Mac Book Air - History

History

Steve Jobs introduced the first MacBook Air during a speech at his keynote at the 2008 Macworld Conference & Expo on January 15, 2008. The first-generation MacBook Air was a 13.3"-only model, initially promoted as the world's thinnest notebook. It featured a custom Intel Merom CPU and Intel GMA graphics. In late 2008, the CPU was updated to a faster, non-custom Penryn CPU and integrated Nvidia GeForce graphics while the hard drive capacity was increased and the micro-DVI video port was replaced by the Mini DisplayPort. A mid-2009 refresh, introduced alongside the MacBook Pro family, featured a slightly higher-capacity battery, and a faster Penryn CPU.

On October 20, 2010, Apple released a redesigned 13.3" model, with improved enclosure, screen resolution, battery, and flash storage instead of a hard drive. In addition, a new 11.6" model was introduced, offering reduced cost, weight, battery life, and performance relative to the 13.3" model, but better performance than typical netbooks of the time.

On July 20, 2011, Apple released an updated model in the same form factor as the prior model. The new model was powered by the new Sandy Bridge 1.6 or 1.7 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5, or 1.8 GHz dual-core Intel Core i7 processors, that came with an Intel HD Graphics 3000 processor, and with a backlit keyboard, two USB 2.0 ports, FaceTime camera, a standard of 2 gigabytes of RAM though configurable up to 4GB, Thunderbolt which shares function with Mini DisplayPort and Bluetooth was upgraded to v4.0. Maximum SSD flash memory storage options were increased up to 512 gigabytes. Both 11 and 13" models had an analog audio output/headphone minijack (that also supports an iPhone/iPod touch headset with microphone), but only the 13" model had an integrated SDXC-capable SD Card slot. These models use a less expensive "Eagle Ridge" Thunderbolt controller that provides two Thunderbolt channels (2 x 10 Gbit/s bidirectional), compared to the MacBook Pro which uses a "Light Ridge" controller that provides four Thunderbolt channels (4 x 10 Gbit/s bidirectional). A USB Ethernet adapter was immediately available upon release and a Thunderbolt-to-Firewire 800 adapter became available for the 11" model in mid-year 2012.

On June 11, 2012, Apple released an updated model in the same form factor as the prior model. The new model is powered by the new Ivy Bridge dual-core Intel Core i5 and i7 processors, doubles the RAM and SSD speeds, has the new USB 3 ports (with USB 2 capability), in place of the USB 2 ports, a 720p FaceTime camera, and the new Magsafe 2 charging port.

While Apple's MacBook lines have not been immune to the consumer trend away from PCs and towards tablets and smartphones, they still managed to ship 2.8 million MacBooks in Q2 2012 (the majority of which are the MacBook Air) compared to 500,000 total Ultrabooks, despite there being dozens of Ultrabooks from various manufacturers on the market while Apple only offered 11-inch and 13-inch models of the Macbook Air. It appeared that many OEMs were unable to offer an Ultrabook at a comparable spec and price to the MacBook Air, and while some Ultrabooks were able to claim individual distinctions such as being the lightest or thinnest, the Air was still regarded by many reviewers as the best all-around Ultrabook. Furthermore the Air was among the first to receive Intel's latest CPUs before other PC manufacturers, and Mac OS X has gained market share on Windows in recent years.