MacBook Air with nVidia 9400M and 128GB SSD Comments

After all the flak the Air's taken from TR and the "Style over, well, everything!" editorial from Riyad it still gets an 8. I could never understand why someone would chose this over a 13" Pro.

I don't like the colour...

RANT ALERT.

At the time of writing, it's the wee small hours in the morning after a long hard Friday, but I simply cannot NOT reply to this pusillanimous review for the Hollyoaks cast member of the MacBook family.

I'll concede it's a better deal now than at launch, with the marginally lower price point, the bigger (but still not big) SATA (once PATA) drive, the nVidia graphics and the DDR3 RAM, but it wasn't worth 8/10 then, and it isn't worth it now. Not by any stretch of the imagination. There's a reason it's thin : THERE'S DAMN ALL IN IT. And if there's damn all in it, it should be a netbook with a smaller footprint and a competitive price to match. I was lambasted for despising Apple's rebranding of the unibody MacBook, but that doesn't even begin to compare to the Campbellesque strategy Apple have pulled off here. They've actually convinced people to -
PAY MORE money for
LESS STUFF and then
SPIN it as portability -
when it's barely more portable! If we adjust for the justifiable - the AppleTax - that should still bring this in for 800 quid max. But the bottom line is, this should not cost more money than a better machine with practically the same design, a MacBook [grinds teeth] Pro.

And come on, if we're talking about looks, exactly how fat and heavy and ugly is a MacBook (Pro)? If you want a MacBook (Pro), then buy a MacBook (Pro). You get your Superdrive back, the combined joy of ethernet AND USB back ("Monsieur, you are really spoiling us."), an arguably better trackpad, and now about over an hour's worth more battery life, plus an SD slot to boot, all for 250 quid less. Even if you want the SSD, it's still minus £130, which call me a hobo, but I don't think is trivial money to most.

Hell, even before the mid-2008 refresh, the polycarbonate MacBook was, and still is IM-not-so-HO, a far better deal. And what's really offensive is in that review, the official position was "Don't buy it, it's a rip off, it's an uggo, get a Pro instead because it does everything better and looks great - 6/10." Now it's, "Screw the Pro, sod it's specs, money is no object, nothing quite like an Air - 8/10."

I hated this product right from the off in MacWorld 2008, when the novelty of the envelope trick quickly wore off, as Jobs started trying to pass off renting movies from creaky old iTunes, and that Remote Disk palaver as a viable current alternative to physical media. It's not. And despite the queer hatred for discs it still won't be for some time because -
Streaming HD is a bag of hurt.
DRM is still a bag of hurt.
Having to rely on secondary machines to make your own computer work the way it already should and much cheaper alternatives already do is a bag of hurt.
Telling people they don't need discs, only to supply them with a DISC to install on a second computer, whilst selling an external SuperDRIVE that everyone in their right mind has to buy to use all their other DISCS... IS A BAG OF HURT.

So to sum up, I don't really like it. In fact, I'll go so far as to say that the MacBook Air is everything that is wrong about society : looks and weight should not matter to people this much. Apple's great achievement has been in surpassing the watermark for both aesthetic AND utilitarian standards. None of that didactic purpose is in evidence here. Please tell me Riyad hasn't lost his marbles too, as he put it best with his brilliant but brief preview entitled 'Style Over, Well, Everything!', an article that remains the best review of the MBA in the mainstream I've found. If he has not lost them, then for the love of journalistic integrity let him review this infernal machine. In the meantime, can't we just chalk this golddigging strumpet up once and for all as Unibody Beta, backslap Ive and the rest for their groundbreaking design in that sycophantic manner all us Mac users always do, and just move the hell along?

5/10 because they made the aforementioned improvements and I'm in a good mood.

(As a reward for the patience of the TR staff and fellow posters, I'll minimise my posts for a good couple of weeks now.)

Its stylish yet Limited....

Its Sexual Chocolate mmmmmm

I think your got your car analogy wrong. The Noble is an ugly but great performing car, the Air is totally the other way around. Under-promise and over-perform is always the way forward.

