An 11-inch MacBook Air boasts portability and power packed in a nutshell. I've been contemplating getting one and have been trying to figure out how useful it would be for me. Would it replace my current laptop, my iPad, or both? A lot of self-assessment later this is what I've come up with. The decision has been made but I haven't got one quite yet.
I have a few travel plans coming up, one of which involves a 24-hour flight to Asia in December. The last laptop I bought was 3 years ago (13.3-inch Sony Vaio VGN-C140G). It came with 1GB RAM, a 120GB HDD and Windows XP Media Center Edition, all of which I have upgraded since to 2GB RAM, 500GB HDD and 32-bit Windows 7 Home Premium. It has been working great since I got it until recently when a couple of the keyboard keys started giving me some problems. I guess that's from normal wear and tear. I love this notebook; it got me through graduate school without any issues. I have ordered a replacement keyboard from eBay ($33) and will have it replaced as soon as I get it.
Although this is a small screen (13.3-inch) notebook it is a little heavy for traveling. And besides, almost all consumer electronics seem to be getting smaller and more compact these days. Airlines have started weighing hand luggage, something they hardly ever did in the past. On a trip to New Zealand and Australia last year I was cutting it close with the weight of my carry-on. First of all I wasn't expecting them to weigh it but secondly, when you have a laptop, video camera, digital camera, etc in your bag, it's bound to rack up some pounds. These days I don't take my JVC Everio with me a lot, neither do I take my Sony DSC-H2; I get those photography and videography tasks done with my iPhone 4. So I'm cutting down on carry-on weight already. I have a 32 gig wi-fi iPad which goes with me on my travels too but I do need a laptop.
There are not a lot of things the iPad can't do but a 11-inch MacBook Air would be perfect for my needs. It's not bulky, it's a notebook (not a netbook; don't let the size fool you!) and let's face it, it's the "in" thing at the moment. The reviews so far have been fantastic. Instant on, fast and sleek, just to name a few. And the price is very appealing too... $999 for a 64GB HDD/2GB RAM, $1199 for double the hard drive capacity. I think I would get the $999 model simply because this thing is not going to be my main laptop (I'm keeping my Vaio) and I use a cloud service for most of my media anyways. Plus I can carry a portable hard drive with stuff I need in case I'm going to be in a place that doesn't have hi-speed internet services, something that data stored in a cloud needs to make things less time-consuming.
So how practical is the MacBook Air? I think it would be great. Just for the things I've mentioned already but the future holds great things for computers this size. We have stepped into a 'Tablet/Compact Notebook' era. It won't be long before we see the market flooded with notebooks competing with the MacBook Air. I'm sure Microsoft is cooking something up even as I type. Although I don't think these notebooks will be desktop replacements, not for now anyways. As long as manufacturers can keep the prices down while still providing sparkling features, products like these will continue to attract attention from consumers.
My plan is to wait it out until thanksgiving maybe and then get it. By then I'll have saved up some moolah and the optimist in me is hoping for a black friday deal by Apple that's hard to overlook. I know that is highly unlikely but I have time to decide since I don't travel until December. And, there will be more reviews and critiques going around by then that will further help me make my final decision. But in all likelihood I will have a new laptop before this holiday season comes around.
P.S. Check this out... just found this link from Cultofmac. This makes it even more practical as a travel companion.
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