Interesting: Apple.com Many don't like Macbook Air - Price

Posted:
in General Discussion edited January 2014
Noticed it was 10-1 against air. Of course, those posts are gone, yesterday, it was flooded with negatives.



Also, somewhat surprising, even fan boys are against it, all the forums (PC or MAC) seem to be 10-1, haven't seen this type of negative for a long time.



Will it fail?



I like the pro, this is what I use, great machine, powerful. Air? no firewire, low GPU graphics, no update to RAM, small HD, no new CPU (.45), uses repackaged older CPU, slower CPU, one USB, on-board graphics, no ethernet, $200 less than pro.



But light? Yet not really good for high end graphics and no audio (firewire) work.



Just high end browsing.



Thoughts from a realistic POV? Meaning, will it fly or sink?



Peace.

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 18
    Yeah I have to agree with you. I think if you already had a good home desktop or something then it would be cool to have a macbook air. But not if you don't have another computer. This would just be good if you always had to take your laptop everywhere or something. The hard drive is big enough and 2 gigs of ram should be plenty though.
  • Reply 2 of 18
    feynmanfeynman Posts: 1,087member
    It really just depends on who their target audience is.



    I believe the target audience is for business people on the go who have little need for doing heavy graphics or video. Otherwise, they would get a pro laptop...



    Now that Mac's can run Windows side by side with Mac OS 10, I think these machines will do very well in a business sector where the Mac has not been able to compete in prior, especially if the specs and the price surpass that of the Sony TZ.
  • Reply 3 of 18
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Feynman View Post


    It really just depends on who their target audience is.



    I believe the target audience is for business people on the go who have little need for doing heavy graphics or video. Otherwise, they would get a pro laptop...



    Now that Mac's can run Windows side by side with Mac OS 10, I think these machines will do very well in a business sector where the Mac has not been able to compete in prior, especially if the specs and the price surpass that of the Sony TZ.





    Well, it turns out what I said in another thread (about it sinking) turned out to be true -I think my words were it would go the way of the cube.



    Now that the numbers are out - it was very disappointing. Glad to see a refresh coming and the movie studios demand for Bray on the horizon. For once, maybe apple will finally get it, release a mid end laptop (ALL GREAT graphics) including the mini -



    they need to get away (APPLE) that the pros would use the cheap systems (so what, we make up a fraction of the user base anyway) and release machines that play games ( a much larger market) and not worry about the motion/final cut users.....



    Make it so any MAC can run motion, while at the same time, run circles around a video gaming system (BLUE RAY, HIGH END Graphic Cards).



    Its about time and predicted by some of us -



    :-)



    Can dream can't I!!!
  • Reply 4 of 18
    datamodeldatamodel Posts: 126member
    I like it - my wife has one, it suits her needs perfectly and will for four years or so. It cost £1200, 1.8 Ghz and HDD - over its life, that's £25 a month which is less than her phone contract!. The lightness and portability are a huge win, even just around the house (she does take it out occasionally).



    It's cheaper or about the same as comparable laptops, all of them are more expensive and have less features than regular laptops. I couldn't use one, I need ports, graphics, fast disk drives and an optical drive - I'll stick with Pro laptops.



    Will it fail? Maybe, but if it does I suspect the whole segment will fail, including the more expensive and slower X300. Compared to its direct competition it's priced right and has a pretty good feature set.



    All the best,



    Martin
  • Reply 5 of 18
    I got one 2 days ago and love it so far. I have an iMac Desktop as well. For example, I am taking a Photography course. The Air is a great machine to take with me to the course, consdering I also take a DSLR with 2 lenses, but I do the heavy lifting on my iMac.



    The Air is not meant to be a primary computer for heavy users but an awesome device for many people.
  • Reply 6 of 18
    zozo Posts: 3,117member
    I'd want an 11inch Air that costs less than 1000$



    THEN we're talkin'..
  • Reply 7 of 18
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Personally, I wouldn't buy a MacBook Air.