Why would someone choose this over a 13" MBP? Simple, because they want to. We've reached the point where to most people computer specs are almost irrelevant. Anything with a multicore processor over about 1.5 Ghz and a couple of gigs of memory will be more than enough for the vast majority of users. As a result people can choose their machine on other factors, in this case looks. And to be honest I think that's a very good thing indeed, about time manufacturers started to look at ways to make their machines unique through design rather than specs.

May I suggest though that the supercar analogy is the wrong one? The Air is more a coupe versus a hatchback - same experience when using it, same quality standards, same dealer but you sacrifice some practicality for the better looking coupe.

So let's get this review straight, it's rubbish and underfeatured but it's Apple and looks nice so 8/10. Nice.

Seriously the Air is about as poor as it gets for usability, one USB port says it all, I mean what if you wanted to use a CD drive and the ethernet adapter at the same time... ;)

I suppose all of the iTards will go and buy them though so I can't blame Apple for making it...

The new Vaio X series looks to be a great alternative to the Air. Plus it will be running the vastly superior Windows 7. I can't wait for Sony to release more details!

Page 4, 3rd paragraph - should be the brilliance of OS X?

The instant advantage from OS X diminishes somewhat if you get Linux on the Z-series...

Ed: It seemed to me that several significant reasons not to buy the Air were provided. What actually were the reasons to buy it again? Mac OS - but you could get that on a proper Macbook. So it's basically just "wow factor" then? In other words, if you can afford it then you should bypass the logical decision-making process and buy an Air in order to show that you can. Fair enough I suppose, but how it got as high as 7 for value is beyond me.

BOFH: It's true that specs are not so important, but features are. The derision directed at the Air is partly because it is lacking in features, not because of how many GHz or how much memory it has. And personally I don't think it's a very good thing that a manufacturer chooses to focus on looks above all else, not only specs but also praticality and value.

Geoff: I disagree, and suspect that I am not alone in using more than one USB port regularly on my laptop. If I never moved any files and only ever wanted to use the internet then it would be a different matter. Then I would use a netbook - which would cost about 1/4 of the cost of the Air.

I'll stick with the car analogies... The Air has the insides of a Smart car, transplanted into the body of a Lotus Exige, with the engine hatch soldered shut so you can't perform basic maintenance without sending it back - and somehow it has the price tag of a supercar.

@Geoff

What if you wanted to use a 3G modem, USB headset (since there's no line in), portable HD and a mouse in one sitting while travelling. A pocket USB hub isn't going to power all those devices from a single port, the Dell would be able to handle all four without any trouble, the Air would do the portable HD and give up after that.

So for your personal use maybe one USB port cuts it, but for real road warriors one USB port is scandalous. For Apple to charge a ridiculous premium for this machine which places style over substance to the max and for people to still buy it shows the sad state of computing.

I find it strange that a professional review site centred around technology would have so many defenders of this device, it is clearly substandard (from the outdated resolution and screen aspect ratio to the poor connectivity) yet two staff members have come and defended it while the original score was a pretty solid 8/10. Compared to the recent review of the Vaio NW11S it's very difficult to see how both products scored the same overall grade unless TR puts style over substance as well as Apple. That's a pretty suspect view for a technology review site to take. I know you can say it's apples to oranges as they are marketed to different sectors of computing, but with a 4hr battery life the Vaio and only 1kg heavier it makes a decent case for being considered a portable rather than a mainstream desktop replacement.

Still, I suppose the iTards in Starbucks need to brag about something...

I have to agree with everyone here complaining about the score, I'm just in shock it's so high. I'd change the design to 10 and the value and overall to 6.

I've tried one of these in the Apple store, and yes it's very nice and it definitely has that "wow" factor. But it's so impractical, and crippled; it's just an expensive toy to me.

Oh well, to each his own.

Until a few weeks ago I was still using this very Mac. However I sold it because while it's lighter and thinner, it's also much slower (2 Gb only, slow SSD, slow CPU) and expensive than a MacBook Pro compared to my Mac Pro, and the screen resolution is just too low. a 15" MBP with two fast SSDs (you can swap out the optical drive) with 4 Gb, faster CPU and higher res screen is a much better deal, and barely thicker/more heavy.

