NationStates Jolt Archive

Kick ass or what?

Sure there's people who hate Mac no matter what but the MacBook Air is just prettay prettay prettay!

I want.

Discuss.

Pics.


This thread is worthless without them.

Are we talking about some kind of Scottish Airline? :confused:

Here's the product page (http://www.apple.com/macbookair/).

Looks sweet, from what I can see.

oh my its THIN

sorry, its just not impressive to me.

i deleted the email that apple sent me about it this morning without clicking on the link that would show me how cool it is.

Pics.


This thread is worthless without them.

http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l192/whereyouthinkyougoing/151644068_44a011ac54.jpg


http://www.chip.de/bildergalerie/Apple-MacBook-Air-Galerie_30104045.html

Sweet.

Does it come in white?


Hadn't even heard of it before this thread.

Meh, sure it's really thin, but so is Lindsay Lohan.

It's lovely - of course, you forego those little extras like, oh, cd/dvd drive...
Jobs says 'users can download everything they need from the internet'
Or buy his additional external drive for $99.....

So- Mac users don't game ??
Meh - this is a businessman's laptop.

whats a laptop if you can't bludgeon people to death with it?

It's lovely - of course, you forego those little extras like, oh, cd/dvd drive...

This is true - 'why buy a DVD when you can rent one....from i-tunes!' - ri-ight, nice one Steve.

Still, who cares, it's sweeee-eet!

It's lovely - of course, you forego those little extras like, oh, cd/dvd drive...
Jobs says 'users can download everything they need from the internet'
Or buy his additional external drive for $99.....
Oops. Totally didn't think of that. D'oh.

:(

Kick ass or what?

Sure there's people who hate Mac no matter what but the MacBook Air is just prettay prettay prettay!

I want.

Discuss.I don't. Not because I hate Macs, I really don't. But unfortunately, a Mac is not compatible with my extensive collection of games, so no.

I don't. Not because I hate Macs, I really don't. But unfortunately, a Mac is not compatible with my extensive collection of games, so no.

A Mac without a CD drive doubly so.

Kick ass or what?

Sure there's people who hate Mac no matter what but the MacBook Air is just prettay prettay prettay!

I want.

Discuss.

I hate mac no matter what. Regardless of the blanket stance, however, the Macbook Air has almost nothing really going for it, at all. Sure t's fairly thin... so the price rises... incredibly... at least Mac didn't do something stupid and get rid of a key component like a CD/DVD Drive... oh wait, they did!

The Macbook Air is one of the worst mistakes Mac could've made, I don't think that they have the financial resources to keep pouring into ideas like the iPhone, an almost standard device with a $600 price tag, and a sucky network. Same goes for the Air, overinflated price for something that hardly provides more versatility than any other laptop, except that it is short a key component.

The Macbook Air fails on all counts.

whats a laptop if you can't bludgeon people to death with it?

You should be at the head of a major consumer electonics company.

I can almost garauntee you'd have my business when you unveil you cool new line of iBludgeon laptops. not to mention the 'iCudgel' line of blunt weaponry!

:D

people that complain about Microsoft and switch over to mac are insane. overpriced and they have your nuts in a vise

way to proprietary

whats a laptop if you can't bludgeon people to death with it?

With this thing, it looks like you could cut their heads off.

A Mac without a CD drive doubly so.

Which is, of course, why they designed an app to help get around that. I don't think this is perfect, by any means, but it's a pretty nifty piece of engineering nonetheless.

people that complain about Microsoft and switch over to mac are insane. overpriced and they have your nuts in a vise

way to proprietary

Well, depends what you're complaining about. Say, for instance, you don't like the massive vulnerability of Windows to malware of all descriptions. Then it's a perfectly sensible choice. However, if you're worried about it being proprietary, why the hell were you on Windows anyway? If that's what you care about, the choices are Linux or *BSD.

I don't use a Mac myself, but they do some pretty cool engineering, and it could be a lot worse. Ideally, I'd see Linux as the majority system, but while we wait, getting people off Microsoft is important, and Mac is a good start to that. At least it is actually somewhat suited to real usage (programming, cli, etc).

