4 ms·

Say what you will about the logic behind a single port for everything (as far as I know this is the first computer to do this so there's nothing to compare it t

by dchuk 12y ago

Say what you will about the logic behind a single port for everything (as far as I know this is the first computer to do this so there's nothing to compare it to), this Air is a pretty drastic change from what we're all used to when it comes to laptops. We're basically hitting the limits of thinness at this point right?

drblast 12y ago
I'd hate to have to worry that I'll cut myself on my laptop. Is there anyone that's super-excited about a thinner Air? My preference is always for greater battery life. I'm curious if there are people that wish their already thin laptop were even thinner, and if so, why?
- mmastrac 12y ago
  I'd prefer a thicker laptop with better battery life myself. I ended up buying a batterybox to extend the life of my current device when I'm mobile. I suppose that being thinner and dying sooner gives us the option to just throw-and-go without much weight if you don't require a long period of computing.
- dchuk 12y ago
  The combo of thinner/lighter/no fan is pretty awesome in my opinion. These aren't for peopled doing hardcore computing, they're for people doing hardcore commuting really.
  - mwcampbell 12y ago
    Do you have a source for the "no fan" bit? If the Core M processor can deliver the same performance as a Haswell ultrabook processor (i.e. the previous Air) without requiring a fan or getting unreasonably hot, I think that's a pretty nice feature.
    - Jtsummers 12y ago
      It was one of the first things mentioned in the presentation. Pic from Ars: http://live.arstechnica.com/apples-march-9-spring-forward-event/images/DSC00066.JPG http://live.arstechnica.com/apples-march-9-spring-forward-ev...
    - geoelectric 12y ago
      The live feed on Mac Rumors says no fan. "What's on the inside is just as innovative as the outside. Latest unibody architecture. New MacBook has no fan at all."
    - sz4kerto 12y ago
      It's much less powerful in terms of computing power than a Haswell.
      - hsitz 12y ago
        For my needs I would say the Core M is a good compromise between performance and energy efficiency. E.g., the Dell XPS 13 some have mentioned this thread as alternative has a faster processor than I need. Also, the fan is a big issue for me. You're not likely to see fanless systems with Haswell or the more powerful Broadwell processors. With Core M Broadwell, though, I expect fanless will be the norm. I expect I'll be getting the relatively new Asus UX305 soon; for me it compares favorably to new Macbook but is only $699. It's a little heavier (2.6 lbs), but has larger 13.3" 1080p screen, runs Windows and/or Linux well, quality aluminum build, same 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, etc. I suppose I'd prefer the new Macbook, but I'm not an OS X guy and the Asus is barely half the cost.
        phaemon 12y ago
        How well does the Asus UX305 run Linux? I have a Macbook Air at the moment, but it has a couple of annoyances that I'd like to be rid of. However, I do like the build quality and the trackpad especially.
        hsitz 12y ago
  - bentcorner 12y ago
    Personally I've tried laptop computing on public transportation, and I just can't do it with people sitting so close to me potentially looking over my shoulder. A phone I don't feel so claustrophobic, but anything tablet sized and up just makes me feel awkward.
    - copperx 12y ago
      Have you scheduled that appointment with your psychiatrist yet?
      - bentcorner 12y ago
        Uhh.. no? Seriously, should I not feel awkward sitting shoulder-to-shoulder next to a stranger while I'm browsing on my computer?
- mathgeek 12y ago
  The thing about Apple's lineup is that they offer both main lines: the MacBook Pro caters to users who want thin with great battery life, while the Air caters to those who prefer a lighter laptop while still maintaining good battery life.
  - seanp2k2 12y ago
    Or quad-core CPUs
    - mathgeek 12y ago
      Naturally, but that's secondary in a debate about battery vs. thickness.
- jimkri 12y ago
  I think that it targets a lot of students. Most people want to carry around something that is light, I think this targets a lot of college students. In all of my business classes that I am currently in more than 90% of the class uses Mac's, they bring their chargers with them to class so they are set.
- PhasmaFelis 12y ago
  Airs are for people who need a full keyboard but don't need a lot of power, and do a lot of commuting/running around (possibly with a bag already packed with other stuff). Come to think, it's probably great for most students. Plenty fast enough to browse and write papers, and it doesn't add to the volume or burden of your already-overstuffed bookbag. It doesn't fit my needs, but that's okay.
  - danieldk 12y ago
