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===Remote Disc===<!-- proper name, both first letters are capitalized -->
===Remote Disc===<!-- proper name, both first letters are capitalized -->
[['''Image:Applesuperdrive.png|thumb|right|The optional MacBook Air [[SuperDrive]]]]
[[Image:Applesuperdrive.png|thumb|right|The optional MacBook Air [[SuperDrive]]]]
The MacBook Air can wirelessly access the optical drive of another [[Macintosh|Mac]] or [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] [[Personal computer|PC]] that has the Remote Disc program installed, allowing the installation of applications from a CD or DVD.<ref>{{cite web|last= Yager|first=Tom|title=MacBook Air, a detailed preview|publisher=[[Infoworld]]|url = http://weblog.infoworld.com/enterprisemac/archives/2008/01/macbook_air_a_d.html|accessdate = 2008-01-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title = MacBook Air|publisher=[[Apple Inc.]]|url= http://www.apple.com/macbookair/wireless.html|accessdate = 2008-01-15}}</ref> It can also reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD.<ref>{{cite web|title = MacBook Air - Guided Tour|publisher=[[Apple Inc.]]|url= http://www.apple.com/macbookair/guidedtour/index.html?size=small|accessdate=2008-01-15}}</ref> Remote Disc supports [[NetBoot|netbooting]], so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive.<ref>{{cite web|last=Gruber|first=John|authorlink=John Gruber |title=The MacBook Air|publisher=[[Daring Fireball]]|date=[[2008-01-15]]|url= http://daringfireball.net/2008/01/macbook_airaccessdate = 2008-01-15 }}</ref>
The MacBook Air can wirelessly access the optical drive of another [[Macintosh|Mac]] or [[Microsoft Windows|Windows]] [[Personal computer|PC]] that has the Remote Disc program installed, allowing the installation of applications from a CD or DVD.<ref>{{cite web|last= Yager|first=Tom|title=MacBook Air, a detailed preview|publisher=[[Infoworld]]|url = http://weblog.infoworld.com/enterprisemac/archives/2008/01/macbook_air_a_d.html|accessdate = 2008-01-18}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title = MacBook Air|publisher=[[Apple Inc.]]|url= http://www.apple.com/macbookair/wireless.html|accessdate = 2008-01-15}}</ref> It can also reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD.<ref>{{cite web|title = MacBook Air - Guided Tour|publisher=[[Apple Inc.]]|url= http://www.apple.com/macbookair/guidedtour/index.html?size=small|accessdate=2008-01-15}}</ref> Remote Disc supports [[NetBoot|netbooting]], so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive.<ref>{{cite web|last=Gruber|first=John|authorlink=John Gruber |title=The MacBook Air|publisher=[[Daring Fireball]]|date=[[2008-01-15]]|url= http://daringfireball.net/2008/01/macbook_airaccessdate = 2008-01-15 }}</ref>
it is also super thin'''Bold text''''''[[Media:<small>Example.ogg</small>]]


===User-serviceability===
===User-serviceability===

Revision as of 22:23, 10 October 2008

MacBook Air
DeveloperApple Inc.
TypeLaptop or Notebook
Release dateJanuary 29, 2008
Introductory priceUSD1,799, CAD1,899, EUR1,699, GBP1,199, JPY229,800, AUD2,499, NZD2,988, HKD14,900, INR 87,900, MXN 22,999, SGD 4,500, NOK 14,290
CPUIntel Core 2 Duo 1.6 / 1.8 GHz
WebsiteApple MacBook Air

The MacBook Air is a thin, lightweight, Macintosh notebook computer designed by Apple. It features an optional solid-state hard drive. The Air has a 13.3-inch, widescreen LED backlight display, with 1280 x 800 screen resolution. The Air weighs 3.0 pounds (1.36 kg), and is 0.76 inches (1.93 cm) at its thickest point and 0.16 inches (0.4 cm) at its thinnest.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs introduced the MacBook Air at the Macworld Conference & Expo on January 15, 2008. Apple describes it as the "world's thinnest notebook".

Overview

Steve Jobs with a MacBook Air at the Keynote Address during Macworld 2008.

To reduce the computer's size and weight, Apple omitted certain features long standard on laptops. It is Apple's first notebook since the PowerBook 2400c without a built-in removable media drive.[1] Users may purchase an external USB SuperDrive, or use bundled Remote Disc software to access the optical drive of another computer.[2] It is the first subcompact laptop offered by Apple since the full-featured 12" PowerBook G4 was discontinued in 2006.

