[::maroma::]

Originally Posted by ort888 

We also said the Apple TV and Cube wouldn't sell.

I'm sure this thing will sell well enough... I just have a feeling that for every MacBook Air that is sold, there will be 10 Macbooks and 10 MacBook Pros moved out the door.

The person who said that this is the perfect computer for the man who wants something sleek to take to meetings is right. That's one of the few markets I think this will fit into.

No one in is going to make this their only computer.

This device is a supplementary system. A novelty and status symbol more then anything else.

I didn't mean to underestimate your prediction skills personally, I was making a generalization.

But also, the MBA is the perfect singular computer for my girlfriend (as well as me, but I would want a desktop to go with it). My girlfriend loves Macs, she basically browses the web, emails, IMs, and music/movies/tv shows/photos. She got the 12" Powerbook because it was so small. I don't think she's a unique type of user. I think there are lots of users out there that aren't anywhere near Powerusers where this thing would fill their needs. Its not just business users, or on-the-go media people, its also for the people who are between grandma and a geek.

I don't know, I think that when most people (not specifically callin you out) think about how something will sell they think of what they experience in their lives but fail to realize that there is a massive market out there that doesn't really make themselves known. I think that the MBA is a product that will pave a new direction for Apple's portable lineup. This is a great introduction, in my opinion. Its on par with the competition price-wise, yet has some great features that they don't have.

As I said, I would buy one today if I had the cash. And since the announcement I've talked with 2 other people who would also buy this today if they could. I think the market is there, but its not the massive market that "normal" laptops are in.

[Mastrap]

Originally Posted by Chuckit 

It's just that subnotebooks are generally not what a discerning buyer is looking for.

I'd like to know how you came to that conclusion. I used to work on the Sony VAIO account and the subnotebooks were targeted to the most discerning customers we could find.

The MBA is a secondary computer. I could see myself taking one to a meeting or on a flight. I could see my wife using it as her main computer and loving it. You need to understand the market before looking for faults.

[0157988944]

Anybody realize what a piece of CRAP the Time Capsule is? Apple allowed for External Drives connected to Airport Base Station to be backed up to in Leopard dev builds. Then they took it out. Now they make you buy a new product to accomplish that SAME thing and you're all applauding.

[Mastrap]

Originally Posted by adamfishercox 

Anybody realize what a piece of CRAP the Time Capsule is? Apple allowed for External Drives connected to Airport Base Station to be backed up to in Leopard dev builds. Then they took it out. Now they make you buy a new product to accomplish that SAME thing and you're all applauding.

While this might be true, how does that make Time Capsule a piece of crap? It looks like a pretty sweet deal to me, especially for the specs. Also, the functionality to back up to AirDisks can easily be added by a simple bit of freeware, iTimeMachine.

Apple, and this might surprise you, is a business. And a business will always look for new streams of revenue. It keeps the shareholders happy, you know.

[TETENAL]

It's a rip-off if they don't re-enable that feature for the regular Airport base station again. But there is still the advantage that the Time Capsule doesn't require a second power adapter for the disk drive, so I would still consider one should I need an Aiport base station.

[MacosNerd]

Originally Posted by adamfishercox 

Anybody realize what a piece of CRAP the Time Capsule is?

I am, I think its a great idea and if I didn't already own an airport extreme base station, I'd be on this, no time flat.

I think its such a great idea that its like why didn't we think of that before. Yes apple allowed the connection of an external drive to the base station. Now instead of having two devices you only need one.

[JohnM15141]

I'm very pleased with todays keynote...

My iPhone got a nice little upgrade, tested the map function, great!

My Apple TV that I bought last year, now is going to do something I can enjoy even more: HD rentals on my 42" Sony HD Display, cool!

At work, I have computers, at home I have computers, but when I travel, I use my iPhone, nice, and functional but sometimes, I travel for a couple weeks to foreign lands, my iPhone doesn't cut it so well (most hotels have wifi, but it gets old after a while...) Also, my work recently has gone to all digital publications in adobe format. To consult my manuals I need a computer. I got tired of lugging a 12 lb. of laptop and it's accessories around. (I experienced the shattering of a display of a $4000 laptop in customs from a minor bump againts a wall in a padded case, crap!) That subnotebook fills the niche for me. I plan to order one, for my little jaunts, as soon as I can acquire the base model through tax free channels (I avoid(legally!) paying california taxes as much as I can, what an incredible waste of money!)

