“If there were lingering doubts about how well longtime enemies Apple and Intel would work together, the svelte MacBook Air laptop should dispel them,” Jon Fortt writes for Fortune. “Many observers (including this writer) were unsure what to make of the machine when Jobs introduced it in January, especially given that it lacked two common features: a DVD drive and a removable battery.”
MacDailyNews Note: It also lacks serial ports and a floppy drive.
Fortt continues, “But in the months since, it has taken its place among Jobs’ brilliant if unconventional bets. The MacBook Air has been the top-selling computer on Apple’s online store for most of the year, even though a similarly appointed laptop without the narrow profile sells for hundreds of dollars less. And Intel can proudly say its researchers helped make it possible.”
“‘That was the first time they actually worked together on a custom project,’ says Tim Bajarin, president of the Creative Strategies consulting firm. ‘Before that, everything was pretty much off the shelf. As a result, the relationship grew even further,'” Fortt reports.
What does the future hold for the unlikely partnership? Expect more collaborative efforts like the MacBook Air. Intel Chief Technology Officer Justin Rattner says the two companies are working on more projects that are ‘equally aggressive’ – which probably means there are both tough technology challenges and tough deadlines,” Fortt reports.
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take:
• “That thing’s missing half the things on my PC. Where’s the DVD drive?” – Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer, commenting on Apple’s new MacBook Air, March 6, 2008
• “There are a lot of flaws with the MacBook Air, and it is unlikely to be much of a success.” – MarketWatch Gasbag John Dvorak, January 25, 2008
• “The Cube, although a stunning piece of industrial design, was a commercial flop, and I think the MacBook Air will be, too.” – CNET executive editor Molly Wood, January 22, 2008