Aral Balkan: Historical Archive — Apple MacBook Air: Are you getting one?

Apple MacBook Air: Are you getting one?

OK, so the cat's out of the bag: there's a new MacBook in town. The MacBook Air is light, it's got a multi-touch trackpad and a full-size backlit keyboard.

The US price for the base config (1.6GHz) is $1,799. And the 1.8GHz model with 64GB SSD will set you back a whopping $3,098.

In the UK, we're going to have to pay £1,199 ($2,359.51) for the 1.6GHz config and £2,028.00 ($3,990.91) for the 1.8GHz model (thanks, Apple! Well, I guess we should thank our lucky stars that we're not paying double!)

The MacBook Air looks like a beauty and weighs 3lbs. And, according to Apple, it's the thinnest notebook ever.

So, what do you guys think of this baby? The Apple Store has reopened... are you going to splurge? Is it too expensive? Are you happy with the specs?

Leave a comment and share your thoughts!

Update: WTF? It doesn't have a user-replaceable battery? Were they high when they designed this? I mean, I don't care how good it looks or how long the battery is purported to last, I definitely wouldn't buy a laptop where I can't have a spare battery. The way batteries lose their charge these days (no doubt thanks to how hot Macs run), that 5 hours will start to taper off after the first few months. And sending your laptop in to have the battery replaced and not being without it for several days? No way!

I guess Apple expects people to have this as a second laptop or a companion to a desktop. There's no way I'd make it my workhorse. As much as I'd love to, the lack of replaceable battery is a deal-breaker.

