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Thin is in: Ars Technica reviews the MacBook Air

arstechnica.com — The MacBook Air has finally made its way into the hands of the earliest adopters. Ars Technica likes the sexy, but digs into the nitty gritty to see whether being so thin is worth it.

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  • davidsa, on 02/04/2008, -9/+66Thanks Ars for the good review, as always.
    • AronT, on 02/04/2008, -15/+15Not so great notebook...
    • linagee, on 02/04/2008, -8/+1Super thin laptop so it snaps like pita bread? I don't get it. Give me a laptop that will survive being dropped from 8 feet and it would be a great product.
      • wellyuk, on 02/04/2008, -0/+5There's few notebooks around that would survive the drop you're describing but there's plenty of notebooks around that are probably considerably more robust than the MacBook Air. You talk like there's no other option.
      • gpageau, on 02/04/2008, -1/+4Who are you? Manute Bol? Under what circumstances would you drop a laptop 8 feet?
      • nakile, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1You know it's not made of plastic but aluminum, right?
    • artofwar420, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Only one complain, it seems they didn't use the very expensive option of a solid state drive, rather they used a plate disk drive which comes standard. I think that the solid state drive would have made a difference in some tests.
      • Rbstr, on 02/05/2008, -0/+3Testing this version make the most sense. Considering That the SSD adds over a thousand dollars to the price of the notebook.
    • ioncelovedjane, on 02/05/2008, -3/+1After reading the article, try to see this, you'll get deeper understanding: http://digg.com/apple/Everyone_likes_Apple_Compute ...
      If you don't agree w/ me, just bury me!
    • ioncelovedjane, on 02/05/2008, -3/+1http://digg.com/apple/Everyone_likes_Apple_Compute ...
    • djh816, on 02/05/2008, -0/+4"I ran down the battery from full charge four times and came out with an average of two hours and 33 minutes."

      Review over.
  • coolgus, on 02/04/2008, -21/+78they say the things as they are. too much hype for this product. One USB ?!!!! Give me a break
    • MutatedNantuko, on 02/04/2008, -12/+25Hey, you can plug in a mouse when you realize the touchpad sucks, then.....*****.
      • IEatHamburgers, on 02/04/2008, -16/+4Eeeeeewww! ***** a mouse?
      • wyrdness, on 02/04/2008, -4/+16I use a bluetooth mouse with my old powerbook. Printing is done wirelessly. I never need the usb ports for anything. If you really need more than one, you can always plug in a usb hub.
        The AIr is aimed at rich executives who probably won't need usb ports either.
        • mrsteve007, on 02/04/2008, -5/+14Like when you use the single USB port to plug in your slow 10/100 network dongle. Don't expect to get any major work done on this expensive machine, even as an executive.
          • trakais, on 02/04/2008, -4/+11network dongle? i have yet to see an airport or hotel without wireless. where do you americans live, in caves?
        • pintomp3, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2less wires, more batteries. i used to carry a bluetooth mouse but got tired of carrying around spare AAA batteries. i also use an external hard drive and ethernet. this is on a 2.5lbs latitude x1.
        • pavanb500, on 02/05/2008, -0/+3You have some good point, but I highly, highly doubt that a "rich executive" would use this thing. 99% of companies are PC companies. In addition, CEO types tend to favor practicality over style. Many execs these days have actually have Tablet PCs.
    • TBoneFever, on 02/04/2008, -8/+19USB hub? Also, isn't the main purpose of this machine portability? Why would you even by this laptop if you wanted to use mutiple USB devices?
      • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -3/+19Duh! Doesn't everyone carry around a wired mouse, a printer, an mp3 player, a USB headset, and of course a little USB dacing hula girl?
        • wellyuk, on 02/04/2008, -0/+5I can't find the USB dancing hula girl you speak of. I must have a USB dancing hula girl. I demand a USB dancing hula girl!
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1Weeell... The reasoning I can think of goes something like this:

        If you're going to use it on the road -- where the portability matters -- you won't be in a situation where you'd want to plug anything in other than the odd thumbdrive. If you're using it for something more advanced, you can chuck all those extra peripherals in your suitcase, and unpack and plug everything in at the hotel.

        I'm not entirely convinced that this is *good* reasoning, but it's *one* way of arguing for it...
      • Ashex, on 02/04/2008, -0/+4It's main purpose is portability of course. but one usb port is one too few. My laptop has 2 usb ports which is perfect, One for my usb mouse if I feel the need for it, and the second for a flashdrive when I need to transfer files.
    • catalysis, on 02/04/2008, -2/+4I also hate how firewire is basically being phased out of notebooks altogether. Connectivity is key. There is nothing worse than needing a port and not having one available.
    • Urkel, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1One USB is tough but I can live with it. But the lack of FireWire is the part that is crazy. This is Apple's very own technology and especially on a device like this then it's omission is horrible. Migration and Networking is huge for a machine that may require lots of syncing. But also, since this product is aimed at the most loyal of Apple fans then they've pretty much cut off all the users who bought Firewire drives.
    • illt, on 02/04/2008, -3/+8So much hype for what really isn't too great of a product.
      Apple really dissapoints this round.

