Hasta La Gadget!

We just spent some quality time with the new 13-inch MacBook Air, and it certainly seems like a worthy upgrade. It definitely feels significantly bigger than the 11-incher, and we noticed the function keys are standard MacBook size, as opposed to the shrunken ones on the 11. We also noticed that it was seriously instant-on — we popped the lid open and closed several times while taking photos, and it was ready to go the second we opened it. We’ll have more impressions and pics in a few, stay tuned!

Update: Video after the break!

Continue reading MacBook Air (13-inch) first hands-on! (update: video!)

MacBook Air (13-inch) first hands-on! (update: video!) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amusingly enough, you know what’s missing from the new MacBook Air models? Adobe Flash Player. While preloaded on Apple’s past hardware, out of the box here it just says missing plugin, with no click to install option. To be fair, Flash doesn’t come standard on a lot of machines, even for Windows, but we wonder if past models will continue to ship out with Adobe’s plugin, especially once OS X 10.7 becomes de facto. It’s not like Adobe was feeling the love from Steve anyway, and you can still install Flash yourself — we did, and are happy to report the Air plays 720p video great. We were too bandwidth-challenged at the time to try 1080p for real, so we’ll have to let you know about that later.

MacBook Air: all substance, no Flash originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 16:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Apple has rolled out major upgrades for its puny MacBook Air — the machine that Steve Jobs believes is the “future of notebooks.”

“We think all notebooks are going to be like this one day,” says Jobs. The new notebooks will be available in stores right away.

Wired.com had some hands-on time with the Air, which now comes in 13.3-inch and 11.6-inch models. Follow along for our impressions and photos of the devices.

The Airs are mighty light: The 13.3-inch model weighs only 2.9 pounds, and its smaller sibling weighs 2.1 pounds. Both notebooks measure 0.68 inches at their thickest point and 0.11 inches at their thinnest point. The experience of holding one of these notes isn’t much different from the previous Air, however.

Immediately you’ll notice that launching an app is extremely fast on both of these notebooks, thanks to the use of flash storage.

Safari launched in a fraction of a second. Other apps were noticeably zippy with loading as well. The 11-inch model comes with either 64-GB or 128-GB flash storage, while its bigger sibling comes with 128 GB or 256 GB.

Other than size, a major difference is that the 13.3-inch model includes an SD card reader, while the 11-incher doesn’t.

Also, the 13.3-inch Air has a higher-resolution screen: 1440 by 900 pixels on the 13.3-inch model versus the 11-incher’s 1366 by 768 inches. For these reasons, I personally preferred the 13-inch model.

The MacBook Air costs between $1,000 and $1,600, depending on screen size and storage capacity.

See Also:

• New MacBook Air Will Come in 11 and 13-Inch Flavors
• Chinese MacBook Air Knockoffs Actually Look Awesome
• Rumor: Apple to Introduce 11.6-Inch MacBook Next Week

CUPERTINO, California — Apple on Wednesday released a major upgrade for its mini notebook, the MacBook Air, splitting it into two sizes.

The MacBook Air will come in two flavors: a 13.3-inch model and an 11.6-incher. They both will come thinner and lighter than their predecessor, with improved battery life that’s similar to the iPad’s, the company said.

“We asked ourselves what would happen if a MacBook and an iPad hooked up?” Apple CEO Steve Jobs said. “It’s one of the most amazing things we’ve ever created: It is our new MacBook Air, and we think it’s the future of notebooks.”

Hands-On With the New MacBook Airs

“The Airs are mighty light,” Wired’s Brian X. Chen notes in his initial report. “Immediately you’ll notice that launching an app is extremely fast on both of these notebooks, thanks to the usage of flash storage.”

Read more…

Coupled with mobile-inspired enhancements to the computers’ operating systems, such as a planned Mac App Store (due to launch in 90 days) and multitouch enhancements for the next version of Mac OS X, aka “Lion,” the new MacBook Air models show that Apple is trying to redefine the PC market the same way it has tackled the tablet and smartphone markets.

Instead of merely selling hardware, the company seems to be positioning itself as a vertically integrated vendor of mobile devices, selling hardware and software, as well as controlling the marketplace through which customers purchase software.

“We think all notebooks are going to be like this one day,” Jobs said.

Despite its position as an underdog in the PC industry, the Mac has shown rapid growth relative to Windows-powered machines in recent years. According to an NPD Group retail sales report cited by Apple chief operating officer Tim Cook, Apple dominates the premium end of the PC market: For instance, 91 percent of $1,000+ computers sold in June 2009 were Macs. And in Apple’s latest Q4 earnings call, the company reported record-breaking sales of Macs and iPhones, resulting in its most successful quarter ever.

It also suggests that Apple is far from ready to cede the PC market to the likes of HP, Dell and Acer.

“Although the bulk of its revenues come from mobile products Apple still considers Mac a critical business,” said Avi Greengart, an analyst with research firm Current Analysis.

Cook claimed that one in five PCs sold in the United States are now made by Apple — a claim sure to be contested by other PC makers. Recent reports by IDC and Gartner show that Apple’s U.S. market share is slightly above 10 percent. That is higher than it’s been in years, but just half of what Apple is claiming.

NPD confirmed the 20 percent figure to Wired, which comes from its retail tracking service, but noted that it applied only to a single month: August, 2010.

The MacBook Airs will include flash storage, 802.11-N Wi-Fi and a Core 2 Duo processor. Apple increased the size of the battery to provide five to seven hours of battery life when surfing the web over Wi-Fi, and 30 days on standby time like the iPad.

The models start at $1,000 and begin shipping today.

See Also:

• Rumor: Apple to Introduce 11.6-Inch MacBook Next Week
• New MacBook Pro: 10-Hour Battery, Hi-Res Screen, i7 CPU
• New MacBook Air Will Come in 11 and 13-Inch Flavors
• Netbook Sales Shrivel as Apple Rolls Out iPad
• Apple Still Oblivious to Netbook Opportunity

Photo: Brian X. Chen/Wired.com

Hoo boy, our tipster was spot on with this one, Apple’s adding an 11.6-inch sibling to its newly redesigned 13.3-inch MacBook Air. It’ll have a dual-core 1.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU (upgradeable to 1.6GHz on the more expensive model), 1366 x 768 resolution, and a $999 starting price for the 64GB SSD model, with the 128GB version setting you back $1,199. It carries over the aluminum unibody construction from the 13-incher, along with the same 2GB or 4GB DDR3 RAM options and NVIDIA GeForce 320M graphics, but has to settle for a briefer 5-hour battery life. Full PR and Apple’s first ad for this new hotness both await after the break.

Update: We’ve got our very first hands-on pictures with the new machine. Enjoy!

Continue reading Apple introduces 11.6-inch MacBook Air, available today for $999

Apple introduces 11.6-inch MacBook Air, available today for $999 originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 20 Oct 2010 14:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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