“The Apple MacBook Air is a seminal computer. There I said it. I’m not going to pretend that my opinion is the final word (or anything close to it) but I will weigh in by saying it’s a ground-breaking product. After using it for about two months, here’s why,” Brooke Crothers writes for CNET’s Crave. “(Note: I am not a Mac enthusiast. This is the first Apple [Mac] I’ve ever owned.)”
1. Very thin, very light but comparatively fast. That’s no mean feat.
2. Solid state drive (SSD): The SSD is revolutionary.
3. Sturdy. For a sub-one-inch-thin notebook, it feels remarkably solid.
4. Battery life. I can only compare the battery life against the other PC notebooks I use. The Air beats them all.
5. Looks. You can’t beat the aesthetics.
Full article here.
Afib,
Give the rest of these posters your website address so they can go there and hijack everyone of your threads.
notafib:
Inflammatory?
Firstly, without you being more specific, I find your use of generalized and unsubstantiated statements groundless.
Secondly, why or why not would you consider other threads here inflammatory or not? If you cannot provide examples, I would be glad to provide them for you, then you can evaluate then explain your reasoning.
@afib
Thanks for further illustrating my point.
Hmmm… Feels like junior high in here…
@atari
Your Mom BluRay
Thomas:
What point was that?
@Afib
Why do I get the notion that you just love to hear yourself sound off? Give it a rest.
Wow!…. I’m one of those people who visits MDN several times a day and usually enjoys the news items and the commentary, but very rarely posts. However, it’s like a virus has invaded this thread (and many other recent items regarding the MBA), and I feel like I need to say something.
If you read even a small portion of Afib’s many posts, it’s clear that he/she has an unusually high emotional need to feel like their opinion is “correct” on this subject. It’s way out of whack with the importance of this subject to the Apple “World” (Apple will do just fine whether the MBA is a success or not), let alone the B-I-G world outside of Apple.
Even attempts to deal with Afib via humor (thanks Ampar!) or light sarcasm (thanks Zune Tang!) have only fueled Afib’s vitriol. For some reason Afib has such a powerful emotional need to be perceived as being “right” on this subject that he/she has repeatedly composed lengthy, verbose diatribes in this forum.
So, I say “Stop the Madness!” Let’s stop feeding into Afib’s obsession with this topic. Let’s try and purge this thread of the Afib Virus.
Afib:
– You are right! The MacBook Air is flawed in EXACTLY the way you say it is flawed.
– You are right! People who buy the MacBook Air thinking they are getting an elegant, well thought-out, well designed, well-functioning sub-notebook are simply deluding themselves.
– You are right! People whose opinions on the MacBook Air differ from yours are fools and deserve every syllable of the tongue-lashing you mete out in this forum.
– All Hail Afib!
— Did I cover everything? Have I now maintained the order or your universe? Can you please stop your propagation on MDN now and find another virtual host?
auren:
“Why do I get the notion that you just love to hear yourself sound off?”
I don’t know what you think, only you can answer that question. Maybe your a fanboi who can’t bear the fact that logic trumps bias so you want me to stop threading.
“Give it a rest.”
If you ask a question of me or post a thread about my threads, I do feel an obligation to respond. Besides, you seem only concerned about my threading here, which I interpret as an inherent bias on your part.
MDN uses the number of hits per day to drive up the cost of advertising on it site, so MDN has a vested interest in increasing threads. If you can pay them more than the advertisers I am certain they would listen to you.
Besides, MDN is a public forum, so get used to it or start your own private blog.
Zune Tang’s mom is that pregnant guy we saw on TV the other night.
Afib honey, you forgot your meds today. I hope the fits aren’t too bad. Left some brownies and milk out for you, snookums. Let me know when your little D & D club is finished.
Love,
Your Mother
The DataDude:
“If you read even a small portion of Afib’s many posts, it’s clear that he/she has an unusually high emotional need to feel like their opinion is “correct” on this subject.”
No, you are wrong. I am not trying to convince anyone else to think like me or prove myself correct. I am simply sharing an alternate opinion and explaining my position. If you don’t like it, well, too bad.