I enjoyed todays keynote

[Mastrap]

Again: iTimeMachine

All you need. This really isn't that difficult.

[0157988944]

Let me clarify my opinion: Time Capsule is great if you don't already own an Airport Base Station, an External Drive, or both. If you do, then it's Apple forcing you to buy another product, which wouldn't be annoying had they not previously demonstrated that they can easily allow backing up via a regular Airport Base Station.

[ort888]

Originally Posted by ::maroma:: 

As I said, I would buy one today if I had the cash. And since the announcement I've talked with 2 other people who would also buy this today if they could. I think the market is there, but its not the massive market that "normal" laptops are in.

I would buy one too if I had the cash. That's the issue. It costs too much cash.

I mean, I do have the cash, it's just a value proposition. To me these things don't offer enough in exchange for their premium price.

I think a lot of people will agree with me. Some will agree with you.

I think the Air is a good thing for them to offer, I just don't see it being a runaway success.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by glideslope 

Well, I have been a Mac user since my IIe. We have 3 children. 2 juniors at UOR and one freshman at RIT. They each have a Macbook Pro. The wife and I own a MP Dual 2.66, and a 17" iMac 2.1g Core 2 (the white ones with the real LCD.)

We all agree this is the most useless device in the history of Apple, and eat leftovers 4x a week.

Yes, and the IPOD MINI WILL NEVER SELL!


(I believe this thing is going to sell like crazy.)

[C.A.T.S. CEO]

I'll take a wild guess, but I think Apple is going to release a update for current AEBS owners to re-enable the functionality for AirDisk backups around the time Time Capsule ships. Maybe they will bundle it with the 10.5.2 update.

Otherwise, $%#^!

(PS, my AirDisk works )

Edit: Correct me if I'm wrong, but the AirDisk backup functionality is disabled in Leopard, not on the Airport? Wouldn't the Time Capsule's HD show up as a regular AirDisk on a Mac? Wouldn't that mean that Apple will have to put a software update to re-enable the AirDisk backup feature on all Macs for all Airport Extremes? Any other way wouldn't make any sense to me.

[glideslope]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Yes, and the IPOD MINI WILL NEVER SELL!


(I believe this thing is going to sell like crazy.)

The iPod was not my point. MacBook Air will be the flop of the year, unless you are some wealthy person with no real purpose in life other than spend money on new Apple devices targeted toward the current generation of blind evangelists. Spend some time reading. The initial response to this MacBook Air is 2-1 negative. Apple is simply going to take those with the cash and pull on thier nipples until dry. I'll bet your shirt is already off?

p.s. We own 1-original 5g i-Pod used. 1 in a sealed box. 2 shuffles, one from each generation, 3- 2nd generation minis, 1 -1st generation mini. An 80g video, and a 8g Touch with the $19.99 upgrade installed today.

So get off your soapbox.

[imitchellg5]

I am really mad that Steve didn't say "Boom!"

[Person Man]

Originally Posted by imitchellg5 

I am really mad that Steve didn't say "Boom!"

Yes he did. Once.

[MacinTommy]

a) Time Capsule will be my first purchase once I get my tax returns
b) I somewhat regret selling my AppleTv but I sold it to get my iPhone whichs leads me to
c) I like the 1.1.3 update... Its something to hold me over until the 3rd part apps come out
d) MacBook Air... I dont really like the name and I thought it was dumb that it has no optical drive until I watched the demo on Apple.com... I was quite impressed that you can use a different computer on the same WiFi network to install a program wirelessly... I'm guessing you need a pretty good connection. Just my 2 cents..

[Shaddim]

I've decided that I am buying a MBA, I'm just going to wait for the first revision. The first incarnation of most Apple products make me nervous, for some reason.

[Person Man]

Originally Posted by Shaddim 

I've decided that I am buying a MBA, I'm just going to wait for the first revision. The first incarnation of most Apple products make me nervous, for some reason.

I think it's funny that everyone's calling it the MBA.

