We’ve all seen small laptops. But, as an apple fan, the new Air Book is .. well .. SEXY! ..
Ok, the good stuff .. the picture ..
It’s really, really, thin .. definitely worth checking out. Now, let’s talk about all of the in’s and outs.
First off, it’s thin, small, aluminium and as Apple claims, the world’s thinnest notebook. “Ultrathin, Ultraportable, and ultra unlike anything else” .. well, see for your self.
Wireless connectivity only.
For someone like me, this is an issue. I spend a little part of my day moving files around, sometimes very large files (disk images and so on), so the wireless access only would appear to be a speed limitation. Well, not really. From an Aussie perspective, broadband speeds here suck.
For the average user, the fastest internet connection we are going to get is 24MB (ADSL 2+, unless of course, your apartment or house is fibre enabled). Even wireless connections on 802.11g will transmit at 54MB per second (really 15 to 20 MB per second) – so it will be acceptable for almost everything except heavy file transfer.
Enter 802.11 N
With transfer speeds of up to 270 MB per second and wider network coverage, even split between 5 people, that’s 41 MB per person, per second at peak usage. – Sounding better?
But, let’s face it, most people will be surfing the internet, checking email and so on which means that even 802.11 G will be faster enough.
Less Ports – More connections.
Already, there are complaints circling the internet about the lack of ports on the the Mac Air. Audio Out, One USB 2, one Micro-DVI port – No Ethernet, Firewire or other ports.
A lot of people will find this annoying – having to connect a USB hub os you can plug in ethernet, multiple USB devices etc. Then again, will they?
When I am on the road, there is rarely any point in time when I will need to hook in 3 or 4 USB devices, several firewire devices etc. At home or in the office, it’s a different story. My office desk has multiple cable connections, hooked into one 19 inch monitor and so on. There are always cables involved.
Compact – shiny and business orientated.
For the last couple of years, Apple has been heading into the business sector for SMB’s and SME’s. With a very strong foot hold in the multimedia and design sectors, Apple’s push into main stream small business is apparent with both the release of Leopard Server (iCal DAV server and so on) and now the Air Book.
Aimed firmly at the business user on the road, impression will be made at meetings, road shows, seminars and so on. Coupled with iWork o8 (Pages, Keynote, Numbers) & now Mac Office 2008, I think it would be safe to say …
“Welcome” to main stream business.
I look forward to getting my hands on one when they are available.
More information is available here: http://www.apple.com/macbookair/
Warm Regards,
Scott Malpass
Director
Aquafruit Media.
Wired, unwired, mobile or not – the Mac Air.
We’ve all seen small laptops. But, as an apple fan, the new Air Book is .. well .. SEXY! ..
Ok, the good stuff .. the picture ..
It’s really, really, thin .. definitely worth checking out. Now, let’s talk about all of the in’s and outs.
First off, it’s thin, small, aluminium and as Apple claims, the world’s thinnest notebook. “Ultrathin, Ultraportable, and ultra unlike anything else” .. well, see for your self.
Wireless connectivity only.
For someone like me, this is an issue. I spend a little part of my day moving files around, sometimes very large files (disk images and so on), so the wireless access only would appear to be a speed limitation. Well, not really. From an Aussie perspective, broadband speeds here suck.
For the average user, the fastest internet connection we are going to get is 24MB (ADSL 2+, unless of course, your apartment or house is fibre enabled). Even wireless connections on 802.11g will transmit at 54MB per second (really 15 to 20 MB per second) – so it will be acceptable for almost everything except heavy file transfer.
Enter 802.11 N
With transfer speeds of up to 270 MB per second and wider network coverage, even split between 5 people, that’s 41 MB per person, per second at peak usage. – Sounding better?
But, let’s face it, most people will be surfing the internet, checking email and so on which means that even 802.11 G will be faster enough.
Less Ports – More connections.
Already, there are complaints circling the internet about the lack of ports on the the Mac Air. Audio Out, One USB 2, one Micro-DVI port – No Ethernet, Firewire or other ports.
A lot of people will find this annoying – having to connect a USB hub os you can plug in ethernet, multiple USB devices etc. Then again, will they?
When I am on the road, there is rarely any point in time when I will need to hook in 3 or 4 USB devices, several firewire devices etc. At home or in the office, it’s a different story. My office desk has multiple cable connections, hooked into one 19 inch monitor and so on. There are always cables involved.
Compact – shiny and business orientated.
For the last couple of years, Apple has been heading into the business sector for SMB’s and SME’s. With a very strong foot hold in the multimedia and design sectors, Apple’s push into main stream small business is apparent with both the release of Leopard Server (iCal DAV server and so on) and now the Air Book.
Aimed firmly at the business user on the road, impression will be made at meetings, road shows, seminars and so on. Coupled with iWork o8 (Pages, Keynote, Numbers) & now Mac Office 2008, I think it would be safe to say …
“Welcome” to main stream business.
I look forward to getting my hands on one when they are available.
More information is available here: http://www.apple.com/macbookair/
Warm Regards,
Scott Malpass
Director
Aquafruit Media.