trying to be a Macbook Pro or similar...however, I cannot fathom the loss of one feature, namely FW.
I have to be honest - I know if you're using FW then you're probably into serious video (how many people really make casual home movies?) meaning you're needing a Pro or iMac ...but it does mess up the Apple story of how Mac's and iLife can do all you need...except in the case of the 'air' the iMovie component now can't support a lot of cameras on the market today??
Anyway it doesn't have it I know - it's too late to comment. The first Macbook Pro skipped FW if I remember correctly (which held me off for a while - perhaps it's a purchase 'valve' mechanism Apple utilizes?).
Whilst the 64GB SSD (the HD I'm most likely order as fast is best?) would limit how much HD video you could pull in from a FW based camcorder - it would be nice to know you could!
Almost from the packaging alone it's enough to see why when people 'feel' the machine in person they'll be more sold than they could imagine.
I'm on the side of the 'air' - in terms of it's missing features and market position (the hottest notebook on the planet!)...and understand it's not trying to be a Macbook Pro or similar...however, I cannot fathom the loss of one feature, namely FW.
I have to be honest - I know if you're using FW then you're probably into serious video (how many people really make casual home movies?) meaning you're needing a Pro or iMac ...but it does mess up the Apple story of how Mac's and iLife can do all you need...except in the case of the 'air' the iMovie component now can't support a lot of cameras on the market today??
Last I heard, which was maybe six months or a year ago, FW-based camcorders were rapidly going away from the consumer market, I think more are USB than Firewire now. They are generally going to hard drives, flash drives & optical drives and read by USB. I think the camcorder can operate as the optical drive to read the discs that they write, so that isn't a huge problem there. A lot of Apple's optical drives can't read 8cm DVDs anyway.
Quote:
Anyway it doesn't have it I know - it's too late to comment. The first Macbook Pro skipped FW if I remember correctly (which held me off for a while - perhaps it's a purchase 'valve' mechanism Apple utilizes?).
While the first MacBook Pro skipped Firewire 800, it still had Firewire 400. If Apple really wants to push the FW 800 standard, I think they should be more aggressive about putting it into more of their machines. As it is, Firewire seems to be fading in relevance.
I made a few posts earlier and have read most of them here as well and there I two points I would like to make.
1.) The Pro vs Con debate. I'm not very eager to get involved in this, but I can understand both sides and arguments. I'm pretty sure a strong majority of people would like to have a Mac Pro (performance wise) cramped into the dimensions of the MBA! Heck, I'd love to have an Aston Martin (famous British car brand) for the same price as my Fiat (Fiesta) (small cheap Italian car), but that ain't going to happen!
Trade offs were maid in its construction (some good, some less good) and trade offs must be made by those that want to buy it.
Not entirely the best thread for this, but I still want to raise this:
2.) Some people compare to MBA to the MBP (probably with Apple's help as well)... They are similar in price, keyboard illumination and aluminum for the shell. But performance wise (and dimension wise) it much more similar to the MB) and that leads me to the following point.
Last year, the iPod classic went from plastic to aluminum. The iMac went the same way and the MBA is all aluminum. At least a few of Apple's arguments for this have been environmental. As such, the only remaining main Apple product (except the Airports) that are not in aluminum is the MB.
I was wondering what you guys think the chances are that the next version of the MB will be made in aluminum (to complete the transfer of Apple's product line to use of this material)?
When considering the MacBook Air, I did look at the actual use I'd be placing on the machine.
As I expect to be developing a fair amount of written content, I would need the features to accomplish this - the MBA has a keyboard, and the 80GB of disk space is plenty for text documents, and a 4200rpm drive is able to save my work far faster than I am able to create it.
I also expect to be creating and giving presentations occasionally, and with the micro-DVI adapter I'm able to get my keynote or powerpoint slides to a projector.
I plan to move between conference rooms, my office, and other comfortable places to work - the wireless nature of the MBA seems designed to promote, if not outright force users to live wirelessly.
