Apple to hold 'Back to the Mac' event on October 20th

[0roo0roo]

waiting for direct download link

 

[sourceninja]

Did you read your own link?




Where can I get a machine that weighs less than 3lbs and gets 7 hours of batter life with a "real" CPU and graphics and a 13.3" screen for $599?

For a difference of 500.00 I'll deal with a little extra weight and a spare battery to carry around a netbook.

Honestly, until today I was a 100% apple nerd. I own multiple macbook pros, a 24 inch apple display, wireless keyboard, magic mice, 3 iphones, and a god damn stupid magicpad.

The air is the stupidest product I've ever seen.

*This post written on safari in osx 10.6

 

[mmntech]

The Air should have been discontinued a long time ago. The iPad makes it obsolete. Let's face facts, a 1.4ghz C2D isn't very fast. Certainly not fast enough for any professional tasks, or gaming, or multimedia production. I'd wager it's not much better than the latest Atoms in some cases, after glancing at Anand's benches for the similar 1.6ghz Celeron 420.

I was also reading up on the Mac app store. I really hope Apple isn't going for a "walled garden" approach to their computers too. It would kill the open source community.

 

[outsidethebox]

Meh. I was looking for an updated iweb.

New MBA looks nice, but it needs to be cheaper. For that price I'll get a MBP.

Totally agree with you here. At least make 4gb standard on the mba. I can live with C2D but 2 gig standard is a bad decision. $100 to upgrade to 4gb...puhlease.

Anyway, going to order the iLife '11 upgrade and then when MacOffice 2011 comes out next week I'll dump my windows machine permanently.

 

[Emulex]

you are so wrong. the 1.4ghz can handle all tasks fine - its the ssd and o/s that makes it so.

Load one up with office 2011, CS5, and do tasks that are designed for a compact notebook - you'll be damn suprised.

720P no problem any codec video - which is the screen size. and my ole macbook drives a 2560x1600 30" no sweat - but this is a lightweight work-executive machine. it can present - it can use the ispot (mac allowed).

The os is just so polished - the multitouch in windows sucks ballz - there is no point boot-camping to win7 - it diminishes the perfection of the trackpad.

We all know how secure the IOS app store is lol. the cross-compiled apps will flow the same way for the apple app store. angry birds ? sure why not. honestly if i want to game - i got a $250 desktop which can game. If i need to compute - i have massive ESX servers i can RDP into.

i'd say going from 13.3" MBA 2.13ghz 128gb ssd ($1200 with applecare, dvd burner, usb ethernet, two cases, used) to a new macbook would be insane.

and whoever thought it was smart to ditch the backlit keyboard -big big mistake-

 

[CurseTheSky]

Having used an ASUS UL30A with a CULV Core 2 Duo SU7300 (1.3GHz, dual core), I can definitely say that they're no slouches. In day to day tasks, it feels just like any other higher-clocked Core 2 Duo.

My girlfriend uses the UL30A now, and I'm running an Envy 14 with a far more powerful i5. Since they both have SSDs, even with them next to each other it's VERY hard to tell which one is actually the faster machine for general desktop / office tasks - Word, browsers, etc. There's literally no perceivable difference unless you break out the benchmarks.

So, unless you're planning on gaming on the MacBook Air, running virtual machines, or really taxing the system hard, it should be perfectly fine for your every day stuff. I'm not an Apple fan personally, but I am rather intrigued by the new MBA. I just wish they had managed to squeeze a bit more battery life out of the 11.6" model - 7-10 hours would be nice. That, combined with the lack of FireWire / eSATA / USB 3.0 makes me hesitant on considering it. If it were about $200 cheaper, I'd be sold.

 

[Eug]

The Air should have been discontinued a long time ago. The iPad makes it obsolete. Let's face facts, a 1.4ghz C2D isn't very fast. Certainly not fast enough for any professional tasks, or gaming, or multimedia production.

iPad doesn't really compete with it. I can't run half my software on the iPad. Hence I have no desire to get an iPad despite the fact it costs hundreds less.