      lenovo has a much better product coming out.
      half pound lighter, built in GPS/wimax, removable battery!, higher res display, dvd burner, faster processer, and ability to add up to 4gb of ram.
      Battery life is really the only thing that remains to be seen.
      • Ashex, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1You happen to have a link for this upcoming laptop? I'm curious about this laptop
  • rebotfc, on 02/04/2008, -2/+152Dugg for "Imaginary battery life 5 hours "
    • idesign562, on 02/04/2008, -2/+10That was pretty much my favorite part too.
    • AronT, on 02/04/2008, -0/+7Very funny
    • pirloui, on 02/04/2008, -0/+18I use a Mac and am very happy with MacOS, but sadly apple has since about forever stated that their laptops did 5 hours, while they actually does closer to 3.5 hours. (have owned 3 Apple laptops)
      • Adgeman, on 02/04/2008, -0/+10I agree completely with this. I've never got within 20% of the official battery life on any mac laptop. I simply ignore this bit of any presentation as I know it's utterly unrealistic.
      • joegibes, on 02/05/2008, -0/+2"5 hours battery life with display and hard drives powered down!"
    • TBoneFever, on 02/04/2008, -15/+1I'm pretty sure this little laptop should have atleast 5 hours of juice ...did you notice its size?

      This isn't your top of the line macbook pro w/ the fastest chips and hard drive speeds available. And who knows, maybe w/ the solid state drive you can squeeze out a couple more hours. 5 hours is probably an understatement.
      • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -0/+6But... But he tested battery life. He TESTED IT!! I believe him.
        • acero47, on 02/04/2008, -1/+0Good point, but the article's author was female.
          • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2Oh well in THAT case... no wait what I said is still valid.
    • porninstructor, on 02/04/2008, -5/+0Buried for impracticalness.
  • danwarne, on 02/04/2008, -9/+8As much as I was alarmed by the extreme feature-stripping when I first saw it, I reckon I could buy it IF Apple would make some software that would help me sync to it like an iPod. I'm happy enough with my iPhone, using iTunes' automatic ability to sync playlists of my most recently listened-to music, and my last six weeks of photos. But as it stands, I'd have to manually manage the 80GB of disk space on the MBA in terms of syncing it with a main computer, and that would just suck. That's the missing piece of the MBA at the moment.
    • pirloui, on 02/04/2008, -3/+1iTunes & TimeMachine?
    • ocellnuri, on 02/04/2008, -0/+4I'd love to see a system like you describe. I've been struggling to set up the same system with my 60gig 12" Powerbook and my iMac (with 500gigs of storage) Right now I'm auto-mounting my iMac's AFP share through a dynamic DNS, and using Foldershare to sync critical files between all of my machines. A smart sync that could tie in to Spotlight, and be built into the system, would be excellent. I wonder if the same setup could be accomplished with some actionscript/smart folder work...
      • ocellnuri, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Durr, I meant Applescript, or Automator.
    • Balanced, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1iSynch and .Mac, perhaps? That should do the documents folder, at least. Maybe a couple others. You'd have to do some manual labor to keep tings manageable if your desktop had more documents than the MBA's HD.

      There was a program to leave .Mac out of the equation, I think.
    • stoanhart, on 02/04/2008, -0/+4I use a program called unison on my laptop to sync it with my desktop. It's open source and cross-platform, so you can even sync a linux laptop to a windows desktop, or whatever you want.

      1) Install unison on the laptop
      2) Edit the config file to indicate any directories you want syncd.
      3) If you get a dynamic IP from your ISP, set up a redirecter at www.no-ip.org so you can always find your desktop from anywhere in the world.
      4) Set up a SSH server on the desktop (and set up passwordless login).
      5) Any time you need to sync, pop open a terminal and type "unison" - it will see what has changed, show you a list of transfers that will occur, you say yes or no, and it does it. Works flawlessly.

      With unison, my laptop has pretty much become an extension of my desktop. I can be working at home and need to leave for some reason. I just get up, grab my laptop and go. It's fantastic.
    • pirloui, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Eventually you want to clone it from your desktop?
      "Deja-vu" (http://propagandaprod.com/) can clone whatever directory, even a bootable system; over a network.
  • clintology, on 02/04/2008, -4/+106Two and a half hours battery life really ticks me off. I can't believe no one else has said anything about this in all the other reviews.
    • Jeez, on 02/04/2008, -5/+15Saying anything bad about apple is blasphemy? seriously most reviewers these days do not actually review rather just type some nice statements from the brochure to appease their advertisers.
      • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -3/+10Paging that mac whore mossberg... mr. mossberg, you have some apple apologies to write.
      • jabberwolf, on 02/06/2008, -0/+1"to appease their advertisers"
        And who has a huge massive advertising machine that promotes their distortion zone by pretending to be "innovative" and bash others with half truths, bad comparisons, and sometimes flat out lies?
        APPLE !!
    • pintomp3, on 02/04/2008, -3/+38two and a half hours of battery life isn't so bad, just pop in your spare... oh wait.
    • ibeetle, on 02/04/2008, -3/+14My brother has had a Air for 3 days. I questioned him about this 2 hour battery life that some have mentioned. He has no idea where this is coming from. He told me he is getting 3 1/2 - 4 1/4 hours.
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -1/+13So, we put our hopes to being lucky in ye olde Apple version-1.0-hardware raffle?
      • Kotelic, on 02/04/2008, -2/+5Does he have a wired internet connection? Wireless sucks a lot of juice.
        • daborg, on 02/04/2008, -2/+12Are you serious? Maybe you need to think about that for two seconds and then rephrase the question.
        • bowe, on 02/04/2008, -1/+10The Air doesn't have a wired connection.
          • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+7It has an ethernet dongle... if you're willing to pay for it.
    • jbella, on 02/04/2008, -1/+4The other reviewers didn't ignore the issue... they just didn't get the same results. If you read through the various other reviews you will see that most of them mentioned getting anywhere between 3 1/2 to 4 1/2 hours on a charge. It could be that ars has a defective unit, or it could also be that the things they did with the laptop are much more battery intensive. It's hard to say. Unfortunately battery life is one of those "Your Milage May Vary--GREATLY" type of things.

