The envelope had been lying there on the minimalist desk all throughout Jobs' keynote. The rumours had been clear: Apple is going to launch a subnotebook, a sort of MacBook Mini. Despite the rumours, the collective gasp of amazement was clearly audible when Jobs pulled the MacBook Air out of the envelope. I have to admit, even I was all wowed. Consequently, you can imagine I was delighted when Apple NL agreed to loan me a review unit as soon as they had the MacBook Air in stock. Read on for the review.
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Apple has two ways to get around this problem: the first solution is optical drive sharing. Any Windows box or Mac can share its optical drive with the MacBook Air, which then becomes accessible on the Air itself, provided they are on the same network (of course). There are limitations; you cannot watch DVDs or listen to CDs, and you cannot rip them either.
You didn't try using VLC? CDs I can understand because they aren't volumes in any filesystem sense, but DVDs?
Edited 2008-02-29 15:57 UTC
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While I would love to see a world where wireless internet is ubiquitous, we still have a very, very, very long way to go before we ever reach that utopia. In other words, the MacBook Air caters to a world that does not exist yet;
Ehm, yeah. Indeed, if it had a normal ethernet connector, everything would be fine, since, well, as we all know, the world (including rural Germany) is full of network cables waiting for your laptop to be plugged in.
JAL
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As if the ethernet port is the only thing that is missing. Please do not take any quotes out of context just to make them fit your argument.
The context is just above it Thom:
since out in the real world, freely accessible WiFi is uncommon. Sure, my university has WiFi, but that is only for students and employees. Cafeteria with WiFi are still a rarity in The Netherlands (even in Amsterdam), and WiFi hotspots out in the wild? (...) What about the rest of the world? Anything else but the western world? Rural Germany, France, or United States?
I was obviously also reacting to that. Your point seems "the MacBook Air should've had an ethernet port, since there's no WiFi in most parts of the (western) world", but in most parts of the (western) world, there's also no ethernet cables lying around to attach to (let alone in "rural Germany").
JAL
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I think Thom's point was simply that wired connections are still much more common than wireless - and that the lack of built-in ethernet will be an inconvenience for users in many situations.
In my personal experience, I've also found wireless networking to be less reliable and, often, much more hassle to get working. For a simple thought experiment, imagine a random sample of 2 typical laptop owners and stick them in a room with their laptops and a crossover ethernet cable. Then ask them to try to connect their laptops to one another via an ad-hoc wireless network, and then do the same using the x-over cable.
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Well the university I work at does have its own W-LAN, but I't not necessarily always available. Most time it works, but when you are in a room on the border of the campus then the connectivity is not really good. Also it gets worse when some people start machines that emit electromagnetic waves.
BUT there are wired-network ports EVERYWHERE. Now what? Hope that the people will shut off the machines and stop their tests just so you can reach the network?
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Good review. I've never been a iShinyGadgets-freak, but the Air has my interest, as I am really pining for something lighter and smaller to carry around to work every day.
However, I'm afraid that the Air might be too "light" for me - in the sense of flexibility. I can't believe they haven't put an ethernet port and modem into it. How much extra space could this take?
Also, the sturdiness is something that will have to be proven in the real world. I would consider the Air for a 'take-it-everwhere' scenario. If I only need to be portable once in a while, I could do with a cheaper and heavier normal laptop. So, I will await the reports during the next months...
For now, I tend to think that the Lenovo Thinkpad X300 (just released, but not yet in EU) might be a better choice for me. Its physical specs are mostly in line with the Air, but it has all the ports, and you just know a Thinkpad can't be damaged by a tank... Unfortunately the price tag is somewhat higher as it only has a SSD disk, which is optional for the Air. But, maybe the shininess and the 'wow'-factor of the Air will win me over regardless.
Time will tell!
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Get a thinkpad X series laptop and call it a day. They are "really" meant for mobile roadwarriors. The Air, as Thom pointed out rather well, is more meant for someone with a strictly uptown trek, or never leaves the triangle of starbucks/mall, work, home...and assuming they all have wifi access.
This is one of the better reviews i have read, seemed really objective and balanced, unlike most that sound like adolescent jerkfests.