I don't. Not because I hate Macs, I really don't. But unfortunately, a Mac is not compatible with my extensive collection of games, so no.

Is it too slow? Because, Windows runs on Intel-Macs, so that can't be the problem. [I'm curious, honestly; I'm not being sarcastic.]

Is it too slow? Because, Windows runs on Intel-Macs, so that can't be the problem. [I'm curious, honestly; I'm not being sarcastic.]Macs generally aren't geared for playing games, or better, games tend to be specifically geared for being played on windows PCs. It's simply a lot harder to find a good mac gaming notebook.

Well, depends what you're complaining about. Say, for instance, you don't like the massive vulnerability of Windows to malware of all descriptions. Then it's a perfectly sensible choice. However, if you're worried about it being proprietary, why the hell were you on Windows anyway? If that's what you care about, the choices are Linux or *BSD.

And you can run Linux on a Mac as well (though I don't know whether the external CD/DVD-drive is bootable), but with Leopard you don't need to, as it is a fully compliant UNIX system, meaning you can compile your software the way you might do it in GNU/Linux. Leopard is shipped with X11, so X11-software created for Linux should run on Leopard as well (but I'm not completely sure about that one).

I could never use something like that, I'd live in constant terror of sneezing to strongly and breaking it in half.

Macs generally aren't geared for playing games, or better, games tend to be specifically geared for being played on windows PCs. It's simply a lot harder to find a good mac gaming notebook.

Ah, ok. I'm not that much into gaming, and the games I do play I use a Windows/Kubuntu-PC for. I think Macbook Pro has an ok reputation as a gaming laptop, but, as I said, I really don't know much about it. I was just wondering, as Windows runs natively on Macbooks (and Pros and Airs).

I have a Mac, and because I have a Mac I also have an xBox 360. Problems sorted.

While everyone is like "woa1!, ub3R thinzz!" at the press release, one of the better few features were somewhat overlooked. I believe it has a backlit keyboard, very nice screen and a multi-touch finger-mouse type doo-dah.

I certainly wouldn't mind one, although I do have an extensive DVD collection and the HD on that thing wont hold everything you download from iTunes. Steve can shut up on that front, they've just sacrificed media compatibility for the ability to shave one's beard with the damn thing.

And you can run Linux on a Mac as well (though I don't know whether the external CD/DVD-drive is bootable), but with Leopard you don't need to, as it is a fully compliant UNIX system, meaning you can compile your software the way you might do it in GNU/Linux. Leopard is shipped with X11, so X11-software created for Linux should run on Leopard as well (but I'm not completely sure about that one).

No, but if you can, go for the commodity hardware. It is cheaper. Sure, it's uglier, but it's cheaper. I know about Macs --- I was raised on them, there's one in the house. But a valid point was made that Mac OS X is indeed fairly proprietary, and that moving from MS to Mac for that reason is quite silly.

As for X11, I'm fairly sure that doesn't install by default, does it? Anyway, it generally doesn't play as nicely with things as a native Cocoa app. Furthermore, and only on hearsay here, but the OS X POSIX compliance isn't that good, from some of what I've heard. Finally, of course, there's generic dislike of the way it does things. It's a "This is where you're going today" system. A nice one, but one nonetheless.

So beautiful ... but anything without a CD/DVD drive is worthless to me.
Though a computer with a functioning power pin would be very nice.

The Air does look incredible portable. But that portability comes with a price. I likes me DVDs I'm afraid.

I could never use something like that, I'd live in constant terror of sneezing to strongly and breaking it in half.
I'd use it, until I realized I actually need an optical drive, then I would sell it for an absurd amount of money to a Mac fanboy.

No, but if you can, go for the commodity hardware. It is cheaper. Sure, it's uglier, but it's cheaper. I know about Macs --- I was raised on them, there's one in the house. But a valid point was made that Mac OS X is indeed fairly proprietary, and that moving from MS to Mac for that reason is quite silly.