      I any case, you should hardly be "ticked off" about it.. unless of course you already bought one and are having this problem.
  • Condottieri, on 02/04/2008, -29/+16I'm sure the MacBook Air, being so thin, will be great to wipe my ass with.
  • MutatedNantuko, on 02/04/2008, -6/+35"...but it did the worst during a WebKit build that took over 45 minutes. That was pretty harsh. "

    Harsh? How about "Holy ***** that's slow."
  • starkruzr, on 02/04/2008, -13/+56"but digs into the nitty gritty to see whether being so thin is worth it."

    SPOILER ALERT: It isn't.
    Small footprint has value. Light weight has value. Thinness, beyond a certain point, has no value.
    • AntBing, on 02/04/2008, -2/+23Small footprint, light weight and thinness all have value, just not at the cost of battery life and performance.
    • illt, on 02/04/2008, -0/+5the point is..for a marginal increase in thickness and use of plastics, you can have a lighter, faster, more durable and more capable computer with the same footprint in what would still be considered a "thin" device.

      Just not "air" thin
  • NiGHTSChao, on 02/04/2008, -21/+56Sorry, I'd rather have a ***** laptop thats 1-2cm larger with actual PORTS on the thing
    Thin is useless and stupid
    Functionality > Cosmetics
    • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -9/+11That's why they still make the Macbook and Macbook Pro. The system is fine for what it's intended for. If you need even one USB port, you're probably not the kind of person who needs an Air.
      • bani, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1so what exactly is the target market for the MBA then?
        • fanclerks, on 02/06/2008, -0/+1I think it's the perfect laptop for someone like a college student that spends most of their time within range of some wireless AP. All they need is something to take notes in class and maybe surf the web or view some digital media. The rest of the more hardcore computing type stuff, they can either use their own desktop if they have one or use some computer provided by the college. I can remember going class to class and wishing my laptop was a few pounds lighter to make the difference with all the books I ended up having to carry at times too.
    • Pyehole, on 02/04/2008, -18/+8Depends on what you want a computer for. I put in an order last night for a Mac Air (my first Mac). What sold me was the slim design, I wanted one before I got my hands on one. Picking one up at the Apple store cemented the deal for me. I don't need ports or an optical drive, what I need is portability. SOLD!
      • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -4/+16Well, you've just paid too much for a laptop that has better alternatives. Congradulations. You can buy a laptop with MORE features, for less money, that weighs less but is only slightly thicker.

        Are you intending on putting this in an envelope? Because the alternatives are only 2-4mm thicker...
        • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -17/+3The Macbook and MBP are the only alternatives. The reason you buy a Mac in the first place is so you can run OS X. If Pyehole wanted to run Windows instead, he wouldn't have considered a Mac in the first place.
    • node3, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Yeah, if only Apple sold a 13.3" notebook that was about 2.75 cm thick with all the ports you are accustomed to, as well as an optical drive, removable battery, upgradable RAM and 2.5" HD.

