# Apple MacBook Air: Full Review by PC Magazine



## aryayush (Jan 17, 2008)

*Apple MacBook Air*

By Cisco Cheng
Browsing through Apple's growing list of products, you'll find there's no shortage of lightweight yet still powerful laptops that rival, and to some extent surpass, many of their Windows counterparts. For instance, there are the MacBook Pro 17-inch and 15-inch laptops, arguably the lightest in their respective categories. But for quite some time now, Apple fanatics have been calling for something that can actually be classified as an ultraportable, something that breaks the 4-pound barrier. Finally, Apple has answered with the Apple MacBook Air ($1,799 direct).
*img266.imageshack.us/img266/6743/overviewbigairone200801ui1.png​
The MacBook Air is a new class of laptop, even though it has a design similar to its MacBook Pro brethren. What makes this ultraportable different from the MacBook Pros and everything else in the industry is its thickness, or rather, lack thereof. It measures 0.76 inches deep at the back, tapering down to 0.16 inches as you move toward the front bezel. That's simply unheard of for a 13-inch ultraportable. The MacBook Air weighs in at 3 pounds and includes features that the rumor sites had long been predicting, including a 13-inch LED screen and an optional SSD drive. It lacks an internal optical drive, and the (very) limited number of connectivity ports will raise eyebrows, but the $1,799 starting price, standard-voltage processing parts, and full-size keyboard make up for its few limitations.

It goes without saying that the MacBook Air's design is absolutely gorgeous. The system is basically the length and width of the MacBook 13-inch, except it's more than 25 percent thinner in the back and almost 90 percent thinner near the front bezel. Although a 3-pound chassis is certainly nothing to sniff at, the light weight would have been more impressive if Apple had managed to integrate an optical drive. The Panasonic Toughbook W4, the Sony VAIO VGN-TZ150N, and the Toshiba Portege R500 all integrate optical drives at 2.7 to 2.9 pounds. None of these, however, even comes close to the MacBook Air's screen size. Its 13-inch LED screen is by far the largest on a 3-pound laptop and is just as bright as a MacBook Pro 15-inch(LED) when the two are next to one another. By contrast, the Panasonic W4 and Toshiba R500 offer 12-inch screens.

Going with a 13-inch screen lets Apple easily integrate a full-size keyboard, which is nearly identical to the one found on the MacBook 13-inch. The only differences are that the Air keyboard is illuminated, a feature brought over from the MacBook Pros, and it's black. I'm a little skeptical about the color scheme. The black keyboard may not be a complete design faux pas, but a white keyboard would blend in better with the aluminum chassis. Perhaps Apple chose to accentuate the keyboard as an aid to the user, along with the backlighting, in dimmer surroundings, or maybe the company wanted to move away from the design of the MacBook 13-inch. In general, the raised keyboard is comfortable to type on. It's larger than the raised-keyboard of the Sony TZ150N, which is only 91 percent of full size. The Portégé R500 and ToughBook W4 have traditional-looking, full-size keyboards. Still, I think the best keyboard belongs to the Lenovo ThinkPad X61.

The aluminum casing is completely recyclable, similar to that of the MacBook Pros. You won't find a trace of arsenic and mercury on the display or on the display's glass screen. All of the Apple-designed circuit boards are also PVC- and BFR (Bromide)-free. Apple is also touting the fact that, in addition to being rid of all these hazardous materials, the MacBook Air is Energy Star 4.0–certified and EPEAT silver–compliant. Read more...

[Via PC Magazine]


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## gxsaurav (Jan 17, 2008)

Comparing it to few other ultra portables. The good thing about Macbook Air is that it's thin, that's it.

This assuming that Macbook Air is purchased with necessary perripherals such as external Optical Drive, LAN Adapter & one USB HUB. Total cost = 

Sony Vaio *VGN SZ740 *Ultraportable.

