MacBook Air

The MacBook Air is a Macintosh notebook computer designed by Apple. It is positioned as the ultraportable in Apple's MacBook Family and was introduced at the Macworld Conference & Expo on January 15, 2008. Apple describes it as the "world's thinnest notebook".

Overview
To reduce the computer's size and weight, Apple omitted certain features long standard on laptops. It is Apple's first notebook since the PowerBook 2400c without a built-in removable media drive. Users may purchase an external USB SuperDrive, or use bundled Remote Disc software to access the optical drive of another computer. It is the first subcompact laptop offered by Apple since the full-featured 12" PowerBook G4 was discontinued in 2006.

Similarly to the PowerBook Duo series which preceded it, it lacks many features of the larger MacBooks, including a security slot and an Ethernet port, (although a USB-to-Ethernet adapter may be purchased separately). The MacBook Air has a single USB port. Like the entry-level MacBook, the MacBook Air lacks Cardbus and ExpressCard slots, and does not have a FireWire port.

The Air is Apple's first laptop computer to be offered with an optional solid-state hard drive. ArsTechnica found "moderate" performance improvements of the 64 GB solid-state drive over the standard 80 GB hard drive in tests. On October 14, 2008, new models were announced boasting improved capacities of 128 GB (solid-state) and 120 GB (hard drive). The Air comes with 2 GB RAM as standard.

The CPU on the original Air was a specially designed Intel Core 2 Duo chip, which reduced the chip's packaging size by 60 percent. The processor found on the current Air is a low voltage, small form factor Core 2 Duo "Penryn" with 6MB of cache, running on a 1066 MHz bus.

The laptop is constructed from an aluminum casing similar to the MacBook and MacBook Pro, however it lacks the visible magnetic latch system. The oversized trackpad offers iPhone-like Multi-Touch gestures, an improvement over previous MacBook trackpads. Among the gestures are pinching, swiping, and rotating.

The MacBook Air is pre-loaded with Mac OS X v10.5 and iLife '09.

Remote Disc
The MacBook Air can wirelessly access the optical drive of another Mac or Windows PC that has the Remote Disc program installed, allowing the installation of applications from a CD or DVD. It can also reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD. Remote Disc supports netbooting, so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive.

User-serviceability
Unlike the rest of the MacBook family, the MacBook Air has no directly user-replaceable parts. Its hard drive, memory, and battery are enclosed within the casing, with memory soldered directly to the motherboard. The MacBook Air's battery is enclosed within the case but unlike the iPod and iPhone only requires normal screwdrivers to replace The hard drive is not soldered and can be replaced through a non-trivial disassembly procedure. Solid-state drives (SSDs) are commercially available. As part of the out-of-warranty service, Apple offers to replace the battery for a fee. It may be possible for the end user to replace the battery, though it is unclear whether this process would void the notebook's warranty. Users looking to replace batteries through third-party vendors will need to wait until replacement batteries are made available for this model.

Environmental considerations
Apple incorporated several features in the design of the MacBook Air intended to make it more friendly to the environment. In response, Greenpeace stated, "We can say that Apple is getting greener, but it's still not green enough."

Concerns about overheating and CPU-lockup
Several MacBook Air users since the release of the first-generation product have complained of problems with severe overheating, causing CPU lockup. This effect appears to be correlated with temperature; however, the effect can be seen at CPU temperatures as low as 66 degrees Celsius. A software update released by Apple in early March 2008 attempted to fix the problem but had mixed results; the deactivation of 1 CPU core appears to have been corrected; however, the runaway kernel problem remains for at least some users. The problem seems to appear during system-intensive tasks such as video playback, video chatting, or playing games.

Turning the integrated fans to full speed by using third-party software or using USB-powered cool-pads does not cool down the notebook sufficiently to prevent core shutdowns.

Criticism
The MacBook Air has been criticized for its high price compared to other notebooks of similar or better specification, with Engadget suggesting that a premium is being paid for its form factor. The MacBook Air has also been criticized for the difficulty in accessing the headphone and USB port, which are embedded in a small flip-down hatch thanks to the tapered body. Because of tight clearance, some devices, including some headphone plugs and 3G USB cellular modems, will not fit, requiring users to purchase either a powered USB hub or an extension cable.

Due to its lack of FireWire, the MacBook Air does not support Target Disk Mode, which would have enabled it to be used as an external hard drive for quick data transfers or operating system repairs.

Advertising
The MacBook Air launch was accompanied by a television commercial emphasizing its PC like qualities. In the commercial a hand unthreads a manila envelope and slides out a MacBook Air, then opens it to wake it from sleep. The music playing is "New Soul" by Yael Naïm. This advertisement has often been parodied and comically reproduced, often depicting much thicker models being pulled out of manila envelopes in the same fashion, sometimes with difficulty. One such parody, purportedly from market rival Lenovo, depicts a failed attempt to return a MacBook Air to its envelope with a variety of accessories, before removing that manufacturer's ThinkPad X300 notebook from a similar envelope.