I Don't Particularly Want to Buy a Macbook Air: What Other Options Do I Have?

[Jason Dunn]

<p><img src="http://images.thoughtsmedia.com/resizer/thumbs/size/600/dht/auto/1289427791.usr1.jpg" style="border: 0;" /></p><p>OK readers, here's the deal: I'm on the hunt for a new laptop, and I have certain specs that I want the laptop to have. Shockingly, the new 13.3" Macbook Air seems to come closest to the mark...but, given a choice, I'd prefer to not give Apple more of my money. I have no plans to run OS X regularly on it, so something that's built specifically for Windows 7 is more to my liking (rather than using Boot Camp on the Air). <MORE /></p><p>What's most appealing to me about the hardware on the Macbook Air? The 13.3" screen running at 1440 x 900 resolution is #1 with a bullet. That's a great resolution for a thin and light notebook, yet it's extremely difficult to find in any product - most Dell consumer laptops for instance go from 1280 x 720 up to 1920 x 1080, which is a massive jump. You either end up with a low res or ultra-high res image; some of their 13.3" laptops have 1366 x 768 resolution, but not in their consumer line. Even the brand new Dell XPS 14 tops out at 1280 x 720 resolution. It's like Dell doesn't understand the concept that some of us want to have a decent resolution on our laptops. It's hard not to like the seven hours of battery life with the Macbook Air, and I'd be lying if I said that the thin and light hardware wasn't also appealing.</p><p>I have a Dell Vostro V13 right now, and while there's a lot that I like about it (<a href="http://www.digitalhomethoughts.com/news/show/97542/the-slim-and-gorgeous-dell-vostro-v13-reviewed.html" target="_blank">review here</a>), the underpowered CPU (the Core 2 Duo SU7300 clocks in at 1.3 Ghz), the limited battery life (three hours on a good day), and the&nbsp;anaemic&nbsp;GPU have got me a little fed up. The 13.3" screen at 1366 x 768 is pretty good, but the bump up to 1440 x 900 would be even better. I've looked at every Dell laptop I can find and nothing quite seems to match up.</p><p>What I'm looking for in a new thin and light laptop:</p><ul><li>13.3" or 14" screen with 1440 x 900 resolution (maybe 1366 x 768)</li><li>A Core 2 Duo or better CPU at 1.8+ Ghz (2+ Ghz is even better)</li><li>Minimum 4 GB RAM</li><li>5+ hours of battery life</li><li>256 MB SSD, though I'd be willing to swap in a Segate hybrid drive in a pinch if no SSD option was available</li><li>Reasonably thin profile, not too heavy</li><li>Optical drive optional</li><li>Decent GPU (something other than Intel graphics basically)</li><li>Something that doesn't have a truly ugly design - sadly, that means the HP Envy 14 is off the list because it has a stupid floral pattern on it...however, I *might* just cover up an ugly laptop with a <a href="http://www.decalgirl.com" target="_blank">DecalGirl</a> skin. I'd prefer not to though!</li></ul><p>Price? Well, the 13.3" Macbook Air, upgraded with a 2.13GHz Intel Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, and 256GB of Flash Storage, would run me $1849 CAD. So let's say that's the basic dollar amount I want to stay around.</p><p>What laptops out there today should I be looking at? The Sony Vaio Z series looks close, but strangely when I go into a custom config, the only resolution option is 1920 x 1080...on a 13.1 inch screen? Are you insane Sony?</p>

[Fritzly]

Stay away from Sony, I always had bad experience with them. Nice looking but overpriced, full of useless stuff and very poor customer service.

[Sven Johannsen]

Funny, I was going to suggest taking a look at Sony. Some of the best hardware I've bought. Price is a bit on the hight side, but they aren't a volume dealer. I have a little Vaio TX, just as small as any netbook, but it includes a DVD writer in it and a PCMCIA slot, along with the usual stuff. When I bought it there was certainly cheaper stuff, but always with less features. Those few of us who were willing to pay for them all, got what we wanted. It's running Windows 7 just fine though it is about 4 years old.

Wouldn't know about their support, never had to use it ;)

"The Sony Vaio Z series looks close, but strangely when I go into a custom config, the only resolution option is 1920 x 1080...on a 13.1 inch screen? Are you insane Sony?"

So what are you saying? It's too good? I would guess the resolution slider exists and you don't have to run it at max resolution.

[Phronetix]

I have two colleagues who specifically chose MacBook Pros as hardware to run Windows because of requirements at the hospital.

One is happy, now running Windows 7 as far as I've heard. The other is just as happy, but now uses Parallels to be able to run PC and OS X software simultaneously. One spoke about several colleagues fed up with their crapware and wanting both OS in their homes for their kids.