While I expect remote disk will meet all my real needs, I'm too much of an old school user to pass on the external super drive - $99 worth of comfort purchased there. The same goes for the $19 network dongle which I'm sure is necessary for copying large amounts of data which I'll probably never need do.
So, the MBA suited my requirements quite well - the only question mark at this point is the 13.3 screen for the writing, but I suspect it will be fine.
OK. I admit it. I'm a sucker for the newest thing. Right now, I have (and use) a MacBook Air, MacBook Pro 15.4", an OQO Model 02, and a Sony VAIO TX-series laptop. These machines are all personal purchases. No one has given them to me for free, and I'm not a professional hardware reviewer.
FWIW, here are some thoughts:
- Built-in 3G sucks. Trust me, I wanted to like it. But I have to pay $50-70/mo. to have yet another battery-sucking mini-PCI card in the machine, and a fragile antenna poking out somewhere. When I need a connection on my MBP or MBA, I go up to the little Bluetooth modem icon on the menu bar of Mac OS and connect to a tethered device. If I want a faster connection, I'll tether over USB. Nice, clean & simple. And I can always use whatever carrier I want (Verizon, Sprint, AT&T/Cingular) without having to choose in advance (as on the Sony/OQO.)
- The battery life on the VAIO T/TX series is amazing on XP, but "eh" on Vista. THE MBA w/ WiFi lasts longer than the standard Sony battery, and almost as long as the extended Sony battery that costs around $300 as an "extra."
- The Sony T/TX is actually a little more "portable" in my opinion, even though it's thicker. The Sony can fit in a smaller bag but then again, the screen is smaller and hard to read at the highest resolution. The MBA screen is much better, although I still prefer Apple's matte finish to glossy.
- The lack of built-in ethernet is a non-issue for me with the USB/ethernet adapter for the MBA. The OQO has it's only mini-dongle for VGA and ethernet that's much horsier. The Sony has things built-in, but it's actually harder to grab the Sony and go when the ethernet cable clip is locked into the port. (The MBA ethernet USB disconnects in a flash.)
- I have the SSD MBA, and have to run Bootcamp/VMWare Fusion w/ Windows XP because Vista is such a disk hog. It's not a big deal for me, and I'm not a big fan of Vista. But running XP b/c of disk constraints doesn't really jibe with my overall "have the newest thing" vibe. I have heard that 128gb SSD drives are coming in the 1.8" form factor later this year, so an upgrade may be possible if it's not ridiculously expensive.
Anyway...Just one man's opinion here. I've had almost every supposedly "groundbreaking" desktop and laptop since I got hooked on gadgets in the late-80's. The MBA is the best ultra-portable laptop I've had so far, and has become my primary machine for travel.
is how well the remote disk is to use and install on other computers and get running, installing software through remote disk, and if the SSD is any faster on startups, wakeups, and normal use.
-if you plug in an unpowered USB hub will it have enough power to run the DVD drive as well as one or two other peripherals?
Except for the lack of a second USB port (usually need 1 for a USB hub and one for a KVM switch) i think it has the perfect amount of ports. I have had a powerbook for the last 3 years and only ever use USB and only use my superdrive to burn the occasional Ubuntu disk or watch a DVD, but honestly most of my videos are on USB hds anyhow.
Rather simple: No it doesn't. In my understanding, the original Apple SuperDrive needs to be plugged in in the USB port directly because it alone draws more power than USB ports by their standard deliver (ie more than 500mA). It won't run from any (powered or unpowered) hub, regardless if there are even further devices plugged in.
5. And one for you. How are you planning on starting an Air up if you have a problem and are on the road?
I just can't believe this this is mentioned in almost any list of critical comments to the MBA. Honestly, have you ever had a startup problem with your laptop that could be solved with an optical drive? And even on the road? I haven't, and I even got a PC laptop which in the Mac community are believed to fail on a daily basis Yes there can be problems, such as deleted documents, system crashes, missing printer drivers. But none of these require an optical drive to be solved, not would it be of any use. As written before, if you really got an HD problem that stops your machine from booting up, then make sure that use get out the HD and access it read-only with a different machine to save all your personal data if possible, but don't just boot via optical drive and destroy anything that might be left alive on that HD.