    Airs are for people who need a full keyboard but don't need a lot of power I have a early 2014 Air with a Core i7 (4650U), and it can certainly hold its own. http://www.anandtech.com/show/7113/2013-macbook-air-core-i5-4250u-vs-core-i7-4650u/2 http://www.anandtech.com/show/7113/2013-macbook-air-core-i5-...
    - tjl 12y ago
      Yep. I've been doing development work on a 2013 Air with an i7. It's not quite as good as my 2012 i7 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM for development (as that's quad-core), but it's still an excellent machine.
- egypturnash 12y ago
  The "thinner" is a thing that tempts me to upgrade. Thinner means lighter: I live in the middle of a very walkable area. So I walk a lot. It is great to be able to throw my computer into my bag and go out to work in the middle of a park or wherever; my computer plus my drawing tablet is only slightly more weight to haul then a hardbound sketchbook. I think the new machine would cut it down to about as much weight. It is pretty cool to go out carrying everything I need to do my job and only carry about six pounds of stuff on my shoulder. And that's including the bag I keep the laptop in, plus wallet and suchlike. Thinner means style: In general, things that are slim are also things people see as "elegant". Back around 2000 I carried a Handspring Visor Edge in my pocket rather than a clunky plastic Palm Pilot, not because it was any more powerful, but because it was a sleek little piece of shiny metal that made me happy to hold in my hand. There's a point where there is Enough Battery. I can take my 2013 Air out for a day of rambling around the city and drawing wherever I feel like stopping, and not worry about it running out of power as long as I charged it last night. I think the new Macbook has a lower estimated battery life than my current machine, so that's a downside of it.
nfoz 12y ago
And as much as I love the idea of thinness, I'm in the awkward state of shopping for a small laptop that is everything except thin. I want a keyboard with depth/action to the keypresses! It's becoming extremely hard to find. I'm not convinced that I'll love the typing experience on this Air; I've been very disappointed by recent Dell and Lenovo (yoga) keyboards. I don't mind a bit of thickness as long as it's small in the other dimensions, and light as anything.
- joshuapants 12y ago
  That's what I love about my Thinkpad X200s. It is small, it is light, and it isn't absurdly thin so it can have that classic Thinkpad keyboard. Unfortunately, Lenovo is moving into the super-thin form factor and they've lost my trust entirely since Superfish so I don't know where I'll be able to get this kind of laptop again.
- lifeformed 12y ago
  Well, if you want to go deep in the other direction, there's this crazy laptop with a mechanical keyboard: http://www.theverge.com/2015/1/5/7495073/msi-mechanical-keyboard-gt80-titan-laptop-ces http://www.theverge.com/2015/1/5/7495073/msi-mechanical-keyb...
rubbingalcohol 12y ago
> We're basically hitting the limits of thinness at this point right? And for what? A razor thin laptop with just one port seems to be really pushing towards one extreme side of the function/form continuum. I thought giving up ethernet was bad enough with the Retina Macbooks. It's very pretty, but it seems more like a toy than a serious computer. Maybe that's what Apple wants, but that's never something I would have said about the last few years of Macbook Airs.
- geoelectric 12y ago
  However, it is what was said about the first generation of Macbook Airs. Second generation of that got more ports. Wonder if history will repeat itself here.
- toomuchtodo 12y ago
  > It's very pretty, but it seems more like a toy than a serious computer. I really must disagree. I do Infrastructure by day (not just AWS, but physical colo as well), and quite a bit of microcontroller/CNC/robotics on the side/as a hobby. Nothing in the new Macbook stops me from doing this. I'll just move to using Bluetooth for my interfaces when I can, and when I can't, serial interfaces over USB-C.
- ctdonath 12y ago
  What do most notebook users do that requires anything more than this? It's not a do-all end-all product, it's for the hardcore commuter who specifically won't be plugging things in much at all and doesn't need sustained computational power. The MB Pro gives all your ports and lots more power in a not much bigger package, with desktop models available for serious horsepower and connectivity. I kept thinking thru the presentation "now begins the refrain 'if you're complaining about its specs, you're not the intended audience - there's another Mac model for you.'"
ploxiln 12y ago
You could compare it to an iPad, which has only a single lightning port.
zer0defex 12y ago
Battery and weight are tomorrow's battlefield unless revolutionary holography tech arrives to kick everyone's collective ass. Here's hoping!

