Apple introduces MacBook Airâthe worldâs thinnest notebook
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Apple today introduced the worldâs thinnest notebook: MacBook Air. It measures an unprecedented 0.16 inches at its thinnest point while its maximum height of 0.76 inches is less than the thinnest point on competing notebooks. In addition to a stunning 13.3-inch LED-backlit widescreen display, MacBook Air offers a full-size and backlit keyboard, a built-in iSight video camera for video conferencing, and a spacious trackpad with multi-touch gesture support, letting users pinch, rotate and swipe. The new notebook is powered by a 1.6 GHz or 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 4MB L2 cache, and it includes as standard features 2GB of memory, an 80GB 1.8-inch hard drive, and the latest 802.11n Wi-Fi technology and Bluetooth 2.1. Starting at just $1,799, MacBook Air begins shipping in two weeks.
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Apple Inc  unveiled a lightweight laptop about three-quarters of an inch thick on Tuesday and said it would start renting movies over the Internet, moving the iPhone and iPod maker into a very competitive market.
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Apple is now in the position where it cannot hold a proper Macworld without unveiling "One More Thing." But with the iPhone being a hard act to follow, was the MacBook Air enough to keep the world's gadget haven at the top of its game?
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Apple Inc  unveiled a  lightweight laptop about three-quarters of an inch thick on  Tuesday and said it would rent movies over the Web, moving the  iPod maker into a very competitive market.
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Steve Jobs wowed the Macworld audience when he unveiled the slim, ultraportable MacBook Air notebook, but users and analysts say its lack of some important features may make it unattractive to buyers.The&#160;ultraportable notebook, launched at the conference and expo on Tuesday, has a 13.3-inch wide-screen display and a full-size backlit keyboard. It uses a 1.8-inch hard drive, also found in the iPod, and a smaller version of Intel&#39;s Core 2 Duo processor.Apple has also developed a program called Remote Disk, with which users can download software from the optical drive of a nearby computer using built-in 802.11n wireless networking. At 3 pounds (1.3 kilograms), Jobs called it the lightest and thinnest notebook on the planet.Scott Armstrong, a Mac user, was watching the Web for news from the show as Jobs unveiled the notebook, which is .076 inch at its thinnest part and from 0.8 inch to 1.2 inches high, by removing it from a business-size manila envelope. For all its impressive features, it does not meet the needs of Apple&#39;s traditional multimedia audience, said Armstrong, who is also president of the Macintosh Users Group in Kennewick, Wash.One omission is a FireWire communications port, which is necessary to transfer big multimedia files, Armstrong said. Apple has led the effort to promote FireWire, so it&#39;s surprising it wasn&#39;t included in MacBook Air, Armstrong said. One USB port isn&#39;t enough, he said.The machine lacks storage capacity and, at 4,200 rpm, the hard drive is really slow, Armstrong said. &quot;Most people would like to have features in their laptops. This product is for people who won&#39;t need stuff or hook stuff up,&quot; Armstrong said.It may be targeted at students, who could sacrifice features for portability, Armstrong said. &quot;They haven&#39;t discontinued the MacBook and MacBook Pro notebook models, so they are doing it for a niche market,&quot; Armstrong said.The Air&#39;s novelty value could attract buyers, but the $1,799 starting price tag is too heavy for a machine lacking features.&quot;They won&#39;t stay with this for long, they&#39;ll come out with something more innovative with Air,&quot; Armstrong said.The MacBook Air is a mismatch with Apple&#39;s price-sensitive customers, such as educators and those who do creative work and require significant storage for music, photos, and video, Citigroup said in a research note on Wednesday. Moreover, ultraportable-laptop users are generally Windows-based PC users, not Mac users, Citigroup said.While the product could be a long-term success, Apple will produce the laptop in small volumes until more features are added, Citigroup said.Unlike&#160;Asus&#39;s Eee PC, the MacBook Air may sell slowly because of its high price point and overlapping functionality with the existing MacBook and MacBook Pro lines, said Shaw Wu, an analyst with American Technology Research, in a research note. However, Apple is adept with product placement, as shown by the iPhone and iPod, where there has been minimal cannibalization despite overlapping functionality, Wu said.The MacBook Air may be niche, but Apple could be pioneering the adoption of future technologies&#160;such as&#160;wireless communication between devices, said Jim Ritz, a Mac user and member of the Apple Pi user group in Rockville, Md.Users were concerned when Apple got rid of the floppy drive, and now Apple is now betting that the time for wireless networking has come by removing the Ethernet port and including wireless storage, Ritz said.Adding more wireless features establishes Apple&#39;s intent to change the way users look at ultraportable laptops, Ritz said. &quot;I&#39;m curious to see what the notebook looks like a year from now.&quot;Ritz has a plan that will help him afford to buy a MacBook Air, which he wants to try out -- he says he&#39;s going to offer to sell his recently purchased MacBook to his wife.&quot;It&#39;s a costly little puppy no doubt, but all new things are expensive,&quot; Ritz said of the MacBook Air.Apple officials could not be reached for comment regarding concerns with the MacBook Air that were raised by Mac enthusiasts and analysts.
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Apple announced that it has updated its entire MacBook product line with faster Intel Core 2 Duo processors, 1GB of memory, and larger hard drives. Just one-inch thin, MacBook features built-in 802.11n wireless networking. It also includes a built-in iSight video camera for on-the-go video conferencing, a MagSafe Power Adapter that safely disconnects under strain, and iLife â06, Appleâs award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications. With prices starting at $1,099 (US), the new MacBook models are available immediately.
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Apple introduced a new iTunes movie rental service and an ultralight Mac notebook that could set a new industry standard for thinness.
