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Comment by TillE | Hacker News Reader

That 13" Macbook Air is looking really attractive as a portable work computer. Any downsides I should be aware of?

I've also been coding and working on an Air for months and had no issues other than being spoiled by its lightness and speed. I run virtual machines on it with no problem. It does everything a Macbook Pro does only faster, quieter, and without a DVD drive which I don't miss. You can also trade in your shoulder bag for a neoprene sleeve and reminisce about what life was like before computers were the size of clipboards.

I agree completely. I've been spoiled rotten, and now realize I can never go back to any other laptop. They just seem like heavy, slow relics from a previous decade. Damn you, Apple!

I also run virtual copies of Windows, and it all runs like a dream.

Wouldn't a MBP with an SSD be faster (quad core and all)?

It definately would, questions is if you really need that kind of extra power.

You do realise that you could use a SSD on the macbook pro too right?

What, and carry an extra kilo everyhwere too? That's crazy talk! IIRC Macbook can use SSD but doesn't boot off the SSD.

No. They can boot off of an SSD. You just replace the existing HD.

yes it can, it is even a standard option in the store (but it makes the thing a lot more expensive)

The new(-est) Macbook Pros have an option to upgrade to a 128G SSD for $200, which next to the base price of a higher end model is pretty appealing (unless you need tons of space).

faster?

For example try this at an Apple store: stand at a Macbook and open several apps at once, close them, then reopen them, then do the same exercise on an Air.

Well the Macbook at the store probably don't have SSD's installed.

I would assume that if I replaced the HD with an SSD, the MBP would be faster because then it'd have the processing advantage.

I've been using one for months (as a dev machine) and haven't had an issue.

Second that. Also been using the 13" since early Jan as a dev machine and am absolutely in love with it. These upgrades will only make it better.

Third. Traded in 13" Pro for 13" Air two months ago. Especially appreciate the higher-resolution screen on Air (and the weight of course).

In fact, the 13" Air has the same resolution screen as the standard 15" Pro.

The biggest downside might be 4GB maximum RAM - that's enough to dissuade me, anyway.

Seems like plenty to me for a laptop, do you bump up against that limit for what you do on a laptop? (I'm curious.)

He might need virtualization, which is essential for any web dev who wants to target the mainstream. You might have multiple VMs up so you can test different versions of IE (no IE 6 on Windows Vista or 7). When you add in Photoshop, Firefox with Firebug, and Apache, you really start pushing the limits of 4 GB.

I suppose it depends on what exactly you're doing with the virtualization, but if it's just IE testing, I've found 4GB to be plenty -- performance is fine with small amounts of memory in the virtual machines, which I assume is because their usage of virtual disk-based memory is quite fast due to the SSD.

Can't speak for the GP, but I frequently work with multiple Windows VMs (think large Oracle and SQL Server databases), and 4GB starts to feel a bit small.

My ideal machine would have more than 4GB RAM. It could even come at the expense of a smaller internal storage, because I'd use an external Thunderbolt drive to store client stuff.

So I might be sticking with the MBP for that reason..

I use Windows, but just yesterday I noticed I was using 5.47GB and I didn't even have any VMs opened. Just VS with Silverlight, sql server management, couple of browsers with the silverlight plugin opened.. 6GB of RAM payed of I guess

All good OS's try to use all the RAM availible (within certain limits of course). My RAM is almost always at 80% usage and above even with just a couple of lightweight applications running.

I was talking about "Commit charge" which is the memory actually used by the processes. You can see it by enabling the Commit size column in task manager. Which doesn't even include all the memory process actually uses. Check this for details on Windows if you're interested http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/archive/2008/11/1...

As suggested, I use VMs fairly often, but just Firefox + Aptana + random other stuff can bump into 4GB on occasion. I could probably make do with 4GB, but I'm hoping the next iteration will go to 8.

Seems most people are interested in the 13". Does anyone have any comments on the 11"?

The only downside I can see is that only 1 external monitor is supported. After all, when you're traveling, the smaller the better.

I use the maxed out 11" as my primary computer. My usage is about 60% at desk, plugged into external, keyboard, closed clamshell, and 40% portable. The only complaint is the smaller 128 ssd, but it just forced me to get rid of stuff I really didn't need. The less glossy screen is great and the smaller size when I'm portable forces me to focus more. My typical software usage is Photoshop, Illustrator, TextMate, Terminal, iTunes, Chrome, and VMWare Fusion. It only really gets hot if I'm viewing flash content. Battery life isn't bad, but it's not amazing, 4 to 5 hours of mixed use.