The Air is kewl, its sleek, and had the ultimate WOW factor rating, but that's where it stops. This isnt the machine you want wandering in and out of businesses,datacenters, on the road. I read that so far only one usb broadband adapter (novatel by sprint I believe) is narrow enough to fit into the USB slot sans using a usb extension cable...another little item you end up carrying.
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I'm waiting for the 9" versions of the EeePC or the Everex Cloudbook - with 1024x600 screens (800x480 is too small for me). For me, for about $500 I would have all the portable computer I need. I, too, am tired of "luggable" laptops. I have a fat desktop for power computing, and I can always access it remotely from anywhere in the world if I need the "oomph" while I am on the go. I believe sub-notebook computing has finally arrived - it is quickly becoming the norm for people to have multiple computers. I wish I had money to burn for something like the Air, but $500 is more my range for my second computer. I actually have about 15 computers (oldie goldies), but that is another story!
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I second that.
13" is not portable enough, I want DVD size. I hate my 15,4" dead weight Acer's electronic guts, I'm dying for something cheapish I can take on holidays, but capable enough (and enough screen real-estate) to do a bit of work in a pinch. The day I can get a 1024x(whatever) EEEPC (or similar, I hear MSI are cooking something up too), I'm sold.
And by the way, I know there exist 11" and 12" laptops with fabulous specs, but they're hellishly expensive...
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I'll be changing my old 15" notebook to something smaller after summer but I have already started looking at available options. There are some 12" ones with rather nice specs for way less that I would have imagined.
For example, 12" Fujitsu-Siemens, C2D T5250 (1.5GHz), 1GB of RAM, 160GB HDD, Intel X3100 graphics, 3h battery life for about 680 euro. It's not as sexy but is powerful enough and 2.5x cheaper that McBook Air. Not hellishly expensive for sure.
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For example, 12" Fujitsu-Siemens, C2D T5250 (1.5GHz), 1GB of RAM, 160GB HDD, Intel X3100 graphics, 3h battery life for about 680 euro. It's not as sexy but is powerful enough and 2.5x cheaper that McBook Air. Not hellishly expensive for sure.
hu? the only laptop from fsc with an t5250 which i can find is the "Esprimo Mobile Edition 9 V 5505" - 15,4' big and weighting 2,7 kg, selling for close to 700 €. the cheapest 12'' with an c2d seems to be the "Esprimo Mobile U9200" for around 1000€.
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There are some places (here in Poland) that sell Esprimo Mobile U9200 with C2D T5250 for 680€.
Here's a polish pricegrabber site if you don't believe me
http://www.ceneo.pl/;004c0+su9200;0112-0.htm
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I third it. 9" -> 12" seems to be the sweet spot for mobile PC's. Those screens have a resolution high enough (usually similar to the 15.4s) to look amazing and are "hand-baggable". If it's not baggable then I want it small enough to be pocketable. Oh, and less than 2 kilos please!
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I just wanted to make a comment based on the thickness of the MacBook Air. I think the shape of it is genius, because it tricks the eye into seeing it as thinner than it actually is. The slight scallop toward the edges shows you the absolute thinnest part of the laptop at all times when viewing it from the side. While this laptop is extremely thin, it isn't quite as thin as it appears to be at a glance.
It's a great design illusion and I hope it's adopted by more laptops in this category.
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It's a great design illusion and I hope it's adopted by more laptops in this category.
You're right, and that is the problem; the difference in thickness isn't all that much - and worse, to actually make the whole venture of purchasing the machine worthwhile one has to shell out a few more dollars to get the SSD drive. If the base model included an SSD drive standard and maintained the price, all good, but that isn't the case.
For me, I have a Black MacBook, and I take it everywhere with me; and the thickness? its a non-issue. a few extra millimetres gives me nothing in the way of space. As I said on a previous forum, if you're complaining about the 'weight' of your MacBook I think that the solution isn't getting a lighter one but going to the gym and building some muscles. One shouldn't be so damn unfit to find that the current crop of laptops 'bulky and heavy' to carry around.
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It is interesting how Apple are going closer and closer to an Internet Tablet model on both ends with the iTouch/iPhone/iPod on one end and the Air on the other. If only they would be open up a tad bit more *sigh*...Should be interesting to see where they end up...
