MacBook Air- Too Light?

[Thomas]

Recently I was looking into getting one of these bad boys however looking into the spec and sheer limitation I am very scared to commit a grand onto a very week laptop.

 

I understand they are literally paper thin and are lighter then carrying a book but it us so get limited I just don't know.

Edited June 12, 2012 by Thomas

[CHiLL]

The Macbook Air is specifically designed for portability. So unless you need that portability factor about it, I'd say go for normal Macbook/Pro. Still portable (be it heavier/fatter) but still not exactly immobile...

[ridwan sameer]

Exactly.

I mean I think the macbook Air is REdundant. I mean ok its light.. But it's not like a normal Notebook weighs 30kg and is impossible to carry.

Go for the more powerful MacBook Pro.

or dont waste your money and go for a Laptop running Windows

[bryce12]

Go for Macbook Pro, the Macbook Air is simply not worth it. It's probably good for sales people or managers who are constantly on the move and don't need great computing power but for everyone else, the Mackbook Pro is perfect.

[tetutato]

I love the lightness of Macbooks but I think all of them are too overpriced for what they have to offer. Still, one of the priority things that notebook users look for is the lightness of the laptop.

[olliesub]

I look at a Macbook Air as a very thin netbook. They are excellent in portability and weight, but lack internal power. The Macbook Air is for someone who doesn't need the power to edit videos or game. A good alternative is the Macbook Pro. While it gains more weight, it also gains more power to accomplish more tasks. If you want a smaller laptop with more power, the 13-inch is fine. If you need lots of power for serious video editing and gaming, a 15-inch or 17-inch will suit you. I do suggest the 15-inch, though, just for its power. The 13-inch is a little too under-powered for my tastes.

[Marc]

See although I dont like Macs at all, I like the idea of an extremely light and portable laptop.

[JHTech100]

I look at a Macbook Air as a very thin netbook. They are excellent in portability and weight, but lack internal power. The Macbook Air is for someone who doesn't need the power to edit videos or game. A good alternative is the Macbook Pro. While it gains more weight, it also gains more power to accomplish more tasks. If you want a smaller laptop with more power, the 13-inch is fine. If you need lots of power for serious video editing and gaming, a 15-inch or 17-inch will suit you. I do suggest the 15-inch, though, just for its power. The 13-inch is a little too under-powered for my tastes.

 

I wouldn't go so far as to call the Air a netbook. Netbooks, to me, are 1GHz, 1GB RAM, 120GB hard drive.

 

The MBA is about 1.8 GHz, comes with multiple gigabytes of RAM, and a decent sized SSD.

[ridwan sameer]

Yeah i dont think the macbook air can be called a netbook... Due to its power.... But it can be for its lighweight ness

[inspirASIAN]

After using a Macbook Air for nearly a year now, I can say that despite it being an extremely good machine to bring with you anywhere due to its extreme portability and weight, it can only do so much. It's a complete joy to use it for anything casual such as browsing, coding, and maybe even designing using Photoshop but not everything at once. Once you start using a browser with multiple tabs coupled with any heavy application such as FCP X or PS, it starts lagging which isn't surprising since that's the drawback from such a portable laptop.

 

I don't regret getting my MBA as it served me well and will continue to do so as I often bring it around with me for quick browsing or coding outside my home. By outside my home, it's either during travel or somewhere that isn't my home in general. Inside my home, there's the rMBP which I can drag around the house. I might be a part of the minority, but I love moving around my house while working and even if it's in the garden. Coding or designing in the garden? That doesn't sound too crazy now, does it? 

 

But you get what you pay for which is the portability and more power compared to any netbooks out there in the market today. I'm not sure how it would fare against ultrabooks, but for such a light laptop, the MBA does wonders. You're backed by a laptop with good aesthetics, good OS, and even good hardware for its small size. Now let's not get into the price tag as that's a personal opinion and many will say that it's too pricey but for what it's worth, it's a breeze to work with. If I wanted more power then I'd sacrifice the lightness of the MBA for the new and powerful rMBP or even just the MBP if you aren't like me who needs the retina screen for designing purposes. 

Edited January 14, 2013 by inspirASIAN

[webdevuser]

That simply depends of your needs, it you wish do edit videos or play games such as skyrim, which are not optimized at all of mac, then please, forget it.

 

If you only wish to browse the web, maybe you should check a Chrome Book (Which is essentially a Chrome browser running on a nice light pc)

 

But for I, which I have been using my Mac Book Air for now 7 months, it is the best machine I ever had. It is light in my backpack with all my school books... it does everything I need of it (Word processing, computer programming, ...) and I even could install DIII on it running on the lowest graphics it was fluid.

 

So depending on your needs, a Macbook air is maybe what you need.

 

Maybe you could also check the others ultrabook and install a Linux distro on it

[xbrix]

I like how light it is. When I had my old HP laptop, it was so heavy to carry, and when I took it to my classes, it would weigh my book bag down, making it even heavier with my books. The MacBook Air is so light that it adds no extra weight to my bag.

Sometimes, I do get scared that my books might crush it, since it is so fragile.

[devilishomar]

I've tried them and they're extremely well designed! It's feel is so good and simple. You may think that one small drop would shatter it to bits but that's not the case. It has the capability to withstand a reasonable falling height. 

It's super fast as well (especially when you compare it with other ultra books), and that speed remains for a very long time. It's resolution is a teeny bit lower than the Macbook Pro, but it's still very beautiful.

[crazycroc]

That's part of the reason I got the MacBook pro retina instead of the Air. It is very similar in terms of size but has much better specs and doesn't get skinnier towards the front edge so it feels a lot more sturdy.

[fivebysix]

If you're going to buy a MacBook Air then the reason why you're buying it is because it's extremely light. That's the whole point. Some of us don't want to lug around any sort of a heavier option. Also most people don't need anything more than something to type and surf the internet on. As long as it can do both of those things then the lighter they are the better. 

[rgrimes]

Doesn't really matter, just carry it around in a protective case and place it on a stable surface when your using it and you should be fine.

[Vicvillon]

I think the Air is OK.

The Pro is still better IMO if you want to do anything intense. I doubt you'll break your Air if you drop it once or twice, but it still looks pretty fragile. In general, though, the Air just won't have the muscle that the Pro will have. If you need just a casual computer, though, the Air will be just fine.

[queenbellevue]

If you're this unsure then go with the Macbook Pro, lots of my friends have one and admittedly, even though they're super expensive for their specs, nobody seems to be complaining. Speaking of the cost, don't buy something that expensive unless you're positive about it