      Why does every MacBook Air story attract an army of ***** who say, "the MacBook Air sucks, if only it was exactly like a MacBook..."? If you want a MacBook, what makes you think a MacBook Air would be a good computer for you? On the other hand, if you prefer thin, and don't need even the features of a MacBook, then the Air might be what you want. Or it might not. No big deal.
  • AzMegladon, on 02/04/2008, -15/+18I would like to get one. What is the battery life on the cd/dvd player going, i like to watch movies?
    Does it write cd/dvd's? that would be a definite selling point for me.
    • FredFredrickson, on 02/04/2008, -8/+16There is no CD / DVD player. You should read a little more before you post.
      • edwartica, on 02/04/2008, -0/+6Wonder if they meant the optional usb optical drive.
    • turbopro, on 02/04/2008, -2/+18Sarcasm much? at least I hope so.
  • daxsymbiont, on 02/04/2008, -26/+5another gay ass design.
    • Gryffydd, on 02/04/2008, -2/+11Not really...this thing doesn't have any input ports, remember?
    • CraigJ, on 02/04/2008, -4/+8Well, you're the expert on gay.
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Also, if I were to get a designer ass, I think you could do worse than one made by the gay contingent -- after all, they should be experts in the area.
  • FredFredrickson, on 02/04/2008, -14/+37$1800 for a gimpy laptop is too 90's for me.
    • palmer, on 02/05/2008, -5/+1That doesn't make any sense. What is 90?
  • burstaneurysm, on 02/04/2008, -7/+723 ports, 1 cup
  • helloyamadotcom, on 02/04/2008, -6/+24obligatory "IT CAN FIT IN AN ENVELOPE!"
    • corkdorkdan, on 02/04/2008, -0/+11I still think they should have gone all the way with that, and actually sold it with a manila interoffice envelope as the packaging.
      • DaMacGamer, on 02/05/2008, -1/+1Too bad anyone who doesn't follow Apple/watch every Macworld keynote would be saying "WTF?" when they opened the box.
  • noahhoward, on 02/04/2008, -4/+9Meh, it has its uses, I'm not entirely sure why they would bother with something that seems so specialized. To me this is a companion piece for a desktop that you can carry with you when you're photographing in the field or visiting with design clients or something. I can't see this being a stand-alone machine.
    • FredFredrickson, on 02/04/2008, -3/+2It doesn't serve any purpose that previous, more able Mac laptops haven't filled.
      • noahhoward, on 02/04/2008, -2/+4True. They could have done much better had they made it an ultraportable tablet. For what this one costs I agree, I can carry around my MB Pro.
    • bxblox, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2The MBP just doesnt seem inconvenient enough to warrant the expense
  • mrpoll, on 02/04/2008, -22/+0are you guys buying macbook air? i'm still worried about the single usb port. it makes it impossible to use a wired mouse and flash usb memory at once.
    poll: http://www.couchmob.com/read/hot/4 | Buy the new MacBook Air or not?
    • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -3/+71. IMO using a wired mouse would defeat the purpose of owning such an ultra-portable laptop.
      2. Who the hell cares about your poll?!
    • grr74, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1You could use a portable usb hub.
  • digitallysick, on 02/04/2008, -6/+22Apples problem is cost, most people buy a sub $800.00 notebook, apple won't touch this market, and instead, chooses to ignore it.
    • rudy23, on 02/04/2008, -3/+11yup. My IBM X series does pretty much the same stuff while costing around $700.
    • AronT, on 02/04/2008, -16/+7Apple will sell a sub $800 notebook when sub $800 notebooks don't suck.
    • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -12/+12Ferrari's problem is cost too. Most people buy a $20,000 sedan, Ferrari won't touch this market, and instead, chooses to ignore it.
      • Jeez, on 02/04/2008, -4/+9Your analogy fails cause Air fails in comparison to other macbooks, its like buying a dodge looks good but has crappy performance.
        • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -2/+3The post I was replying to said Apple in general, not just the Macbook Air.
      • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -5/+10If you're trying to say that Macs are the Ferrari of computers, you might get punched. Bad analogy. They're like the Volvo, maybe.
        • BigW, on 02/05/2008, -1/+2They are the BMW of computers, clearly.
      • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -5/+8You fail.

        What you mean to say is Apple is the Designer-labelled T-shirt for $200 in a market full of equally CAPABLE $20 T-shirts.
        • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -6/+5The $20,000 sedan is just as capable of getting you from point A to point B as the Ferrari, but I bet the trip in the Ferrari would be a lot more fun.

          The $20 t-shirt is quite capable of keeping you from being exposed from the elements, but the $200 t-shirt gets you the girls. Ergo, you will have more fun.

          The $700 PC will get the job done, but you'll have have more fun doing the job with OS X on a $3000 Mac.
        • kelly, on 02/04/2008, -3/+1And the same is true on one of Apple's $600 Macs. (Why do you mention a $3,000 system when Apple sells them for a fraction of that price? Oh... I know why, your goal was to spread the false notion that Macs are somehow disproportionately priced to equally equipped PCs. Now I see what you did there.)
        • skidooer, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2"Why do you mention a $3,000 system when Apple sells them for a fraction of that price?"

          To illustrate that there is more to determining which product to buy than just finding the cheapest one you can find. It has nothing to do with Apple specifically.
    • sudowrestler, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1That's a problem for a lot of people, about Apple, but it doesn't seem to be a problem for Apple themselves. They don't seem to feel that they're missing out on a great opportunity by staying out of the low end.
  • ufia, on 02/04/2008, -4/+24Someone give the MacBook Air a sandwich!
  • CraigJ, on 02/04/2008, -4/+11dugg for: "3 ports, 1 cup door"
    • HydrogenOxide, on 02/04/2008, -1/+5the day we can delete our comments can't come fast enough
  • stutimandal, on 02/04/2008, -8/+3If the Macbook was as thin as credit card with a weight of 3 lbs, it will create enough pressure (weight/psi) to choke your arteries and stop blood flow through fingers.
    • edwartica, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Umm, you might seek professional help or something.
    • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1You're not meant to swallow it...
  • techresearcher, on 02/04/2008, -2/+16The only reason someone would want to buy an Air is for its lightweightedness (is that a word?) and portability. Now the sucky battery life kills the very purpose of its existence.
    • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -0/+3So true. I find it weird that even though it has all these "power saving" features, it doesn't have a battery life equivalent to a regular Macbook. Although I imagine that the battery is significantly smaller in a Macbook Air...
    • bowe, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1lightness. I can't believe that a company making audio products would go with a weak mono-speaker design and a headphone port that won't fit most headphones...Well actually I believe that second part.
  • mycatsboots, on 02/04/2008, -1/+14I was impressed by the article, it was very objective and strayed away from any fanboy-isms.