If I want to instant surf/email/Internet "everywhere", my iPhone 3GS is just as good as the MBA.

I think the biggest problem is that you can get very similar functionality from a netbook thats far more portable, whilst recent ones are going to offer over 8/9 hours battery.

The problem for me is that this is essentially marketed as a way to edit word documents/ surf the web and maybe a bit of multimedia playback (primarily music and pictures due to the lack of DVD drive) whilst at Starbucks. Basically not as a primary computer but as a secondary one. Which brings me back to netbooks which were conceived for this very market as over £1000 is a lot for a primary, let alone secondary computer outside the business world - which this product firmly is.

Now a decent netbook eee 1008ha (seashell) for instance will set you back about £350 whilst providing the same experience (thinness, style [this really only applies to the seashell range] and all) along with greatly increased portability to the point where a dedicated laptop bag is not required. I can afford a few macbook airs to say the least, however I cannot justify this price against what I believe a far better product at about a quarter of the price.

The people who buy this however will probably find that within a few years they're bankrupt. There is a time and place for slightly increased style value for a premium THIS IS NOT IT!

"BOFH: It's true that specs are not so important, but features are. The derision directed at the Air is partly because it is lacking in features, not because of how many GHz or how much memory it has. And personally I don't think it's a very good thing that a manufacturer chooses to focus on looks above all else, not only specs but also praticality and value."

Okay, but that's only YOUR opinion that it's lacking features that you feel are cruicial. I'm an IT professional, I'm writing this on a 17"MBP and have a wide range of suitable geek toys but I could quite happily live with an Air. I don't carry a spare battery as I'm never away from a power socket long enough to need one. I only ever use one USB device at a time, I don't use mobile broadband although I do make use of Wi-Fi. While I'd LIKE an extra USB port on the air it's certainly not a requirement. Oh, and the last time I used an optical drive was to install Leopard over a year ago. Would I buy an Air? No, but that's because I prefer a 15" screen or larger not because of any inherent missing functionality from the Air and I could quite happily use it as my main (and only) machine. It might be stripped to the bone in terms of features but what MUST be there is there. For non-geeks who want a good looking machine it's a valid option and judged on those criteria the overall 8/10 rating is just about spot on IMO.

lol violently at the guy who said Vastly Superior Windows 7

You wish, You really Do

Beautiful machine. Much more balanced than the first one. Fast, quiet, cool, and significantly cheaper for a better spec than its predecessor. Yes it's still expensive, but if you know what you're buying and why then you wont be disappointed. Niche product, but so wonderful - thank goodness Apple don't *just* play it safe.

I find it quite amusing how much of a hard time Techies have with Apple products.

My wife has one pair of 30£ sneakers she wears whenever practical and comfy is needed. She also has about two dozen pairs of fashion "shoes" in varying colors and heel sizes, all of which are reportedly brutal to wear, all of which cost so much more than 30£. She wears them whenever style is in order.

Compared to the compromises these Manolos (et al) demand of my wife, the MacBook Air is a marvel of usability and reasonable pricing. And all MBA users can be assumed to have a practical computer somewhere at home.

We have to understand that the target demographic of computers has changed in the last 10 years. They're not used solely by people who need them for work or by people who are geeked out by the technology anymore, they have become a lifestyle item. Very few people actually HAVE to check their mails every hour and "work" while sipping a coffee at Starbucks.
And lifestyle items are usually purchased on what the marketing folks call add-on value. Just about any Laptop on the face of the earth will beat the MBA in either price and/or functionality (core value). None beats it in terms of style and flaunting appeal (added value).

Nothing objectively justifies buying a Jaguar, BMW or Lexus over a Daihatsu or KIA. The core values - transportation, mileage, practicability - will be matched or exceeded by the cheaper cars, but the add-on values of style and flauntability sported by premium cars will justify the higher price tag for a lot of people.

With all that said, I have to agree that 7/10 for value and 8/10 overall don't feel right.