As for X11, I'm fairly sure that doesn't install by default, does it? Anyway, it generally doesn't play as nicely with things as a native Cocoa app. Furthermore, and only on hearsay here, but the OS X POSIX compliance isn't that good, from some of what I've heard. Finally, of course, there's generic dislike of the way it does things. It's a "This is where you're going today" system. A nice one, but one nonetheless.

You are right about the silliness of dumping one MS for Mac on the reason of it being proprietary. X11 is now installed by default, at least I can't remember checking a checkbox during the installation of Leopard. Leopard has been certified fully compliant (http://weblog.infoworld.com/enterprisemac/archives/2007/07/leopard_gets_un.html?source=rss).

I'm happily running Kubuntu on my desktop and Leopard on my macbook, and I generally like both, though Kubuntu requires a lot more work (which I don't mind). I generally prefer Mac OS's style, and I don't believe in baghira and the likes.

It looks edible.
It's lovely - of course, you forego those little extras like, oh, cd/dvd drive...
Jobs says 'users can download everything they need from the internet'
Or buy his additional external drive for $99.....
I think there was the same level of freaking out when I believe it was Mac shipped computers without a floppy drive, now practically nothing comes with floppies. The Air also has this funky system (that I'm not convinced works as 'easy' as the video implies) that can use any nearby CD drive hooked to the wireless system as its own. I don't know that the lack of a CD/DVD drive will prove all that drastic.

So- Mac users don't game ??

Where have you been?

whats a laptop if you can't bludgeon people to death with it?

You could probably hack at the neck with the thin bit.

While I don't think I'll be getting this laptop (the lack of an internal optical drive is a turn off for me), I don't really have a MAJOR problem with Macs in general (I just like to give my roommate a hard time, as he's a closet fan-boy). In fact, IF I can ever get my Lian Li PC-70 case finished (modding it right now for water cooling and 120mm fans fore and aft), I'll put my main system in there, and see if I can't fit a Mac Mini in it with some sort of docking arrangement (after all, the PC-70 IS large enough).

Ah, and of course the raging war of mac vs. pc continues.

Honestly, I think the Air looks sleek, I personally have an old iBook G4 (heavy bugger) and would love something like this just based on it's weight, even forgoing the CD/DVD drive.

Ah, and of course the raging war of mac vs. pc continues.

Honestly, I think the Air looks sleek, I personally have an old iBook G4 (heavy bugger) and would love something like this just based on it's weight, even forgoing the CD/DVD drive.

You can get <2lb Sony 'ultra portable' that has a optical drive. And it's probably cheaper than the Mac.

One measly USB port? Yech.

Oh, and let us not forget that it lacks a CD/DVD Drive, it's phenomenally expensive (especially in comparison to its capabilities) and it has a tiny-ass screen.

Before we're ready to fellate Steve Jobs for his genius (like the world was with the iPhone), let's let reality take hold for a moment.

You are right about the silliness of dumping one MS for Mac on the reason of it being proprietary. X11 is now installed by default, at least I can't remember checking a checkbox during the installation of Leopard. Leopard has been certified fully compliant (http://weblog.infoworld.com/enterprisemac/archives/2007/07/leopard_gets_un.html?source=rss).

I'm happily running Kubuntu on my desktop and Leopard on my macbook, and I generally like both, though Kubuntu requires a lot more work (which I don't mind). I generally prefer Mac OS's style, and I don't believe in baghira and the likes.

*Clickety*

Da, I'd heard about that, but I seemed to recall comments from various corners about the support not actually being as good as it would seem. Ah well, I may have been wrong.

Ah, this is currently WindowMaker, and it was Sawfish last week. OS X simply doesn't flex that much to accomodate what you want to do this time. Maybe I'll switch to Ion, have a fully tiling WM. Or I could launch tinywm, and spend 0 system resources on unnecessary drawing. That's one of the big reasons I prefer Linux.

But be that as it may, the MacBook Air is a wonderful little piece of engineering. I wouldn't mind playing with one sometime, but I don't think I'd use one overall. Hence I ordered myself an Eee yesterday.

