What Do You Think About MacBook Air?

The Apple- and Mac-focused blogosphere has been dominated by Macworld and the Steve Jobs MacBook Air announcement. For those who've been hiding out in a snow cave all week, the MacBook Air is a new super-thin, super-light notebook. Even though the elegant new Mac is far from Earth-shaking, it seems like everybody has something to say about it.Arnold Kim, editor of the popular MacRumors.com site, incorporated a special Macworld blog section this year that's been covering the show, the new products and the conference buzz."Apple's announcements always overshadow everything," Kim told MacNewsWorld. "Obviously there's no iPhone-caliber announcement, but I don't think anyone realistically expected Apple to be able to pull one off like that again." The MacBook Air was expected to be announced, Kim said, and the expectations of Mac enthusiasts at Macworld always exceed the end product. "There is a sizable audience that was somewhat disappointed in it, but that's also a true statement for any Macworld. Apple can only release a few products, and the audience here tends to be pretty vocal about the features." Like blog writers and commenters, Macworld attendees tend to be power users with specific needs and strong-willed opinions to go with those needs. While the MacBook Air has been gushed over just about everywhere for its astounding design elements, commenters are just as quick to point out what's missing. A case in point is Kim's blog post on the matter, "Lack of 3G a Deal Breaker ... No, Not Talking about iPhone." "It seems most people complaining about this laptop are missing its point. It's entire purpose is to be thin and light, while still retaining a surprising amount of functionality. Oh and beautiful. And on that front it succeeds," noted shutterbug in response to Petemortensen's Cult of Mac post. While some seem to like the built-in battery aesthetically, for others, it raises questions about traveling -- you can't pack an extra battery, for example, for long flights. "They didn't provide any type of battery extender, which will limit where this can be used, and the battery life when connected to WiMax or 3G may become a big problem if USB solutions are used," Rob Enderle, principal analyst for the Enderle Group, told MacNewsWorld."This kind of product lives to be connected, and at the very least, when the 3G iPhone comes out, it should have a solution linking the two -- but given the existing iPhone is 2.5 G they can't really do that yet," he added. "So think of this as a product in transition, the best of its class to yet exist -- but still in need of some critical work to be perfect."