For basic use I have no probs with a C2D 1.4. The only thing that really concerns me is Quicktime 1080p H.264. QT is very inefficient and does no real GPU accel, so I'm guessing 1080p will be problematic.

 

[0roo0roo]

Keynote podcast now live on itunes, thats faster than previous times.
http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/apple-keynotes/id275834665#

 

[Koing]

Hmmmm...I'm pretty intrigued by the 11.6" one...my MacBook non uni body was bought in 2008 and has been good to me for my simple tasks at home. It has been upgraded to 4GB of ram and it is blazing with that. It came with a pitiful 1GB

I'll want to test it out but it's a very interesting proposition for me. Sure it's pricey but it's a sweet form factor.

Koing

 

[Kaido]

Yeah, with some googling I realized it may just be that my Ps2 Eyetoy doesn't work out of the box. Works with Maccam in skype and google chat and all that, but not as an iSight.

Hrmph.

Dynex DX-WEB1C webcams go for $12.99 shipped on eBay. I have 5 or 10 of them, my whole family uses them. They work great!

 

[Kaido]

Video equipment and external hard drives. If I have to have a small SSD, I'm definitely going to want an external hard drive and USB 2 isn't going to really cut it.

Maybe if the Air was progressive and had USB 3, but that would require a different chipset than the 320m.

Yeah...I was peeved when they took Firewire off the 13" Macbook when I had my Firewire-based MiniDV camera, but by the time they brought Firewire back, I was ready to go with an SD-based camcorder. With eSATA getting more popular, I think I may go with that for an external drive solution. The only reason I can see for using Firewire in the future is for audio equipment, but all of my current audio equipment is USB-based. Lightpeak ftw?

The Air is definitely not aimed towards people doing video editing though. I can fill up 100 gigs in one shoot, not to mention trying to encode video on a dual-core processor would take ages. I think the 11.6" is the perfect go-anywhere laptop though...it's so small and easy to throw in your bag and then access the web or lightweight apps like Office. Nom nom nom :thumbsup:

 

[Koing]

Yeah...I was peeved when they took Firewire off the 13" Macbook when I had my Firewire-based MiniDV camera, but by the time they brought Firewire back, I was ready to go with an SD-based camcorder. With eSATA getting more popular, I think I may go with that for an external drive solution. The only reason I can see for using Firewire in the future is for audio equipment, but all of my current audio equipment is USB-based. Lightpeak ftw?

The Air is definitely not aimed towards people doing video editing though. I can fill up 100 gigs in one shoot, not to mention trying to encode video on a dual-core processor would take ages. I think the 11.6" is the perfect go-anywhere laptop though...it's so small and easy to throw in your bag and then access the web or lightweight apps like Office. Nom nom nom :thumbsup:

I wonder if they will be at the airport and vat free?!

Koing

 

[Fingolfin269]

Where can I get a machine that weighs less than 3lbs and gets 7 hours of batter life with a "real" CPU and graphics and a 13.3" screen for $599?

I do find it funny that when this type of question comes up no one ever has an answer.

Example:
"Apple sucks because they charge too much!"
"Show me where I can get a machine that weighs less than 3lbs... etc."
/crickets

 

[sourceninja]

I just read http://www.tuaw.com/2010/10/20/apple-posts-guidelines-for-mac-app-store-and-we-have-highlights/ and I'm not sure how anyone could make a useful application and host it in the apple mac app store.

 

[jalaram]

Are the new MBAs available in the Apple Stores now? I might go by during lunchtime.

 

[sourceninja]

I do find it funny that when this type of question comes up no one ever has an answer.

Example:
"Apple sucks because they charge too much!"
"Show me where I can get a machine that weighs less than 3lbs... etc."
/crickets

My point was not that you can easily get those specs (although you can get close such as the MSI Wind U115), but that for the cost difference it is insane.

I can get a netbook that will allow me to do everything that air can do for 50-70% cheaper. The downside is a pound or two of weight and maybe a spare battery.... Big deal.

I carry a 15 inch macbook pro everywhere. It weights like 6 pounds. I've never noticed it being heavy.