    I don't find the other MacBooks too big or too heavy to justify paying for a laptop that is slower, has less hardware, yet more expensive. Now, if the MacBook Air was priced at say around $900.00, the price that it should be at based upon it's speed and hardware, that would be a different story.



    The MacBook Air's goal is about design appeal. While I do lean towards design form factor when making a purchase, in this case the design form factor combined with price and hardware does not balance out well. Yes, much like the Cube.
  • Reply 8 of 18
    I'd buy the Macbook Pro if it was priced at around $300.
  • Reply 9 of 18
    lundylundy Posts: 4,466member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iPeon View Post


    Personally, I wouldn't buy a MacBook Air.



    I don't find the other MacBooks too big or too heavy to justify paying for a laptop that is slower, has less hardware, yet more expensive. Now, if the MacBook Air was priced at say around $900.00, the price that it should be at based upon it's speed and hardware, that would be a different story.



    The MacBook Air's goal is about design appeal. While I do lean towards design form factor when making a purchase, in this case the design form factor combined with price and hardware does not balance out well. Yes, much like the Cube.



    This is the same argument made over and over. Do you not see that your first sentence means you are not the intended market for this product?



    It is not an issue of "design." It is an issue of light and thin - for traveling. If that is not important to you, then you don't need it.



    The price is higher because light and thin is more expensive to make. Isn't that blatantly obvious? Look at the bargain laptops - they are all thick and heavy. Obviously that is the cheap way to make them.



    If light and thin isn't of paramount importance to you (from a practical, not design, standpoint), then you do not need this product, and you are not the intended market.



    There are a lot of people who are not the intended market for a 19-inch laptop, either. Yet you do not see them complaining about how big it is and how it should be made smaller and cheaper - they just buy the one that IS smaller and cheaper.



    I just don't get it - all you people who complain that the Air is too expensive and has missing features, and don't care how light and thin it is, why do you not just buy the MacBook?
  • Reply 10 of 18
    hirohiro Posts: 2,663member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by frankiilacomposer View Post


    Well, it turns out what I said in another thread (about it sinking) turned out to be true -I think my words were it would go the way of the cube.



    Now that the numbers are out - it was very disappointing.



    WTF are you smoking? Apple laptop revenues rising by 49%, almost entirely due to the MBA? That's a huge success compared to the "niche" product doomed to die as you claim. Cube my ass. In the first quarter it has sold more units that the Cube did over its entire lifespan if you take even a pessimistic view of the announced results.
  • Reply 11 of 18
    bergermeisterbergermeister Posts: 6,784member
    If I may quote an AI article on this very topic:



    "A 51 percent, or 772,000 unit, yearly rise in Mac unit sales for the second fiscal quarter ended March 29th was driven primarily by sales of the new MacBook Air, introduced in January, and the iMac, which was updated last August, the company said. Dollar wise, Mac sales increased $1.2 billion or 54 percent during the second quarter and increased $2.4 billion or 51 percent during the first six months of fiscal 2008 compared to the same periods in 2007.



    In particular, notebooks had a standout showing with revenues and unit sales rising 58 percent and 61 percent, respectively, during the second quarter of 2008, and increasing 49 percent each during the first six months of fiscal 2008. Performance of the company?s desktop systems was also strong, with increased revenues and unit sales of 48 percent and 37 percent, respectively, during the second quarter, and 53 percent and 45 percent, respectively, during the first six months of 2008."



    For the full story:

    http://forums.appleinsider.com/showthread.php?t=86619



    The article suggests that Apple themselves say the sales were driven by the MBA.



    The Apple link is here:

    http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_...10Q_Q2FY08.pdf

    Scroll down to page 24.



    A quick look at Apple's online US store shows the top seller right now is, errr, the MBA, with the MB in 2nd. The MBA is the #2 seller on Japan's site, with the MBP not even in the top-10.



