Apple Announces MacBook Air

Tuesday January 15, 2008 10:10 am PST by mudbug
As rumored, Apple announced a new line of portable computers during Steve Jobs' keynote speech at MacWorld San Fransisco today, the MacBook Air. The new line is a complement to the existing MacBook and MacBook Pro lines.

Features of the new portable include being "the world's thinnest notebook," at 0.16" to 0.76" - thinner than the the thinnest part of a Sony TZ series laptop. Screen size is an LED backlit 13.3" widescreen with a magnetic latch. The MacBook Air keyboard is MacBook-like, but with an ambient light sensor. The new machines feature a multi-touch trackpad, allowing the user to double-tap and move. Rotate a photo by pivoting your index finger around your thumb, as well as pinch & zoom.

Additionally there's a 45 Watt MagSafe power adapter, a Micro-DVI out as well as Audio Out, 802.11n + Bluetooth 2.1/EDR. There's a 1.8" hard drive for storage - either 80GB standard, or a 64GB SSD as an option. Intel shrunk the size of the Core 2 Duo chip by 60% to fit in the new machine.

Battery life is approximately 5 hours. No optical drive is on the MacBook Air, but a SuperDrive accessory is available for $99. There's also new software being released that allows the portable to "borrow" a Mac or PC's optical drive. All models feature 2GB of memory standard.

The case is fully aluminum (good for recycling), the first fully mercury and lead free display, circuit boards are BFR free, and retail packaging are 56% less volume than a MacBook.

The new MacBook Air starts at $1799 is available for pre-order today, and is expected to be shipping in two weeks.

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Related Roundup: MacBook Air
Buyer's Guide: MacBook Air (Neutral)
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anansei
157 months ago
Laptop for the Hungry

This product is only a smattering of what it could have been if apple would have waited. In the next year there will be advances in battery life, size and technology. As well as processor speed in relation to size. It is also my opinion but one which is very well informed. I declare this product to be a piece of what is to come or if anything a piece of infrastructure for future development. As for the price maybe I am wrong expecting more for my buck so to speak. Is the "more" in this case a drop in size because a few pounds (MBP) can be so heavy and all. Perhaps this is the laptop line designed for the on the go anorexic -






Forgive me but do you consider what other people might want from a machine before you declare the product dead or is it just your opinion that counts?

I guarantee you that at this very moment IT departments across the land are fearing for their budgets when one of their executives claps their eyes on this. It's not a performance box, none of the ultra-portables out there are, but as far as I know there's nothing to touch this on performance in this packaging. A 1.6Ghz Core 2 Duo is MORE than enough for the majority of people and for those that need more there's the MBP line. 80Gb hard drive might be less than you'd like but I've got just that in my MB and that's got a bootcamp partition installed as well as all my apps, music, documents, photos etc and there's still at least 30gb free.

The price is a little steep but, again, for these sort of machines it actually seems to be quite low (pending build-to-order costs of course). For those that really want something slim and light to carry around this is going to be ideal. Is it going to be the top selling Mac Laptop? No, not a chance. But a profitable product to draw yet more attention to the company and get more people thinking about switching? Yep, it'll do that very nicely indeed.

Me? I'll stick with my 17" MBP for now as I do, on occasion, have need of the raw grunt and, more importantly, the screen real estate. But for my wife this could be a very nice option indeed.

Rating: 1 Votes
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mainstreetmark
157 months ago

1280X800

for 1800

hahaha


Then don't buy it! Jeez... You can't get 1920 AND a miniature form factor.

In fact, seriously, if you join this forum and this thread just to point out a missing feature, please try to understand that the thing is .75 thick, and is made for those to whom SIZE and not HORSEPOWER is the key.

If you need other stuff, check out the MB or MBP - each have strengths.
Rating: 1 Votes
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iPhoneHome
157 months ago
she's so sexy
Rating: 1 Votes
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Small White Car
157 months ago

all we got is an overpirce notebook


Here we go.

I said, weeks ago, that a tiny notebook from Apple would cost more than the Macbook and be less powerful. Seems obvious, but I guess it's not.

The 'Air' is perfect for those who need it. (Which I suspect is a lot of people.) Anyone who says it's "made wrong" or "overpriced" was expecting a different product. I'm sorry you were misled by rumor sites, but that's not Apple's fault.
Rating: 1 Votes
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Pointer
157 months ago
I want one. Haven't even seen specs, already got a great laptop, don't need one. But I WANT one.
Rating: 1 Votes

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