It would seem the age of truly personal computers is upon us; Just like out of StarTrek (Tricorders)or the Shadowrun or BluePlanet RPGs...
Until we are in the thick of it, however, Ill just keep hacking Ruby on my N800!
Edited 2008-02-29 18:34 UTC
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I thought your review was good Thom. Thanks.
I did want to comment on the lack of ports... I don't see that as a problem at all since the MacBook Air is for a specific kind of use.
I am a software engineer, so I use a 17" MacBook Pro. It gives me all the power I need, is lighter than all the Dells and HPs I've used in the past, and it has a nice, wide screen that lets me see as much code as possible. It is perfect for me.
My friend is a financial advisor and travels a lot and does a lot of presentations. He recently got a MacBook Air and he says that it is perfect for him because it is light, ultra portable, and provides every feature that he needs to successfully do his business. In other words, the MacBook Air is perfect for him.
I would never buy a MacBook Air for my job because it doesn't fit, but the MacBook Pro does. My friend feels the same about his MacBook Air.
Isn't it wonderful that Apple provides us with a choice?
I think the idea that every product should suite the needs of every individual is flawed, but perhaps that is just me.
Edited 2008-02-29 18:59 UTC
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The most sane and intelligent comment I've ever heard about this topic. Congratulations !
I carry my Macbook everywhere and I wish I could replace it for a lighter Macbook Air. It delivers simply much more than enough for almost everyone. The main drawback is it's high price.
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As someone who visits lots of corporate customers, I find it very strange that your friend doesn't miss an ethernet port on the Air...
About half the customers I visit have wireless networks (and will let me use them), all others require me to plug in...
I really can't understand how they think ethernet has lost relevance.
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No one wants to carry around another adapter though. My first laptop didn't have an ethernet port and I had a stupid PCMCIA card with a dongle that was nothing but a pain in the ass. Haven't we progressed beyond this? I can perfectly understand leaving out the modem, I haven't used a modem in about ten years and have never had a need for one in that time frame. I just noticed my Macbook doesn't have a modem, so I would guess Apple has pretty much put the modem to pasture. My year old HP notebook does have a modem though, for what its worth.
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As others have also stated, the problem is not with the $29 price (which is still not something to be dismissed, not alone for the amount, but for what you pay it), but with it costing the same amount in euros, which is a 1.5 times price increase. We, on this side of the pond, know all too well, that this not something we didn't get used to by now, still, $29 euros for being able to use eth through a usb adapter, which is laughable at best, when you can't even say you have an abundance of usb ports available, well, it's just funny.
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now I wonder how well it will run osX? Damn apple...
Maybe itunes will get big enough that they can open OSX up to other hardware?
Once it is such a small part of their business???
I want a $1500 dollar tower with a real graphics card.... Please Steve come one? Your monitors are over priced and under featured! And I can't justify the juice to drive the mac pro much less the price.
Or just sell me OSX for the pc for $500? come on? you know you want too Stevie....
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I'm not in the market for a mac -- but I am one someone who likes his laptops small or even tiny. My first laptop was a 9" compaq contura aero, and now I'm using a Lenovo X61 tablet.
That laptop doesn't have a dvd drive either -- and I very seldom miss it. It does have an ethernet port, but I never use it. Everywhere I go, there's wifi. Railway stations, KDab offices in Berlin, home or with friends, conference centers, hotels and motels. Wifi is pretty ubiquitous nowadays.
But I never could live with just one usb port. Thumb drive, external mouse, external tablet (yeah, I know, but I need to test rotation and tilt in Krita) -- external hard drive, camera, a bunch of usb ports is necessary.
And for the same price as this mac, I get not just three usb ports, but also a tablet screen that makes the x61t just the perfect sketchpad. And a nipple and three mouse buttons built-in :-)
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Unless you HAVE to have OSX, there are plenty of other laptops that fit the bill. I just got a Dell XPS m1330 and I love it. Only a little heavier and thicker than the air, it has a real graphics card (nvidia) and a slot load dvd burner. I spent $1600 total and got a 4 gig C2D 2200 that runs linux perfectly and has about 5 hours battery life. Plus, virtual box and kvm will soon support OSX without hacks, although this might be against the EULA. The validity of the EULA is questionable anyway since I didnt sign anything when I bought my copy of leopard.