So, it's happening out there. I think you'd make your point well by choosing the best hardware for your purpose (keep in mind that even if you find another vender, will they come with the same track record for customer satisfaction that Apple does, or will they have a retail outlet within 15 minutes of your home).

Then you'd make your point further by showing up to the Genius Bar one day with Windows 7 lit up on the machine. lol

D

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

The Thinkpad fanboy here says to take a look at the T410s.

If you want something that's like the Macbook Air however, errm, it is going to be hard. The T410s for instance is heavier and bigger (it has a 14" screen).

[lynnroth]

I was going to suggest the Thinkpad T410s as well.

We have several T510 and earlier models and have had good results.

[cweeks]

Why not Asus? Their ultralight series has some great specs.

[Gordo]

Come over to the dark side; or should I say white, or is it actually brushed aluminum :)

I just picked up my new air last night, exactly the same spec's you quoted. What a beautiful machine. I should say I have hated Apple products and refusded to purchase one, not even an iPod music player. When the iPad was released I was intrigued and tempted; I settled for its smaller sibling an iPod Touch. My experience with that device and the level of support I received from an Apple store in the US while vacation was one of the last straws for Windows machines (I was having battery issues with the Touch, and they replaced the device, no questions, no purchase receipt required). I have had a few issues fighting with Windows and HP laptop failures over the years; but that is a whole other story.

I have purchased Parallels and I am building my Air as a transition machine to Apple. I can't give up some of the programs I have on the Windows platform. I am running Parallels in "Coherence" mode in the hopes that I can get away from Windows completly.

I don't have a lot of hands on time yet, but I am travelling on Sunday evening overseas for work, and this will be my only laptop. One thing I can say is that the cold boot time is 15 seconds, the instant on works immediatly, the display is amazing, and the device is light, yet sturdy.

I am just starting a personal Blog on Digital Photography; and the first posts will be about my experiencines with the new Apple Air.

http://pixel-workflow.blogspot.com/

[ptyork]

Also keep in mind that Apple does some pretty crazy things with the Air in terms of power management in OS X. I'm not sure you can expect comparable battery life if you run Boot Camp (or maybe even Parallels/Fusion). I'd also worry about that funkified SSD'ish drive and Win 7.

+1 for the Thinkpad T410s, but it is in a different weight class (but WAY higher performing and includes an optical drive). I suppose you could look at one of the smaller Lenovo U-series models, as well. But as Yuan said, you ain't gonna find an Air out there not made by Apple.

[Stinger]

I've yet to find any line of laptops that comes close to Apple in terms of build quality, battery life and trackpad usability.

I bought a MacBook Pro knowing that I was going to use it mostly with Windows 7. I don't regret paying the premium over other laptops at all.

[Jason Dunn]

"The Sony Vaio Z series looks close, but strangely when I go into a custom config, the only resolution option is 1920 x 1080...on a 13.1 inch screen? Are you insane Sony?"

So what are you saying? It's too good? I would guess the resolution slider exists and you don't have to run it at max resolution.

Yes, that's too high. LCD panels only work properly at their native resolution; when you switch to a lower resolution, things get fuzzy. Lots of people do that, but only because they don't understand what they're doing. 1080p on a 13.1 inch screen would be extremely hard to read. There are some workarounds involving DPI adjustments, but they end up being ugly and causing problems with dialogue boxes - I've been down this road before.

1440 x 900 is about the threshold on a 13" to 14" screen for my eyes. Sony, like many Japanese companies, get kind of crazy sometimes with screen resolution. :rolleyes:

[rockinthesixstring]

At risk of your so called Apple #Fanboyism, I have heard that the best PC for Windows is a Mac. You can avoid OS X if you want and run W7 exclusively, or you can use Bootcamp or (as I do) Parallels.

I've been super happy with my setup for both Windows and OS X on my MBPro, and the system is pretty robust.

The only thing that I miss with having an Apple product are some of the keys that I used to use on a regular basis. Even after a year of use, I miss the following keys

end
home
delete (the delete key on the mac is basically "backspace")

[rockinthesixstring]

The other thing about getting a Mac is that you don't get all the CRAP that comes with Dell / HP / Toshiba .. etc

Trial this and that soft(bloat)ware drives me insane. If you run a Mac, you'll get the full version of everything that is installed... basically iLife and OS X.

If you're just gonna run windows, then you don't have to worry about a previous install of anything, and simply load up what you need the way you need it.

I'm not entirely sure what all the Hype is about Dell, but I've had nothing but problems with their consumer line. (servers are another story).