And again, I would have carried the optical drive with me for 12 years now for no use at all (with regard to emergency booting) in spite of the fact that I even have had PCs only. How much less likely is that this would happen with a Mac?
That is one of the few valid issues, IMO, of the MBA. Perhaps the reason Apple didn't include this option was because of the relatively few users of cellular broadband in notebooks and/or the fractured 3G protocols in use through the US and the world would make the chip too large.
Yeah, that's almost certainly the explanation. It would have required different models for different countries (at least UMTS for Europe, some CDMA kind for Japan, a different CDMA for the US, EV-DO also for the US). Too expensive to include all standards at the same time. And furthermore, lots of FCC (and respective other countries' authorities') approvals to apply for.
This might be a deal-breaker for me. Don't have a 3G phone, so I would need a USB dongle, and according to reports I can't even be sure they fit into the MBA's USB port. And they are a kludge anyway. As I almost exclusively write e-mails and surf the net on the road I'll probably end up with an iMac and an Asus eee instead which also comes cheaper
I agree. This is the single greatest hardware addition that could come on rev 2. It would solve so many problems. Or, to say it more positively, it's a single addition that would most dramatically increase the MBA's functionality. That's saying a lot. Can we hope there's room to add that one additional port?
Unfortunately, it won't. Imagine some card or the antenna sticking out of the MBA. Totally kills the design. Furthermore, with the curved edges, it's even (more or less) impossible. So I'm very sure we will never see an Express Card slot. Don't think they can make room for it internally anyway.
What MIGHT happen is that IF the MBA sells like hot cake, Apple MIGHT decide to make different models for the different markets (Japan/Asia, Europe, US) to each include the respective 3G hardware. Rather unlikely, though.
Comments
After reading all the posts regarding what is missing or the one thing that would make it a lot more useful, I think, in my opinion, as a minimalist machine, the MacBook Air fits the bill, although not having seen it in public as yet. As I type this post, I look at my iMac and all its ports and drives and think back to when was the last time I used the drive to install from a disc or copy to one. I look at all the items hooked up to the ports on back - a cable modem to the ethernet, a laser printer to the usb, an external hard drive to the firewire and ready to go but not hooked up Apple's usb modem. Are they items I would really, really need on the road? In my circumstances, no.
I agree -- I love my Powerbook, but the only ports I've ever used are USB, power, and firewire. And Firewire was just for the initial data transfer in, and once to transfer data to a new MacBook Pro. I don't tend to watch movies on a laptop and won't install programs often, so the lack of a DVD drive isn't bad, though I may miss burning discs for other people. I was initially concerned about having only 64GB storage, but then realized that I store most of my active projects on iDisk so that I have access everywhere. The Powerbook weight is obviously much less than my old Dell Inspiron; still, having an ultralight will be a nice improvement. I doubt MBA is the machine for persons on a tight budget, but as someone who wants a very light machine to complement my iMac (and the Powerbook, which I think will still come in handy), I expect to be pleased.
Forget the MacBook Air...
I want to complain about my Toyota Yaris.
Why doesn't it have a 6-litre, V12 engine?
Why doesn't it have 10 cubic metres of boot space?
Why doesn't it automatically drive my car without me having to touch the steering wheel?
Why doesn't it cost $1000?
Why doesn't it have a 30-inch LCD built in so I can watch DVDs while it drives for me?
Why doesn't it do 0-100 kph in 2.5 seconds?
Because these things aren't f***ing possible, that's why. Wait 30 years.
A-f***ing-men!