    I was thinking about hopping into the 'small notebook' wonderland, and after reading this I can make the informed decision to stay away from the first generation, and hope that the inevitable newer line will include an easily accessible battery (unlikely, but maybe) and perhaps a faster hard drive. I know I can't have my cake and eat it too, but I can certainly hope.

    Otherwise, it looks like a great product, I'll have to make the trek to the Apple store in Freehold to give it my own test.
    • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -2/+3This is simply Apple's first ultra-portable.

      The Ultra portable is very mature, and there are many products in this catagory that cost less, have more features and are equally portable. In fact, this "air" is pretty heavy compared to others, which in terms of "portablity" is more important than a few millimeters in thickness.
      • edwartica, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Hmm, so you're saying its more like a first gen thing. You have a point. The first gen ipods kind of sucked.
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1The problem, as I see it, is that many of its more glaring flaws come from the design philsophy Steve presented during MW08, and if future revisions go away from this, that would be tantamount to Apple saying "all our noise about thinness vs. footprint, wirelessness, and simplicity vs. functionality was bunk"... and I just can't see that happening.

        They might be able to fix some things (HD speed, battery life) by replacing those parts with other, more capable ones, but to make a decent ultra-portable -- one that can compete in a very fierce market -- they need to redesign the whole thing :(
  • wtf00, on 02/04/2008, -12/+3"Optical drive, and the lack thereof" the part of article give me reason why I can't stand Apple idea only Apple brand can be use attitude..
    So the mean you can't buy external dvd burner for cheape(LG,samsung,sony,etc.) or my own external case and drive, plug into this Air but only expensive apple external burner... ***** you apple.. I stick to PC and use hack macos on my pc because I like macos leopard maybe in near future release PC friendly version of macos...
    • pirloui, on 02/04/2008, -1/+7You can use any burner. Its just the Apple one that only works on the air, because of the high power USB port.
      • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -1/+3Here, i fixed it for you:
        "Its just the Apple one that only works on the air, because of the high profit potential of selling add-ons"
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1...which means that, if you install the Apple drive, you cannot use any other peripheral at the same time. What you're saying means that they're going way above spec on the USB port, which means that trying to use the drive together with a spec-compliant USB hub will cause a couple of small fires...

        ...it'll be interesting to see if they warn against this, or if you can get a couple of free peripheral replacements out of Apple due to them providing you with faulty hardware. Alternatively, they're actually within spec, in which case they whole Apple drive is just a way to prey on uninformed consumers. Hmm...
    • wyrdness, on 02/04/2008, -1/+5There's nothing to stop you plugging in a normal USB cd burner. The only difference with the Apple one is that it doesn't need an external power supply.
  • OverlordXenu, on 02/04/2008, -8/+2So basically, it has the same amount of usability as a UMPC?

    Can someone tell me why the hell they would get this over an OQO 02?
    • Balanced, on 02/04/2008, -1/+9Bigger screen, faster processor, preferred OS?
  • phibit, on 02/04/2008, -1/+4To me one of the most fascinating things about the Macbook Air was the available SSD. I'd like to see how battery life and performance are effected with some newer technology (4200 RPM drive is unimpressive...)
    • wageslaven, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2There are many SSD equiped laptops in the market...
      • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1...and in those, the presence of an SSD seems to add 3-4 hours to the battery marketing-life. So, say, 1-2 hours extra in real life?
  • asylumua, on 02/04/2008, -6/+1google cache
    http://209.85.135.104/search?q=cache:RnFQPgF6guoJ: ...
  • motoracer1486, on 02/04/2008, -5/+6Can't believe Apple came out with this computer. What kind of marketing research did they come up with that made them think users would rather save a pound and give up so many features? Personally, add a pound, and have a faster computer/hard drive/graphics card/more than 1 usb port/firewire/etc. Unbelievable, Apple...
    • Sanctums, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2I hear ya man. Its an underpowered, overpriced notebook who's only selling point is that its small. You'll basically be able to achive the same thing with the EEEPC at a fourth of the price.
    • edwartica, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1I do wonder about why they chose to make it the way they did. I mean, DID they do market research? Or did they just brainstorm and say "ok, what's the bare minimum anyone would need?"
    • timo0270, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1This is what pisses me off about apple, the fanboys. One kid in one of my classes bought the MBA as soon as he was able to, and sold his old laptop. He really doesn't care what its all about, he just wants to pay way to much for something she he can just show it off like his apple stickers all over his car.
    • Tippis, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Easy. They looked at how well the TX/TZ-series and the X61s have sold (ie very well) and thought they wanted in on that kind of action.
    • bowe, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1I think Steve Jobs doesn't believe in market research. He just goes with whatever he likes.
  • infobhan, on 02/04/2008, -0/+12Everyone seems to love to hate the MBA, but the actual conclusion of the article was:

    "Despite all of the Air's (sometimes glaring) flaws, I plan to keep it and use it as my notebook from here on out (maybe with a hard drive upgrade in the near future, and definitely with a battery upgrade when they become available)."