Edit: Andaluciae, you can use the thing as a frisbee. What's not to like?

Ha. My laptop still turns on in less than half an hour, but at least I can have lotsa things plugged into it at the same time, play a CD and won't get mistaken for a wobble board.

One measly USB port? Yech.

Oh, and let us not forget that it lacks a CD/DVD Drive, it's phenomenally expensive (especially in comparison to its capabilities) and it has a tiny-ass screen.

Before we're ready to fellate Steve Jobs for his genius (like the world was with the iPhone), let's let reality take hold for a moment.
Reality? Mac fanboys? You might as well tell the Ron Paulites they have to believe that he doesn't have the peoples' best interest at heart.

Reality? Mac fanboys? You might as well tell the Ron Paulites they have to believe that he doesn't have the peoples' best interest at heart.

Dude, your constant froth at the mouth at the mere mention of a Mac makes your attacks on 'fanboys' kind of silly.

Dude, your constant froth at the mouth at the mere mention of a Mac makes your attacks on 'fanboys' kind of silly.
Since my counterpoint relies on this same thread on a different forum, I will summarize it to this: The Mac followers ability to ignore the glaringly obvious inadequacies of the Mac design in exchange for its fancy look and brand name, and tendency to verbally fellate Jobs for the latter, easily earns them the title of 'fanboys.'

Since my counterpoint relies on this same thread on a different forum, I will summarize it to this: The Mac followers ability to ignore the glaringly obvious inadequacies of the Mac design in exchange for its fancy look and brand name, and tendency to verbally fellate Jobs for the latter, easily earns them the title of 'fanboys.'

Sure, Plucky...you keep swiping at that bogeyman...the bad Mac people are totally out to get you...

Sure, Plucky...you keep swiping at that bogeyman...the bad Mac people are totally out to get you...
Thanks, Pot.

Thanks, Pot.

Mmmmmm, you can taste it...

wait, wait, wait... what if your machine gets a serious error and you need to reinstall? I seem to remember that by the time your machine gets to searching for devices with bootloaders there isn't enough code loaded to use complex USB devices like USB disk drives yet.

maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. :confused:

I....

don't like it.

It's like a bit of technology that's a head of it's time; it would be nice if we didn't need cd/dvd drives, but the fact is we do, unless Apple is planing on making such things easily and cheaply through itunes or something

No CD/DVD Drive?!?!?! Bullshit!

SSD is neato.

1 USB port is almost as BS as the no DVD Drive shit.

Err, no optical drive and no LAN port (ie you must have wireless).
And not enough USB ports either (my ASUS A8JP has 5).

I like the screen though, LED.

I wonder how this thing handles heat since you can't put a lot of fans in a 2cm flat package.
I'd prefer an ASUS Eee to one of these.

wait, wait, wait... what if your machine gets a serious error and you need to reinstall? I seem to remember that by the time your machine gets to searching for devices with bootloaders there isn't enough code loaded to use complex USB devices like USB disk drives yet.

maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. :confused:On a PC, your BIOS is able to access USB and treat USB disks as just a regular hard disk. EFI should be able to do something similar.

You should be at the head of a major consumer electonics company.

I can almost garauntee you'd have my business when you unveil you cool new line of iBludgeon laptops. not to mention the 'iCudgel' line of blunt weaponry!

:D

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcjLEwZqcQI#

LOL. it seems that Apple has succumb to the "unhealthly thin is good" Line used by model companies every where. The only thing I like about is that it won't break my foot if a drop it. I very much doubt that it can stand up to rough handling. Not much room for give in the case, so it will just shake more when it gets dropped, meaning that things break.

My iBook now feels like a gigantic cow. Prettyprettypretty. But I'm poor.

And I don't like the lack of CD/DVD drives or USB ports. But it's pretty. Of course, I say the same ting about Vista - it may be an enormous hunk o'crap, but it's pretty.

I'd do it. However, I wouldn't want to use it in a long term relationship. Too fragile.