Similarly to the PowerBook Duo series which preceded it, it lacks many features of the larger MacBooks, including a security slot[3] and an Ethernet port,[4] (although a USB-to-Ethernet adapter may be purchased separately).[5] The MacBook Air offers one USB port. Like the entry-level MacBook, the MacBook Air lacks Cardbus and ExpressCard slots, both standard features in older and newer laptops.[6] The device lacks a FireWire port, and as such OS X 10.5 Leopard does not require a FireWire port.

The Air is Apple's first laptop computer to be offered with an optional solid-state hard drive.[7] ArsTechnica found "moderate" performance improvements of the 64 GB[8] solid-state drive over the standard 80 GB hard drive in tests. The Air comes with 2 GB[9] RAM memory as standard.[10]

The CPU is an Intel Core 2 Duo chip, which was specially redesigned for the MacBook Air, reducing the physical chip packaging's size by 60 percent.[11] While the processor is unique, it has been criticized for being under-powered and older-generation technology.[12][13]

The laptop has the magnetic latch system of the MacBook and an aluminum casing like the MacBook Pro. The oversized trackpad offers iPhone-like Multi-Touch gestures, an improvement over previous MacBook trackpads. Among the gestures are pinching, swiping, and rotating.[14]

The MacBook Air is pre-loaded with Mac OS X v10.5 and iLife '08.

Remote Disc

The optional MacBook Air SuperDrive

The MacBook Air can wirelessly access the optical drive of another Mac or Windows PC that has the Remote Disc program installed, allowing the installation of applications from a CD or DVD.[15][16] It can also reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD.[17] Remote Disc supports netbooting, so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive.[18]

User-serviceability

Unlike the rest of the MacBook family, the MacBook Air has no directly user-replaceable parts. Its hard drive, memory, and battery are enclosed within the casing, with memory soldered directly to the motherboard. The MacBook Air's battery is not easily replaceable, enclosed in a manner similar to the iPod and related Apple product lines.[13][12][19] The hard drive is not soldered and can be replaced through a non-trivial disassembly procedure.[20] Solid-state drives (SSDs) are commercially available. As part of the out-of-warranty service, Apple offers to replace the battery for a fee.[21] It may be possible for the end user to replace the battery, though it is unclear whether this process would void the notebook's warranty.[22] Users looking to replace batteries through third-party vendors will need to wait until replacement batteries are made available for this model.[23]

Environmental considerations

Apple incorporated several features in the design of the MacBook Air intended to make it more friendly to the environment.[24][25] In response, Greenpeace stated, "We can say that Apple is getting greener, but it's still not green enough."[26]

For more information about Apple's environmental record, see Apple Inc.#Environmental Record.

Concerns about overheating and CPU-lockup

Several MacBook Air users[27] since the release of the first-generation product have complained of problems with severe overheating, causing CPU lockup. This effect appears to be exacerbated in warmer climates, such as northern Australia. A software update released by Apple in early March attempted to fix the problem but had mixed results.[28] The problem seems to appear during system-intensive tasks such as video playback, video chatting, or playing games.[29]

Turning the integrated fans to full speed by using third-party software or using USB-powered cool-pads does not cool down the notebook sufficiently to prevent core shutdowns; undervolting[30] the CPU, however, solves the MacBook Air's problems with overheating and CPU lockups in most cases.

In September 2008 Apple published a firmware update fixing the CPU-lockup issues.

Criticism

The MacBook Air has been criticized for its high price compared to other notebooks of similar or better specification, with Engadget suggesting that a premium is being paid for its form factor.[31] The MacBook Air has also been criticized for the difficulty in accessing the headphone and USB port. Because of tight clearance, some devices, including some headphone jacks and 3G USB cellular modems will not fit, requiring users to purchase either a powered USB hub or an extension cable in order to use their devices.[32][33]

The MacBook Air lacks a FireWire port. It does not support Target Disk Mode of any kind, which would have enabled it to be used as an external hard drive for quick data transfers. [34] Those who have used video mode in iChat will notice a lower screen resolution and lower-quality display of the other party's video image.