 

[TheStu]

Are the new MBAs available in the Apple Stores now? I might go by during lunchtime.

I'll let you know shortly, my roommate is on the way there now.

 

[mugs]

I just read http://www.tuaw.com/2010/10/20/apple-posts-guidelines-for-mac-app-store-and-we-have-highlights/ and I'm not sure how anyone could make a useful application and host it in the apple mac app store.

* It is a "beta," "demo," "trial," or "test" version

I can understand the beta part, but it's unfortunate that they don't allow demos.

* It duplicates apps already in the App Store, particularly if there are many of them

That's good as long as the continue to allow the best apps in.

* The developer is "spamming" the App Store with many versions of similar apps. You will also be removed from the Developer Program if this occurs.

GOOD

* It is not packaged and submitted using Apple's packaging technologies included in Xcode - No third party installers are allowed.

Makes sense if it's being automatically installed and updated

* It requires license keys or implements its own copy protection

Presumably Apple is taking care of that

* It spawns processes that continue to run after a user has quit the app without user consent

Just ask for the user's consent the first time the app runs.

* It has metadata that mentions the name of any other computer platform

Odd but doable

* It uses location-based APIs to control vehicles, aircraft, or other devices (Saying goodbye to my Macbook Air tank project. Sigh.)
* It uses location-based APIs for dispatch, fleet management, or emergency services

These two are awesome

* It has misspelled Apple product names in its name (i.e., GPS for Imac, iTunz)

Understandable

* It looks similar to Apple Products or apps bundled on the Mac, including the Finder, iChat, iTunes, and Dashboard

Er... we'll see how that pans out. I don't expect that they will rigidly enforce that.

* Your user interface is "complex or less than very good"

I don't expect this to affect many good apps.

* It changes the native user interface elements or behaviors of Mac OS X (Well, that just wiped out 90 percent of the best Mac apps in a single, flaming fist punch.)

Am I the only person who grew out of this stuff when I was about 15? It came up in the iPhone jailbreaking thread too, people jailbreak just so they can customize the interface for aesthetic reasons? That seems silly to me.

* It creates a store inside itself for selling or distributing other software (i.e., an audio plug-in store in an audio app)

I'm wondering if Apple will let you sell plug-ins for apps in their store

* Your game portrays realistic images of people or animals being killed or maimed, shot, stabbed, tortured, or injured. (Such as Counter Strike, Halo, and pretty much every other good video game ever produced.)
* "Enemies" within the context of your game solely target a specific race, culture, a real government or corporation, or any other real entity. (I wonder if this applies to zombies...)

So use Steam

* It contains user generated content that is frequently pornographic (like "Chat Roulette" apps)

Not surprising from Apple.


Looking at the apps I use, I realize that
1. I don't use a lot of apps
2. Most would probably be fine in the Mac App Store

- Chicken of the VNC
- BBEdit
- Firefox
- Handbrake (interface is complex, but not needlessly complex; they might need to modify it to include a simple interface and an advanced interface)
- Things
- Yojimbo
- VLC (would probably have to exclude some codecs)
- Filezilla
- Adium

Those are my most used non-Apple apps. I think they'd all be accepted. I guess I don't see which parts of Apple's requirements are too restrictive for you. They're mostly aimed at filtering out the crap apps - the kind of crap that I hate wading through in the iPhone's app store.

I also think that you and others who think Apple is going to prevent installation of apps through any other method are delusional. Yeah, they did that on their phone, but they know no one would put up with that on their computer. Not even Apple fanboys.

 

[sourceninja]

- Chicken of the VNC
- BBEdit
- Firefox
- Handbrake (interface is complex, but not needlessly complex; they might need to modify it to include a simple interface and an advanced interface)
- Things
- Yojimbo
- VLC (would probably have to exclude some codecs)
- Filezilla
- Adium

VLC would be crippled like it is on the iphone. It's the only way. Adium wouldn't be allowed due to replicating core OSX functionality, handbrake might have issues because it is using ffmpeg.

My point is just like on the iphone, the rules are silly and arbitrary. Moves like this are openly stifling innovation.