LOL. it seems that Apple has succumb to the "unhealthly thin is good" Line used by model companies every where. The only thing I like about is that it won't break my foot if a drop it. I very much doubt that it can stand up to rough handling. Not much room for give in the case, so it will just shake more when it gets dropped, meaning that things break.

It is an Aluminium case and not plastic. So I think they had to resort to using metal as a plastic version would be too fragile.
I wonder why they didn't use Magnesium instead.

I....

don't like it.

It's like a bit of technology that's a head of it's time; it would be nice if we didn't need cd/dvd drives, but the fact is we do, unless Apple is planing on making such things easily and cheaply through itunes or something
Apple lives in some world that doesn't exist, and all the Mac fanboys believe it. 1 USB port and no optical drive or ethernet port? This thing is all sorts of mixed up. And not in a good way. The only people that will buy this are Mac fanboys. Logical people will write it off as a POS.

Ah, and of course the raging war of mac vs. pc continues.

Honestly, I think the Air looks sleek, I personally have an old iBook G4 (heavy bugger) and would love something like this just based on it's weight, even forgoing the CD/DVD drive.

See, I just got an old iBook from a friend, and I'm getting used to the switch between XP and OS X. I'm not prepared to say one's better than the other, but it's a lot easier to find software - like an unzip utility that doesn't cost the world - for Windows.

I believe it has a backlit keyboard, very nice screen and a multi-touch finger-mouse type doo-dah.

The mouse pad is pretty cool, acting much like the touch screen on i-phone.

You could probably hack at the neck with the thin bit.

I will have the Penne al Air-riabata!

No CD/DVD Drive?!?!?! Bullshit!

SSD is neato.

1 USB port is almost as BS as the no DVD Drive shit.

Clearly the idea is that everything in the future will simply be downloadable, there'll be no need for CDs - 1 USB is a real frickin' pain though, suicidal almost, it's the one thing that makes me think about purchasing. I need multiple USBs until they can make wireless devices, like a mouse, that doesn't consume batteries like...well some sort of big battery munching machine.

My iBook now feels like a gigantic cow. Prettyprettypretty. But I'm poor.

Yeah, that iBook is a brick and my Macbook isn't much better on the dainty front.

Personally, the one thing I like about Mac is that with PCs, which I also use, you open up....Windows! Now I've nothing against Windows it's that I'm against 1 operating system.

Now sure, you've got dual-core so doesn't matter and Linux OS are becoming so attractive now that there's more competition but I just thank God there was an alternative.

The other thing is that, well, they're nice design and a balance between form and function is fine by me.

They always pretend they are innovative but really it is bairly thiner then the Xnote T1 at .82 The mac is .76 then its LG counterpart which was released quite a while ago

Edit: oh yeah and the LG comes with DVD drive

I noticed all the extra bits you have to buy from Apple to make it useful.
The Core 2 Duo on that thing isn't a normal one either, it's a special shrunk down version for Apple (ie if the CPU blows up, you can't put in a normal one to replace it)

Maybe we can put that Apple CPU into an ASUS Eee!

You should be at the head of a major consumer electonics company.

I can almost garauntee you'd have my business when you unveil you cool new line of iBludgeon laptops. not to mention the 'iCudgel' line of blunt weaponry!

:D

Not iBuldgeon but... Toughbook!!! :)

Each Panasonic Toughbook® is designed and manufactured to meet a level of durability matched to an intended work environment. The full Toughbook line covers the ruggedized Toughbook 19, Toughbook 30, Wireless Display, and includes models with selected durability features like the remaining semi-rugged models.

At the very least, each Toughbook features a magnesium alloy LCD case, 20 times stronger than ABS plastic, to protect this critical and expensive-to-replace component. Other models include full magnesium cases to protect all system components. Hard disk drives are equipped with various degrees of shock insulation to protect mission-critical data from the dangers of shocks, bumps and drops. Some Toughbook laptops also offer spill-resistant keyboards to provide protection from the spills and splashes that are a frequent part of mobile computing environments.