Comments

It seems that the battery might not be that difficult to replace according to Apple Insider http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/08/01/18/sources_macbook_air_battery_replacements_take_only_minutes.html Personally, I would like a longer battery life, but right now, this seems pretty well suited as a companion laptop to your workstation.
by Rob on 2008-01-21 03:18:52
That's exactly what i'm thinking too Chris. I have a MacBook used around 14h / day and its getting real hot. Wonder how MacBook AIR handles this issue being thiner. Adrian.
by Adrian Aioanei on 2008-01-15 19:42:02
It's darn sexy that's for sure. But I think it's going to have some problems out of the gate. Squeezing a core2duo into something that thin sounds like a recipe for cooking your balls to me. Best wait until intel ship some lower power (lower heat) mobile processors and SSD prices fall. Great vision of the future, but wait and see for me. Thats my 2baht.
by luke on 2008-01-15 19:14:25
No cd drive? No replaceable battery? and almost 2k for ultra portability with almost zero features over the pro. why not just get the pro? I love my pro and don't mind carrying it around.
by corban baxter on 2008-01-15 21:34:48
It's essentially an overpriced file folder and internet browser.
by Relly on 2008-01-15 21:41:43
Might be more appealing if it could connect to 3G.
by Nate Chatellier on 2008-01-15 21:44:56
"Were they high when they designed this?" Answer: Yes! Apple is always high because they know, whatever they throw at their users, the fanboys will eat it! ;) I don't see anything innovative on this new Macbook! It's thinner but does it make it more portable? Certainly not but much!
by sascha/hdrs on 2008-01-16 03:34:37
I won't buy one but it's nice to see Apple heading in the right direction with this one. It's all about being wireless and Apple are doing what they can to push the market towards it (iPhone, iPod Touch, Apple TV, Time Capsule and Macbook Air). Soon our computers won't be much more than terminals, with all the data stored on external devices, sent to the computer on a wireless connection. The CD drive will go extinct just like the floppy drive did and you'll replace your laptop before you need to change the battery.
by Andreas on 2008-01-16 10:08:33
I am worried that the battery time of 5 hours is based on the version with a solid state hard drive as it doesn't have to spin the disk. Meaning with the standard HDD the battery life will be quite normal. And not being able to have two batteries makes it not even that portable!
by Rob on 2008-01-16 14:32:47
Somehow i don't think i'll be getting one of these. It might be thin, but it's still a big ugly laptop. Personally i am looking for a small, preferably thin tablet. Needs to be a bit bigger than a PDA. Bonus points for being lightweight, good battery life, and not heating up like a furnace. Maybe i should get a Newton.
by James Urquhart on 2008-01-16 15:31:04
Yes, it's too expensive but it's a great machine. I hope we see that new trackpad in other models soon. I about an article about how this new trackpad could help impaired people: http://www.designvsart.com/blog/2008/01/16/macbook-air-good-for-the-impaired/
by Alexis Brion on 2008-01-17 09:40:31
Why dont you wait till they mention how much a battery replacement costs? I bet its not that expensive. You guys are not the target group anyway. The compiling times with that kind of hard ware isnt gonna be great obviously. Aside that, i did enjoy this blog post: http://wilshipley.com/blog/2008/01/macbook-air-haters-suck-my-dick.html
by Ben on 2008-01-18 11:10:47
The battery is (sort of) user-replaceable after all... http://www.davidarno.org/149
by David Arno on 2008-02-04 13:20:47
I bought an Acer for $348 at a Black Friday sale in November (a very good shopping day in the states). It's not very thin and shiny, and it impresses nobody when I use it at a Starbucks, but it has a replaceable battery and a network port and it plays DVD's without an external drive. It doesn't fit in a manilla envelope, but with the money I have left over I can buy a really nice bag :)
by John Hattan on 2008-01-21 01:13:52
I agree totally, "only one USB port, no LAN port, no swapable battery, too expensive and only one year warranty makes it a no for me" Bad idea, just like the last Keynote iPhone price drop. I want the job of previewing Job's Keynotes and throwing red flags when they pull this dumb. What I would love to see is the revival of the old Duo Dock concept. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerBook_Duo If you could take the Air add a lan port, drop the price yet be able to take it home and Dock it in an Imac looking monitor that would interest me.
by vudutu on 2008-01-22 18:58:36
I HAVE TO GET ONE! even if it's just to impress myself, haha
by Free Macbook Air on 2008-01-22 22:51:27
I'll be buying one. I only surf the net, watch a movie, balance my checkbook, while on my 1 hour commute on the train. I'm sure the battery can handle an hour a day! I'll buy the SuperDrive since USA Today, WSJ, and NewsWeek say Remote Disc is "quirky", I'll store programs & music on the laptop and data (like my vast movie library) on the 1TB Time Capsule I also plan to buy. The only downside is internet access while commuting, but isn't there a usb broadband card for that? Don't get me wrong...I won't be taking all the peripherils (sp?) with me. The Superdrive, time capsule will stay at home.
by Steve-O on 2008-01-25 01:02:33
It's nice, but not a workhorse like my MacBook Pro. Might be nice for a student, or someone always on the go or traveling a lot. The fact that it's thin isn't a killer feature worth $1800 for me though.
by Keith Peters on 2008-01-15 20:39:17
