MacBook Air: First impressions

We've begun taking a first look at the MacBook Air, Apple's super-slim laptop. (The Air starts at $1,799 for the hard-drive version. There's also a version with a solid-state drive that starts at $3,098.)

One thing we already know: The Air is as sleek in person as it looked coming out of that interoffice envelope in Apple's ads. You can watch our video on the MacBook Air for a closer look and to learn more about what our testers have discovered so far about Apple's hot new portable computer.

[Feb. 11, 2008 UPDATE: You can also watch the video using the player embedded within this post. —Ed.]

But what we don't entirely yet know, because we're still running tests on the hard-drive version, is how much you sacrifice for such a dramatic slim-down. Still, here are some preliminary thoughts based on what we've seen so far:

• The design is stylish, resulting in a very thin, light laptop. But some features are sacrificed, including an optical drive (although you can add an external one).


• The large touchpad features multi-touch capabilities like those found on the iPhone and iPod Touch.


• The display backlight is LED, making it brighter but less power-hungry than other MacBooks. It also has a wider viewing angle.


• The Air stays cooler than other Mac laptops we've tested.

For more information on the Air, look for our First Look on ConsumerReports.org next week, followed by more-detailed test results when we included Apple's new portable in our complete Ratings of laptop computers (available to subscribers).

[Feb. 26, 2008 UPDATE: We've completed our first round of tests. You'll find more details in our free report, "Apple MacBook Air: First Look" on ConsumerReports.org. —Ed.]

—Donna Tapellini

Comments

[james braselton]

HI THERE I AM NEED NEW LAP TOP FOR GAMING I HAVE A G4 WITH 32 MB GRAPHICS 512 MB RAM AND A 60 GB HARD DRIVE AT 5,400 RPMS I DIFENTLY LOOKING AT 3 MODELS WITH SOLID STATE DRIVES MAC BOOK AIR WITH 64 GB SSD A SONY Z WITH 4 GB RAM 256 MB GRAPHICS AND 128 GB SSD THE DELL XPS WILL HAVE 4 GB RAM 256 MB GRAPHICS AND 128 GB SSD DRIVE.

[Kimberly]

I am intrigued by the MacBook Air, but it looks like I may need to wait an interation until Apple gives those of us who travel just a couple more features...

No microphone input? I NEED my Skype when I travel! I already have purchased my headset and expect it to work with whichever laptop I buy next.

Also, many hotels still have rooms that require hardwire connections for internet access - so I really NEED an ethernet port.

I am impressed by the keypad features and think that will be a big improvement over the touchpad I use now.

I am seduced by the lightweight aspect of this product (it is true that it has a helium effect when put into a backpack bursting with everything needed for a weeklong + trip, right? ;)

Please, Apple, help me out here! I'll carry a few more ounces to get just a little bit more functionality. I am a PC user willing to switch if I can get what I need.

[Paul Eng]

We will be posting more details about our tests on the MacBook Air on ConsumerReports.org soon. And we are taking a closer look at the MacBook Air with the 64-gigabyte "solid-state drive" (instead of the conventional 80-gigabyte hard drive).

I can't say what our lab techs have found out about either or both machines just yet. But, I will weigh in a bit and say that the MacBook Air isn't THE FIRST ultra-slim, super-light, consumer notebook with a flash or solid-state drive we've tested. That honor goes to the Sony Vaio VGN-TZ191N/XC. Check out our First Look at that notebook:

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/electronics-computers/computers/computer/laptop-computers/sony-vaio-first-look-9-07/overview/sony-vaio-vgn-tz191nxc-ov.htm

http://tinyurl.com/ywn4o7

-- Paul Eng, Web Sr. Ed., Electronics

[Bill Walle]

I got my Apple MacBook Air (80GB version) last week and have been extremely happy with the performance, feel and overall utility. I don't recommend this as a primary system (I have a Dell XPS) but this makes an excellent secondary mobile solution. Lacking a drive is a plus - it makes for a smaller notebook (and I download software from web so don't need a drive but can use a PC drive over my home network). Screen is crisp and bright Couldn't ask for a better ultra-light portable.

[Tom Barber]

Among the things that I would note right away are:

1. It does not have a user-replacable battery. In addition to the obvious implication, it also means that for longer flights, carrying a spare battery is not an option. Although, I expect that it will not be long before external battery backs are offered (by independent sources as well as by Apple themselves) which will connect to the Air in like manner as the power supply.

2. The keyboard has the same inferior feel as most of the other MacBooks and the new iMac. The travel is short, and the mechanism of the key, from the standpoint of storing and releasing energy, is very cheap. The upper surface of the keys is also flat, which makes it difficult to keep your fingers centered on the keys, but in this respect, it is not worse than some other brands such as Sony.

3. The screen has a reflective, glossy surface. Many people like this because they perceive better contrast. Many other people have a strong dislike for the reflections that you see on the display. The MacBook Pro has a non-glossy display, but the MacBook has a glossy display. The new iMac also has a glossy display (and a really bad keyboard).

4. The Apple operating system is enormously superior to Windows due to having been developed from one of the better variants of UNIX, but one of the faults that I have found with it, is that there is no concept of "system fonts" as there is with Windows. Individual applications sometimes allow you to select font sizes or vary the magnification that you use to view a document, but this does not have any effect on the font size used for things that are under the control of the OS, such as the text descriptions of the menu items and so forth. The only way to change that is to change the screen resolution, which has a more far-reaching effect and is not an acceptable means by which to increase the displayed size of text that appears on the menus and in the windows that are under the control of the OS. This is a very significant shortcoming of the MAC OS, and I struggle to understand why Apple has not long ago addressed this very real issue.

I would like for Consumer Reports to be aware of these items and include consideration of these items whenever they do reviews of this computer, or any other computer for that matter. But as regards this specific computer, I would suggest that CR try and do a thorough assessment of two things in particular:

1. How much faster, quantitatively measured and expressed, is the version with the flash memory drive in lieu of the traditional hard drive, for typical applications?

2. Is the large touchpad with the accompanying "gestures" good enough such that people who are accustomed to using a mouse, but who are willing to practice and learn to use it, are likely to find that it eliminates the need for a mouse?

[George]

Actually, Dell did beat Apple to market with SSD

[Shelby E Rogers]

If it gets bent or flexed does it still run?

[Graham Strong]

...but then if they waited for SSD to become affordable, HP or someone else would have been them to it.

Besides, since when does Apple compete on price? lol

~Graham

[P. Hraber]

I hope you will evaluate whether the solid-state storage option is truly worth such a greater cost! Thank you.

[Bob Doherty]

This machine looks like a niche product-designed for the traveling professional(journalist, sales people, etc.). Knowing Apple, I would guess they also are trying to prove that you don't NEED a disk drive, as they did on the old floppies that disappeared several years later. Too bad they released it before Solid State Drives became affordable. Making the SSD standard would have put the machine in the iPhone league.