The key to choosing the right Toughbook is to consider your work environment and your performance and feature needs - your Panasonic representative or reseller will help you understand which Toughbook is the right choice for your particular business requirements.

Linky (http://www.panasonic.com/business/toughbook/df_test.asp)

Check the Toughbook-74! The thing has a Touchscreen LCD!!
Or the Toughbook-W7... (http://catalog2.panasonic.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ModelDetail?storeId=11201&catalogId=13051&itemId=202167&catGroupId=36001&surfModel=Toughbook-W7&displayTab=F)

What’s in the box
MacBook Air
Micro-DVI to DVI adapter
Micro-DVI to VGA adapter
Cleaning/polishing cloth
MagSafe power adapter
Install/restore DVDs
Printed documentation

How do you use them if you don't buy your own external USB-based MacBook Air SuperDrive?

I wonder why the Air SuperDrive has to be connected by CABLE to your MacBook Air.

And I thought my laptop was fat only because it used 90nm lithography in its CPU...now it's positively gargantuan.

One point is that the Macbook Air is not necessarily for you. It doesn't have to be so you can make individual complaints about it but, in terms of marketing the product, it really doesn't matter to Apple.

They're looking for Switchers, those open to switching from a PC and they've identified those as high-end businessmen, people who don't necessarily need games etc, they just want a 'wow' factor as well as something they can write Word on and use, in my opinion, the superior Keynote product.

So people can complain about various aspects but it's not far from complaining that a Ferrari doesn't come with a tow bar - not saying the Macbook Air is a Ferrari over the fact that different products are for different target audiences.

Regardless - it's still pretty :)

EDIT: Here's (http://blogs.zdnet.com/Apple/?p=1196) an article that explains it better

wait, wait, wait... what if your machine gets a serious error and you need to reinstall? I seem to remember that by the time your machine gets to searching for devices with bootloaders there isn't enough code loaded to use complex USB devices like USB disk drives yet.

maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. :confused:

BIOSoj can sometimes boot from USB by now. No idea whether the Mac BIOS-replacement EFI can however.

Still, this thing has no CD drive and looks crap and comes with a bloated OS - and a touchpad, I HATE those and deactivate them in the BIOS whenever I have to use laptops with those (but since this is a Mac, it has no BIOS, so tough luck). Also it has nearly no harddisk capacity - 80 GB does NOT suffice for someone who encodes all her legally bought CDs to ogg vorbis and torrents free music as well. 1.6 or 1.8 GHz are btw slower than the stationary PC, I have since ~ 2004...

...so you want to persuade me to buy a DOWNGRADE in most things for loads of money? I am not crazy.

yeah its pretty cool, but i just got a big new dell lappy that's at least 3cm thick... maybe 4. however, the dual SLI graphics and RAID-0 capabilities of the big beastie are far more important to me than its looks.


Apple lives in some world that doesn't exist, and all the Mac fanboys believe it. 1 USB port and no optical drive or ethernet port? This thing is all sorts of mixed up. And not in a good way. The only people that will buy this are Mac fanboys. Logical people will write it off as a POS.

i disagree. many people will buy this on its looks. people who don't know what a USB port or ethernet is.

I would crack that thing in half..

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?nnmm=browse&node=home/shop_mac/family/macbook_air

No fucking way is it worth that much.

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?nnmm=browse&node=home/shop_mac/family/macbook_air

No fucking way is it worth that much.

That is a good deal of money.

I bet the people who pay more to get a thinner, lighter, 'macbook' are the same people that pay a lot of money to go to a gym and work out.

That is a good deal of money.

I bet the people who pay more to get a thinner, lighter, 'macbook' are the same people that pay a lot of money to go to a gym and work out.
And what's wrong with buying 'style'? After all, those assemblers in Taiwan have to eat, too.

One point is that the Macbook Air is not necessarily for you. It doesn't have to be so you can make individual complaints about it but, in terms of marketing the product, it really doesn't matter to Apple.

