What the Air has in beauty (and it is beautiful) it detracts with lack of utility. Since the release of the new Macbook, the Air looks like a complete joke to me. At $500 less to start the new Macbook is the real value and I see no reason for the Air whatsoever.
I tend to agree but I am sure that there are those people who will find the 1.5lb reduction in weight of the Air to be important enough for them to go with that rather than the standard MacBook.
Oh I agree, some will probably opt for the Air but I am willing to bet that many who would by the Air will see it as I do and opt for the Macbook with the added weight, but much better added utility. They're almost the same dimensions save for the thickness and the same basic look. I just can't see why the Air needs to exist next to the new Macbook. I predict that without some major upgrade in the Air, it will cease to be produced within the next year or so.
I agree as well. The Air is beautiful, but it's not what I need, but then again I'm not the target demographic. Actually I'm a target for the MBP, but with the enhancements to the standard MacBook, I see no real reason to spend the extra cash on the MBP since most of my real work will be done with an external monitor anyway, and I won't play games on it.
As Kelmon said, it's the WEIGHT factor. Having used ultraportables for 4+ years, I find "regular" laptops cumbersome. I'd rather use a desktop, thank you. If I need a PORTABLE machine then it needs to be light, otherwise what's the point? I don't want to lug 4+ pound thing around my home, let alone anywhere else.
Fine if you want to spend the money, don't care about not having an optical drive, only need one USB, and must have OSX, but the Air is expensive and I don't see 13" as much of an ultraportable. So you fit the target market, good on you. But I'd like to see the sales figures because I don't expect the Air to last much longer.
It should have been smaller or it should have been the Macbook, that's the way I see it.
I didn't say I got the Air. I actually bought Vaio Z which has none of those drawbacks and is amongst the fastest notebooks available regardless of weight. But the new Air which is faster and has a longer battery life and display port is a considerably better buy than the old one.
I didn't say you bought it either, Andrew. I said you fit the target market. ;)
Yes the new Air is a better value than the old Air. But FOR ME and for MY MONEY I can't see it as an option when I do eventually replace my old Powerbooks. At this point, I'm planning to go with the Macbook because I think the Air is too much for too little. And I hazard a guess that even many "mobile professionals" will agree and decide that the Air, as beautiful as it is, just isn't worth it.
The thing is, if I was looking for ultra portability and utility and not looking at the OS itself, I would opt for one of the Lenovo offerings, or perhaps the Vaio Z as you did. At least then the battery is readily swappable.
I do agree that new MacBook is a very appealing yet reasonably priced laptop and in fact I probably would have bought that one instead of Vaio Z had I known it will be released (I wanted to get a Mac machine for quite a while now). And yes the Air even in the new addition still has a limited target audience. I am happy with my purchase, though. Especially once SSD prices fall and I replace HDD with Intel's SSD.
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What the Air has in beauty (and it is beautiful) it detracts with lack of utility. Since the release of the new Macbook, the Air looks like a complete joke to me. At $500 less to start the new Macbook is the real value and I see no reason for the Air whatsoever.
Thinness, sure, whatever...
I tend to agree but I am sure that there are those people who will find the 1.5lb reduction in weight of the Air to be important enough for them to go with that rather than the standard MacBook.
Oh I agree, some will probably opt for the Air but I am willing to bet that many who would by the Air will see it as I do and opt for the Macbook with the added weight, but much better added utility. They're almost the same dimensions save for the thickness and the same basic look. I just can't see why the Air needs to exist next to the new Macbook. I predict that without some major upgrade in the Air, it will cease to be produced within the next year or so.
I agree as well. The Air is beautiful, but it's not what I need, but then again I'm not the target demographic. Actually I'm a target for the MBP, but with the enhancements to the standard MacBook, I see no real reason to spend the extra cash on the MBP since most of my real work will be done with an external monitor anyway, and I won't play games on it.
As Kelmon said, it's the WEIGHT factor. Having used ultraportables for 4+ years, I find "regular" laptops cumbersome. I'd rather use a desktop, thank you. If I need a PORTABLE machine then it needs to be light, otherwise what's the point? I don't want to lug 4+ pound thing around my home, let alone anywhere else.
Fine if you want to spend the money, don't care about not having an optical drive, only need one USB, and must have OSX, but the Air is expensive and I don't see 13" as much of an ultraportable. So you fit the target market, good on you. But I'd like to see the sales figures because I don't expect the Air to last much longer.
It should have been smaller or it should have been the Macbook, that's the way I see it.
I didn't say I got the Air. I actually bought Vaio Z which has none of those drawbacks and is amongst the fastest notebooks available regardless of weight. But the new Air which is faster and has a longer battery life and display port is a considerably better buy than the old one.
I didn't say you bought it either, Andrew. I said you fit the target market. ;)
Yes the new Air is a better value than the old Air. But FOR ME and for MY MONEY I can't see it as an option when I do eventually replace my old Powerbooks. At this point, I'm planning to go with the Macbook because I think the Air is too much for too little. And I hazard a guess that even many "mobile professionals" will agree and decide that the Air, as beautiful as it is, just isn't worth it.
The thing is, if I was looking for ultra portability and utility and not looking at the OS itself, I would opt for one of the Lenovo offerings, or perhaps the Vaio Z as you did. At least then the battery is readily swappable.
I do agree that new MacBook is a very appealing yet reasonably priced laptop and in fact I probably would have bought that one instead of Vaio Z had I known it will be released (I wanted to get a Mac machine for quite a while now). And yes the Air even in the new addition still has a limited target audience. I am happy with my purchase, though. Especially once SSD prices fall and I replace HDD with Intel's SSD.