I don't really get that thinnest hype. It used to be "less is more" but now less is just much less. It might be art but I don't really get why someone would buy this. It looks nice but no drive, such a small hard drive lack of firewire and a slow processor compared to a mbp. Who buys this kinda stuff anyway?
Without Melgross's snark, the people who are going to buy this are people who move around a lot.
Apple's specialty is figuring out what a large percentage of the population needs, and giving it to them in a nice package. The MacBook Air is targeted towards people who don't need FireWire, or a DVD drive, or even Ethernet. FireWire is on the way out for non-professionals.
Most people looking to buy the MBA probably have an older computer with a DVD drive. They also can probably afford a $50 wireless router. People moving from an old desktop PC to a laptop want to accentuate the advantages of the laptop. Weight is a huge factor. A 3 lb laptop with 5 hours of battery that is ultra-thin accentuates the portability. Really, smaller size isn't a big deal. Once you're above pocket size, you either need a back-pack or a carrying case. It's weight that's the killer. I know college kids who buy the Dell, and they have some mammoth 9lb computer that's 3 inches thick. They use maybe an iPod and/or a printer, so 1 USB is no biggie. Most campuses or workplaces or libraries or coffee shops have wireless, and homes are getting wireless as time goes by. Not every home has it, but for the sort of people this is targeted towards, wireless is no big deal.
Actually, given the Time Capsule, you don't need a second computer. It's a wireless router + HDD. You can probably use an external USB DVD drive with it, even a cheap one.
I'd watch who you're dissing. Programmer is not someone to take lightly.
lol ok. I'll keep an eye out for the forum police. I wouldn't want to be flamed by a programmer who speaks in terms of floppy disks, the world wide web and cyber space.
Anyone else notice that is has an integrated battery. You can't remove it. It is internal. I wonder if that means a really expensive replacement. Of course it also means you can't buy two and swap them on long trips....
Yeah, that sucks. Who in the hell would want to send in their notebook for a battery replacement.
Quote:
Originally Posted by riversky
Anyone else notice that is has an integrated battery. You can't remove it. It is internal. I wonder if that means a really expensive replacement. Of course it also means you can't buy two and swap them on long trips....
After the Mac Pro announcement, I didn't really expect any updates to their current machines.
I feel like they've done this before. Announce something brand new at the keynote, and in 4-6 weeks, after the dust settles, other machines get their speed bumps.
The Mac Pro was only announced right away because it was in such desperate need of an upgrade.
The pro announcement was made early because that got it out of the way, so that Jobs needed to only spend one sentence on it. For all the other machines, it's a disappointment. While Apple might release them in the near future, it leaves things up in the air.
Even if they will be announced for the end of the month, that;s only two weeks away. Apple has announced machines a month before they became available. I don't understand this one.
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
For your main computer, you are right, but you are missing the point.
If you want a laptop that is going to hold all your music, movies and photos, do not get the MBA. Get a MB or MBP with a large drive.
It is that simple.
This computer is for someone who needs or wants a device that they can carry from place to place easily. It is not designed to be the only computer you own (unless all you do is surf the net). Still, it is a relatively full function computer with a small size and a medium high price tag.
If it does not suit your needs, get another laptop or a desktop. Why complain if it is not the machine that you want? Especially since the machine you aparently want would be rediculously expensive for its speed. (or do you want a Penryn processor too...)
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
Machines like this aen't going to be used for the reasons other machines are. 80GB is more than enough. 64GB SSD is so expensive (though Apple's upgrade price is, for once, reasonable, that 128 would have been entirely out of the question, being about $3,000 retail.
Larger HDD's would have consumed more power, and Apple though it a reasonable tradeoff.
1. What is the weight saving with SSD vs. traditional hard drive? (Was 3.0 lbs SSD and the 1.8 is heavier or that the SSD brings it down under 3.0?)
2. What is the difference in battery life between the SSD and the traditional HDD? SSDs are nice because they are lighter and use less juice, does this get us around 6 or 7 hours of use?
3. Anyone know if they have floor models in their stores even if they do not ship for 2 weeks?
4. Anyone wonder why they are not narrower given the excess space on either side of the screen?
5. Wonder what the sound is like? Where are the speakers?
6. Curious on the size of the power adapter. Said 45w power adapter as opposed to 65 and 80 for the MB and MBP respectively as I recall.
ONE usb port?! How do i run Logic with an FW audio interface and an external drive FW800 ?!
I believe your thinking is really screwed up on this. No product is for everyone or fit every need, so don't assume such, don't try to cram a round peg into a square hole. Besides, FW audio interfaces aren't that common. If you need to run one, get a MBP.
