We're still hearing reports of MacBook Air overheating woe, well after an EFI update in April that was meant to address some of those problems. While hot computers are nothing new, the MacBook Air starts shutting down cores and offloading processes when things get bad, which means users are faced with aggravating stop-start freezing until they can manage to cool the computer off -- or just put it to sleep and let it "rest." Apparently some people have traced this back to the age-old misapplied thermal grease problem, but that's hardly a solace for the average consumer trying to convince Apple to fix this thing for them. We took a MacBook Air that was acting up into the Genius Bar and Apple claimed it couldn't reproduce the problem, though we have heard cases of Apple replacing the computer for users. We'd be curious to know just how many Air users are having trouble, and if the X300 is experiencing anything similar, so let us know in the comments.

Funny concept, Lenovo -- manila envelope stuffing was just ripe for a demonstration of what all you typical MacBook Air user is going to need on hand -- but we've gotta dock a few points for the shortage of Yael Naïm in this X300 mockumercial. Let it be known that we take our fake commercials based on real commercials based on sexy product war very, very seriously around these parts. Video is after the break.

[Thanks, Lee M]

One of the most surprising things about the launch of an ultra-portable laptop dubbed "Air" by Apple wasn't its thinness but the lack of an embedded WWAN radio. No more, at least if you're not intimidated by smoldering solder and warranty violations. Jordan Bunnell has posted a step-by-step of his success at integrating a Verizon USB727 Aircard into the MacBook Air chassis thanks to the MBA's previously unused USB controllers discovered on the system board. While the EVDO signal (and speed) has appreciably degraded from its externally attached origins, Jordan is still pulling 1,400 to 1,700kbps downloads and 380kbps uploads -- something which might be improved with antenna tweaks. Regardless, those speeds are significantly faster than the 0kbps stock MBA owners experience.

[Thanks, Tom]

From what we've seen thus far, Intel's Netbook isn't exactly the prettiest piece of kit. But apparently, the unit we've been shown looks nothing like the Netbooks of the future. At the Intel Developer Forum in Shanghai, the company was showing off an upcoming design that looked awfully thin (and awfully attractive). As it stands, all we truly know about the lappie was that Linux was under the hood and the Atom will likely power things whenever it escapes the trade show floor and ships en masse. Still, if the price is right, we can certainly see this slab being desired by more than just schoolkids in various corners of the world.

[Image courtesy of Impress]

And just think -- last year you were singing Dino Dai Zovi's praises for taking control of a MacBook Pro in nine whole hours. This year, the PWN 2 OWN hacking competition at CanSecWest was over nearly as quickly as the second day started, as famed iPhone hacker Charlie Miller showed the MacBook Air on display who its father really was. Apparently Mr. Miller visited a website which contained his exploit code (presumably via a crossover cable connected to a nearby MacBook), which then "allowed him to seize control of the computer, as about 20 onlookers [read: unashamed nerds] cheered him on." Of note, contestants could only use software that came pre-loaded on the OS, so obviously it was Safari that fell victim here. Nevertheless, he was forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement that'll keep him quiet until "TippingPoint can notify the vendor," but at least he'll have $10,000 and a new laptop to cuddle with during his silent spell.

Unfortunately, Apple's MacBook Air still only arrives with a lone USB port. Save for using a dongle / hub, there's really been no other way to connect a bevy of USB peripherals to the lappie -- until now. Thanks to a curious hacker with a thing for perusing microchip documentation, he discovered that the internal ICH-8 southbridge chip actually has five low-speed and two high-speed USB controllers. After rolling up his sleeves and finding the correct pins, he was actually able to make the partially exposed MBA recognize and talk nice to a USB flash drive. We know, you USB-lovin' Air owners are already dreaming up ways to add new ports to your slim slab of aluminum, so head on down to the read link if you're ready to work (hard).

[Via TUAW]

There are a lot of reasons to pick another laptop over the MacBook Air -- especially if you're into little things like "useful ports" -- but the comparison to non-Apple hardware isn't even relevant unless you're willing to switch to OS X, right? Well, the crew over at Xbit Labs decided to even the slate and evaluate the MBA solely as a Windows machine, wiping the drive clean of Leopard and installing Vista Ultimate. Although actually getting Vista on the Air was a bit troublesome due to the lack of a built-in optical drive and the Vista installer's refusal to wipe out the OS X partition, once installed the OS performed fine, with Apple-provided drivers activating the media and brightness keys and even the multi-touch trackpad. The only major issues were over-aggressive activation of CPU power-management, which resulted in dramatic slowdowns during some tasks, and the fact that the case got fairly warm during use -- both issues MBA owners using OS X have reported. Overall, while the MBA was a solid if unspectacular Windows machine, the lack of support and nagging issues with running a pure Windows MBA mean you're probably better off going with laptop designed for Vista -- hmm, we can think of one that might spark your interest.