[rockinthesixstring]

I have purchased Parallels and I am building my Air as a transition machine to Apple. I can't give up some of the programs I have on the Windows platform. I am running Parallels in "Coherence" mode in the hopes that I can get away from Windows completly.

I don't have a lot of hands on time yet, but I am travelling on Sunday evening overseas for work, and this will be my only laptop. One thing I can say is that the cold boot time is 15 seconds, the instant on works immediatly, the display is amazing, and the device is light, yet sturdy.

I can concurr on both accounts. I've got Parallels 6 running and it's great. I don't notice much of a performance hit with both OS's running, and I can switch seamlessly between apps when running in Crystal mode. Better than that, I can run dual screens, and have Win7 in full screen (complete with start menu and all) on one screen, and OS X running (complete with Dock and all) on the other screen.

Also, I've only got a 64MB SSD, but I can attest to the incredible cold boot speed. Both Win7 and OSX boot in around 20 seconds. It's great.

[John London]

Good luck. Sounds like the Air is the winner for now. Like to know how this turns out.:)

[Jason Dunn]

Stay away from Sony, I always had bad experience with them. Nice looking but overpriced, full of useless stuff and very poor customer service.

Yeah, I have the same general feeling about Sony - I dislike their proprietary approach on so many levels, hate their crapware-laden default software installs, etc. But their design is typically quite beautiful, and their hardware is more top-tier than virtually any other Windows OEM. Expensive, yes, but at least they try to push the envelope...

[Jason Dunn]

Then you'd make your point further by showing up to the Genius Bar one day with Windows 7 lit up on the machine.

If that ever does happen, it will be the HIGHLIGHT OF MY WEEK!!! :D:D:D

[Jason Dunn]

The Thinkpad fanboy here says to take a look at the T410s. If you want something that's like the Macbook Air however, errm, it is going to be hard. The T410s for instance is heavier and bigger (it has a 14" screen).

Yeah, uh, so, I'm going to offend you and several others by saying this :o, but I find the design/branding/everything about Thinkpads to be utterly ugly and boring. It would take a LOT for me to buy a Thinkpad - they're just so fugly. :( I will check it out though...

[Jason Dunn]

Why not Asus? Their ultralight series has some great specs.

Which models? The idea of this post was to get people to suggest specific models and configurations, not just shout brand names. :D

[Jason Dunn]

I have had a few issues fighting with Windows and HP laptop failures over the years; but that is a whole other story...I am just starting a personal Blog on Digital Photography; and the first posts will be about my experiencines with the new Apple Air.http://pixel-workflow.blogspot.com/

I read your blog entry, and while using a laptop that uses an SSD will solve your hard drive failure problem, the hard drives that Apple uses aren't magical Apple hard drives - they're the same mainstream brands that HP, Dell, etc. uses. Whether it's Seagate, Hitachi, Samsung, or whomever, hard drives do fail. It seems statistically amazing that you had three hard drives go bad in the same laptop - there must be something about the laptop that's killing hard drives - but basically my point is that from a hardware perspective, Macs still have hardware failures due to faulty components, etc. Something to keep in mind. :)

[Jason Dunn]

Also keep in mind that Apple does some pretty crazy things with the Air in terms of power management in OS X. I'm not sure you can expect comparable battery life if you run Boot Camp (or maybe even Parallels/Fusion). I'd also worry about that funkified SSD'ish drive and Win 7.

Yeah, that's something I'm keeping in mind - I've been quizzing Darius Wey about the battery life under Windows. What's the concern about the SSD under Windows 7? Trim support? I think the controller on the SSD does it's own garbage collection.

[Jason Dunn]

I bought a MacBook Pro knowing that I was going to use it mostly with Windows 7. I don't regret paying the premium over other laptops at all.

So what was your experience like? Did you run into any weirdness using Windows 7 on the Mac hardware? Does Apple release driver updates every so often? Can you install video driver updates from Nvidia like you can with another laptop that uses the same chipset? Any down-falls you'd like to point out in going this route?

[The Yaz]

Jason,

In my perusal of laptops that meet your specs, I found the following:

SONY VAIO VPCZ137GX/S Laptop Computer - Intel Core i5-540M 2.53GHz, 4GB DDR3, 256GB SSD, DVDRW, 13.1" Display (1600x900), Windows 7 Professional 64-bit, NVIDIA GeForce GT 330M (1GB of dedicated video RAM), White- Found on CompUSA webiste

It's listed a little higher than your suggested range ($2,100) but that was without any searching for a better price.

Steve

[gdoerr56]

I don't care for the Thinkpads and most of the other machines I looked at had a lower res screen or no GPU or something that always turned me off. I won't buy Sony at all. Between their proprietary hardware + crap software and the Sony TV I bought a few years that turned blue...