@Ironduke: I think he means vastly superior to Vista. If he meant superior to OSX, well that's a whole other discussion... :)

@Ed
Indeed he did, I just don't agree with him in this case. I'd compare the Air to a BMW Z3. It's a hairdresser's laptop.

pure form over function
@BOFH_UK and Geoff Richards thanks for keeping the mac clown quotient up

No, no, I really did mean Win7 is superior to everything else. It's bloody brilliant!

lol @ steve your words are the words of a mad woman

This laptop is silly - but as many people have pointed out - it's not meant to be technically good. Most people use their laptop for email/surfing and writing complaints letters to Scottish Power. For that this is perfectly ample.

Personally I'm in the tiny camp that finds this design (and all apple design) awful. I hate the totally bland absence of character that I'm told is so stylish. Build quality is good mind - and if you're in the vast majority that think this looks "sexy" then it's just the question of price!

Ironduke sounds scared to me... it's not a bad thing if Win7 is better you know - might mean your boys up their game - and that can only be a good thing.

This comment section isn't really the place for a Win7 debate, but I'd love to hear your reasons why you believe my opinion is funny. I eagerly await your response :)

How in the name of all that is holy did this get a 7/10 for value? Value is measured on features and performance for the cost... the size/shape/style or desirability is WAY down the list when you consider an object's inherent "value".
So, within roughly the same device (a bit thicker but who cares), the performance can be brought for about half the price of the air. So that starts it with 5/10. The air has no disc drive, an entirely stupid 1(!) USB port, no audio in and a virtually useless display port connector. That knocks off 2 stars and leaves it with 3/10; but it gets a +1 stars for looks and thin-ness. Final score, 4/10.
Had it had a couple more USB ports, line in, a built in HSDPA modem/sim slot and HDMI (or free set of adapters for the mini display port).. then it would get a 5 or 6/10 because it would actually be useful with a reasonable degree of connectivity for the price.

because Im using snow leopard & it spanks that windows A$$ mkay.

@ jopey I think the value is OK at 7/10 (price vs. form/design vs. performance), but I find the 9/10 for performance rather odd. For a +2000€ laptop it's rather slow, for the same price you can have a 13" or 15 MBP that are much faster (faster CPU, GPU, SSD and more RAM).

I'd put an "apple value" of ~£800 on it but it should be something more like £500 or less! cause after all it's nothing special.

@ ironduke: you could be using an abacus and I for one couldn't care less, an OS is an OS you can do the exactly the same things on both.

As much as I love Apple products, I have to say I strongly disagree with Ironduke and in principle agree with Jay. Even a strong Apple supporter should be able to see that Windows 7 is a very, very good OS. Having used both, I still prefer the simplicity of Snow Leopard, but Windows 7 has its own strengths (Media Center is one).

Another question is, why, when TR review Apple products, someone always brings up the OS arguments? There should be a Godwin's law for mac threads (Job's law?) :)

I'd say it's equivalent value to a Porsche GT3 and about as practical.

@Ed, why hold back than? your clearly itching to say something. As for describing a macbook air as a 'sensible' purchase? i mean come on, thats taking it a bit far for even a insufferable machead as you?

@jay please....

thats the dumbest thing I have heard today

Why do Mac reviews always spawn a comment section like this?

*sniggers*

@'ironduke' isnt it school time for you now?

hahahahaahhhaaa

As Steve was saying, surely you should expect such comments sections by now. Best to take a "no comment" stance and stay out of it I'd say.

Or maybe just stick a poll at the end of each review with "Agree" / "Don't Agree" choices.

At the end of the day guys, this is just someone's opinion. A lot disagree, a couple agree. I don't think it's swayed those who didn't buy the first iteration of the MBA in any way.

Besides, I'd rather get back to bashing the iPhone :D.
Let's move along, eh? ;)

@ ironduke: please may you expand on that statement, why is it the dumbest thing? what can you do on a mac that I can't do on a windows machine?

Why criticise Apple for providing something in their product range that caters to a certain market. If you need power, every function built in etc, then the Air is not aimed at you. Simple really. If they are updating it, it obviously sells at a reasonable level. Writers, journalists, students with money I'm sure love the 'lightness' and portability of it, and may find writing their blog/book/article etc on anything less than a certain screen size tedious, which rules out netbooks and many of Sony's smaller laptops (which aren't really that cheap either, are they). The Air certainly isn't powerful/full featured enough for my needs, but if it was, and I had the money, I would love to own one!

