Design
The MacBook Air is designed for thinness; it is also lighter than most competing models. The computer features a glossy LED backlit display and a full-size keyboard, as well as a large trackpad that responds to Multi-Touch gestures such as pinching, swiping, and rotating. With the release of Mac OS X Snow Leopard, the Air's multi-touch trackpad also supports handwriting recognition of Chinese characters.
On the 11-inch MacBook Air, the left side of the computer has a MagSafe power connector, a USB port, a headphone jack, and a microphone. The right side of the computer has a USB port and a Mini DisplayPort, now sharing Thunderbolt function in the 2011 version. On top of the screen bezel there is a webcam, first dubbed iSight and now the FaceTime camera.
The MacBook Air was the first subcompact laptop offered by Apple since the full-featured 12" PowerBook G4 was discontinued in 2006. It was also Apple's first computer with an optional solid-state storage drive. ArsTechnica found "moderate" performance improvements of the 64 GB solid-state drive of the first generation Air over the standard 80 GB hard drive in tests. On October 14, 2008, new models were announced with improved capacities of 128 GB (solid-state) and 120 GB (hard drive). For the late 2010 MacBook Air, only flash storage is available, in 64 or 128 GB capacities on the 11" model, and 128 or 256 GB on the 13".
The CPU in the first-generation MacBook Air was a custom engineered Intel Core 2 Duo Merom that was 40 percent of the size of the standard chip package. For models of late-2008,The CPU was replaced with a low-voltage Core 2 Duo Penryn chip with 6 MB of cache, running on a 1066 MHz bus.
The MacBook Air has no user-replaceable parts. The flash memory and battery are enclosed within the casing, with RAM soldered onto the motherboard. The flash memory, which is difficult to access, has a 128MB cache and a mSATA connection to the motherboard. The battery can be replaced using normal screwdrivers, though it is unclear whether this process would void the computer's warranty. As part of the out-of-warranty service, Apple offers to replace the battery for a fee.
Apple incorporated several features in the design of the MacBook Air, such as the reduction of toxic chemicals like lead, to make it more environmentally friendly. The MacBook Air contains no BFRs and PVC wiring, meets Energy Star Version 5.0 requirements, has a recyclable enclosure, and is rated EPEAT Gold; its display is made from arsenic-free glass and does not contain mercury. To reduce the computer's size and weight, several features were sacrificed. It was Apple's first notebook since the PowerBook 2400c without a built-in removable media drive. It also omits a FireWire port, Ethernet port, line-in, media card slots (except the 13" 2010, 2011 and 2012 models, which has an SD card slot), and a Kensington Security Slot.
To gain the features of an optical drive, users can either purchase an external USB SuperDrive (or other brand of DVD drive) or the bundled Remote Disc software, only for disk browsing or software installation, to access the optical drive of another computer wirelessly that has the Remote Disc program installed. It can also be used to reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD. Remote Disc supports NetBooting, so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive, which requires Remote Install Mac OS X to be running on the remote computer. The software does not allow playback or information of DVDs or CDs, nor installing MS Windows. For these features, an external USB drive is required. More recent versions of OS X replaced the installation DVD with a USB flash drive containing the system software, eliminating the need for the remote install.
The 2010 revision includes two speakers for stereo sound while earlier versions have one speaker located under the keyboard. The 2012 update has a 1280x720 FaceTime HD Camera, replacing the previous 640x480 iSight camera.
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Famous quotes containing the word design:
“With wonderful art he grinds into paint for his picture all his moods and experiences, so that all his forces may be brought to the encounter. Apparently writing without a particular design or responsibility, setting down his soliloquies from time to time, taking advantage of all his humors, when at length the hour comes to declare himself, he puts down in plain English, without quotation marks, what he, Thomas Carlyle, is ready to defend in the face of the world.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“The reason American cars don’t sell anymore is that they have forgotten how to design the American Dream. What does it matter if you buy a car today or six months from now, because cars are not beautiful. That’s why the American auto industry is in trouble: no design, no desire.”
—Karl Lagerfeld (b. 1938)
“To nourish children and raise them against odds is in any time, any place, more valuable than to fix bolts in cars or design nuclear weapons.”
—Marilyn French (20th century)