The thing that amuses me about all those crying foul at the lack of a replaceable battery is they fail to remember the Air has a Magsafe power socket. It's rather immaterial to connect a battery to the Magsafe port in much the same way battery packs are connected to the iPod's Dock connector. It's got 5 hours on the battery USING Wi-Fi so you're probably going to get 7 hours with it turned off anyway.
Exactly -- and don't forget to get the airline power adapter, so your air travel usage is unlimited.
ROFLMAO! My imagination is running amok visualizing you with a laptop and something else that requires the use of a KVM switch while flying over the Arctic from SFO to LHR.
If you need a KVM switch with your laptop, then the MBA just isn't the right setup for you.
Thanks for the chuckles
yeah - KVM switch gag was perfect. LOL.
Once again, AppleInsider has chosen to take a swing at Apple even while musing about the potential of their newest product, the MacBook Air. The title "What's wrong with the MacBook Air?" will be universally interpreted as an indication that there is indeed something very wrong with the MacBook Air—which, of course, there is not. Not according to your article, anyway. But the title makes it appear as though there is.
It's a common journalistic tactic, even if it's a second-rate one, being bait-and-switchy and all.
Not very friendly at all. If you want to bust Apple's chops, at least have the decency to change your name to something other than AppleInsider. Insider indeed!
I really don't understand what the problem is. Most of the time, AI writers are practically suckling the teat of Apple.
The thing that amuses me about all those crying foul at the lack of a replaceable battery is they fail to remember the Air has a Magsafe power socket. It's rather immaterial to connect a battery to the Magsafe port in much the same way battery packs are connected to the iPod's Dock connector.
One gaping hole in your suggestion is that Apple isn't letting anyone else use MagSafe at all. The few that have MacSafe devices are cannibalizing an entire power adapter just to get the connector, raising the price by a lot vs. third party PowerBook & iBook adapters. If Apple didn't switch to MagSafe, then maybe a third part power pack would be a sufficient answer to the power supply questions raised.
It's got 5 hours on the battery USING Wi-Fi so you're probably going to get 7 hours with it turned off anyway.
Correction, the maker claims it gets five hours. That's different from actually getting five hours in actual use, most computer makers are kind of sketchy with their battery life claims. As far as I've seen, no one has reported getting five hours on the Air, nevermind seven. Walt Mossberg got something like three and a half or so hours on his test. MacWorld magazine got three hours, but they say they're working with Apple to make sure it's not just a broken computer. Computer radios don't consume that much power, I think you'll be very lucky to get another half an hour turning the radios off.
I have to be honest - I know if you're using FW then you're probably into serious video (how many people really make casual home movies?) meaning you're needing a Pro or iMac ...but it does mess up the Apple story of how Mac's and iLife can do all you need...except in the case of the 'air' the iMovie component now can't support a lot of cameras on the market today??
Anyway it doesn't have it I know - it's too late to comment. The first Macbook Pro skipped FW if I remember correctly (which held me off for a while - perhaps it's a purchase 'valve' mechanism Apple utilizes?).
Whilst the 64GB SSD (the HD I'm most likely order as fast is best?) would limit how much HD video you could pull in from a FW based camcorder - it would be nice to know you could!
Almost from the packaging alone it's enough to see why when people 'feel' the machine in person they'll be more sold than they could imagine.
I'm on the side of the 'air' - in terms of it's missing features and market position (the hottest notebook on the planet!)...and understand it's not trying to be a Macbook Pro or similar...however, I cannot fathom the loss of one feature, namely FW.
I have to be honest - I know if you're using FW then you're probably into serious video (how many people really make casual home movies?) meaning you're needing a Pro or iMac ...but it does mess up the Apple story of how Mac's and iLife can do all you need...except in the case of the 'air' the iMovie component now can't support a lot of cameras on the market today??
Last I heard, which was maybe six months or a year ago, FW-based camcorders were rapidly going away from the consumer market, I think more are USB than Firewire now. They are generally going to hard drives, flash drives & optical drives and read by USB. I think the camcorder can operate as the optical drive to read the discs that they write, so that isn't a huge problem there. A lot of Apple's optical drives can't read 8cm DVDs anyway.