Dell doesn't make anything I want anymore (their XPS line used to get my attention) and I've about had it with my Mini 311 and the awful trackpad.

So I bought the Macbook Air 13" with the 256 GB SSD. Arrives tomorrow. Ended up being a little more than I wanted to spend but after playing with one at an Apple store, I was convinced. I'll load up Windows 7 with a (small) OSX partition since my company does develop software that supports OSX (good excuse for the accountants).

I'll post my thoughts next week.

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

Yeah, uh, so, I'm going to offend you and several others by saying this :o, but I find the design/branding/everything about Thinkpads to be utterly ugly and boring. It would take a LOT for me to buy a Thinkpad - they're just so fugly. :( I will check it out though...

Thinkpads are class. They're like a business suit - predictable and won't go out of style. :D

The real killer here is the screen: 1440x900 is really hard to find.

On a side note:

While looking at Thinkpads I found out that the X201s featured a 1440x900 screen in a 12.1" form factor with a Core i7 LV, weighing no more than 1.4kg (3 lb) with a 9 cell battery. Pity it's the screen that made it go out of production. Oh well!

[Gordo]

Leo Laporte on the The Tech Guy show was talking about the Windows version of the MacBook air:
http://www.acer.com/timelinex/eng/index.html

I have had very good experiencies with Acer, and might have considered this computer if I had found it before purchasing the Air. That is if it wasn't running Windows :)

[gregh]

Jason,

How about the Elitebook 8440p maybe too heavy/big?

HP EliteBook 8440p Notebook PC (ENERGY STAR) (XT918UT) specifications - HP Small & Medium Business products (http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/sm/WF06b/321957-321957-64295-3740645-3955549-4095872-4095876-4313331.html?jumpid=re_R295_prodexp/buyguides-finder/computing-notebook/XT918UT&psn=notebooks_tablet_pcs/notebook_pcs)

Intel® Core™ i7-640M Processor (2.80 GHz, 4 MB L3 cache)
Display
14.0" diagonal LED-backlit HD anti-glare (1366 x 768)
Graphics
NVIDIA NVS 3100 graphics with 512 MB dedicated gDDR3 video memory
Weight
Starting at 4.7 lb (2.12 kg)
Dimensions (w x d x h)
13.21 x 9.3 x 1.23 in (33.6 x 23.6 x 3.1 cm)

but serious question, why not get the Air if it appeals and run OSX on it? It's just an OS when all is said and done, as longs as the apps you need are available, what does it matter??

[Stinger]

So what was your experience like? Did you run into any weirdness using Windows 7 on the Mac hardware? Does Apple release driver updates every so often? Can you install video driver updates from Nvidia like you can with another laptop that uses the same chipset? Any down-falls you'd like to point out in going this route?

I think Bootcamp is one of the most impressive pieces of software that Apple produces. Installing Windows 7 was an absolute breeze. I didn't even have to re-pair my Bluetooth keyboard.

Apple does release driver updates every so often. Apple is up to version 3.1 and the drivers were last updated in May. I've never tried updating to a standard Nvidia graphics driver. The display adaptor is listed as a standard nVidia GeForce 320M in the device manager and the driver provider is also listed as Nvidia though.

The only negative for me is different layout of Apple keyboards. Most of the coding I do is C++ and not having a # key on the keyboard is a pain. It won't be a problem for you but the " and @ keys are in the US, not UK, positions on the keyboard too.

[Jason Dunn]

So I bought the Macbook Air 13" with the 256 GB SSD. Arrives tomorrow. Ended up being a little more than I wanted to spend but after playing with one at an Apple store, I was convinced. I'll load up Windows 7 with a (small) OSX partition since my company does develop software that supports OSX (good excuse for the accountants). I'll post my thoughts next week.

Sounds like we're kind of looking for the same thing. :) I'd definitely like to hear your thoughts and especially how the battery life is under Windows 7.

[Jason Dunn]

Thinkpads are class. They're like a business suit - predictable and won't go out of style. :D

That might explain it - I've worn a suit maybe five times in my life. I just don't wear suits. :D

The real killer here is the screen: 1440x900 is really hard to find.

Yeah - it's a rare resolution. I'd settle for 1366 x 768 if everything else about it was nice.

[Jason Dunn]

Leo Laporte on the The Tech Guy show was talking about the Windows version of the MacBook air:
Home TimelineX (http://www.acer.com/timelinex/eng/index.html)

Thanks - that's a nice unit. I've seen ads for the TimelineX but haven't looked closely at it...it looks pretty nice! Weirdly though, I called my local computer store that stocks Acer, and they're sold out of the 13.3" TimelineX model and say they're not getting any more in stock - that it's been discontinued. So looks like my timing might be off?

