MacBook Air doesn't have a user-replaceable battery
By Nilay Patel 
posted January 15th 2008 2:38PM
posted January 15th 2008 2:38PM
posted January 15th 2008 2:38PM
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"taoprophet420 @ Jan 15th 2008 2:52PM
It has a usb ethernet adapter for $29.99. I still dont see all the fuss about not having the port built in, must people at homes have wireless networks. I do see the battery as a killer for me buying. "
Actually most people are still running wired networks..now maybe Apple's purchaser base being the overconfident and overly rich bunch that they typically are (given the price of Apple hardware) mostly have wireless but I doubt even that.
lol
This is from the MBA FAQ relating to battery replacement:
"Will the data on my MacBook Air be preserved?
Don't rely on it being preserved. Many repairs require Apple to replace or reformat the hard disk, which will result in the loss of your data. Please make sure you back up your data on a regular basis to minimize your data loss. .Mac members may download and use Backup to save an archive of their data to a series of CDs."
Haha, pull that off with no optical drive! And having an external drive defeats the "thin and light" concept. It's like selling a motherboard as a super thin computer, just add an external screen, external keyboard, external hard drive, external sound & video card, etc... until it looks like a tribute to his noodly appendage.
I remember similar outrage when the imac first came out in 98 (when Apple dropped the floppy drive and adopted USB as a standard). The imac was ahead of it's time and I'll stick my neck out and say the MBA is too.
The non-replaceable battery does seem like a problem but the only time I have EVER removed my MBP battery was to upgrade the RAM.
Not having Ethernet is nuts though, I understand the Job's brief about the MBA being built for wireless but most offices don't have wireless for security issues (despite what is claimed about wi-fi).
I think the MBA is simply a mass produced concept computer and Apple have historically been good at setting the course of things to come (Newton excepted). Bet the next revision gets a port or two extra though!
So the battery is built in, that's just the way it is. It's impossible to compare to other machines that have removable battery because there is no other machine that compares.
Who needs a optical drive on the move, I'm sure I dont. I remember the fuss when apple stopped fitting floppy drives and when they stopped fitting serial ports, it's called evolutiuon.
For sure I will be buying one as soon as I can, for me there is no doubt that apple hardware is the best in the business and it's not a question of "can I get something better for less money" because really this is the best in it's class.
In a couple of years most notebooks will lack an optical drive and many more will have built in batteries.
No in a few month they will release wireless power capability: no DVD drive, and no battery!
I'm a big apple fan (I currently own a first gen imac g3, an iBook G4, core duo 1.83 ghz imac, and a core 2 duo macbook, and I was really expecting to be blown away by the macbook. But I really have to say I'm disappointed by Apple's Form before function philosophy on this one. I can understand maybe that some of the people who would want one wouldn't need all the features some of us can't do without, but for 1800+ dollars? I mean come on. wtf
I know it gets deployed enough, but I think this one needs the "Picard with head in hand" pic. Seriously.
Chebwa,
You kill me. "Form follows function, Apple, and you really missed that point." Wow, brilliant, you and the guy who posted that should go have a circle jerk. The only problem is that's exactly what Apple did. The function they were after was powerful performance and large storage capacity in a mini laptop weighing less than 4 pounds. Mission f*ckin accomplished. Had their mission been to enable rapid battery switchery as fast as you can cry to a Promise Ring song, then you'd be right and the Air would be a failure. But it's not. It's innovation. What did you ever innovate besides wearing a belt and suspenders at the same time?
Dont you all folks know? Steve (Jobs) told me its gonna be a 'throwaway laptop' when the battery dies, throw it away, just like kleenex, or once only used disposable camera. Soon you will be able to buy it at KMart.
I think it has a niche for folks who are into fashionable, name-brand, jewelry: wear it around the neck to show off!
Click http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair/service/battery/ for the cost of servicing MacBook Air's battery.
NO WAY I will buy this machine after having read this. A laptop without user-replaceable battery? Thai is just plain stupid.
Details on MacBook Air Battery replacement costs and terms at
http://www.apple.com/support/macbookair/service/battery/
I'm definitely not buying this pig in a poke.