*img139.imageshack.us/img139/863/snag0000yd4.jpg



*img147.imageshack.us/img147/2668/snag0001hx1.jpg

So, which is a better option??????? Macbook air at such high cost, no features  & Mono speakers but thin or Sony Vaio at low cost, same screen size but 1 inch thicker then Macbook air & same in weight.


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## Pathik (Jan 17, 2008)

None. EEE PC FTW!


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## gxsaurav (Jan 17, 2008)

Arya was touting that macbook Air is meant for lite works like checking your e-mails on the go, or showing a presentation to someone or listening to music while in the car (iPod anyone ) or watching pictures & checking his articles on Macrumors....but hey if these are the things a person is supposed to use Macbook Air for then why not instead buy Asys EEE PC instead for 40% the cost of MBA.

Oh wait...EEE Pc isn't from Apple, but if it was the other way arround & Asus relesing MBA & apple releasing EEE PC then according to him EEE PC would have been the best


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## alsiladka (Jan 17, 2008)

Comparing the two, i say Sony wins. 

It is Apple in the looks department, nothing in the world beats it right now. But just compare the Processor, Ram, Fingerprint reader, Optical Drive, HD. 

And with the price, i am sorry, i am no ambani to be able to buy gadgets just to show off.


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## gxsaurav (Jan 17, 2008)

I forgot to add. Sony Vaio is made of Carbon Fiber while Macbook Air is made of aluminum. 

Scientifically Carbon Fiber is stronger then similarly thick Aluminum


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## aryayush (Jan 17, 2008)

gx_saurav said:


> Comparing it to few other ultra portables. The good thing about Macbook Air is that it's thin, that's it.


Which, I might add, is the _whole_ point of an ultra-portable.



gx_saurav said:


> This assuming that Macbook Air is purchased with necessary perripherals such as external Optical Drive, LAN Adapter & one USB HUB.


Yeah, smooth move. Include a lot of accessories to make it more pricey than the competing notebook and then cry foul about it being more expensive. Classy! 



gx_saurav said:


> Macbook air at such high cost


It costs just $20 more than the Sony notebook you compared it to.



gx_saurav said:


> no features


Yeah, right!



gx_saurav said:


> Mono speakers


Sensible people use headphones when listening to something in public, which is where you are supposed to use ultra-portable notebooks. It's like crying foul about the iPod not having speakers.



gx_saurav said:


> but thin


_Very_ thin.



gx_saurav said:


> Sony Viao at low cost


$20 low.



gx_saurav said:


> same screen size


Not with LED backlighting or automatic brightness control based on the ambient lighting conditions.



gx_saurav said:


> but 1 inch thicker then Macbook air


One _whole_ inch thicker than the MacBook Air! Even my MacBook Pro is thinner than that Sony Viao. The Sony hardly even competes with the MacBook Air because it is not an ultra-portable.

Apart from the ones already pointed out above, these are the other things this Sony notebook still lacks:
1. A backlit keyboard;
2. MagSafe power connecter and
3. Mac OS X.

So, here's the answer to your question:



gx_saurav said:


> So, which is a better option???????


The Apple MacBook Air, if you need an ultra-portable notebook. The second model of the MacBook, if you need a SuperDrive, ethernet ports, et all.


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## gxsaurav (Jan 17, 2008)

aryayush said:
			
		

> Yeah, smooth move. Include a lot of accessories to make it more pricey than the competing notebook and then cry foul about it being more expensive. Classy!


 
Base price of Macbook air $1800.
Price of pimped up Sony Vaio SZ mentioned above $ 1779

Difference = With Sony you get everything at low cost which you won't get at Macbook Air base such as optical drive, onboard LAN etc etc.



> It costs just $20 more than the Sony notebook you compared it to.


 
And provides 30% of the features of Sony *gigasmilies.googlepages.com/24.gif 


> $20 low.


 
Either you except that Macbook Air is not value for money & Apple is extorting money or be quite. Everyone can see which notebook is better...