    Though I have a full-fledged notebook, I rarely actually use the features that the MBA lacks. The performance seems reasonable for what I do on the road, as does the disk space. I think the key audience here is people who need a notebook for traveling, but have desktop for storage and archiving or for any processor intensive tasks (e.g. video editing).
    • znicket, on 02/04/2008, -0/+3This sums up my perspective. I will definitely buy the SSD version in maybe... 8 months or so. Hopefully for a slightly lower price.
  • hnilsen, on 02/04/2008, -5/+3But it has a really, really nice apple on the lid. Who wouldn't buy it?
  • Outcaster51, on 02/04/2008, -11/+2What a waste of money. This thing can't even play DVDs or CDs. How ridiculous is that? I'm sure there will be tons of fools who buy into this thing too... it makes me sad. Wowee, it's really super thin! ....but it can't actually do anything.
    • kilofox, on 02/04/2008, -1/+3Playing CDs or DVDs on your laptop is so..... 90's. I rip the dvds I want to watch and save a ton of battery life that way. So go ahead and lug your disks around fool.
      • Outcaster51, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2Wow, what a great idea! Too bad you can't rip DVDs with the MacBook Air either.
      • relativeLogic, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1You must still use the stupid external drive to rip the dvds. Or you must have another computer on your home network with a drive. Sure in five+ years no one will use discs any longer. But by then, the MBA will just look like a silly toy. So what is the point in buying such a limiting piece of hardware (no firewire, only one USB, adapters for external monitor which take up the only USB?) other than an obvious attempt at overcompensating for serious personal deficits in character, style, intellect, creativity and self-esteem? It is pretty clear to me who the fools are here.
  • matriculated, on 02/04/2008, -0/+4Who was chewing on the MagSafe adaptor?
    • streak, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2Anybody know why the power cord from the MagSafe connector extends forward rather than backward? Does Apple expect most corded activity will be on a table with the power cord draped over the front edge of the table (ugly) rather than through a hole in the table or down the back side next to a wall where a power outlet would be located?
      • Overcyn, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2on macbook pros the connector works both ways. i.e. upside down and rightside up. so im guessing you could face the powercord towards the back.
  • jhails, on 02/04/2008, -7/+2I'm betting this will be another expensive dud like the Lisa and the Cube. An attractive looking piece of hardware with no practical use and way over priced. Jobs needs to crank out one of these every once in a while to full fill his inner artist fetish. The slow sales will force him to repackage some of the Airs features into more practical machines in the next round of upgrades. Think of the Air as one of those concept show cars you see at auto exhibitions. Its all about the esthetics.
    • sudowrestler, on 02/04/2008, -0/+0Some people have characterized it as a "prototype" in some ways. As to it having practical use, it has plenty of use to the right person. Overpriced? Less than all the Sony TZ models Amazon is currently selling. High cost only seems to be a dominant issue when the discussion is about Apple. It would be overpriced for me, since I have no need for that kind of machine. My MacBook is perfect for my own purposes. I don't think this is going to flop, just as I don't think Apple is expecting everybody to want one. And probably in a couple years the successor models will be all SSD, at much more reasonable prices as that stuff comes down, and the hard drive won't even be an option. And it still won't have an optical drive.
  • jkirk7msa, on 02/04/2008, -0/+7Great review, kept me interested throughout the whole thing. Good job, ArsTech.
  • Urkel, on 02/04/2008, -1/+20One thing wrong with reviews today is that there is such a rush to be first out the door that the product isn't really judged properly. And that is why Ars Technica reviews are so important. Not only do they tell it like it is, they take the time to use the product and not make guesses.

    Mossberg, Macworld, Pogue etc have all given their opinion yet none of them actually used the product in it's intended environment or really pushed the system. They just gave it less than 72hrs and proceeded to write out a list of excuses for why the USER should change rather than the product. Mossberg got 3.5hrs battery and proceeded to say "The Air should come close to their promised 5hrs under optimal conditions" without even testing it.