Apple normally walk that fine line between substance and style with expert precision and offer up rock-solid usability that oozes style. On this occasion though, they got pissed down the pub, tripped over that line, fell on their arses and have ended up with a stylish piece of worthless junk. Anyone buying one of these very clearly has more money than sense.
by David Arno on 2008-01-15 20:26:08
aral - please stop bloggin 'bout apple stuff. there are WAY enough blogs doing that. this blog used to be too good to become just another one of these ;-)
by Hannes on 2008-01-16 07:37:42
great,that's the one im going to buy soon.so excited. and it will be my first MAC...better for ROR?:)))WOOOOW
by han on 2008-01-16 23:42:02
Alexis, what do you mean by "impaired people". What sort of impairment are you talking about? I don't see how the multitouch trackpad is in any way an accessibility feature. You also state:
Many might wonder how is possible that nobody did it before. This is Apple Computer design, user-centered and easy to use.
Someone did. I had one of the original Fingerworks keyboards. And guess what? Apple bought Fingerworks.
by Aral on 2008-01-17 10:54:01
Surely nothing for me. I was looking forward to buying a new Macbook (not MBP) since it is portable (13,3" is pretty tiny), it's cheap, and it's powerfull. Why bother paying another 600$ for a machine that isn't really that better OR lighter. Not to mention the deal-breaking differences: -no user-replaceable battery -shared video memory -mono sound (like wtf? 1990?) -1 usb port (might not be necessary for everyone, but i need at least 2 or 3 to be comfortable). -no CD drive (somehow it feels weird: how to upgrade you OSX if it is broken (see Aral's leopard problems) Still must admit: pretty fine piece of engineering getting so much stuff in a tiny machine like that.
by Ronny on 2008-01-17 12:36:02
i think regardless of the lack of features and the lack of user battery replacement, I think this will do well. A lot of people seem to love this thing in spite of the lack of x,y, and z. plus it just looks really cool.
by paul on 2008-01-17 18:21:16
And as illustrated by the photograph, it flies!
by Simon Cave on 2008-01-15 19:28:37
The macbook pros have big heat issues already, and they aren't as thin. I wonder how hot this thing gets? I bet if you let it run for a few hours you can use it to forge steel.
by Chris on 2008-01-15 19:32:56
Interesting comparison of the overcharging that goes on in the UK - $560 up to $892 extra. I wonder what we are paying for in that?
by Isofarro on 2008-01-15 19:38:12
See... What would have been a lot more interesting would be if they made a small laptop like this that more so interfaces your more powerful computer at home. Kind of like how you can play PS3 through your PSP. That way the price would have been really low and you would have had a much more powerful computer. Or better yet. Make the IPhone do that. OR a similar device.
by Mikko Haapoja on 2008-01-15 19:38:28
Looks exeptional, but only one USB port, no LAN port, no swapable battery, too expensive and only one year warranty makes it a no for me. But, hey, why listen to me, I´ve got a Dell Precision and a Dell Tablet on the way ;)
by Thomas Nesse on 2008-01-15 20:01:50
I was 100% ready, since I think for writing, and traveling, it's a great idea. I hate lugging my MBP to lunch, just to write or surf the web, etc... however... according to Engadget, no user replaceable battery, That's a deal breaker for me, since MBP battery has already been replaced, since it started acting up. So I'll probably have to wait until V2.
by John Wilker on 2008-01-15 20:21:08
mono sound onboard, shared video ram, build-in battery in other words, no way ;)
by Folkert on 2008-01-15 20:22:34
Not as pretty as it could have been. What i hate the most is the thick border around the screen. My MBP is a lot prettier :) and next month I'll be getting the 500Gb hitachi hard-disk, together with 4Gb and 2.4Ghz cpu it's a real powerhouse. I would love the macbook air if it had 11" screen and a VERY thin border!
by Barcinski on 2008-01-15 20:58:52
Yeah, as sexy as it looks, there's no way I'm getting a laptop without a spare battery. That's a deal-breaker right there for me. @Folkert: Mono sound and shared video RAM?.. well, ok, two more deal-breakers then! :)
by Aral on 2008-01-15 21:38:04
I like the thin design, but this MacBook Air is just; - too expansive, for me anyway - screen boarder is too thick (from all the photos on the net), I'm totally with Barcinski - no replaceable battery (like others, a deal breaker) - again, the price is too close to a workhorse MBP that offers more power and, let's face it, isn't that less portable I would say MacBook Air is like a sexy, hot girl with the exceptional physical attractions but bad in bed and with no real content in the character---Exciting in the beginning, but soon get tired of it after a short while. So, I will not buy it. MBP looks like a better choice for me.
by Flyboy on 2008-01-16 09:42:49
Well, the fact about the battery is really bad, I'm totally with you. But some of the other comments dealing with all the "flaws" the MacBook Air seems to have... what the hell do you expect from a >SubNotebook< ? Apple ocasionally makes awesome products, but they won't reinvent a subnotebook. A subnotebook (at least anno 2008) can't have 3D sound, 3D accelerated graphics, the connectivity or the power of a desktop machine combined with long battery life. How could it? Keep in mind for what purposes a subnotebook is designed, it's definitely not a workhorse. And the smaller things get, the more expensive they become, that's quite usual.
by Sakin on 2008-01-16 15:59:52
It doesn't fly :(
by Hofa on 2008-01-16 17:51:42
Well, I've got a Mcanook Air and I find it fantastic! There are some drawbacks, but it's amazing design covers them all http://www.maconair.com really helped me to make this choice. people, stop hating. the air is wonderful!
by Limma on 2008-02-20 12:25:45