They're looking for Switchers, those open to switching from a PC and they've identified those as high-end businessmen, people who don't necessarily need games etc, they just want a 'wow' factor as well as something they can write Word on and use, in my opinion, the superior Keynote product.
No competent person is going to buy a Macbook air with plenty of other "ultra portable" laptops on the market that have all their peripherals. The only people who are going to buy this are the people who think sunshine comes out of Steve Jobs' ass - Mac fanboys.

So people can complain about various aspects but it's not far from complaining that a Ferrari doesn't come with a tow bar - not saying the Macbook Air is a Ferrari over the fact that different products are for different target audiences.
Ehhhh, wrong. It's like complaining that a Ferrari doesn't come with an air conditioner, a radio, OR windows that can be rolled down.


Here is what Sony's Ultra Portable laptop comes with standard: http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/SYCTOProcess?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&LBomId=8198552921665311568

It is all faster than Macbook Air's $3k system, yet cheaper than their $1800 system.

No competent person is going to buy a Macbook air with plenty of other "ultra portable" laptops on the market that have all their peripherals. The only people who are going to buy this are the people who think sunshine comes out of Steve Jobs' ass - Mac fanboys.

Weren't you dead wrong about the iPhone, too? I'm going to guess you regard the iPod as a failure, as well.

So you have about as much ability to pick a winning consumer product as either of my hogs, don't you?

And what's wrong with buying 'style'? After all, those assemblers in Taiwan have to eat, too.

if you want to buy style, go ahead. i just prefer substance.

The thinness of the machine is pure pretension. Unless you need to slip it under a door, a tiny profile in one dimension is completely non-functional. Possibly even anti-functional: twisting laptops is very bad for the mainboard and the screen. So, pretty but very fragile.

That said, the weight (1.4 kg) is attractive, and ditching the optical drive makes sense to me. Optical media is crap anyway, and it's one less thing to bother with when you don't have a desk handy.

It's lovely - of course, you forego those little extras like, oh, cd/dvd drive...

I tend to rip cds and dvds I play to a harddrive image anyway. Performance increase and no need to replace an search ;)

And yes, the law in my country allows that.

That said, the weight (1.4 kg) is attractive, and ditching the optical drive makes sense to me. Optical media is crap anyway, and it's one less thing to bother with when you don't have a desk handy.
That's funny because Sony has an ultra portable laptop that is lighter than that and which comes with an optical drive, as well as other things that the Air lacks.

People refuse to critique Apple and believe everything they do is awesome and innovative when it is really half-assed and poorly thought out.
Apple is going to keep pushing the line until people go "wtf is this? I'm not buying this, that's retarded."

I have to agree with this sentiment from another board: The day apple releases a laptop without a display all apple users will call displays on laptops useless. Who needs a display anyway?
Its nothing new anyway, apple users always build their requirements on what Jobs offers them

Are we talking about some kind of Scottish Airline? :confused:

haha thats what I was thinking!

The day apple releases a laptop without a display all apple users will call displays on laptops useless. Who needs a display anyway?

Bad example. I would love a laptop with built-in beamer or wireless network capabilities that send the output directly to another display device. Like e.g. glasses with tvscreens ;)

Bad example. I would love a laptop with built-in beamer or wireless network capabilities that send the output directly to another display device. Like e.g. glasses with tvscreens ;)
That's what Bluetooth is for, but it makes the system useless unless you own a video receiver with Bluetooth. Just like this system is useless for reading optical media unless you are at home or carry around an external drive for it.

That's what Bluetooth is for

Bluetooth is probably too slow ;)
To my great delight however I just learned that some scientists at the university of washington are working on contact lenses that can serve as displays: linky (http://uwnews.washington.edu/ni/article.asp?articleID=39094).

I want.

Bluetooth is probably too slow ;)
To my great delight however I just learned that some scientists at the university of washington are working on contact lenses that can serve as displays: linky (http://uwnews.washington.edu/ni/article.asp?articleID=39094).

I want.

I don't know about wireless displays yet, video cards are very bandwidth intensive and they'd need to work out a minimum transfer rate for the wireless display to keep a steady image. For small displays, it'd be OK but pushing it to a super large screen is a different matter.