I'm going to be buying a Master's in Business Adminstration too.

Personally, when I see "MacBook Air", I think of the type of people who will use them... the MacBook Airheads

j/k

[Helmling]

Originally Posted by MacosNerd 

After every keynote, people post how underwhelmed they are how disappointed they are.

So if you wish, use this thread to complain. You know you want too and this board will be rife with people moaning about how could apple forget about X, Y or Z.

Ah, crap, I just started my own whine-about-macworld thread.

Sorry, I should've whined here instead. I'll remember next year.

[Helmling]

Originally Posted by glideslope 

The iPod was not my point. MacBook Air will be the flop of the year, unless you are some wealthy person with no real purpose in life other than spend money on new Apple devices targeted toward the current generation of blind evangelists. Spend some time reading. The initial response to this MacBook Air is 2-1 negative. Apple is simply going to take those with the cash and pull on thier nipples until dry. I'll bet your shirt is already off?

p.s. We own 1-original 5g i-Pod used. 1 in a sealed box. 2 shuffles, one from each generation, 3- 2nd generation minis, 1 -1st generation mini. An 80g video, and a 8g Touch with the $19.99 upgrade installed today.

So get off your soapbox.

I doubt "flop" is the right term. There is a slice of the market clamoring for this, but it's a small slice. This is not a Macbook replacement, but a niche expansion of the product line to acknowledge that, well, the line is pretty f'ing successful and can bear some diversification.

It is no big deal, which is why I'm complaining. I expect Macworld to make me wish I had disposable income right now to spend at Apple.com. This year...nah.

[smacintush]

Time Capsule is perfect for me. I need to get some sort of hardwire router to connect a few devices into my wireless network, plus I was going to get an external HD for Time Machine anyway. Seems like a pretty sweet deal to me.

[His Dudeness]

****, Mac users whine and bitch like no other. Don't get me wrong, I have an iMac. I use Windows, Mac, and Linux and never see people bitch like Mac users. I think the new Macbook Air is teh sweetest notebook on the market.

[thunderous_funker]

Macbook Air = sexiest computer evah, that alone will sell a bunch. And despite people's nay-saying its going to be hugely popular in the subnotebook segment and might even expand that size of that segment.

The iPhone/iPod Touch software updates were very exciting. Not so much for the immediate apps, but for the promise of what's to come. Its official, Apple has a new Newton. Just think what's gonna roll out to these handhelds once the SDK out. Very exciting.

AppleTV is now very legit. I still would like to see DVR features, but Apple has just officially entered the set-top box market and I expect great things to come. And all the new hotness is free to existing owners. Nice.

I think Time Capsule is great, but I'm one of the people who bought an AEBS just before Leopard because it was supposed to already have that functionality. I'm bummed that I don't have it and I'd rather not buy new hardware to get it, but that doesn't make it an unappealing product. For the record, I suspect that Apple nerfing that feature was less about wanting to fleece buyers and a lot more about discovering that they couldn't deliver Apple-ness over the infinite variety of USB drives in the market. Some worked with Airdisk, some not so much and they just nixed the whole thing instead of allowing Time Machine to get criticized for Airdisk problems. Apple does tend to err on the side of delivering less with exact quality control than deliver more with mixed results.

In short, I loved the keynote. All great news and great products. My only disappointment was that there weren't a couple more surprises. But then again, that's the case all the time.

[smacintush]

It's funny, I see many of you calling the MBA a niche product but I saw it as just the opposite. I mean sure, it IS somewhat of a niche product in the PC world, but it seems to me that Apple is trying to appear more and more like a PC alternative rather than "Oh, that's a MAC. You can't do nuthin' with those things…"

I think they NEED to continue to diversify their lineup so as to be seen as a PC company, rather than "something else" that "won't do the stuff I want." This includes getting into the ultra-thin market.

That's why we WILL see a mid-range tower thingy THIS YEAR. It probably won't be what you expect, but I think it will happen. Along with new and better displays to go with them.

I know I am probably full of **** but this is how I see it off the top of my head.