I have a renewed interest in the Envy 14 actually - the Beats edition looks pretty slick...I'd have to buy an SSD for it though. And I might need to buy it from the USA to avoid getting it with the stupid French/English keyboard. :rolleyes:

[gdoerr56]

OK, 5 hours later, I'm convinced.

Go with the Macbook. The small difference in the screen resolution does make a difference. My HP Mini 311 feels cramped by comparison.

Installing Windows 7 was easy. You do need to install rEFIt under OSX to allow the machine to boot from a USB stick but other than that, it's a simple Windows 7 install.

The drivers work fine and booting back into OSX is a piece of cake. It took a few minutes to figure out how to right click (two fingers on the pad, click) but it all works perfectly.

I am the last person most people would think would buy an Apple product since I despise their restrictive practices but they make beautiful hardware.

[Jason Dunn]

How about the Elitebook 8440p maybe too heavy/big?

Nice CPU for sure, but ultimately nothing really stands out - there are a lot of 14" screens on the market with 1366 x 768. No SSD option from what I can see.

but serious question, why not get the Air if it appeals and run OSX on it? It's just an OS when all is said and done, as longs as the apps you need are available, what does it matter??

Just an OS? That's not something I can agree with - I find OS X highly baffling to use and completely unfriendly, and while I'm sure I'll get used to it over time, Windows 7 is a much better fit for me at this stage. I don't think OS X and Windows 7 are interchangeable in any way...

[Jason Dunn]

The only negative for me is different layout of Apple keyboards. Most of the coding I do is C++ and not having a # key on the keyboard is a pain. It won't be a problem for you but the " and @ keys are in the US, not UK, positions on the keyboard too.

Yeah, that's something that's hard to get used to. The re-mapping of my brain for copy/paste is hard to get used to. Right now I find it hard to remember what the right-click keyboard button is...I always end up pressing Control, Option, and Command in some random order. :confused: I'll figure it out eventually.

So the # isn't on the "3" key? Or is the Macbook keyboard different than the Apple wireless keyboard?

[Jason Dunn]

The drivers work fine and booting back into OSX is a piece of cake. It took a few minutes to figure out how to right click (two fingers on the pad, click) but it all works perfectly. I am the last person most people would think would buy an Apple product since I despise their restrictive practices but they make beautiful hardware.

Let me know what the battery life is line with Windows 7...that's what I'm really curious about. If it only gets three hours of battery life under Windows 7, that kind of kills it for me.

Thanks for sharing your impressions!

[cweeks]

Which models? The idea of this post was to get people to suggest specific models and configurations, not just shout brand names. :D


The U20A looks pretty good.

http://usa.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=4bW8LLbz527KrWHB

The processor may not be up to what you want, but you can't fault the size, battery life, and screen.

"You can have it fast, small, and cheap. Pick two..."

[Jason Dunn]

The U20A looks pretty good...The processor may not be up to what you want, but you can't fault the size, battery life, and screen.

Yeah, the CPU is on par with what I have in my Dell Vostro V13 now, so it wouldn't solve the problem for me.

"You can have it fast, small, and cheap. Pick two..."

Here's what's funny about that: with the exception of Sony, most of the smaller laptops are pretty cheap as well...like the Acer TimelineX - at $699, I *know* it's not going to have a nice screen for instance, which sucks. I'm ready to pay $1500 to $2000 for a high-quality laptop, but there are so few companies that are providing a quality product in this space. It's weird! :confused:

[Phronetix]

I'm ready to pay $1500 to $2000 for a high-quality laptop, but there are so few companies that are providing a quality product in this space. It's weird! :confused:

I think it's primarily the economy. People are making their units last, or they're being more frugal for the time being, so suddenly there's a bit of a black hole in this part of the market.

Add to that the strategy that a couple of the major brands have of opting to release an enormous range of products seemingly at the expense of craftsmanship. Opposing this shotgun approach are the likes of Apple whose confidence in their own ability to know a market kept them out of netbooks and are now positioned right in the middle of this vacuum, with something that would set them apart even in a market full of similar products.

Don't worry. Give it three months and all manufacturers will have announced their plans to compete with the Air, followed by at least 25% of them who will actually follow through. ;-)

With regard to the battery life, any virtualization will degrade battery life. That might be an issue. Performing calibration of the battery makes a big difference from the start, and recalibrating regularly makes performance better. What's the longest you will need to be away from an outlet, realistically, and how often would you be doing that?

[gdoerr56]

OK, early returns on battery life under Windows for the Air are between 5.5 and 6.5 hours for general surfing with a *realistic* screen brightness. With the CPU/GPU cranking on something, I think you're talking about 3 to 4 hours.

