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MacBook Air
My Laptop’s Thinner Than Yours
Article Written By: Geoff Johnston
You’re in the market for a laptop and decide you will settle for nothing less than the world’s thinnest. Well luckily for you and your discerning taste, Apple Inc. has released the MacBook Air, which boasts some fairly impressive credentials and was designed for you and the ever expanding wireless world.
Saying it’s thin is perhaps an understatement. The MacBook Air weighs a mere 3 lbs and has a maximum thickness of 0.76 inches and tapers to 0.16 inches, so be careful where you set it down as it could easily be mistaken for a stylish looking martini tray.
Breathing life into the Air is an 80GB standard drive with 1.6 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU with 2GB of RAM. You can upgrade to an optional 64GB solid-state drive with 1.8GHz, but be prepared to pay for it. The standard Air will cost you $1,799 USD while the upgraded rings in at $3,098 USD, and both come sharply dressed in an anodized aluminum suit for better protection and durability.
Apple also managed to cram in a 13.3” LED widescreen and full size backlit keyboard, which is perfect for finishing that presentation during your red-eye flights or playing solitaire in the trunk of your car. The multi-touch technology found on the iPhone and iTouch has been incorporated into the Air and now allows users to swipe, pinch and rotate their way through the notebook.
Despite its unique shape, Apple also squeezed in a USB 2.0 socket, micro-dvi port, iSight webcam and Bluetooth 2.1. However sometimes with innovation comes sacrifice. Apple abandoned an optical drive, FireWire, any SD slot, and to replace the 5 hour battery, expect to ship it to Apple for $130 USD. Or you can do it yourself with a cordless drill and hammer.
Any way you slice it, providing it’s thin, the new MacBook Air is impressive and very capable. With next generation WI-FI offering unprecedented wireless capabilities, 3 lbs of curb weight and the Apple usability we know and love, it looks like the decision to purchase a MacBook Air will be as easy as using one.
Click Here for the MacBook Air Guided Tour!
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