[Face Ache]

That MacBook Air seems (to me) like something they knocked together just to have something sexy for MacWorld.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by glideslope 

The iPod was not my point. MacBook Air will be the flop of the year, unless you are some wealthy person with no real purpose in life other than spend money on new Apple devices targeted toward the current generation of blind evangelists. Spend some time reading. The initial response to this MacBook Air is 2-1 negative. Apple is simply going to take those with the cash and pull on thier nipples until dry. I'll bet your shirt is already off?

I've spent way too much time reading, already, and have found a lot of evidence that people can't think beyond their own needs.

The MacBook Air is NOT A REPLACEMENT for a current product. If it were, it would have, you know, actually replaced the line.

It's designed for a NEW (for Apple) market segment. Or rather, a market they haven't catered to AT ALL since the PowerBook Duos (I *loved* my 270c).

You can claim they're all rich idiots with a profile neurosis, but you can be sure that they're all laughing at you all the way to their next conference.

IOW: You're just wrong.

This thing will sell like crazy, since due to the fact that it's NOT underpowered, it will actually ALSO blow the market wide open to a clientele who would not have seriously considered a subnotebook before.

[OreoCookie]

I was very pleased with the products, with the exception of movie rentals. Although Steve was pitching this as the next best thing to sliced bread and TV episodes you can purchase, I'm fairly certain this was a (non-negotiable) condition of the major studios.

In any case, the MacBook Air has the immediate `I want one' aura to it. I'm sure this is a sign of things to come (design-wise at least).

[His Dudeness]

I think Netflix is doing very very well, iirc. Maybe movie rentals on iTunes will be a good thing. After all, you don't have to pay gas and deal with traffic this way like you do if you are a member of Blockbuster. This actually saves gas and is good for the environment, therefore good for global warming!!!

[analogika]

Originally Posted by Face Ache 

That MacBook Air seems (to me) like something they knocked together just to have something sexy for MacWorld.

Considering the *tremendous* engineering effort that must have gone into it, it would make no sense at all just for a brief "wow".

Nah, I think they know *exactly* what they're doing, and they'll sell 'em like crazy.

[His Dudeness]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Considering the *tremendous* engineering effort that must have gone into it, it would make no sense at all just for a brief "wow".

Nah, I think they know *exactly* what they're doing, and they'll sell 'em like crazy.

Yep, just like when they stopped including a floppy drive. Many people thought the world was going to end. Hell, I haven't had a computer with a floppy drive in ten years. You couldn't do **** with them back then, and they are worthless now.

[analogika]

I actually bought a floppy drive a year or two ago (before I might not be able to ever get one again) - a) for tech support (such as transferring stuff from ancient machines for clients), and b) because I have a lovely Mac SE, and how the hell else was I going to get Shufflepuck Cafe and Crystal Quest on there!?

[PaperNotes]

I can't believe people are harping on about a ****ing sub-notebook. The only good thing about it is the touchpad, which is limited in its use with Leopard unlike on an iPhone. It it had 3G built in then it would deserve the Air moniker.

Just wait until the cry babies start posting about how it vibrates about too much when typing on it or how uncomfortable the heat is after an hour. Every sub-notebook suffers that and it will be no different in this case.

[PaperNotes]

Originally Posted by OreoCookie 

In any case, the MacBook Air has the immediate `I want one' aura to it. I'm sure this is a sign of things to come (design-wise at least).

I made the mistake of falling for that aura years back when sub-notes first came out. I made the mistake twice with Vaio subnotes. They were damn slim and sexy to look at but the heat became unbearable after a while and a heavier notebook is simply more stable to type on. If any company wants to sell sexy aura to me now then Apple will have to show me a 1.3 inch thick MacBook Pro with quad-core, Geforce SLI, dual HDD Raid 0, and Blu-ray rewritable. I'll take the extra thickness over what we have now if it means I get a powerful bastard MacBook Pro with top notch cooling system.

[RAILhead]

I think it's funny how so many of you don't understand Target Marketing. I've been waiting for the MBA for well over 3 years, and it will fill a void in my Mac lineup that no other system has ever been able to. Period. End of story.