Specifications

Component Early 2008[35]
Display 13.3-inch glossy LED backlight TFT LCD widescreen display, 1280×800 pixel resolution
Graphics Intel GMA X3100 graphics processor with 144 MB[9] of DDR2 SDRAM shared with main memory
Storage 80 GB[8] ATA 1.8" 4200 rpm hard disk drive
64 GB SSD optional
Processor 1.6 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Merom,[36][37] with 800 MHz FSB
1.8 GHz Core 2 Duo optional
Memory 2 GB[9] PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM soldered to the logicboard
Wireless networking Integrated AirPort Extreme supports 802.11a/b/g/n
Wired Ethernet none, Optional USB Ethernet Adapter
Optical storage none, Optional External USB SuperDrive
Camera Built-in iSight, 640×480 pixel resolution
Battery 37 W-Hr Lithium-ion polymer battery
Physical dimensions 22.7 cm D × 32.4 cm  W × 0.4–1.94 cm H
8.9 in D × 12.74 in W × 0.16–0.76 in H
3.0 lb (1.36 kg)
Bluetooth Built-in (2.1+Enhanced Data Rate)
Port connections 1× USB 2.0
1× Micro-DVI video port (adapters are included for VGA or DVI monitors up to 1920×1200 pixels)
1× Headphone jack (3.5 mm)
Audio 1× microphone
1× mono loudspeaker
Keyboard Backlit full-size keyboard with ambient light sensor
Trackpad Supports Multi-Touch gestures like the iPhone, iPod touch, and MacBook Pro
K-slot None

Advertising

The MacBook Air launch was accompanied by a television commercial emphasizing its thin form factor. In the commercial a hand unthreads a manila envelope and slides out a MacBook Air, then opens it to wake it from sleep. The music playing is "New Soul" by Yael Naïm.[38] This advertisement has often been parodied and comically reproduced, often depicting much thicker models being pulled out of manila envelopes in the same fashion, sometimes with difficulty. One such parody, purportedly from market rival Lenovo, depicts a failed attempt to return a MacBook Air to its envelope with a variety of accessories, before removing that manufacturer's ThinkPad X300 notebook from a similar envelope.[39] A few of these video parodies are featured on YouTube.

Timeline of portable Macintoshes
Mac transition to Apple siliconiMac ProApple WatchiPadiPhoneMac ProPower Mac G5Power Mac G4Power Macintosh G3Power MacintoshCompact MacintoshMacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Air (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Air (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Apple silicon)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)MacBook Pro (Intel-based)iBook G4PowerBook G4PowerBook G4iBook (white)PowerBook G3PowerBook G3PowerBook 2400cPowerBook 3400cPowerBook 1400PowerBook 5300PowerBook 500 seriesPowerBook 190PowerBook G4PowerBook 150PowerBook 500 seriesPowerBook 500 seriesPowerBook 500 seriesPowerBook 500 seriesPowerBook 160PowerBook 140PowerBook 180PowerBook 180PowerBook 160PowerBook 160PowerBook 140PowerBook 170PowerBook 140MacBook Air (Apple silicon)MacBook Air (Apple silicon)MacBook Air (Apple silicon)MacBook Air (Intel-based)12-inch MacBookMacBook Air (Intel-based)iBook G4iBook (white)iBook ClamshellMacBook Air (Intel-based)MacBook (2006–2012)PowerBook Duo 210MacBook Air (Intel-based)MacBook (2006–2012)MacBook (2006–2012)PowerBook G4PowerBook 100Macintosh PortablePowerBook G3PowerBook G3PowerBook G3PowerBook G3PowerBook G3PowerBook DuoPowerBook DuoPowerBook DuoMacintosh PortablePowerBook DuoPowerBook DuoPowerBook Duo 230Macintosh Portable
See also: List of Mac models