Anyway it doesn't have it I know - it's too late to comment. The first Macbook Pro skipped FW if I remember correctly (which held me off for a while - perhaps it's a purchase 'valve' mechanism Apple utilizes?).
While the first MacBook Pro skipped Firewire 800, it still had Firewire 400. If Apple really wants to push the FW 800 standard, I think they should be more aggressive about putting it into more of their machines. As it is, Firewire seems to be fading in relevance.
1.) The Pro vs Con debate. I'm not very eager to get involved in this, but I can understand both sides and arguments. I'm pretty sure a strong majority of people would like to have a Mac Pro (performance wise) cramped into the dimensions of the MBA! Heck, I'd love to have an Aston Martin (famous British car brand) for the same price as my Fiat (Fiesta) (small cheap Italian car), but that ain't going to happen!
Trade offs were maid in its construction (some good, some less good) and trade offs must be made by those that want to buy it.
Not entirely the best thread for this, but I still want to raise this:
2.) Some people compare to MBA to the MBP (probably with Apple's help as well)... They are similar in price, keyboard illumination and aluminum for the shell. But performance wise (and dimension wise) it much more similar to the MB) and that leads me to the following point.
Last year, the iPod classic went from plastic to aluminum. The iMac went the same way and the MBA is all aluminum. At least a few of Apple's arguments for this have been environmental. As such, the only remaining main Apple product (except the Airports) that are not in aluminum is the MB.
I was wondering what you guys think the chances are that the next version of the MB will be made in aluminum (to complete the transfer of Apple's product line to use of this material)?
I agree -- ... Firewire was just for the initial data transfer in, and once to transfer data to a new MacBook Pro....
does the Mac OSX "migration" feature work with external usb drives, or only with f/w drives?
As I expect to be developing a fair amount of written content, I would need the features to accomplish this - the MBA has a keyboard, and the 80GB of disk space is plenty for text documents, and a 4200rpm drive is able to save my work far faster than I am able to create it.
I also expect to be creating and giving presentations occasionally, and with the micro-DVI adapter I'm able to get my keynote or powerpoint slides to a projector.
I plan to move between conference rooms, my office, and other comfortable places to work - the wireless nature of the MBA seems designed to promote, if not outright force users to live wirelessly.
While I expect remote disk will meet all my real needs, I'm too much of an old school user to pass on the external super drive - $99 worth of comfort purchased there. The same goes for the $19 network dongle which I'm sure is necessary for copying large amounts of data which I'll probably never need do.
So, the MBA suited my requirements quite well - the only question mark at this point is the 13.3 screen for the writing, but I suspect it will be fine.
It's fine for Apple to do a bundled special data plan for iPhone (AT&T / O2 etc) users but don't lock the future MacBook Air to one carrier.
3G (HSDPA) is in all markets apple operates in worldwide, is fast and essential in this new wireless world.
FWIW, here are some thoughts:
- Built-in 3G sucks. Trust me, I wanted to like it. But I have to pay $50-70/mo. to have yet another battery-sucking mini-PCI card in the machine, and a fragile antenna poking out somewhere. When I need a connection on my MBP or MBA, I go up to the little Bluetooth modem icon on the menu bar of Mac OS and connect to a tethered device. If I want a faster connection, I'll tether over USB. Nice, clean & simple. And I can always use whatever carrier I want (Verizon, Sprint, AT&T/Cingular) without having to choose in advance (as on the Sony/OQO.)
- The battery life on the VAIO T/TX series is amazing on XP, but "eh" on Vista. THE MBA w/ WiFi lasts longer than the standard Sony battery, and almost as long as the extended Sony battery that costs around $300 as an "extra."
- The Sony T/TX is actually a little more "portable" in my opinion, even though it's thicker. The Sony can fit in a smaller bag but then again, the screen is smaller and hard to read at the highest resolution. The MBA screen is much better, although I still prefer Apple's matte finish to glossy.