The portable size is amazing. From time to time you'll catch me caressing it and whispering sweet nothings to it. I can bring it everywhere with me and I don't need a huge bag to lug it around. I use a protective sleeve, which offers a bit more protection than the other types of sleeves. http://www.hardcandycases.com/bubble-sleeve-macbook-air-case...

re: Flash content: I was playing with an last-gen 11" MBA in the Apple Store a couple months ago, and saw that it wasn't capable of playing the YouTube video of All of the Lights <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAfFfqiYLp0>; at 1080p without dropping frames. Obviously this is completely arbitrary because the MBA can't display 1080p, but I was a little concerned about it.

Have you had problems with HD Flash/Netflix?

No problems. I actually have an HDMI to display port adapter from monoprice and I use it to watch Netflix on my LCD TV every now and then. Plays it fine with no stutter or dropping frames. The fans do kick on though.

I'm using the 2010 11" as my primary computer, and have been really happy with it. But then again, I mostly hack CoffeeScript and PHP with vim on Linux, so how much power do I need ;-)

http://bergie.iki.fi/blog/11-macbook_air-the_best_computer_i...

Do you use an external monitor at home/work, or always just the built-in display?

Just built-in, and no external mouse or keyboard either. I want my working environment to be the same regardless of whether I'm at the office or in an airplane

I bought the 11" for my wife and now I want one.

The savings in space and weight are significant when you're moving around. The 11" really isn't much bigger than an iPad. I have some pockets it can fit in.

The tradeoff is a smaller screen when you're on the road. The small screen has high-res and is quite usable but I'd rather dock to something for long-term coding work. But external monitors are cheap, so unless your work pattern involves constantly moving from new desk to new desk it's not hard to just park a monitor at every one of your desks.

Echoing the sentiments of the other 11" owners, I love my 11" MBA. It's not perfect but it's close enough for the time being.

I just bought a brand new 11" with a bigger SSD and the i7 and the only thing I wish was different was the amount of RAM. If it had 8GB RAM, then it would easily be the best computer I've ever owned.

Agreed. I have a 2nd-gen 11" MBA, and I've been really happy with it as a primary (and only) machine. I can even do Android dev on it, thought Eclipse tends to stretch it a bit thin sometimes.

The new ones are so close to perfect. I share your disappointment in the lack of an 8GB RAM option. I'm also a little worried about the Intel graphics, though I hear the HD 3000 is comparable to the nvidia 310M, which presumably is only a slight step back from the 320M in the 2nd-gen Air.

The battery life is 40% longer on the 13", which to me is enough to swing the balance. The size is only about an inch different in two dimensions and 1/2 pound.

I have a previous generation 13" and I find I use the SD port often, which is missing on the 11".

4 GB of RAM can be a problem for some.

It's a bit superfluous, but I don't think it's too much. Besides, the OS can use the extra memory as cache/buffers.

I think he was referring to 4GB as being too little. If you are doing anything involving photos/video/audio editing, you are probably going to want at least 8GB.

...and in one year you will need 16GB.

I think I was oh-too-cleverly pointing out the absurdity of having so much memory in a laptop and thinking it might not be enough.

I just pulled the trigger on one. From what I've read the old Air was a great little computer, and these new upgrades should only improve it.

I have the fully-loaded 13" from the previous iteration. It replaced a $3000+ Macbook Pro from 2008 and on paper, was less impressive in almost every regard except for the SSD.

I thought I would keep the MBP around just as a desk station but after using the Air, I just can't stand the slowness - perceived or real - of the MBP. I've stopped playing computer games, but as a coder and photographer (processing RAW with Adobe products), I've been incredibly happy with the Air. It seemed like a luxury purchase at the time but it's had a big effect on productivity in terms of my personal projects. I live in NYC and I tend to carry my laptop (with my fullsize DSLR) everywhere...I used to do that with the MBP, but many times would not just because it was too heavy of a combo. I pretty much take the Air anywhere I go where it's acceptable to have a messenger bag.

Also, I had thought about getting the iPad2...but, besides the fact that the ipad2's feature set wasn't that impressive, I found myself using the Air for a lot of portable leisure computing and using the iPad a lot less these days.

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