@Jay You can't play games on windows or install it on your own custom hardware... oh wait.

Seriously though, there are things you can do on a Mac you can't EASILY do on a PC. Like custom work flows, apple script actions across multiple applications or building custom services to increase productivity.

However I don't get the impression that ironduke is smart enough to know all that exists (or I'm sure he would have said it already), much less be able to use it effectively. So from his point of view, you are correct, there's nothing you can't do on Windows that you can do on a Mac ;)

@PK

I don't understate the hate either. I am in the market for something even smaller than my Vaio Z series that will be used when I am travelling & require more juice than the 3 hours or so I get from my Z. I'm personally waiting to see what the Vaio X Series is like, but there is a market for ultra slim machines like the Air! To suggest otherwise is just silly.

Jay its not what you do,more like how you do it,and lets not talk about the malware & virus's they dont come with snow leopard
muhahahaha

MUHAHAHHAHHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHHAH
COugh kkkkkkkk I thinkim choking,call999

I propose a question to either finnish this flame war or intensify it.

If you were to be given a MB Air would anyone whom has commented thus far refuse such a gift?

I said it once and I'll say it again Basically this market is no longer existent since as every one keeps pointing out this laptop is no powerhouse and is simply designed for browsing the web and doing the odd presentation whilst sitting in starbucks. This is what netbooks were created for. Whilst I agree most netbooks are crap and don't come close to this, the latest seashell range from asus specifically the 1008HA actually compare very favorably in terms of style etc. yet only cost £350 - meaning an apple tax of nearly £1000 !. Theres a few areas in life where spending more for style is appropriate - watches/suits for example, however this can never be justified in terms of the air when arguably better products in terms of portability/battery life whilst equaling the air on style but maybe not the WOW you like getting ripped off factor/I could actually afford to give a few people the basics of life ( water food etc or even a few water wells that could change an entire village) but instead I decided to give it to a company called apple.

@CptKirk

I would. Definitely. Probably Ebay it and buy a really nice netbook...

@ CptKirk, another vote for Ebaying it. Although I'd indulge in a Macbook Pro instead. ;)

@CptKirk

Absolutely not. Out of principle, I might even be reluctant to try and make money out of it. I hope I haven't understated just how much I detest this machine and this long-awaited, cringe-worthy review of it (masochists see previous post).

I might be tempted to give it to one of the younger members of my family, who's about to turn 13 and is allowed to be a little shallow given how horrible everything is going to become for them. At that age, life is easier if people think you're cool.

@CptKirk: One more here. I wouldn't want it as a gift, and would be seriously against keeping it in the family. Sell it on or give it away probably. Can't say what I'd use the money on but my current "ooh, want" is an N900 :P.

@Andrew Violet

If there was no market for it, why would laptops like the Air, Vaio 'X' 'TT' 'Z' series exist?

Many business users & I.T. Professionals like myself require a bit of 'oomph' in a small form factor and Netbooks do not cut the mustard.

@ Steve The vaio TT, Z markets exsist since you can a lot more than just consume content since you can efficiently create it too whilst being in an ultra portable package. The vaio X will only have a market if reasonably priced eg. sub £800. Any higher and it will have fallen into the same category as the air. I get the impression that these vaios don't sell well since one of the vaio z series was limited to 1000 pieces and this was released nearly a year ago and is still on sale.

Vaio Z's sell a high number, the limited edition version you speak of costs about £3,500 so it doesn't surprise me that the 'limited' stock is still available!

If you ever read notebookreview.com, there's a load of us just waiting to whip out the credit card for the X series once price & spec has been confirmed, each and every one of us knows it's going to cost around $2000 so who knows how much we will end up paying for it in the UK. Doubt it will be any cheaper than the Air.

@Andrew Violet: Please don't compare a MacBook Air to a netbook...

IMHO, the Air deserves much of the derision that's focused on it, but it is a fully-fledged laptop running a modern OS. A netbook doesn't compare. Even when just browsing the web, both machines will be highly capable, but the Air will provide a significantly better user experience.