- The lack of built-in ethernet is a non-issue for me with the USB/ethernet adapter for the MBA. The OQO has it's only mini-dongle for VGA and ethernet that's much horsier. The Sony has things built-in, but it's actually harder to grab the Sony and go when the ethernet cable clip is locked into the port. (The MBA ethernet USB disconnects in a flash.)
- I have the SSD MBA, and have to run Bootcamp/VMWare Fusion w/ Windows XP because Vista is such a disk hog. It's not a big deal for me, and I'm not a big fan of Vista. But running XP b/c of disk constraints doesn't really jibe with my overall "have the newest thing" vibe. I have heard that 128gb SSD drives are coming in the 1.8" form factor later this year, so an upgrade may be possible if it's not ridiculously expensive.
Anyway...Just one man's opinion here. I've had almost every supposedly "groundbreaking" desktop and laptop since I got hooked on gadgets in the late-80's. The MBA is the best ultra-portable laptop I've had so far, and has become my primary machine for travel.
Wasn't there an Australian airline that prevented any inclusion of any spare batteries, regardless of being carried or checked?
Here is the line from TSA:
http://www.tsa.gov/travelers/airtrav...batteries.shtm
My question
-if you plug in an unpowered USB hub will it have enough power to run the DVD drive as well as one or two other peripherals?
Except for the lack of a second USB port (usually need 1 for a USB hub and one for a KVM switch) i think it has the perfect amount of ports. I have had a powerbook for the last 3 years and only ever use USB and only use my superdrive to burn the occasional Ubuntu disk or watch a DVD, but honestly most of my videos are on USB hds anyhow.
Rather simple: No it doesn't. In my understanding, the original Apple SuperDrive needs to be plugged in in the USB port directly because it alone draws more power than USB ports by their standard deliver (ie more than 500mA). It won't run from any (powered or unpowered) hub, regardless if there are even further devices plugged in.
...
5. And one for you. How are you planning on starting an Air up if you have a problem and are on the road?
I just can't believe this this is mentioned in almost any list of critical comments to the MBA. Honestly, have you ever had a startup problem with your laptop that could be solved with an optical drive? And even on the road? I haven't, and I even got a PC laptop which in the Mac community are believed to fail on a daily basis
And again, I would have carried the optical drive with me for 12 years now for no use at all (with regard to emergency booting) in spite of the fact that I even have had PCs only. How much less likely is that this would happen with a Mac?
That is one of the few valid issues, IMO, of the MBA. Perhaps the reason Apple didn't include this option was because of the relatively few users of cellular broadband in notebooks and/or the fractured 3G protocols in use through the US and the world would make the chip too large.
Yeah, that's almost certainly the explanation. It would have required different models for different countries (at least UMTS for Europe, some CDMA kind for Japan, a different CDMA for the US, EV-DO also for the US). Too expensive to include all standards at the same time. And furthermore, lots of FCC (and respective other countries' authorities') approvals to apply for.
This might be a deal-breaker for me. Don't have a 3G phone, so I would need a USB dongle, and according to reports I can't even be sure they fit into the MBA's USB port. And they are a kludge anyway. As I almost exclusively write e-mails and surf the net on the road I'll probably end up with an iMac and an Asus eee instead which also comes cheaper
I agree. This is the single greatest hardware addition that could come on rev 2. It would solve so many problems. Or, to say it more positively, it's a single addition that would most dramatically increase the MBA's functionality. That's saying a lot. Can we hope there's room to add that one additional port?
Unfortunately, it won't. Imagine some card or the antenna sticking out of the MBA. Totally kills the design. Furthermore, with the curved edges, it's even (more or less) impossible. So I'm very sure we will never see an Express Card slot. Don't think they can make room for it internally anyway.
What MIGHT happen is that IF the MBA sells like hot cake, Apple MIGHT decide to make different models for the different markets (Japan/Asia, Europe, US) to each include the respective 3G hardware. Rather unlikely, though.