> Not with LED backlighting or automatic brightness control based on the ambient lighting conditions.


 
LED Backlit = Yes

Ambiant Brightness control = Don't know.



> One _whole_ inch thicker than the MacBook Air! Even my MacBook Pro is thinner than that Sony Viao. The Sony hardly even competes with the MacBook Air because it is not an ultra-portable.


 
I was not able to find the dimension info of this laptop so I just wrote it. Assume as u like...u r free.



> 1. A backlit keyboard;


 
I agree, yeah... *gigasmilies.googlepages.com/2.gif


> 2. MagSafe power connecter


 
Oh comon, due to one stupid Apple patent it cannot be given in Sony do this point is irrelevent.



> 3. Mac OS X.


 
*gigasmilies.googlepages.com/24.gif That's a good thing....

So, here's the answer to your question:


> The Apple MacBook Air, if you need an ultra-portable notebook.


 
Which is of no practical use.



> The second model of the MacBook, if you need a SuperDrive, ethernet ports, et all.


 
a better logical buy then Macbook Air.


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## iMav (Jan 17, 2008)

@arya: all the points u mentioned in the post abv gx have just 1 answer:

save it; the air sucks big time when it comes to features compared to the *only* competition it has. 1 inch thicker i can compromise for a dvd drive to watch my latest 24 season dvd i bought from planet m yesterday


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## aryayush (Jan 18, 2008)

You're not compromising anything. You're just not buying an ultra-portable and you probably don't need one, so you're making a good choice.

Stop bashing the MacBook Air though because it is not what _you_ want it to be. It is the best at what _it_ wants to be and there are a lot of people who were eagerly waiting for Apple to launch this product and it's perfect for them.

Apple already has those other products you are comparing it to and they come with SuperDrives and ethernet ports and whatnot. It makes little sense to have two different computers with same configurations in the line-up with the name being the only differentiation.

I have no idea why such a simple little concept is so extremely difficult for you to grasp.

Here's my last attempt, a simple analogy, to try to make it clear to you. Argue all you want to after this post, point out mistakes in this analogy, do whatever you want. Just be aware that if this does not make the concept clear to you, I give up. Ignorance truly is bliss.

There are three types of cellular phones - the really simple ones that are usually small and can take some rough handling, the medium grade ones that try to be a lot of things to a lot of people but are not the best at most of the things they do and the really large phones that have a truckload of features and whatnot.

If you pick up a phone from the first category and start whining that it does not have a 3.0 MP camera, there's not much I can do to help you.

Similarly, the MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro are three different products that seek to serve three different markets. Most people in India are simply not the target market for the MacBook Air because the concept of having a secondary computer is unheard of in our country.

I also know that the phone analogy is not exactly the same as the notebook case. With notebooks, making it small beyond a certain limit actually means spending more because you're going where no one else has ever gone before. When you're asking Intel to make a custom processor that is 60% smaller than the currently available processors and designing a motherboard the size of a pencil, you actually have to spend more to get there.

Add to that the premium that companies add when they launch a brand new product that they know will be in high demand. Nokia does it too with highly anticipated phone models. All sensible companies will do it. They are out to make profits, not serve you. Eventually the prices will go down but if you want to be on the cutting edge of technology, you have to bite the bullet and pluck out that wallet. If you don't want to do that, fine. But stop ridiculing stuff when it is not appropriate and clearly undeserved. I know it is like second nature for you to bash Apple but you should give credit where it is due every once in a while.

I don't mind bashing Apple when they deserve it, why shouldn't you do the opposite where it is justified. Just some food for thought. If possible, try to mull over it for a few minutes.

If you still want to continue with the pointless arguments - by all means, feel free to continue. It keeps the thread at the top of the reviews section and more people get to read PC Magazine's glowing review of the MacBook Air.


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## gxsaurav (Jan 18, 2008)

> Stop bashing the MacBook Air though because it is not what _you_ want it to be. It is the best at what _it_ wants to be and there are a lot of people who were eagerly waiting for Apple to launch this product and it's perfect for them.