    Looks like the MBA is selling rather well. A little research is all it takes.
  • Reply 12 of 18
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lundy View Post


    This is the same argument made over and over. Do you not see that your first sentence means you are not the intended market for this product?



    It is not an issue of "design." It is an issue of light and thin - for traveling. If that is not important to you, then you don't need it.



    The price is higher because light and thin is more expensive to make. Isn't that blatantly obvious? Look at the bargain laptops - they are all thick and heavy. Obviously that is the cheap way to make them.



    If light and thin isn't of paramount importance to you (from a practical, not design, standpoint), then you do not need this product, and you are not the intended market.



    There are a lot of people who are not the intended market for a 19-inch laptop, either. Yet you do not see them complaining about how big it is and how it should be made smaller and cheaper - they just buy the one that IS smaller and cheaper.



    I just don't get it - all you people who complain that the Air is too expensive and has missing features, and don't care how light and thin it is, why do you not just buy the MacBook?



    That's exactly what I said.
  • Reply 13 of 18
    lundylundy Posts: 4,466member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iPeon View Post


    That's exactly what I said.



    No, you said it was much like the Cube.



    When the Cube was released, there was no known market demand for an 8-inch square desktop machine that needed a power brick and was expensive. Apple already had desktop machines in the low and high-end market segments, so there was no segment for the Cube to fill. The only way it could have been successful was if it were priced even lower than the iMac at the time, much like the mini is now.



    I was in the audience at MWSF when Jobs introduced the Cube. The reaction of the audience while he was showing it was positive; but as soon as the $1799 price was flashed onto the screen, I think everyone in the room knew it would be a failure.



    The Air, on the other hand, is a product for which there is a relatively large market demand (lightweight laptops) and for which Apple had no product.
  • Reply 14 of 18
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lundy View Post


    No, you said it was much like the Cube.



    When the Cube was released, there was no known market demand for an 8-inch square desktop machine that needed a power brick and was expensive. Apple already had desktop machines in the low and high-end market segments, so there was no segment for the Cube to fill. The only way it could have been successful was if it were priced even lower than the iMac at the time, much like the mini is now.



    I was in the audience at MWSF when Jobs introduced the Cube. The reaction of the audience while he was showing it was positive; but as soon as the $1799 price was flashed onto the screen, I think everyone in the room knew it would be a failure.



    The Air, on the other hand, is a product for which there is a relatively large market demand (lightweight laptops) and for which Apple had no product.



    It is much like the Cube. To me. I wasn't referring to how well the MBA is received out there in the market. Remember, I started by saying,



    Quote:

    Personally, I wouldn't buy a MacBook Air.



    What followed was an explanation as to why I wouldn't purchase one. So we are in agreement here.
  • Reply 15 of 18
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    DP be gone.
  • Reply 16 of 18
    ipeonipeon Posts: 1,122member
    Sorry for the DP.



    FYI. Something goofy going on. In trying to edit it I get, "Invalid Post specified. If you followed a valid link, please notify the administrator."





    Edit: Thank you Bergermeister.
  • Reply 17 of 18
    bergermeisterbergermeister Posts: 6,784member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iPeon View Post


    Sorry for the DP.



    FYI. Something goofy going on. In trying to edit it I get, "Invalid Post specified. If you followed a valid link, please notify the administrator."



    There's a work-around: control-click on the edit button and choose open in new window or tab. Edit the message there and save as usual.



    I will edit this message to double check.



    OK: this addition was added in a new tab.



    So was this.... it no longer says "Last edited..."

    Something is weird.



    BTW, luvin my MBA.
  • Reply 18 of 18
    lundylundy Posts: 4,466member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by iPeon View Post


    Sorry for the DP.



    FYI. Something goofy going on. In trying to edit it I get, "Invalid Post specified. If you followed a valid link, please notify the administrator."



    Weird all around. I can't delete or lock threads or posts. All I can do is ban people.



    Oh wait - Bergermeister's trick does work.
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