Pencil thin laptop? Check. Floating with drop shadow? Check. Catch phrase in Helvetica Light? You bet. "Thinnovation" may have become "The art of thin," but there's no mistaking the implication of this new Lenovo web ad for the ThinkPad X300. "No-compromise" and "Everything else is just hot air?" Them's fightin' words.

[Thanks, Amerist]

If you caught the Charlie Rose show last night, this was the gruff ruffian you found presenting. The last thing you'd expect from the usually staid, easy going interviewer. Turns out Rose had a choice to make when he tripped on a 59th street pothole in New York City: protect his newly purchased MacBook Air, or his face -- he chose the former. According to his producers, "The Macbook Air is fine, he showed us the blood stains on it this morning." Wow, in an instant he took a measurable shot to his dignity and redefined the term, "air head." Not bad.

What, you don't read the official Transportation Security Administration blog? No worries, we've got your back on this one with the TSA's official reaction to Michael Nygard's missed flight as a result of its incredulous MacBook Air inspection. TSA agents are in fact trained to look for anomalies. So along come the MBA laptop. It's new (thus, rarely seen), ridiculously thin, and lacks a mechanical hard drive and any visible ports. Requesting further inspection is exactly what Mr. Nygard should have expected. As surly and detached as TSA officers tend to be, in this case they were doing their job just as they were trained. Of course, knowing this isn't going to prevent any of us from bitching and moaning every time we have to remove our shoes now is it?

The TSA has been known to take issue with products designed in Cupertino before, but for one particular traveler, it was Apple's thinnest laptop ever that caused the latest holdup. Upon tossing his ultra-sleek slab of aluminum underneath the scanner, security managed to find enough peculiarities to remove it from the flow, pull it aside and wrangle up the owner for some questions. Apparently, the TSA employee manning the line was flabbergasted by the "lack of a drive" and the complete absence of "ports on the back," and while hordes of co-workers swarmed to investigate, the user's flight took off on schedule. Thankfully, said owner was finally allowed to pass through after some more in-the-know colleagues explained in painfully simple terms what an SSD was, but the poor jet-setter most definitely paid the price for trying to slip some of the latest and greatest under the sharp eyes of the TSA (and cutting it close on time, of course).

[Image courtesy of ABC]

Given the fact that most (all?) 3G USB modems won't even fit in the MacBook Air's ultra-cramped USB port, it's practically a foregone conclusion that some of that sex appeal is going to be forfeited when busting out a dongle to keep using your current wares. Enter the AirQueue, which is hailed as the first USB extender designed specifically to work with the MBA -- whatever that means. Truth be told, we can't figure out exactly what makes this any different than other extenders made for helping folks out in a squeeze, but at least it's only $6, right? Oh, and if you're aiming to make things extra unsightly, be sure and pick up the pictured $38 ExpressCard adapter -- your coffee shop style quotient will be tanked in no time.

[Via MacsimumNews, thanks RD]

The manilla envelope stunt pulled with the introduction of the MacBook Air is destined to go down as the stuff of marketing legend. Now, at least one happy Swede has his piece of consumer history with the receipt of the ManillaMac AirMail sleeve. It arrived with a spare red string and button and the added touch of his name hand written on the shipping label -- nice. According to Michael, his "high quality" sleeve fits the MBA "perfectly" and features "very good" stitching with white cotton innards which should keep his MBA looking just as glossy clean his new sleeve.

Really, it's ok, you can stop tipping us on the Golden Age / Bling My Thing MacBook Air. We know it's all 24k gold and has 12,000 Swarovski crystals and crap, but we'll be honest, this stuff kind of freaks us out. We don't know, it's just offensive in that way that only a triggered gag reflex can properly describe. Supposedly only twenty are being produced, and you know the story about price, and these things being out of your league if you even have to ask.

[Via Pocket-lint, thanks to everyone who sent this in]