 
From what we read all over the net, other then macboys not many people are interested.


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## iMav (Jan 18, 2008)

ok heres a simpler analogy:

there is a product already in the market that has more capabilities than the 1 u r launching the only thing u add to it is that u are making it thinner and compromising on certain features with an excuse that u are making it thinner

now how about making ur existing product which is more successful and has been in the market y not upgrade it; make it lighter and make it thinner to an extent  give the mbp a sexy black carbon body (sexier than halle berry) make it lighter; make it more powerful .... the only problem with that is then the keynote becomes lame and boring

i hope u get my point


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## praka123 (Jan 18, 2008)

well I'll take a tata nano rather than wasting $2500+  for a plastic board  think man!
I can see 2 or 3 exceptions here may be


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## aryayush (Jan 18, 2008)

It _definitely_ isn't for Linux users.



iMav said:


> ok heres a simpler analogy:
> 
> there is a product already in the market that has more capabilities than the 1 u r launching the only thing u add to it is that u are making it thinner and compromising on certain features with an excuse that u are making it thinner
> 
> ...


No matter what you do, you cannot squeeze a MacBook Pro into an ultra-portable form factor. The MacBook Pro will be updated when it's time and the cycle will continue.

The Air, for the last time, has a completely different target market. I'll explain the market as an answer to gx_saurav's comment.



gx_saurav said:


> From what we read all over the net, other then macboys not many people are interested.


Maybe. The target market for the MacBook Air are people who:
1. Already own a primary computer, preferably a desktop and that too, a Mac;
2. Frequently need to carry around a notebook all the time;
3. Aren't tightwads; and
4. Appreciate good design.

Of course, most of them are "macboys" because people would only consider buying a MacBook Air if they already appreciate Apple products. It's isn't the computer for the switcher.


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## iMav (Jan 18, 2008)

i think ur 4 points have been answered more than once in of the million threads started by  you on mac expo or prodcuts shown at the expo


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## ring_wraith (Jan 18, 2008)

who cares? look at it's so purdy!


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## kumarmohit (Jan 18, 2008)

praka123 said:


> well I'll take a tata nano rather than wasting $2500+  for a plastic board  think man!
> I can see 2 or 3 exceptions here may be


 This is the second time after DRM that I agree with you


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## napster007 (Jan 18, 2008)

@gx_saurav : Would i be worng if i said :  *APPLE SUCKS BIG TIME!!!*


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## gxsaurav (Jan 18, 2008)

Yes, if u say Apple's hardware design sux then u r wrong...

If u say Apple's software backend & prices & restrictions sux then u r right.


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## utsav (Jan 19, 2008)

I know a guy from our forum who runs xp ,vista ,ubuntu ,mac os x in his PC. its true.i want a ipod iphone imac macbook pro to reveal his name


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## Pathik (Jan 19, 2008)

^^ a guy?? I know atleast 4 such guys who do/did. There r many.


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## iMav (Jan 19, 2008)

utsav said:


> I know a guy from our forum who runs xp ,vista ,ubuntu ,mac os x in his PC. its true.


 hmmm i too know that guy and i know him pretty well


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## aryayush (Jan 19, 2008)

praka123 said:


> well I'll take a tata nano rather than wasting $2500+  for a plastic board  think man!
> I can see 2 or 3 exceptions here may be


FWIW, it costs $1,799.


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## phreak0ut (Jan 19, 2008)

One thing what I really like about Apple is that they always come out with revolutionary design. I'm not into their products, so can't comment on their performance. I really love the sleekness of this product. It's the price which really matters to me. If they try to cut down the prices a bit more, I think more people would buy their products. That's just my opinion. Fanboys, you can go ahead with whatever you were saying


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## utsav (Jan 19, 2008)

aryayush said:


> FWIW, it costs $1,799.



but how long can u liv widout a odd.
it is one of the most important part of any lappy or desky


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## abhinandh (Jan 19, 2008)

i feel that there is no practicality in the macbook air.i was eagerly waitin for a macbook upgrade(the combo drive) and now apple comes and launches a product that has no odd!!!