by dchuk 12y ago

drblast 12y ago

I'd hate to have to worry that I'll cut myself on my laptop. Is there anyone that's super-excited about a thinner Air? My preference is always for greater battery life. I'm curious if there are people that wish their already thin laptop were even thinner, and if so, why?

mmastrac 12y ago
I'd prefer a thicker laptop with better battery life myself. I ended up buying a batterybox to extend the life of my current device when I'm mobile. I suppose that being thinner and dying sooner gives us the option to just throw-and-go without much weight if you don't require a long period of computing.
dchuk 12y ago
The combo of thinner/lighter/no fan is pretty awesome in my opinion. These aren't for peopled doing hardcore computing, they're for people doing hardcore commuting really.
- mwcampbell 12y ago
  Do you have a source for the "no fan" bit? If the Core M processor can deliver the same performance as a Haswell ultrabook processor (i.e. the previous Air) without requiring a fan or getting unreasonably hot, I think that's a pretty nice feature.
  - Jtsummers 12y ago
    It was one of the first things mentioned in the presentation. Pic from Ars: http://live.arstechnica.com/apples-march-9-spring-forward-event/images/DSC00066.JPG http://live.arstechnica.com/apples-march-9-spring-forward-ev...
  - geoelectric 12y ago
    The live feed on Mac Rumors says no fan. "What's on the inside is just as innovative as the outside. Latest unibody architecture. New MacBook has no fan at all."
  - sz4kerto 12y ago
    It's much less powerful in terms of computing power than a Haswell.
    - hsitz 12y ago
      For my needs I would say the Core M is a good compromise between performance and energy efficiency. E.g., the Dell XPS 13 some have mentioned this thread as alternative has a faster processor than I need. Also, the fan is a big issue for me. You're not likely to see fanless systems with Haswell or the more powerful Broadwell processors. With Core M Broadwell, though, I expect fanless will be the norm. I expect I'll be getting the relatively new Asus UX305 soon; for me it compares favorably to new Macbook but is only $699. It's a little heavier (2.6 lbs), but has larger 13.3" 1080p screen, runs Windows and/or Linux well, quality aluminum build, same 8GB RAM, 256GB SSD, etc. I suppose I'd prefer the new Macbook, but I'm not an OS X guy and the Asus is barely half the cost.
      - phaemon 12y ago
        How well does the Asus UX305 run Linux? I have a Macbook Air at the moment, but it has a couple of annoyances that I'd like to be rid of. However, I do like the build quality and the trackpad especially.
        hsitz 12y ago
- bentcorner 12y ago
  Personally I've tried laptop computing on public transportation, and I just can't do it with people sitting so close to me potentially looking over my shoulder. A phone I don't feel so claustrophobic, but anything tablet sized and up just makes me feel awkward.
  - copperx 12y ago
    Have you scheduled that appointment with your psychiatrist yet?
    - bentcorner 12y ago
      Uhh.. no? Seriously, should I not feel awkward sitting shoulder-to-shoulder next to a stranger while I'm browsing on my computer?
mathgeek 12y ago
The thing about Apple's lineup is that they offer both main lines: the MacBook Pro caters to users who want thin with great battery life, while the Air caters to those who prefer a lighter laptop while still maintaining good battery life.
- seanp2k2 12y ago
  Or quad-core CPUs
  - mathgeek 12y ago
    Naturally, but that's secondary in a debate about battery vs. thickness.
jimkri 12y ago
I think that it targets a lot of students. Most people want to carry around something that is light, I think this targets a lot of college students. In all of my business classes that I am currently in more than 90% of the class uses Mac's, they bring their chargers with them to class so they are set.
PhasmaFelis 12y ago
Airs are for people who need a full keyboard but don't need a lot of power, and do a lot of commuting/running around (possibly with a bag already packed with other stuff). Come to think, it's probably great for most students. Plenty fast enough to browse and write papers, and it doesn't add to the volume or burden of your already-overstuffed bookbag. It doesn't fit my needs, but that's okay.
- danieldk 12y ago
  Airs are for people who need a full keyboard but don't need a lot of power I have a early 2014 Air with a Core i7 (4650U), and it can certainly hold its own. http://www.anandtech.com/show/7113/2013-macbook-air-core-i5-4250u-vs-core-i7-4650u/2 http://www.anandtech.com/show/7113/2013-macbook-air-core-i5-...
  - tjl 12y ago
    Yep. I've been doing development work on a 2013 Air with an i7. It's not quite as good as my 2012 i7 Mac Mini with 16GB RAM for development (as that's quad-core), but it's still an excellent machine.
egypturnash 12y ago
The "thinner" is a thing that tempts me to upgrade. Thinner means lighter: I live in the middle of a very walkable area. So I walk a lot. It is great to be able to throw my computer into my bag and go out to work in the middle of a park or wherever; my computer plus my drawing tablet is only slightly more weight to haul then a hardbound sketchbook. I think the new machine would cut it down to about as much weight. It is pretty cool to go out carrying everything I need to do my job and only carry about six pounds of stuff on my shoulder. And that's including the bag I keep the laptop in, plus wallet and suchlike. Thinner means style: In general, things that are slim are also things people see as "elegant". Back around 2000 I carried a Handspring Visor Edge in my pocket rather than a clunky plastic Palm Pilot, not because it was any more powerful, but because it was a sleek little piece of shiny metal that made me happy to hold in my hand. There's a point where there is Enough Battery. I can take my 2013 Air out for a day of rambling around the city and drawing wherever I feel like stopping, and not worry about it running out of power as long as I charged it last night. I think the new Macbook has a lower estimated battery life than my current machine, so that's a downside of it.