See also

References

  1. ^ Apple Macintosh 2400c/180 specs, EveryMac, retrieved January 2008.
  2. ^ MacBook wireless specifications,Apple Inc. retrieved Jan2008
  3. ^ Frakes, Dan (2008-01-16). "MacBook Air's Tradeoffs". Macworld. Retrieved 2008-01-18. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  4. ^ MacBook Air specifications, Apple Inc., retrieved Jan2008
  5. ^ Apple USB Ethernet Adapter, Apple Inc., retrieved Feb2008
  6. ^ Mossberg, Walt (2008-01-24). "Apple's MacBook Air Is Beautiful and Thin, But Omits Features". Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2008-01-25.
  7. ^ Choney, Suzanne (2008-01-24). "Lighter laptops move to flash-based drives". Newsweek. Retrieved 2008-01-24. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  8. ^ a b In this article, the conventional prefixes for computer storage denote base-10 values whereby “kilobyte” (KB) = 103 bytes , “megabyte” (MB) = 106 bytes and “gigabyte” (GB) = 109 bytes.
  9. ^ a b c In this article, the conventional prefixes for computer RAM denote base-2 values whereby “kilobyte” (KB) = 210 bytes , “megabyte” (MB) = 220 bytes and “gigabyte” (GB) = 230 bytes.
  10. ^ What does $1,300 extra really get you?, Jacqui Cheng ArsTechnica, 5 Feb 2008
  11. ^ Cohen, Peter (2008-01-15). "Apple introduces MacBook Air". Macworld. Retrieved 2008-01-21. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ a b Ackeman, Dan (2008-01-29). "Apple MacBook Air (1.6GHz)". ZDNet Australia. Retrieved 2008-03-29.
  13. ^ a b MacBook Air: top 10 things wrong with it
  14. ^ MacBook Air features, Apple Inc., retrieved January 2008.
  15. ^ Yager, Tom. "MacBook Air, a detailed preview". Infoworld. Retrieved 2008-01-18.
  16. ^ "MacBook Air". Apple Inc. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  17. ^ "MacBook Air - Guided Tour". Apple Inc. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  18. ^ Gruber, John (2008-01-15). = 2008-01-15 "The MacBook Air". Daring Fireball. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |date= (help)
  19. ^ "MacBook Air's Fatal Flaw: Battery, RAM, HD Sealed Like an iPod". Gizmodo. 2008-01-15. Retrieved 2008-01-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  20. ^ "First Look at the MacBook Air". iFixIt. 2008-02-01. Retrieved 2008-02-01. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  21. ^ "MacBook Air Out-of-Warranty Battery Replacement Program". Apple Inc. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  22. ^ "Sources: MacBook Air battery replacements take only minutes". AppleInsider. 2008-01-18. Retrieved 2008-01-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  23. ^ "MacBook Air Battery Easy to Replace". Wired. 2008-01-22. Retrieved 2008-01-23. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  24. ^ "Apple Introduces MacBook Air—The World's Thinnest Notebook". Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  25. ^ A Greener Apple, Steve Jobs, Apple.
  26. ^ "Apple Unveils Green Ultrathin Laptop". 2008-01-15. Retrieved 2008-02-01.
  27. ^ The MacBook Air: when cool becomes [ouch! Hot!] Bleeding Edge blog, 13 March 2008.
  28. ^ Apple’s MacBook (hot) Air problem, Philip Elmer-DeWitt, CNN Fortune Apple 2.0 blog, 13 March 2008.
  29. ^ Apple fans burned by hot Airs, Asher Moses, The Age, 13 March 2008.
  30. ^ http://paulstamatiou.com/2008/05/11/putting-an-end-to-macbook-air-core-shutdown Putting an End to MacBook Air Core Shutdown], Paul Stamatiou, 11 May 2008.
  31. ^ MacBook Air review
  32. ^ Adding insult to injury: USB 3G modems and even some thumb drive and mp3 players will not fit in the MacBook Air flip down USB port
  33. ^ Thin is in: Ars Technica reviews the MacBook Air: Page 2
  34. ^ Macworld | Editors' Notes | MacBook Air: Holding my breath
  35. ^ "MacBook Air - Technical Specifications". Apple Inc. Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  36. ^ Lal Shimpi, Anand (2008-01-15). "Apple's MacBook Air: Uncovering Intel's Custom CPU for Apple". AnandTech. Retrieved 2008-01-15. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  37. ^ Anand Lal Shimpi (2008-01-17). "The MacBook Air CPU Mystery: More Details Revealed". Anandtech.com. Retrieved 2008-01-19. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  38. ^ Hey, Let's Write A Song Called "Steve Jobs Is Dreamy" 100 And Single, Idolator. Accessed 12 February 2008
  39. ^ Not funny, Lenovo, The Secret Diary of Steve Jobs, Daniel Lyons, 29 April 2008.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to MacBook Air.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MacBook_Air&oldid=244459580"