    Thank god for Ars and anyone who actually values being accurate rather than being first when it comes to reviews.
  • kilofox, on 02/04/2008, -0/+5There are many people slamming the MBA who use a laptop as their sole computer. If you have a powerful desktop then the MBA looks different.
    • relativeLogic, on 02/04/2008, -2/+1Why would I want a powerful desktop (except for possibly playing games which isn't really my thing) when I can have a powerful notebook? I can run the most cpu intensive modeling and simulation software (Mathematica, Matlab, Maplesoft etc). I can run several instances of AutoCad, Photoshop (gimp), Maya or whatever without a single hiccup. I ran Call Of Duty 4 at medium high settings with no problems (Geforce 8600M GT 256mb) but that is irrelevant. There is an entire professional sound studio on my computer (Cubase, Native Instruments and Ableon Live through a PreSonus Inspire GT firewire) which can mix down hundreds of tracks of audio simultaneously. All of this I can carry around at 5 lbs, 13.3" and FOR $1500-2000 LESS THAN A COMPARABLE MBP (Which would have a weaker graphics system, and lack the ability to competently run half of the software I just described). Even if you have a powerful desktop, why would you waste the money on a MBA? Are you concerned that your friends at Starbucks will make fun of you for showing up with a non-designer brand? I suppose, if the only purpose of the machine is to create the illusion of penning the next "On The Road" or "Fear and Loathing in L.V. between sips of your "soy extra foam double shot vanilla latte" then the above deficiencies are really quite beside the point. In this case, my suggestion to you is to spend the money on a new designer outfit and a classic hardcover (Moby Dick?). The girls (or guys if such is your persuasion) will find it impossible to resist the allure of such a seemingly educated, refined, thoughtful and well to do individual. Good Luck!
      • kilofox, on 02/04/2008, -2/+0Wow, you are a computing god! I am sorry that you have a problem with people that appreciate literature, coffee and dress well. So, enjoy your multi-tasking-AutoCad, Gimp, Call of Duty 4, Geforce 8600M super duper, inexpensive kick-ass-laptop while you sip your McDonalds coffee.
        BTW.. whens the last time you got laid? I am guessing never.
        • Kloud, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Why are you so consistently a prick in all of your comments?
  • StanC, on 02/04/2008, -1/+3Whats with the Manilla reference anyway. Im pretty sure more than a third of the laptops right now can fit into one. Maybe Sony should start advertising their TZ series as being able to fit into a zip lock?
    • idslite, on 02/05/2008, -0/+2Apparently you missed the keynote?
    • TacticalPenguin, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Definitely NOT a third of all laptops, but almost all 13.3" or smaller can. But, if Asus wants to start kicking up on apple, an EEE PC is literally an MBA cut in two halves. MBA: 12.8x8.9 MBA cut in half: 6.4x8.9 EEE PC: 8.8x6.3
      • node3, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Yeah, cut in half and the two halves stacked atop each other, with an additional half of a MacBook Air stacked on the other two for good measure.
    • node3, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1I think the thing is it fits in one so nicely, almost to the point where the envelope looks empty. No bulging, no tearing, nothing sticking out the end.

      I mean, everyone can fit into spandex, from Giselle to Roseanne... Some computers (people) are meant for manilla envelopes (spandex), while others, not so much.
  • revnoah, on 02/04/2008, -6/+1Hold on...no optical drive? wtf! And _still_ a one-button trackpad. Great review though.
  • Opspin, on 02/04/2008, -5/+1Am I the only one who saw the "4200rpm 1.8GHz drive" that's some drive!
    • Opspin, on 02/04/2008, -0/+0And again "We used the standard 1.6GHz, 80GB hard drive-based model" oh wait, they're right this time
  • relativeLogic, on 02/04/2008, -4/+1 by relativeLogic 7 minutes ago
    Why would I want a powerful desktop (except for possibly playing games which isn't really my thing) when I can have a powerful notebook? I can run the most cpu intensive modeling and simulation software (Mathematica, Matlab, Maplesoft etc). I can run several instances of AutoCad, Photoshop (gimp), Maya or whatever without a single hiccup. I ran Call Of Duty 4 at medium high settings with no problems (Geforce 8600M GT 256mb) but that is irrelevant. There is an entire professional sound studio on my computer (Cubase, Native Instruments and Ableon Live through a PreSonus Inspire GT firewire) which can mix down hundreds of tracks of audio simultaneously. All of this I can carry around at 5 lbs, 13.3" and FOR $1500-2000 LESS THAN A COMPARABLE MBP (Which would have a weaker graphics system, and lack the ability to competently run half of the software I just described). Even if you have a powerful desktop, why would you waste the money on a MBA? Are you concerned that your friends at Starbucks will make fun of you for showing up with a non-designer brand? I suppose, if the only purpose of the machine is to create the illusion of penning the next "On The Road" or "Fear and Loathing in L.V. between sips of your "soy extra foam double shot vanilla latte" then the above deficiencies are really quite beside the point. In this case, my suggestion to you is to spend the money on a new designer outfit and a classic hardcover (Moby Dick?). The girls (or guys if such is your persuasion) will find it impossible to resist the allure of such a seemingly educated, refined, thoughtful and well to do individual. Good Luck!
    • i88gerbils, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1Jesus, paragraphs much?

      I was going to respond, but I think you're too much of an idiot to understand.
      • relativeLogic, on 02/04/2008, -1/+0Try me. Although you may view me as an idiot, I am an adept student of several fields. If you would just but humor me in offering a brief enlightenment I promise you I will try to understand. Surely my years of study in diverse areas such as quantum mechanical super symmetry, tensor products of Hilbert spaces, and the Eastern philosophy of bamboo weaving, have prepared me for a topic as nuanced as is the great Apple Computer! As for my lack of proper grammar and structure, I was under the impression that this was an informal dialog rather than a peer reviewed journal. Duly noted!