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## Zeeshan Quireshi (Jan 19, 2008)

iMav said:


> hmmm i too know that guy and i know him pretty well


ANd i know the guy who was the first to do it on this forum


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## iMav (Jan 19, 2008)

Zeeshan Quireshi said:


> ANd i know the guy who was the first to do it on this forum


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## napster007 (Jan 19, 2008)

gx_saurav said:


> Yes, if u say Apple's hardware design sux then u r wrong...
> 
> If u say Apple's software backend & prices & restrictions sux then u r right.



I personally have nothing against their hardware.(Though i still think that the air is a copy of the Asus EEE)

as far as the software goes.........well there's nothing more to say than what i already have.


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## aryayush (Jan 19, 2008)

napster007 said:


> i still think that the air is a copy of the Asus EEE


You're a freaking idiot, that's what you are. Ha! Ha! Ha! I can't believe you just said that.  

Another gx_saurav/iMav in the making...


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## amitava82 (Jan 20, 2008)

napster007 said:


> I personally have nothing against their hardware.(*Though i still think that the air is a copy of the Asus EEE*)


Seriously dude, you should remove that part if you don't wanna make yourself a laughing matter..


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## praka123 (Jan 20, 2008)

*Macbook similar to asus EEE pc?*  ROFL!


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## napster007 (Jan 20, 2008)

aryayush said:


> Another gx_saurav/iMav in the making...



if ur calling them idiots too......... Well thank you atleast now i know the ppl who are as idiotic as me.

 i bet my life you won't be able to find anyone with ur sky shooting level of arrogance and stupidity


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## koolbluez (Mar 9, 2008)

*www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.engadget.com/media/2008/02/lenovo-x300-vs-macbook-air-440.jpg​


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## Ankur Gupta (Mar 9, 2008)

^^You forgot to mention that ThinkPad X300 also has built-in GPS and WWAN.
The Macbook Air beats X300 in the processor department only.


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## mail2and (Mar 9, 2008)

I saw a Macbook Air in class the other day. It was so thin! Couldn't believe my eyes. Couldn't care less about the Leveraged Buyout (LBO) lecture after that. 

Btw, on campus here: It's Macbook > Toshiba > Dell > Lenovo. Out of 10 laptops in the library, I see atleast 4 Macbooks (with the odd Pro thrown in). Though I love the keyboards on the Lenovo laptops. They're the best keyboards I've ever used.


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## ring_wraith (Mar 9, 2008)

aryayush said:


> You're a freaking idiot, that's what you are. Ha! Ha! Ha! I can't believe you just said that.
> 
> Another gx_saurav/iMav in the making...



A rare outburst from Aayush. Unnecessarily rude, no? We were having a civil discussion here....

And save it saurav, MBA is for fanboys, and people who like to show off. Just like the iPod... the Creative Zen M threw the iPod out the window in every aspect, but fanboys and brand value just carried it to what it is today.

Let the fanboys and noobs go get their MBAs while we revel in the ability of being able to read DVDs.....

and @Aayush... If you're not a Mac fanboy, how come this is the only review from PC world [or anywhere else AFAIK]? Also, this whole thread is kind of pointless, considering there are several products out there that have several reviews. Are you beginning to secretly enjoy these flame wars?


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## Gigacore (Mar 9, 2008)

fanboys sucks 

what else can i say?


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## aryayush (Mar 9, 2008)

Ankur Gupta said:


> ^^You forgot to mention that ThinkPad X300 also has built-in GPS and WWAN.
> The Macbook Air beats X300 in the processor department only.


You forgot the fact that it is cheaper, thinner, has a better keyboard and has Mac OS X and the iLife suite. Not to mention the fact that it is the world's sexiest notebook.

