The Macbook Air Turned Four Years Old Today, Everyone Else Just Now Making Ultrabooks

[Phillip Swanson]

Four years ago Apple introduced the Macbook Air to a fawning public. The devilishly thin build, unibody construction, and speed when paired with a SSD was compelling, but expensive.

Fast forward to the present day, the MBA is faster, just as thin, and priced within the stratosphere. The MBA’s original $1,799 entry price has given way to a $999 11” model complete with 64GB of flash storage and a 1.6 Mghz i5 dual core processor.

When Steve Jobs pulled the MBA out of manila envelope on stage during 2008’s MacWorld keynote speech he put the rest of notebook world on notice. This was the future of laptops and the current popularity of netbooks would soon die by the hand of the MBA and the still unannounced iPad.

The exclusion of a SuperDrive was an early indicator of Apple’s intentions for physical media now fully realized with Mac App Store. Apple completely supplanted physical software distribution. Apple did it to music, it was only a matter of time until they did it to software.

A brief glimpse at CES 2012 headlines shows an overwhelming coverage of “Ultrabooks.” This new class of notebooks sport ultra-thin designs, incredibly fast processors, and a marketing emphasis that they are the future of notebooks.

Huh? How can they be the future, when they’re biggest influence, and biggest competitor is over four years old?

It's difficult to imagine these products getting any thinner, but I wouldn't be surprised if the name Macbook Air takes on an all to literal meaning before all is said and done.

Source: TUAW

[Cowboy]

Yay macbook airs!
I love mine hands down the best mac i have owned and i have had them all

[thekirbylover]

when they’re biggest influence

Typo - should say their.

[Raahem]

Huh? How can they be the future, when they’re biggest influence, and biggest competitor is over four years old?

Hmmm... that's what I said when apple introduced
FIRST EVARRR Video chatting to the mobile phone in 2010.... FaceTime... not like all 3G phones were capable of that
A free messaging service obviously nothing like a particular Canadian company's BBM ..... iMessage wow how revolutionary
And a superfast interface so much faster than any computer has ever seen... way faster than SATA, PCIe or USB3....Thunderbolt most splendid

oh by the way did you know now Mac OS has this cool thing called Launch Pad, where all your applications are in a grid format on top of your background? ITS SO SO SO SMART
IF ONLY SOME OTHER OS THOUGHT OF THIS IN BACK IN 1995. DAYMN SON.

You think Apple is the one that doesnt copy? lmao

[Amraam]

Also, 1.6Mghz processor? I assume you mean 1.6Ghz?

[sziklassy]

Everyone else is just now making ultra books because tech has advanced to the point where ultra books are not POS. The first macbook air was cool, but it overheated, had a crappy display, and was just plain overpriced. The last two generations are where it was at, and that is right around the time others started getting in on the action.

[LivesForJihad]

I had a friend who LOVED anything Apple and Mac. A few years back, he bought a Macbook Air Gen 1...and then he converted to PC/Widows because his MBA was THAT BAD!

Apple is a joke. I wish the Occupy Protestors would finish that company off. Occupy Protestors...go west!

[Captinsmooth]

I love my MBA, I know the first gens weren't that great because of a few design issues and the absence of a SSD. But the new ones are simply amazing. I have had two friends go out and buy MBA's after using mine. The speed is unparalleled to anything out there right now. Again I say a great machine.

On a second note, why is are these trolls being allowed to post? It is quite obvious with the user names some chose, and the comments they make that they are only here to hate. How sad must ones life be when they join a forum about a product they dislike just to troll?

[fleurya]

Hmmm... that's what I said when apple introduced
FIRST EVARRR Video chatting to the mobile phone in 2010.... FaceTime... not like all 3G phones were capable of that
A free messaging service obviously nothing like a particular Canadian company's BBM ..... iMessage wow how revolutionary
And a superfast interface so much faster than any computer has ever seen... way faster than SATA, PCIe or USB3....Thunderbolt most splendid

oh by the way did you know now Mac OS has this cool thing called Launch Pad, where all your applications are in a grid format on top of your background? ITS SO SO SO SMART
IF ONLY SOME OTHER OS THOUGHT OF THIS IN BACK IN 1995. DAYMN SON.

You think Apple is the one that doesnt copy? lmao

You seem to be confusing the word "competitor" with "inventor".

You don't have to invent something to be a big competitor in it. Apple doesn't claim to invent things. They take good ideas and adopt/improve them, like most companies try to do.

[sziklassy]

You seem to be confusing the word "competitor" with "inventor".

You don't have to invent something to be a big competitor in it. Apple doesn't claim to invent things. They take good ideas and adopt/improve them, like most companies try to do.

You are right. When they "make something better" it's cool. When someone else makes something of theirs better, they sue. Luckily we are seeing more of their lawsuit coming through and ruled as bull spit.