 

[Eug]

My point was not that you can easily get those specs (although you can get close such as the MSI Wind U115), but that for the cost difference it is insane.

I can get a netbook that will allow me to do everything that air can do for 50-70% cheaper. The downside is a pound or two of weight and maybe a spare battery.... Big deal.

I carry a 15 inch macbook pro everywhere. It weights like 6 pounds. I've never noticed it being heavy.

I carry a 13" MacBook Pro on business trips. It weighs like 5 pounds. I find it too bulky for comfortable use on the plane and I'd love to see it lose a couple of lbs too.

I do use an optical drive on the road sometimes, but I've just ordered an external USB powered drive, that weighs under half a pound and will be in my suitcase. (I don't need the optical drive right at my seat on the plane.) So, something like an 11.6" MBA would be perfect.

 

[blinblue]

I do find it funny that when this type of question comes up no one ever has an answer.

Example:
"Apple sucks because they charge too much!"
"Show me where I can get a machine that weighs less than 3lbs... etc."
/crickets

While certainly not quite as fancy as the MBA, you can get the Asus UL30VT for $649.99 any day of the week, and for under $600 if you are willing to wait for a good deal.
3.7lbs, switchable graphics (G210M + 4500MHD), 12 hours of battery life.

The 13.3" MBA certainly does have better specs all round, but its also twice the price. So you get say 80% of the laptop for 50% of the price.

Basically Apple makes premium products, and they ask a premium price. But if you are willing to go a little less premium, you can save a lot of money.

That said, the 11.6" MBA price is actually pretty decent. Shave a couple hundred off of it and I might consider it.

 

[Eug]

While certainly not quite as fancy as the MBA, you can get the Asus UL30VT for $649.99 any day of the week, and for under $600 if you are willing to wait for a good deal.
3.7lbs, switchable graphics (G210M + 4500MHD), 12 hours of battery life.

The 13.3" MBA certainly does have better specs all round, but its also twice the price. So you get say 80% of the laptop for 50% of the price.

Basically Apple makes premium products, and they ask a premium price. But if you are willing to go a little less premium, you can save a lot of money.

That said, the 11.6" MBA price is actually pretty decent. Shave a couple hundred off of it and I might consider it.

One issue for me is my presentations. Many of them are created in Keynote. I can convert them to PPT, but it's a hassle. Mind you, for new presentations these days I often use PPT, just because the conferences I go to usually have Win PCs already set up for the presentations.

The shave-a-couple-hundred will come for the education market in May. Or at least I hope that free iPod deal comes back anyway. My main concern now is the oomph of the 1.4 GHz C2D and the size of the SSD. I like to play 1080p BR rips on the plane and in the hotel when I have nothing better to do. (I don't need 1080p on an 11" screen, but it's a waste of time to transcode these files.)

 

[Patranus]

VLC would be crippled like it is on the iphone. It's the only way. Adium wouldn't be allowed due to replicating core OSX functionality, handbrake might have issues because it is using ffmpeg.

My point is just like on the iphone, the rules are silly and arbitrary. Moves like this are openly stifling innovation.

So then i will continue to download these applications from the internet like to do today.

nonexistent problem solved.

 

[sourceninja]

So then i will continue to download these applications from the internet like to do today.

nonexistent problem solved.

Until apple decides to close that profit loss loophole.

Also review of 11inch air, battery life is not impressive according to PC mag.

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2371199,00.asp

 

[Spicedaddy]

The 11.6" would be perfect if it had better battery life. My 1410 with similar specs gets 6 hours with the small battery, and that laptop cost 450$... I can just purchase a bigger battery (from the Timeline series), and I'll be getting 8 hours easily.

The nVidia graphics is nice, but unnecessary IMO. I'd also miss the HDMI port that my current laptop has.

Price is decent considering it has an SSD. And for those wondering, the 1.4GHz CPU is more than enough. I use a 1.3GHz Celeron SU2300 (dual-core), and it's fine for everything I do on a 11.6" screen. These things aren't meant to be your only computer.