You hear that horrible term 'user experience' blown around the industry a lot because it encompasses a lot of different aspects that can't necessarily be quantified on paper. If you used an Air long term, I'm sure the differences between using it and a netbook would become quite stark. I'm not saying that the Air is good value (I reckon much of Apple's pricing is a joke), but spending the extra cash would get you a far more capable machine that would put a bigger smile on your face. I suppose it depends on how much the 'user experience' is worth to you...

And another thing - there seems to be an overriding opionion that 'style' and 'design' aren't worth paying for and therefore TR should have marked the value at roughly 4/10, given the specs that you're getting for the money. The reality is that this kind of style requires building a thin aluminium chassis and fitting a lot of components into tiny spaces in ways that are unique to Apple. Regardless of the aesthetics, that's worth some money in itself, yet it's often overlooked.

For the record, I've never bought an Apple machine because I'd rather spend the same money on a faster PC. I'm just saying, different people, different priorities...

@CptKirk

If you offered me a crisp £50 note, I'd happily take it.. but I wouldn't be prepared to pay £100 to get my hands on one.

@Chris, the aluminium chassis really is unique in limiting the range of the wireless adaptor. The plastic encased macbooks in comparison suffer no such problems. Would you really pay for such a feature?

You are not listening. The macbook air cannot really do any more than a decent netbook than you can on an air. Its even marketed by apple as something to browse the web on the move and check emails, not to edit video etc etc. The user experience whilst better on a air due to its size is no better than a larger laptop such as the MSi X series. AND heres the part you appear to have trouble with this [ hit the 'links' below] looks equally as nice.
http://smartech.blogetery.com/files/2009/03/asus-eee-pc-1008ha.jpeg
http://teknomax.org/wp-content/gallery/asus-eee-pc-1008ha-netbook-incelemesi/asus_eee_pc-1008ha_3.jpg

@Andrew

Are you crazy? ;)

The Air has a Core 2 Duo with at least 1,8 Ghz and a GeForce 9400 Chipset. That is a "real" laptop. If you can't see how that trumps the Atom/945GSE netbook combination, then I don't know. Of course you could do video editing on an it! (Technically, you can do video editing on an Atom too, I edited my first videos on a Celeron 400...)

The Asus 1008HA is really nice. I considered buying one. Still, in real life, it can't hold a candle to the MBA. Pictures can't tell you the story on build quality.

Anyways, I didn't buy the 1008HA and I wouldn't buy the MBA, because my 1005HA-H packs 9 hours of actual working battery life and that is - for me - priceless!

@Andrew Violet: Thanks, I know what a 1008HA looks like and while it looks very nice (which I have absolutely no trouble with), I'm sure most people would agree that it isn't quite up to Macbook Air standards, but that's beside the point. My argument concerned the whole user experience, not just the aesthetics.

You mentioned the MSI X series, which is a far more worthy comparison to the Air than any netbook. It has a similarly sized screen, a proper ULV processor (not Atom), twice as much RAM, twice the disk space and a modern, fully-featured OS. You don't have to be editing video to appreciate those attributes. That's really all I was trying to say...

Just to be clear, I'm not saying the MBA is good value, it plainly isn't, just that it really shouldn't be directly compared with a netbook. I think this is a similar point to that which Steve was trying to make a few posts up.

Just to be even clearer, neither am I saying that netbooks are worthless, far from it. I actually use an old EEE 900 as a secondary machine. If your needs are simple and you can put up with their shortcomings, they represent excellent value.

lol violently @ who called this a Netbook.

Complete Rubbish, the nvidia 9400 Chipset is premium and complete ownz anything intel has out by a long way.

lol netbook

I'd have one as a gift it's very rude not to accept a gift unless it's an unusual case and I'd use it and enjoy it

Now that Apple have added the 9400 Graphics the DDR3 memory and the faster processors plus knocked a bit off the cost it really is a nice system, I have had a play with it in the Apple store in cambridge and thought it was excellent.