I haven't done any testing under OSX but I'm guessing the battery life will be similar. I put the unit to sleep last night and when I got up this morning, it had gone into hibernate automatically. I'm guessing a lot of the power magic is in the BIOS. Resume was a quick 10 seconds to the CRTL+AL+DEL screen. Resume from sleep is about 2 seconds.

The screen is jsut beautiful. Easy on the eyes and great contrast, even with the brightness turned down a bit. I have to say, I am impressed with the overall design and quality of the unit. I am no fan of OSX since it doesn't make any sense to me, probably because I've been using Windows since 3.1 but I can't find any fault with the hardware Apple makes.

If I were to change one thing, it would be to have a smaller bezel on the display. With a flush bezel, Apple could cut the width of the unit by about 1.25 inches which would make it fit in my small messenger bag. As it is, I'm going to have to start carrying a larger bag. Such a burden...

[Stinger]

So the # isn't on the "3" key? Or is the Macbook keyboard different than the Apple wireless keyboard?

Maybe this is another UK keyboard issue. UK keyboards have the £ sign on the 3 key. The # key on my Windows machine is by the enter key. That whole key doesn't exist on either my MacBook Pro or Apple wireless keyboard.

[jgrnt1]

NewEgg has the Acer Timeline X in 13.3 and 14 inch screens (I think the 13.3" has been discontinued in favor of the 14") -- both with 2.4GHz Core i3, 4GB of RAM and a 320GB hard drive -- $650 and $670 US respectively. Both screens are 1366x768.

I've always had Thinkpads (company laptops) and love them. I wanted a netbook of my own and decided on an Acer 1410 -- not really a netbook at 11.1", but I've been pretty happy with it. It's my first notebook with HDMI, which has been handy in hotel rooms.

[Phronetix]

This is a very interesting thread. I'm enjoying it, and mainly because I think Apple has accomplished something very unique. They have gotten Jason Dunn's attention, enough to consider the MBA. I have checked out every suggestion so far, and so far nothing compares in terms of what I believe Jason find most appealing: the power/package/build quality combination. When one actually handles one of these things, one realizes what Apple has accomplished. They have packed a lot of computer into something remarkable. And that is no Jonny Ive wide-eyed infomercial. The unit is as impressive closed shut as it is open and running.

Jason may not choose the MBA, and there are several decent practical reasons to look elsewhere, but here we are discussing - without the usual fanboi mantra popping up - the fact that this looks to be the best machine, and not by a little.

Add to that, I think that it's going to be 18 months until we see the competition engineer something equal to this. Always seems to happen. And usually disappoints.

From a business standpoint, I think Apple needs to consider pricing these a little more aggressively. The gap in products anything like this that appears to exist, the interest this is getting in five of my friends/acquaintances who are windows-dedicated, and the fact that there may be many more like them gives me a gut feeling about this product. It's a gateway to a new ecosystem, one that's attracting the most unusual suspects.

[Janak Parekh]

From a business standpoint, I think Apple needs to consider pricing these a little more aggressively. The gap in products anything like this that appears to exist, the interest this is getting in five of my friends/acquaintances who are windows-dedicated, and the fact that there may be many more like them gives me a gut feeling about this product. It's a gateway to a new ecosystem, one that's attracting the most unusual suspects. Well, it's Apple. Apple doesn't typically like to price aggressively, and to be honest, by their standards the Air is priced aggressively. I was shocked when the 11" started at $999.

Anyway, Apple remains resolutely uninterested in capturing the bottom end of the market. If they priced the 11" at $599, which they might still make a profit at, they'd sell the unit like hotcakes. However, they will never ever do so. ;)

--janak

[Phronetix]

If they priced the 11" at $599, which they might still make a profit at, they'd sell the unit like hotcakes.


See now, that's not aggressive... that's CRAZY. lol

What about a realistic $799? $849?

Then, we're talking.

[Janak Parekh]

See now, that's not aggressive... that's CRAZY. lol

What about a realistic $799? $849? By whose definition is that "realistic"? If Apple priced it there, why wouldn't we be saying "but this is a netbook, it should be $699?"

The fact is, we can infinitely speculate as to prices, but Apple knows what they're doing, considering they make more money than any other PC maker. They're in the business to make profits more so than move lots of units.

--janak

[Phronetix]

The fact is, we can infinitely speculate as to prices, but Apple knows what they're doing, considering they make more money than any other PC maker. They're in the business to make profits more so than move lots of units.