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âThe phone is so sleek and thin,â reports David Pogue (New York Times) in his review of iPhone, that âit makes Treos and Blackberrys look obese.â And the software transcends. âItâs fast, beautiful, menu-free, and dead simple to operate.â If you need âto answer a call, you can tap Answer on the screen, or pinch the microscopic microphone bulge on the white earbud cord. Either way, music or video playback pauses until you hang up.â As for email, itâs âfantastic. Incoming messages are fully formatted, complete with graphics; you can even open (but not edit) Word, Excel and PDF documents.â And âthe Web browser,â he points out, âis the real dazzler.â No âstripped down, claustrophobic My First Cellphone Browser; you get full Web layouts, fonts and all, shrunk to fit the screen. You scroll with a fingertip â much faster than scroll bars. You can double-tap to enlarge a block of text for reading, or rotate the screen 90 degrees, which rotates and magnifies the image to fill the wider view.â In short, Pogue calls the iPhone, âthe most sophisticated, outlook-changing piece of electronics to come along in years.â
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Only machines unaffected by vendors' recalls Exclusive Virgin Atlantic has updated its restrictions for the use of Apple- and Dell-branded notebook computers on its flights. The good news: the ban on battery use is no longer total - the company is now restricting only those batteries whose serial numbers are covered by the vendors' product recalls.â¦
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Apple Computer Inc.&#039;s latest laptop looks sleek, runs fast and should give makers of Windows-based notebooks considerable cause for concern.
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While Apple's (Nasdaq: AAPL) introduction of the Mac Mini just weeks ago indicates a push toward the low end of personal computers, the company has just introduced new models in its high-end series of PowerBook notebook computers. The line is characterized by more memory, faster processors, and some nifty bells and whistles -- as each generation of the PowerBooks has been.
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Momentum is building around Apple's reputed plans to launch its thinnest and lightest notebook ever at Macworld, less than two weeks from today.
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Is Apple airtight? The unveiling of Apple's super-thin MacBook Air promises to expand further the Mac user base. That's troubling news for a platform that, as it enjoys greater uptake, risks the darker side of fandom - stalkers. Or, in this case, hackers and virus writers.â¦
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Frenzied excitement gathers pace So, CES packs up for another year and everyone takes a break from the full-on, week-long frenzy. However, another big event is about to steal the spotlight as Apple is expected to announce an ultra-slim laptop at its annual show on Tuesday.â¦
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Mac OS X âLeopard is powerful, polished and carefully conceived. Happy surprises, and very few disappointments, lie around every corner. This Leopard has more than 300 new spots â and most of them are bright ones,â declares David Pogue (New York Times). He points, for example, to two âroutine-changingâ features. Time Machine, which offers âthe shortest setup of any backup system in history.â And Quick Look, which lets you âview the contents of a documentâs icon at full size, right at the desktop, without having to open the program that created it.â Pogue says âitâs fantastic.â
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With the&#160;ultra-thin MacBook Air&#160;reaching stores soon, Apple is selling accessories that make up for the laptop&#39;s skimpy features. Apple is already taking orders for a slim external optical drive and an Ethernet adapter, both designed for the MacBook Air, that plug into the laptop&#39;s only USB (Universal Serial Bus) port. The accessories are designed to match Air&#39;s slim footprint, Apple said. Belkin and WaterField Designs are also cashing in, announcing notebook bags designed for the unconventional MacBook Air.MacBook Air&#39;s optical driveTo make up for the lack of an optical drive in the laptop, Apple is taking orders for the MacBook Air SuperDrive on its Web site. The sleek drive can play and burn CDs and DVDs, and in the laptop&#39;s spirit, &quot;takes up little space on your desk or tray table,&quot; according to the company. The portable optical drive measures 5.47 by 5.47 by 0.67 inches (139 by 139 by 17 millimeters) and weighs 0.71 pounds (320 grams). The drive plugs into Air&#39;s USB port, and doesn&#39;t require a separate power adapter.The $99 drive is available on Apple&#39;s Web site.Ethernet adapter for MacBook AirTo supplement wireless networking built into MacBook Air, Apple is selling the USB Ethernet Adapter for wired networking. The Ethernet dongle is light and plugs into Air&#39;s USB port, according to Apple. Available on Apple&#39;s Web site, the $29 adapter will ship in two to three weeks.Video connector for AirMost of the older external multimedia devices -- TVs and VCRs -- can be connected to MacBook Air with Apple&#39;s Micro-DVI to Video Adapter. Designed specifically for the laptop, the adapter connects to a laptop&#39;s DVI (Digital Video Interface) port and includes S-Video and composite connectors that connect external multimedia devices like projectors to the laptop. The $19 adapter is available on Apple&#39;s Web site.Belkin&#39;s Macbook Air SleeveA MacBook Air is too small for a conventional notebook bag, so Belkin has created a bag specifically for Air&#39;s slim profile. With a neoprene cover, the Sleeve bag can protect the MacBook Air from damage by absorbing shock, said Melody Chalaban, a Belkin spokeswoman. The Sleeve is small enough to be slipped into a bag or backpack, Chalaban said. A model of the Sleeve will come with a strap to hook the bag around the shoulder.Starting at $29.99, the neoprene Sleeves will be available starting March. A $49.99 Sleeve, which will ship in May, includes leather and the option to access the laptop from the top or side.WaterField&#39;s SleeveCaseWaterField Designs this month introduced SleeveCase, a hardcover bag designed to protect the MacBook Air from impact. The cover, made of thick synthetic nylon and neoprene, cushions the laptop while in transport, the company said. Over 50 sizes of the bag are in stock, WaterField said. The bags can be carried individually or slipped into a messenger bag, backpack or suitcase.SleeveCase prices start at $38, depending on size and model. It started shipping earlier this month.
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Time for the MacBook Air reveal--it's a signature Steve Jobs moment.