To see what's wrong with this review, let's take ourselves an imaginary 'typical' Air user. They will buy this laptop because they like the look of it and don't care about the price. Pperhaps they like OS-X for its ease of use, but they probably don't care. They will probably not buy it as a 'second machine' because they're probably not a techie. In my experience most people hate switching between computers (synching files and settings can be a PITA) - this is why they want a portable one in the first place.

They will find themselves one day attempting to copy files from their camera to a USB hard disk, or save files to a memory stick using their 3G dongle, and will realise the need for a USB hub. God forbid you want to do any of that using a mouse (anyone else here hate trackpads?). You do not need to be a power user to find one USB port limiting, in fact I find the opposite is true, as your average user won't want to waste time doing things like copying from camera to laptop to disk to avoid needing a hub.

One day they might want to burn some of their photos to a DVD, and will have to buy an external drive. Doing any of these at the same time will require a power socket for a powered USB hub. At some point, if they're smart, they'll notice that carrying around all this junk takes up more space and weight than a physically larger laptop would. It also means more cables, more hassle, and it certainly makes you look like a complete tit trying to do any of these things in public. Suddenly the Air is not quite so sexy.

The Air is silly because it's geared up all wrong. All they had to do was throw in an ethernet port and one (preferably two) more USB ports and it could be your ultra-thin do-anything executive machine. Forget the tech specs, those are unimportant - this is supposed to be all about no-hassle usability. It fails that test, whilst also using expensive enough components to fail on the 'just enough for me to use' side of things too. It sits in some uncanny valley of computing where you have the power to do things you wouldn't want to do on it.

You could argue that this doesn't matter - and maybe it doesn't - but you cannot argue against the fact that many other companies have done the stylish ultra-portable far better. And that's why it doesn't deserve 8/10. Just like the original iPhone and the 3G before iPhone OS 3, it has so much to commend it but is spoiled by stupid flaws that have no reason to exist. People will go out their way to prove it doesn't matter, but Apple will still make a mint on upgrades when they 'fix' the 'problems' that never existed. That's what they do, and I hate them for it. The shareholders don't though.

As a system administrator, I'm always on-call and have to carry a laptop everywhere I go. For transportation, I use a bike, public transit, or often walk about 30 minutes to get places, so every bit of weight reduction makes a significant difference. I'm always traveling and need something I can work on all day, so a netbook's screen and keyboard is too small to work on all day. At home or the office, it is my primary laptop. I think the MacBook Air is perfect for my needs.

I agree its a little pricey, so I ended up getting a used first generation one for $700. The video on the first generation Air is a little slow for full screen HD video, but is sufficient for non-HD. I often use for Netflix streaming on a 1080p screen.

With the high price, I think this works well for the corporate executive or remote sales rep. If price wasn't as big a consideration, this works well for anyone that needs to sacrifice performance for reduced weight.

Picked-up latest MBA at Dixon's Heathrow T5 for 1,195GBP and can recommend this for those wanting portability and power at same time. I have yet to see a Sony laptop with similar specification of MBA and that can output same processing and video power. Recently Sony released the Vaio X series however, the Sony's processing and video power are nowhere near that of the MAB. The Sony Vaio is feather weight but so is the graphics and processing power. Bottom line the MBA is a complete well rounded solution for someone looking for both portability and power. If you just happen to also need to run Win7 apps then use bootcamp and watch MBA boot Win7 in under 30 secs. Love the product, although it may be pricey for some......but worth every penny.

I read some of the comments regarding the MBA and in the interest of those potentially on the market for portability without sacrificing power this is one of the best out there today. It's hard to believe people here comparing this to a netbook because under the hood its nothing like a net book. The MBA is equipped with an Intel Core-Duo and not some low powered ATOM processor and furthermore, it has an Nvidia 9400 chiptset which is far superior to the Intel or ATI video chipsets used in your typical netbook. Costly, it may very well be.... for some, but the mere fact that you can run WIN7 or Snow Leopard is a bonus that far outweighs the competition. The single USB is limiting but not a hindering factor for me or for most anyone that intends to use this for real work or surfing at SBs. Highly recommend this if you are considering portability, reasonably powerful and flexibility in using multi OS.