The announcement that I was tipped-off about didn't actually materialise.
But I was told that it would happen 'in the next few days' rather than today, so there's still time yet. I suspect that it'll be a small button announcement (if even that), so it shouldn't detract too much from the MacBook Air on the home page.
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
64 GB is nothing? Wow.
Sure, if you're going to load a trillion photos - or a few hundred movies, you might run out of space. But this portable is going to appeal to business people who are tired of lugging 7 lb laptops through airports. I don't know a single business person (other than graphics designers) with more than about 30 GB of data on their system -- and the vast majority have just a few GB.
The pro announcement was made early because that got it out of the way, so that Jobs needed to only spend one sentence on it. For all the other machines, it's a disappointment. While Apple might release them in the near future, it leaves things up in the air.
Indeed it does. I'm left thinking the next MacBook Pro should have the Air's keyboard and trackpad too.
Quote:
Originally Posted by melgross
Even if they will be announced for the end of the month, that;s only two weeks away. Apple has announced machines a month before they became available. I don't understand this one.
Supposedly Penryn chips are in short supply due to a manufacturing problem. Perhaps Apple had the new MBP ready but are waiting on better supplies. Perhaps they also just didn't want to grab the limelight away from the Air too.
I was like totally hip on this new laptop. Talk about innovations put into this thing. The remote optical disk is just pure genius. I also think the multi-touch pad is a great addition and could be very useful. The enclosure mimics a design from the iPod line the way it curves around the edges. Looks great.
The only thing I do find disappointing in this is that it is using a 4200 PATA (Parallel) drive instead of using SATA. Why? You know there is a performance hit on that and that's where the bottleneck is going to be. Why did Apple decide to put a drive in that uses PATA. Even the Macbook uses SATA.
It also appears that it is not upgradeable with ram or HD. not that you would need to upgrade the memory since it comes with 2GB stndrd but just for any reason at all I wonder what the upgrade capabilities are.
EDIT: I just found out you cannot even remove the battery out from the laptop. From Apple it is not a user replaceable part. WHAT?
Comments
I don't really get that thinnest hype. It used to be "less is more" but now less is just much less. It might be art but I don't really get why someone would buy this. It looks nice but no drive, such a small hard drive lack of firewire and a slow processor compared to a mbp. Who buys this kinda stuff anyway?
Without Melgross's snark, the people who are going to buy this are people who move around a lot.
Apple's specialty is figuring out what a large percentage of the population needs, and giving it to them in a nice package. The MacBook Air is targeted towards people who don't need FireWire, or a DVD drive, or even Ethernet. FireWire is on the way out for non-professionals.
Most people looking to buy the MBA probably have an older computer with a DVD drive. They also can probably afford a $50 wireless router. People moving from an old desktop PC to a laptop want to accentuate the advantages of the laptop. Weight is a huge factor. A 3 lb laptop with 5 hours of battery that is ultra-thin accentuates the portability. Really, smaller size isn't a big deal. Once you're above pocket size, you either need a back-pack or a carrying case. It's weight that's the killer. I know college kids who buy the Dell, and they have some mammoth 9lb computer that's 3 inches thick. They use maybe an iPod and/or a printer, so 1 USB is no biggie. Most campuses or workplaces or libraries or coffee shops have wireless, and homes are getting wireless as time goes by. Not every home has it, but for the sort of people this is targeted towards, wireless is no big deal.
Actually, given the Time Capsule, you don't need a second computer. It's a wireless router + HDD. You can probably use an external USB DVD drive with it, even a cheap one.
I'd watch who you're dissing. Programmer is not someone to take lightly.
lol ok. I'll keep an eye out for the forum police. I wouldn't want to be flamed by a programmer who speaks in terms of floppy disks, the world wide web and cyber space.
No, did you have a look at the competition's prices? Like Sony?
No. But that's my point exactly...
Anybody care to explain what the PATA (Parallel ATA) of the 80gig HD means?
I know what parallel vs serial is technically but I want to know the (dis)avantages of this specific thing over SATA.
PATA is just parallel ATA, whereas SATA is serial ATE.
For slower drives there's no advantage in going SATA. For faster busses and drives SATA can be both faster, and cheaper.
Anyone else notice that is has an integrated battery. You can't remove it. It is internal. I wonder if that means a really expensive replacement. Of course it also means you can't buy two and swap them on long trips....
After the Mac Pro announcement, I didn't really expect any updates to their current machines.
I feel like they've done this before. Announce something brand new at the keynote, and in 4-6 weeks, after the dust settles, other machines get their speed bumps.