Fully agree. Was being sarcastic, but not clearly so. My bad.
Dennis

[Janak Parekh]

Fully agree. Was being sarcastic, but not clearly so. My bad.
Dennis D'oh. Your sarcasm is too good for me. :p

--janak

[gdoerr56]

A good day of solid testing yesterday and today.

Conclusion: Battery life between Windows and OSX is nearly identical. With screen brightness at about 40% which is very readable to me and a mix of email (Outlook), browsing and an occasional software install, I got a little over 6 hours of battery life. I have not yet had a chance to try VOB playback but I'll try that tonight.

[Jason Dunn]

With regard to the battery life, any virtualization will degrade battery life. That might be an issue.

I'm talking about running Windows 7 via Boot Camp, so it's not virtualized, it's bare metal. So I don't think that will be a problem; the bigger question is likely around how well optimized Apple's drivers are. The conspiracy theorist in me wants to think that Apple would purposefully write bad drivers to show the "superiority" of OS X. How else can you explain what a horrible program iTunes is on Windows? :D:D:D

Performing calibration of the battery makes a big difference from the start, and recalibrating regularly makes performance better.

Are you referring to the old "charge up your battery, then run it down, then charge it up again" concept? I'm not much a of believer in that - I've yet to see anything that proves it's a worthwhile concept. Everything is anecdotal "Seriously man, it's SO much better...but it's not like I timed it or anything." ;)

What's the longest you will need to be away from an outlet, realistically, and how often would you be doing that?

It's less a matter of being away from an outlet and more a matter of not wanting to carry the AC adaptor with me - sometimes I'll leave my home office and go to my main floor and do writing work there, or the library. Not having to carry the AC adaptor is something I'd appreciate. I'd say 5 hours would be plenty.

[Jason Dunn]

OK, early returns on battery life under Windows for the Air are between 5.5 and 6.5 hours for general surfing with a *realistic* screen brightness. With the CPU/GPU cranking on something, I think you're talking about 3 to 4 hours.

Thanks so much for reporting back - especially that with *realistic* screen brightness (unless you're in a dark room, minimum brightness seems impossible) it can still get 5+ hours. That's exactly what I needed to know.

Hmm. Now I'm really tempted. :D

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

No Thinkpad love on this site. I is a sad puppy. :(

The Air comes with a nVidia 320m, which is a nice plus in my book. It'll allow some light gaming while travelling. :D

[Deslock]

I'd prefer to not give Apple more of my money.
As someone who uses hardware and software manufactured by both Apple and Microsoft, I have to say that your hatred of Apple isn't rational. But I give you props for not jumping on the "Apple's stuff is twice as much as a comparable PC!" bandwagon.

If they priced the 11" at $599, which they might still make a profit at, they'd sell the unit like hotcakes. However, they will never ever do so. ;)

From what I've read, the 11" MBA's manufacturing cost is estimated at ~$720 (which doesn't count R&D, software, marketing, distribution, support, or overhead for retail stores). That's a healthy profit margin, but it's not nearly as overpriced as Apple-haters would have you believe (especially if you get the educational discount or buy stuff when it's on sale at macmall).

The U20A looks pretty good.

ASUSTeK Computer Inc. (http://usa.asus.com/product.aspx?P_ID=4bW8LLbz527KrWHB)

Except he wrote:
13.3" or 14" screen with 1440 x 900 resolution (maybe 1366 x 768)
and the U20A has a 12.1" 1280x800

Anyway I'm tempted by the 13" MBA w/ 4GB. Though I wish it had a backlit keyboard, the screen resolution and DPI are the sweet spot.

I don't even mind the relatively small storage thanks to smugmug and netflix. IMO, solid state will become more common over the next couple years as cloud computing takes off (at the very least, we'll see more and more devices with the OS and programs installed to solid state, thankfully).

[Macguy59]

So what was your experience like? Did you run into any weirdness using Windows 7 on the Mac hardware? Does Apple release driver updates every so often? Can you install video driver updates from Nvidia like you can with another laptop that uses the same chipset? Any down-falls you'd like to point out in going this route?

Apple usually provides bootcamp updates (like updated video drivers) via their software update mechanism within Windows. The only "weirdness" I've experienced is the lack of full support for the glass multitouch trackpad but that seems to be a OS issue. My unibody Macbook had a Win 7 index of 6.2 fwiw

[Jason Dunn]

As someone who uses hardware and software manufactured by both Apple and Microsoft, I have to say that your hatred of Apple isn't rational.