[OreoCookie]

Originally Posted by PaperNotes 

I made the mistake of falling for that aura years back when sub-notes first came out. I made the mistake twice with Vaio subnotes. They were damn slim and sexy to look at but the heat became unbearable after a while and a heavier notebook is simply more stable to type on. If any company wants to sell sexy aura to me now then Apple will have to show me a 1.3 inch thick MacBook Pro with quad-core, Geforce SLI, dual HDD Raid 0, and Blu-ray rewritable. I'll take the extra thickness over what we have now if it means I get a powerful bastard MacBook Pro with top notch cooling system.

I think they're aiming for a different market. I'm hoping that some of the techniques to save weight will trickle down to the other laptops so that the replacement of my ProBook may weigh only 2 kg instead of 2.6, for instance. There are no notebooks with SLI-ed graphics cards at the moment and just a few (very large) laptops with two internal harddrives. This hardly interests me, to be honest, I can always plug in eSATA harddrives

I don't think it's a failed product, nor do you have to gun for a big market to make money. Many niches are in fact viable business opportunities. If I weren't so much into photography, I'd get an AirBook.
The other big plus is that the technology developed for the AirBook trickles down to other product lines. Even failed products (e. g. the Cube) have had their benefits in that respect. What you want is a revamped ProBook, not an AirBook. Hence, it's not `surprising' that it doesn't fit your bill.

[MacosNerd]

Originally Posted by smacintush 

It's funny, I see many of you calling the MBA a niche product but I saw it as just the opposite.

It is most definitely a niche product, given the specs of the computer. Really. I have a Laptop to work on photoshop, aperture and other applications. I find at times that the performance,especially with aperture a little sluggish. The MBA as everyone started calling it, has even less computing power and its GPU is not as powerful. You have no optical drive, the battery is integrated and the maximum ram seems to be rather limited too. The computer is not directed or aimed at the general computing public.

Originally Posted by RAILhead 

I think it's funny how so many of you don't understand Target Marketing.

Exactly, I've seen soo many posts of people wanting this type of computer from apple. Its not the end all be all laptop from apple but one that helps fill out their line. Is it going to outsell the MacBook Pro, no. Is apple expecting it to out sell the MacBook Pro, I'm guessing no. Its aimed at a market that has been clamoring for this type of computer for years and will also appeal to others that may have opted for the sony laptop but now can get a better computer for less.

[analogika]

Originally Posted by RAILhead 

I think it's funny how so many of you don't understand Target Marketing. I've been waiting for the MBA for well over 3 years, and it will fill a void in my Mac lineup that no other system has ever been able to. Period. End of story.

Congratulations, dude.

You must have fallen out of your chair sometime last night, eh?

[PaperNotes]

Originally Posted by OreoCookie 

There are no notebooks with SLI-ed graphics cards at the moment

Where have you been for over a year, Oreo? Not only are there at least 4 manufacturers that do SLI, their notebooks aren't exactly unwieldy either. At least two companies have even stuck a desktop quad core in there alongside SLI and RAID 0. I want a MacBook Pro like that. I don't give a shwizzle about slim and light because I'm not a skinny boy who can't carry my lappy around and I don't need to use an MBP on the beach while getting a tan. I need a beast that I can now and then take from room to room or from house to studio.

As for the Air, it's bland simply because the target customer would most likely need 3G built in there too. They should have given it the same black and chrome styling of the iPhone and if it had no built in 3G then Apple should have allowed the MBA to share an iPhone's 2.5G connection.

[RAILhead]

Originally Posted by analogika 

Congratulations, dude.

You must have fallen out of your chair sometime last night, eh?

At work, actually, and I ordered one as soon as the Apple Store went online again. I bought the base model with the external drive, and I'll be spending the next few days breaking the news to my iBook G4.

[RAILhead]

Originally Posted by PaperNotes 

Where have you been for over a year, Oreo? Not only are there at least 4 manufacturers that do SLI, their notebooks aren't exactly unwieldy either. At least two companies have even stuck a desktop quad core in there alongside SLI and RAID 0. I want a MacBook Pro like that. I don't give a shwizzle about slim and light because I'm not a skinny boy who can't carry my lappy around and I don't need to use an MBP on the beach while getting a tan. I need a beast that I can now and then take from room to room or from house to studio.

As for the Air, it's bland simply because the target customer would most likely need 3G built in there too. They should have given it the same black and chrome styling of the iPhone and if it had no built in 3G then Apple should have allowed the MBA to share an iPhone's 2.5G connection.