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I don't think this is aimed necessarily at people constantly on the road. I think the target market is more likely to be someone who has a Mac Pro or Imac in the home/office for all his/her real computing needs but wants the option to take stuff along on holiday or to and from the office. A very light device onto which he/she just transfers the stuff they need for that trip.
I am considering it for this purpose (though the price point is annoying- its sitting annoyingly between the Macbook and MacBook Pros - making me think I could save and get a more features on the macbook or splurge and get serious laptop. Decisions, decisions.)
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But neither the MacBook nor MacBook Pro would cover what you originally wanted the Air for!
I agree that the price is too high for such a device, though.
So were the original iPod, the Netwon, the Lisa, ...
Typical Apple; pushing the envelope (no pun intended), resulting in too high prices, in some cases selling like hot cakes anyway, being a reason for the rest of the industry to be on their toes.
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...I always find laughable is the notion that my usage patterns exactly match yours.
This laptop is not many things that some of you expect it to be. That's fine. Apple still makes both the Macbook and Macbook Pro, please stop pretending these options don't exist.
I have a MacBook Pro at home. I use the ethernet connector about once every 6 months. I use the USB port about once a month. I use the DVD drive about once a year. I have NEVER had to swap my battery out.
The MacBook Air is perfect for ME and there are more people out there like me than you swissLaptop users fail to realize.
So the MacBook Air doesn't have all the features you need, WHO GIVES A MONKEYS ARSE! Get a laptop that does, it's not going to hurt Apple's sales.
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In conclusion, I am guessing whoever thought of the brilliant idea to leave out all the ports and the optical drive never really left the Apple campus or the local Starbucks, since out in the real world, freely accessible WiFi is uncommon. Sure, my university has WiFi, but that is only for students and employees. Cafeteria with WiFi are still a rarity in The Netherlands (even in Amsterdam), and WiFi hotspots out in the wild? You have more chance of spotting a dodo in Antarctica than finding one of those around here.
When was the last time you were in Amsterdam ?
http://www.jiwire.com
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I've bought a macBook Air and I should say that it's a great disappointment to me.
But it's very likely that Apple Will improve these laptops...
http://www.maconair.com/macbook_air_patent_future_expansion
It's better wait for something better than buy a useless toy.
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Just some general things...
I guess I'm one of the few that really didn't care for Thom's take on the Air, partially because in my opinion, from what Jobs described as the use of this laptop, was to be used as a corporate device, and not to annoy or enflame, but Thom's use was for academic purposes.
I think for an academic review, Thom's comments may have some weight to it, but I think Jobs meant for this either to be a corporate ultraportable, or a secondary system for corporate use on the road.
For example, in my company, we use Sony VAIO TX and TZ based laptops.
Light, compact, and very useful for our sales and executives. However, we pay a pretty penny for them ($2300-2400US) and that's with no warranty.
Yes, they have the DVD drive, the extra USB port, the ethernet port and the replaceable battery available, but at a steep price point.
Most of my users rarely use their DVD drives, use USB hubs anyway with their peripherals, and are on Ethernet only when Wi-Fi isn't available. They have no issues with using a USB adapter when out on the road.
Even with all the devices (the SuperDrive, USB to Ethernet,AppleCare, Parallels for XP virtualizing) added on to a MacBook Air purchase, it's still cheaper than getting at TX or TZ with a smaller processor, smaller screen, and a reduced size keyboard. There's more value in a Macbook Air for my people than the X300 or TX/TZ line of Sony's.
Oh, and the proliferation of Wi-Fi in the US must be different than the Netherlands, because most of my guys can find Wi-Fi if they need it.
Most major hotels, most minor hotels, convention centers and trade shows have Wi-Fi available. And if not, the USB adapter is an easy carry for them.
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I probably live in a different "The Netherlands" than Thom, since I'm able to find WiFi almost anywhere and ethernet hardly anywhere. And I do travel a lot, also abroad. And for the few moments that WiFi is not an option I have my HSDPA/UMTS cellphone acting as a bluetooth modem. Don't get the fuzz about missing ethernet at all.
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