“Even attempts to deal with Afib via humor (thanks Ampar!) or light sarcasm (thanks Zune Tang!) have only fueled Afib’s vitriol. For some reason Afib has such a powerful emotional need to be perceived as being “right” on this subject that he/she has repeatedly composed lengthy, verbose diatribes in this forum.”
Ampar’s and others use of crass language and profanity is hardly the example of intelligent and rational thought processes. It’s not “vitriol”, it’s attempting to convey a message that some others seem oblivious to understand.
You may not agree with my threads, but to characterize them as as being hostile is groundless. Maybe your revealing your own deep-seated animosity. Ever think of that?
My threads may be verbose, but I know of no other way of attempting to explain myself clearly. If you have any advice how I can edit my threads and still communicate clearly, please, be my guest, and present them. Who knows, maybe everyone can learn something from you.
You rule. Your superiority is obvious. Please allow us to lick the heel of your mighty boot. We will relent and and carry around 8 pound bricks so that we can ceck our email a few times during our business trips and vacations. We will stop speaking poorly of your mother who probably did the best she could. All hail Afib and his flaming pants.
Thank you, The DataDude! And you’re welcome.
Excuse me now while I go mow the crass. I’ve got plenty of fertilizer from some of these posts.
To Buster:
“Zune Tang’s mom is that pregnant guy . . .”
I guess he took someone a bit too literally when told to go screw himself.
I’m stuck in the office today, at least it’s ENTERTAINING dumb ass, childish mudslinging. Zune Tang is in the rarest of forms.
To James:
Oh man! Sorry to hear about the weekend office duty! I hope you at least have a nice window view.
Should we order you a pizza?
The DataDude:
You can certainly take my words out of context. Perhaps if I explain the errors of your interpretations you can relax and enjoy life again.
“The MacBook Air is flawed in EXACTLY the way you say it is flawed.”
I said MBA was deficient in certain ways, not flawed. You can certainly go back to my original threads and read them again. I will not repeat my points again. If you have any specific questions, present them, and I will explain them to you.
All machines are deficient in some form or another. There would be no product development if there was no recognition that some feature, specification, or component could not be improved. That’s what drives innovation. However, innovation of itself is no guarantee of universal acceptance nor is it likely that would anyone design a machine that fits every conceivable need.
Besides, if you read the reviews of ANY Mac product from 1984 till now you will find persons commenting on the strengths and weakness of the product. This should be no surprise to any informed and astute person. If you have read the various reviews of MBA you would have recognized that many others have also commented on the limited usefulness of MBA – not just me.
“People who buy the MacBook Air thinking they are getting an elegant, well thought-out, well designed, well-functioning sub-notebook are simply deluding themselves.”
No, that’s not what I said. I said that anyone who does not carefully and thoughtfully compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of ALL Apple notebooks is deluding themselves when they make a purchase. My motive was to ensure that persons debating purchase of an Apple notebook made a fully informed decision. I am hoping to prevent even one person from experiencing buyer’s remorse from making too hasty a purchase.
Would you agree with me that Mac users ought to make fully informed decisions when selecting their Macs?
“People whose opinions on the MacBook Air differ from yours are fools and deserve every syllable of the tongue-lashing you mete out in this forum. All Hail Afib!”
Now you’re just being completely irrational.
“Did I cover everything?”
I don’t know, did you?
”Have I now maintained the order or your universe?”
The order of my universe is not affected by those who thread here at MDN. It is hubris on your part to think that you or anyone else here at MDN has the power to alter my universe.
“Can you please stop your propagation on MDN now and find another virtual host?”
Considering the endemic lack of understanding here at MDN, I feel it is my obligation as a Mac user since 1985, to raise the consciousness and understanding of visitors and regular alike. You see, it would be unacceptable for me not to correct the misinterpretations of so many.
Would you agree with me that correcting misinterpretations is a good thing?
As if anyone (besides ZuneThang) is interested in bad looking stuff.
Only 45 minutes left, but thank you!
Afib, we got ’em right where we want ’em! Just look at the replies to your brilliant posts. You’re really getting under the fanboi’s skin. You blind MAC lemmings can’t take much more, can you? If Afib is wrong, I don’t want to be right.