Dude, your posts on this have made it OBVIOUS you have no clue as to who the target audience is, so no, we don't give a rat's arse about 3G. You are 110% totally missing the audience for this new laptop -- but you have the whining part down really good.

[MacosNerd]

Don't worry about PaperNotes.

He's been posting trollish stuff for a while. He's made it clear he's not liking apple's offering for a while.

[PaperNotes]

Nevermind the mind police and what they try to make you believe of other members

[PaperNotes]

Originally Posted by RAILhead 

Dude, your posts on this have made it OBVIOUS you have no clue as to who the target audience is, so no, we don't give a rat's arse about 3G.

The executive class or businessman type doesn't want his 3G now. That's rich.

[ctt1wbw]

I'm wanting to sell my two month old Dell Inspiron 1520 that I use for Linux in order to get this new Macbook Air. I like it that much. Plus, I think this would be an outstanding laptop for college people, since most colleges now have wifi inside.

[Dakar the Fourth]

Originally Posted by TETENAL 

The RAZR became cheap and widespread though. So widespread in fact it became the epitome of the 1 € contract extension phone.

??? Did you read my post?

The point is, the RAZR was originally an overpriced status symbol desired because of its style and thinness -- and I think the MBA will sell for the same reason.

[RAILhead]

Originally Posted by PaperNotes 

The executive class or businessman type doesn't want his 3G now. That's rich.

Uuh, you're the only person that I know of (outside of other crybabies) that think the MBA is for the "executive class" or "businessman." I'm both of those people, working for a billion dollar company, and when I was to go "executive" or handle "business," I use a Pro machine.

Once again, you've proven you're totally clueless.

[Mastrap]

Originally Posted by RAILhead 

Uuh, you're the only person that I know of (outside of other crybabies) that think the MBA is for the "executive class" or "businessman." I'm both of those people, working for a billion dollar company, and when I was to go "executive" or handle "business," I use a Pro machine.

Not sure if I agree with you on that one. I used to travel for business a lot when I worked in the UK. Back at the ranch I had a tower that gave me all the power I needed, but on the road an AirBook would have been a sweet deal for me. Lugging a Pismo around got old real quick and the Palm I tried to replace it with just sucked.

[scottiB]

Originally Posted by analogika 

I actually bought a floppy drive a year or two ago (before I might not be able to ever get one again) - a) for tech support (such as transferring stuff from ancient machines for clients), and b) because I have a lovely Mac SE, and how the hell else was I going to get Shufflepuck Cafe and Crystal Quest on there!?

Shufflepuck Cafe =

[osiris]

Originally Posted by MacosNerd 

It is most definitely a niche product, given the specs of the computer. Really. I have a Laptop to work on photoshop, aperture and other applications. I find at times that the performance,especially with aperture a little sluggish. The MBA as everyone started calling it, has even less computing power and its GPU is not as powerful. You have no optical drive, the battery is integrated and the maximum ram seems to be rather limited too. The computer is not directed or aimed at the general computing public.



Exactly, I've seen soo many posts of people wanting this type of computer from apple. Its not the end all be all laptop from apple but one that helps fill out their line. Is it going to outsell the MacBook Pro, no. Is apple expecting it to out sell the MacBook Pro, I'm guessing no. Its aimed at a market that has been clamoring for this type of computer for years and will also appeal to others that may have opted for the sony laptop but now can get a better computer for less.

Not to harp on it, but what niche group are we talking about here?
It's sure ain't the power user, the mobile user (for presentations), the producer (can't load dvds)... maybe a writer?
That's a small ass portion of the market imo.

Of course, like all things Apple, this product will evolve. When it gets more ports and a burner it'll probably sell a lot better.

[RAILhead]

Originally Posted by Mastrap 

Not sure if I agree with you on that one. I used to travel for business a lot when I worked in the UK. Back at the ranch I had a tower that gave me all the power I needed, but on the road an AirBook would have been a sweet deal for me. Lugging a Pismo around got old real quick and the Palm I tried to replace it with just sucked.

My point exactly: it's not meant to be a mobile workstation. Apple wants you to buy a MBP for what you describe.