The Mac Pro was only announced right away because it was in such desperate need of an upgrade.
The pro announcement was made early because that got it out of the way, so that Jobs needed to only spend one sentence on it. For all the other machines, it's a disappointment. While Apple might release them in the near future, it leaves things up in the air.
Even if they will be announced for the end of the month, that;s only two weeks away. Apple has announced machines a month before they became available. I don't understand this one.
ONE usb port?! How do i run Logic with an FW audio interface and an external drive FW800 ?!
maybe with a USB HUB?
I'd watch who you're dissing. Programmer is not someone to take lightly.
Amen to that.
It's your lucky day!
Apple have made available a machine called the Macbook Pro.
Check it out, you'll be impressed.
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
For your main computer, you are right, but you are missing the point.
If you want a laptop that is going to hold all your music, movies and photos, do not get the MBA. Get a MB or MBP with a large drive.
It is that simple.
This computer is for someone who needs or wants a device that they can carry from place to place easily. It is not designed to be the only computer you own (unless all you do is surf the net). Still, it is a relatively full function computer with a small size and a medium high price tag.
If it does not suit your needs, get another laptop or a desktop. Why complain if it is not the machine that you want? Especially since the machine you aparently want would be rediculously expensive for its speed. (or do you want a Penryn processor too...)
maybe with a USB HUB?
Erm. Nope. But all isn't lost for the OP ...
Again, Apple have already thought about this and offer a couple of options:
1) Macbook
2) Macbook Pro
That's pretty smart of them!
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
Machines like this aen't going to be used for the reasons other machines are. 80GB is more than enough. 64GB SSD is so expensive (though Apple's upgrade price is, for once, reasonable, that 128 would have been entirely out of the question, being about $3,000 retail.
Larger HDD's would have consumed more power, and Apple though it a reasonable tradeoff.
I agree.
2. What is the difference in battery life between the SSD and the traditional HDD? SSDs are nice because they are lighter and use less juice, does this get us around 6 or 7 hours of use?
3. Anyone know if they have floor models in their stores even if they do not ship for 2 weeks?
4. Anyone wonder why they are not narrower given the excess space on either side of the screen?
5. Wonder what the sound is like? Where are the speakers?
6. Curious on the size of the power adapter. Said 45w power adapter as opposed to 65 and 80 for the MB and MBP respectively as I recall.
maybe with a USB HUB?
ONE usb port?! How do i run Logic with an FW audio interface and an external drive FW800 ?!
I believe your thinking is really screwed up on this. No product is for everyone or fit every need, so don't assume such, don't try to cram a round peg into a square hole. Besides, FW audio interfaces aren't that common. If you need to run one, get a MBP.
But I was told that it would happen 'in the next few days' rather than today, so there's still time yet. I suspect that it'll be a small button announcement (if even that), so it shouldn't detract too much from the MacBook Air on the home page.
What era are you from? 50 million floppy disks? Who cares. 64+ GB is nothing today. You can't compare from back when. Yeah, there was a time when 5megs was considered big. But only then and no other time. Today 120GB drives are standard and 500GB drives are common.
64 GB is nothing? Wow.
Sure, if you're going to load a trillion photos - or a few hundred movies, you might run out of space. But this portable is going to appeal to business people who are tired of lugging 7 lb laptops through airports. I don't know a single business person (other than graphics designers) with more than about 30 GB of data on their system -- and the vast majority have just a few GB.
The pro announcement was made early because that got it out of the way, so that Jobs needed to only spend one sentence on it. For all the other machines, it's a disappointment. While Apple might release them in the near future, it leaves things up in the air.
Indeed it does. I'm left thinking the next MacBook Pro should have the Air's keyboard and trackpad too.
Even if they will be announced for the end of the month, that;s only two weeks away. Apple has announced machines a month before they became available. I don't understand this one.
Supposedly Penryn chips are in short supply due to a manufacturing problem. Perhaps Apple had the new MBP ready but are waiting on better supplies. Perhaps they also just didn't want to grab the limelight away from the Air too.
The only thing I do find disappointing in this is that it is using a 4200 PATA (Parallel) drive instead of using SATA. Why? You know there is a performance hit on that and that's where the bottleneck is going to be. Why did Apple decide to put a drive in that uses PATA. Even the Macbook uses SATA.
It also appears that it is not upgradeable with ram or HD. not that you would need to upgrade the memory since it comes with 2GB stndrd but just for any reason at all I wonder what the upgrade capabilities are.
EDIT: I just found out you cannot even remove the battery out from the laptop. From Apple it is not a user replaceable part. WHAT?