Afib my brother, all I can say is keep the posts coming, and do try to expound further. Don’t try to edit yourself—feel free to expand on your ideas. Let the genius flow. As a fellow Windows enthusiast I find your work fascinating and riveting. I’m even more impressed you spent an entire Saturday posting and replying. Awesome!
Your potential. Our passion.™
Zune Tang:
You might be right, ZT. Maybe the intellectual capacity of the fanbois at MDN is so limited that my efforts to engage in rational discussion is futile.
So much for the majority of Mac users being more enlightened and discerning than people like you, huh?
to Afib: A few rants do not make you convincing. You obviously missed the point of the article. Reread it and process its writer’s ideas before commenting.
LOL:
Oh, you must one of those enlightened and discerning Mac users. Thank you for showing up. I was wondering when one of you self-described Mac geniuses would chime in.
Now, what was that obvious point that I missed? I don’t want to waste your precious time by answering the wrong body of text.
If you would be so magnanimous and reveal which of my points was in error I would be so glad to read your comments. I mean, basking in the radiance of your brilliance would mean so much to me.
@afib
Apparently you have a difficulty with reading comprehension. You wrote, repeatedly:
“Fanboi Crothers”
blatently ignoring Crothers statement:
“(Note: I am not a Mac enthusiast. This is the first Apple I’ve ever owned.)”
Your repeated use of the appellation “fanboi” is obvious argumentum ad hominum… a logical fallacy. It does nothing to forward your argument except alert readers to your bias.
You also wrote:
“Fanboi Crothers also fails to mention what other PC notebooks he owns. . .”
But Crothers did indeed mention a PC notebook he has owned:
“Subnotebooks I’ve had in the past (<u>e.g., the Compaq Evo N400c</u>) were thin and light but slow.”
You wrote:
Faster than what, Crothers?
And Crothers had already told you what it was faster than:
“Subnotebooks I’ve had in the past…”
You wrote:
“MBA “feels remarkably solid”. No quantifiable data are presented regarding how robust or “sturdy” the MBA actually is. You have to believe that Crothers has some fanboi superpowers that exceed that of normal persons.”
Why should anyone believe to make a subjective judgement about the solidity of any three dimensional object, especially when compared to a ” sub-one-inch-thin notebook,” that anyone needs “superpowers?” I can lift it and comparably thin notebooks and observe and report which feel “remarkably solid.” Can’t you? Do you want him to jump up and down on his notebook so he could report whether it did or did not crush? That is far beyond the scope of this 458 word opinion piece.
You wrote:
“Fanboi has failed to report the actual battery life of his machines.”
Yes, he did… perhaps not to the detail you demand, but he did:
” I can only compare the battery life against the other PC notebooks I use. The Air beats them all. For what I do on the Air (a lot of open windows, occasional moderate Web development, writing), <u>it lasts anywhere from three to five hours</u>.”
Then you write:
” “Obviously, the Air has its (well-publicized) shortcomings.” However, fanboi does not list these. Why not?”
Could it be because he has already given us the answer? He said that the shortcomings were “well-publicized.”
As a debate, almost all of your points you make in your criticism of Crothers’ blog are strawman arguments, points you bring up merely to knock them down.
All of the rest is merely YOUR opinion contrasted to his… but you use ad hominem attacks and extend those ad hominems to a majority of your target audience. This is merely an opinion piece… it is not a objective review… as are all of your commentaries on MDN.
Finally, you asked the question:
“So, how would an intelligent and thoughtful person make an objective decision which Apple notebook to purchase?”
The answer is that they would read and consider other reviews and opinions (including yours, if they found it, noting your strong, offensive opinion of their lack of intelligence and ability to think for themselves, and give your other opinions the weights they deserve), and, finally, compare the specifications among sub-notebook computers which show that the MBA contains a processor that is faster than PC sub-notebooks, has a larger keyboard than most PC sub-notebooks, and is generally priced at a lower price than PC sub-notebooks, and then make an informed decision of which features are important to them and purchase a notebook computer accordingly.
By the way, afib, how long have you used a Macbook Air?