*Lenovo X300 Completely Rules the MacBook Air. Or Does It?*



ring_wraith said:


> A rare outburst from Aayush. Unnecessarily rude, no? We were having a civil discussion here....


Yeah, well, when someone alleges that something like the MacBook Air is a _copy_ of something like the Asus Eee, there's no much you can do to stop the knee-jerk outrage, specially in light of the already mind-numbingly stupid discussion you were already having with said person.



ring_wraith said:


> And save it saurav, MBA is for fanboys, and people who like to show off. Just like the iPod... the Creative Zen M threw the iPod out the window in every aspect, but fanboys and brand value just carried it to what it is today.
> 
> Let the fanboys and noobs go get their MBAs while we revel in the ability of being able to read DVDs.....


Oh, how wrong I was about you! Seriously, when I used to read your posts, I had a mindset that I'm reading a Windows user's posts who isn't a member of the herd. Now I'm not quite so sure...

Only the most ignorant people would fault the MacBook Air for not having an optical drive. It's an ultra-portable, for Christ's sake, and a damn good one at that. The best, in fact. An ultra-portable form factor can only be achieved by forgoing the optical drive. Look at the X300. It's thinnest post is as thick as the thickest point on the Air and the base model, even at $2,700 _does not_ ship with an optical drive.

If you want an optical drive, get a MacBook. What's stopping you! The Air is for people who want an ultra-portable for surfing the web on the go, writing an article or two, reading an ebook and other such light tasks.

The only thing you can fault it for is the price and even that wouldn't really be justified because almost every (so called) ultra-portable I've seen till date has had a price point similar to the MBA's while having poorer specifications, smaller screens and cramped keyboards (not to mention the ugliness and the crappy software).

How can a person, who I thought was one of the rational ones around these parts, question an ultra-portable notebook's lack of an optical drive! I didn't see anyone complaining about it when mobile phones and tablet PCs ditched them. Heck, I didn't see anyone complaining even when other companies, like Sony, ditched them for their ultra-portables. You guys just seem to have some sort of problem with Apple and everything they make.



ring_wraith said:


> and @Aayush... If you're not a Mac fanboy


I am, and a self-confessed one at that. But that doesn't stop me criticising the company when they deserve it. Opinions differ, of course, and you might not feel they deserve it when I do and vice-versa.



ring_wraith said:


> how come this is the only review from PC world [or anywhere else AFAIK]?


I posted the first review I spotted. It's not my job to keep posting all the reviews. I did that only once when Leopard was released because I was completely enamoured with the operating system.

Look around. You might find a few negative reviews but most of them are overwhelmingly positive.



ring_wraith said:


> Are you beginning to secretly enjoy these flame wars?


I did, when I was under the delusion that I'm getting through to some people, because I wanted more people to see the light like I had. But not anymore.


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## iMav (Mar 9, 2008)

dude from when did being ultra-portable mean no optical drives


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## aryayush (Mar 9, 2008)

Ever since the term was coined.


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## iMav (Mar 9, 2008)

aryayush said:


> Ever since the term was coined.


 correction. Ever since ur demi-god steve jobs introduced the MBA


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## napster007 (Mar 9, 2008)

aryayush said:


> The Air is for people who want an ultra-portable for surfing the web on the go, writing an article or two, reading an ebook and other such light tasks.



YES!!! and i'm such an idiot that i'll spend 3100$ for a stupid "PIECE OF DOG CRAP" for ur so called "LIGHT TASKS" where as i can get the asus for the same rate which is only so much better. But Noooo!! i'm an idiot so i'll spend more just for the " great looks" so i cant flaunt the stylish body which just a piece of junk from inside. 





> But that doesn't stop me criticising the company when they deserve it.



YEAH!!  i'd like to see that happen!!! 



> It's not my job to keep posting all the reviews.



so please dont. we all will know when Apple takes out another so called "revolutionary product"


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