My rationality, or lack thereof, is completely subjective so I dispute your statement of my non-rationality, because from my subjective viewpoint, my rationality is perfectly rational. :D

I don't hate Apple. I simply have a strong dislike for some of the things they do as a company. I won't list all of those things, but you've been reading my thoughts on them for long enough now to know what those are (secrecy, attacking bloggers, ignoring technologies, etc). Likewise, I don't hate Apple products - in fact, I quite like many of them - but there are things about their approach that simply drives me nuts. Case in point: why on EARTH can't I import an AVCHD file into iMovie that's sitting on my desktop? Why do I instead have to import it off the SD card from my camera with the file in the original directory structure? It clearly has the ability to import AVCHD files, so why refuse to take it off the desktop (or a network share, or USB drive, or whatever) and instead force me to only do it that one way?

Apple does a great job delivering what 80% of people want, but they could do a better job not pissing off the other 20% of us with just a little tweaking of their approach. :rolleyes:

[Lee Yuan Sheng]

One of my pet peeves: Incredibly stupid mouse acceleration that cannot be disabled without special tools/software. As a gamer I turn the damn thing off, so using a Mac with its stupid acceleration curve (it's really steep) drives me nuts. I feel my blood pressure rising everytime I use a Mac!

[gregh]

So have you ordered anything yet Jason? Looking at things I do on my Windows 7 laptop and my Mac at home, not many things are done at the OS layer, apart from connecting to Wifi networks when travelling.

All other tasks are carried out by apps, that is what I was trying to get at when I said it's "just" an OS. I bet you spend 80-95% of your time using apps, and a tiny amount 'in' the OS?

regards,

Greg

[Jason Dunn]

So have you ordered anything yet Jason?

Nope, not yet. Still pondering, and waiting for a potentially big financial change to happen - no purchase until that happens. :)

Looking at things I do on my Windows 7 laptop and my Mac at home, not many things are done at the OS layer, apart from connecting to Wifi networks when travelling. All other tasks are carried out by apps, that is what I was trying to get at when I said it's "just" an OS. I bet you spend 80-95% of your time using apps, and a tiny amount 'in' the OS?

I know what you mean, but based on my use of OS X so far - and how slow I feel getting anything done - I'm in the OS more than you might think. So it's not a simple choice for me, especially since the workload of finding and learning new apps to replace what I already have is daunting. Some are available on both platforms, so that helps, but not all. For me, it's not a clear-cut decision. That said, I am getting better at using OS X, though I still find myself exclaiming "WHAT THE HELL?" more than a few times a day. So much stuff is illogical to me.

[Sven Johannsen]

That said, I am getting better at using OS X, though I still find myself exclaiming "WHAT THE HELL?" more than a few times a day. So much stuff is illogical to me. You don't have to get a new OS for that. Just go from Office 2007 to Office 2010, or IE 8 to IE 9 :D

[Darius Wey]

I know what you mean, but based on my use of OS X so far - and how slow I feel getting anything done - I'm in the OS more than you might think. So it's not a simple choice for me, especially since the workload of finding and learning new apps to replace what I already have is daunting. Some are available on both platforms, so that helps, but not all. For me, it's not a clear-cut decision. That said, I am getting better at using OS X, though I still find myself exclaiming "WHAT THE HELL?" more than a few times a day. So much stuff is illogical to me.

The learning curve can be quite steep, especially for someone who's used Windows more or less his entire life. But you'll get the hang of it with time.

[Jason Dunn]

So I went out and bought the top-end Macbook Air last Friday. I felt quite conflicted about it, but after weighing my options again - including having to get an HP Envy 14 from the USA because in Canada they *only* sell it with the French/English keyboard - I decided to go for it. I am, however, keeping my eye firmly on the 14-day return date just in case.

Got Windows 7 installed, shot a first impressions video, did some battery benchmarks, etc. All in all, I'm quite impressed with it. The battery life is excellent, the screen is superb...about the only thing the gives me pause is the CPU performance. I knew that going in of course, but nothing beats real-world use. Lightroom 3 performance is...iffy. It's not awful, it's not great - it's more like "Can I live with this?". That's what I'm trying to figure out right now.

More later via front page posts to Laptop Thoughts and Apple Thoughts. :)

[Gordo]

Welcome to the Apple club, but I noticed that you already purchased a Mac Mini a while back.

I am loving my Air, I find it plenty fast for me, but I haven't tried any heavy lifting yet. The one thing I couldn't get use to was the magic mouse, I went back to a Logitech bluetooth mouse with two buttons. It took some doing but I finally found the key board short cuts for Home and End which I use. The one challenge is when running a windows program in parallels the short cuts are different. Control or Command + the left or right cursor key will give you the Home and End keys, but in Parallels it is only one of the Control or Command, both don't work.

Just to make life interesting for me I also purchased the iPad WiFi version, and am loving that device.

Looking forward to hearing about your experiences!! ;)