nfoz 12y ago

And as much as I love the idea of thinness, I'm in the awkward state of shopping for a small laptop that is everything except thin. I want a keyboard with depth/action to the keypresses! It's becoming extremely hard to find. I'm not convinced that I'll love the typing experience on this Air; I've been very disappointed by recent Dell and Lenovo (yoga) keyboards. I don't mind a bit of thickness as long as it's small in the other dimensions, and light as anything.

joshuapants 12y ago
That's what I love about my Thinkpad X200s. It is small, it is light, and it isn't absurdly thin so it can have that classic Thinkpad keyboard. Unfortunately, Lenovo is moving into the super-thin form factor and they've lost my trust entirely since Superfish so I don't know where I'll be able to get this kind of laptop again.
lifeformed 12y ago
Well, if you want to go deep in the other direction, there's this crazy laptop with a mechanical keyboard: http://www.theverge.com/2015/1/5/7495073/msi-mechanical-keyboard-gt80-titan-laptop-ces http://www.theverge.com/2015/1/5/7495073/msi-mechanical-keyb...

rubbingalcohol 12y ago

> We're basically hitting the limits of thinness at this point right? And for what? A razor thin laptop with just one port seems to be really pushing towards one extreme side of the function/form continuum. I thought giving up ethernet was bad enough with the Retina Macbooks. It's very pretty, but it seems more like a toy than a serious computer. Maybe that's what Apple wants, but that's never something I would have said about the last few years of Macbook Airs.

geoelectric 12y ago
However, it is what was said about the first generation of Macbook Airs. Second generation of that got more ports. Wonder if history will repeat itself here.
toomuchtodo 12y ago
> It's very pretty, but it seems more like a toy than a serious computer. I really must disagree. I do Infrastructure by day (not just AWS, but physical colo as well), and quite a bit of microcontroller/CNC/robotics on the side/as a hobby. Nothing in the new Macbook stops me from doing this. I'll just move to using Bluetooth for my interfaces when I can, and when I can't, serial interfaces over USB-C.
ctdonath 12y ago
What do most notebook users do that requires anything more than this? It's not a do-all end-all product, it's for the hardcore commuter who specifically won't be plugging things in much at all and doesn't need sustained computational power. The MB Pro gives all your ports and lots more power in a not much bigger package, with desktop models available for serious horsepower and connectivity. I kept thinking thru the presentation "now begins the refrain 'if you're complaining about its specs, you're not the intended audience - there's another Mac model for you.'"

ploxiln 12y ago

You could compare it to an iPad, which has only a single lightning port.

zer0defex 12y ago

Battery and weight are tomorrow's battlefield unless revolutionary holography tech arrives to kick everyone's collective ass. Here's hoping!