        (end paragraph)
        • oggydefl, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1now read this paragraph in a really nasal voice and imagine the author with thick turtle framed glasses and sweater wrapped around his neck while bragging about his academic achievements. bwaahahahahaha!
    • sudowrestler, on 02/04/2008, -1/+0Deep breath.
  • Izacus, on 02/04/2008, -6/+1Bah, that has to be the worst Ars Technica review to date. Instead of comparing the notebook to the other notebooks in same class (like Sony Vaio and Toshiba Portege R500 series), he's comparing it to a noticably cheaper and bigger MacBook all the time. Not really an objective view on the whole thing. Well, it's passable if you're an Apple fanboy and buy only Apple gear.
    • TacticalPenguin, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Newsflash: Macbook = Macbook air + 0.32" of thickness
      Newsflash: Toshiba portege r500 & vaio TZ both have smaller footprints, enough ports to use, and optical drives
  • dacapoalfine, on 02/04/2008, -0/+3"3 ports, 1 cup"

    dugg
  • killdashnine, on 02/04/2008, -1/+1C'mon Apple, take all this engineering skill and make a tablet computer that rocks the world.
  • gak001, on 02/04/2008, -0/+6He's an excellent reviewer... and thorough.
  • wizkid32, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2I don't think that the Mac Air is a desk top replacement but I think that it is just a laptop.
  • davorau, on 02/04/2008, -1/+2A good review, certainly convinced me that my next computer will NOT be an air. EEE-pc all the way baby.
    • relativeLogic, on 02/04/2008, -1/+0I second this. Every ASUS product I have owned has been superb. EEE-PC makes much more sense than the MBA. Linux makes much more sense. We should all get one, go to Starbucks, then point and laugh at the suckers with the MBAs (both types of MBAs if you ask me!).
    • colincornaby, on 02/04/2008, -0/+2As slow as the Macbook Air is, it still kicks the crap out of the EEE-pc. Heck, my iPhone has more storage space than the EEE-PC. The EEE-PC is completely unusable for my needs (programming.) If the Macbook Air with it's 1.6 ghz dual core processor takes a half hour to compile WebKit using GCC, imagine how long it'll take on the EEE-PC.
    • idslite, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Isn't it just: Eee PC? Pronounced Ee...
      • node3, on 02/05/2008, -0/+2Just an "Eee PC"? No way, man. It's the *perfect* notebook. While the MacBook Air tops out at 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo, with 2GB RAM and 80GB HD (or 64GB SSD) with a 13.3" screen, the Eee PC kicks it's ass with a whopping 900MHz Celeron-M, 7" 800x480 LCD, 1GB RAM and 8GB SSD.

        "Just Eee PC, pronounced Ee..." my ass. It's pronounced "The MacBook Air isn't a desktop replacement so it sucks but somehow the Eee PC (pronounced: Eee PC Mother--shut yo mouth) can replace *two* desktops *and* an iPhone, beyatch!".

        Please be sure to pronounce it properly in the future.
  • daGUY, on 02/04/2008, -0/+1Very good article, but I'd like to hear confirmation from other sources on the battery life before I accept that as normal behavior. I mean, I know that Apple always pads their battery life numbers a little bit, but to get HALF the battery life they claim - with the brightness on the lowest possible setting, no less - is abysmal. I can't imagine that the sole explanation for the discrepancy is just that Apple "overestimated," because they could be hit with a lawsuit pretty fast I would think.
  • cadmiumpaint, on 02/05/2008, -1/+1Got to put my hands on an Macbook Air today. i have to say, its pretty bad ass from a design point of view. Its so small and light. I love how the power plug fits into the bottom and the book is so streamlined. Its a feat of industrial design...you can't deny that. I don't really like the teeny tiny mouse button..or the keyboard.

    Just looking at the specs, its completely useless for my workflow, but its nice to have a glimpse at what my next macbook pro will look and feel like in 2-3 years
  • ceraphin, on 02/05/2008, -0/+2if the thing only lasts 2 hours 30 minutes theres absolutely no point to it... absolutely none That's something you've gotta keep plugged in if you really wanna get some use out of it it's advertised as super thin and super portable which is useless if the battery sucks, this has gotta be a joke. Thank god i read this i almost bought one of those freaking things i'm not gonna blow 2 grand on a laptop that's supposed to be portable but has to be plugged in all the time BS
  • TacticalPenguin, on 02/05/2008, -0/+1Noting the battery life, what Apple should have done is put the computer of the MBA in the shell of the macbook and filled the rest of the space with battery. That would be insane.
  • ellisgl, on 02/05/2008, -2/+1Multi touch - touch pad is nice. But only a left click. I know you can do "Control Click" to right click - but hitting one button is easier.. Plus my laptop's touch pad has a up/down/left/right scroll button. I have a 17" wide screen - 120 gig hd, dual core intel cpu, DVD Burner, WiFi, Gig E, multiple USB 2.0 ports, Modem (which I don't use), S-Video Out, VGA out, HD Audio with spdif, PC-Card support, mem card reader and I only paid $700us for it new.
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