MacBook Air

So now that all the buzz about the unveiling of this new macbook has somewhat calmed down, lets take an indepth look at this revolutionary machine designed for interaction with revolutionary media.

As per its description on the Apple website, the world's thinnest notebook states that the MacBook Air is ultrathin, ultraportable, and ultra unlike anything else. But you don’t lose inches and pounds overnight. It’s the result of rethinking conventions. Of multiple wireless innovations. And of breakthrough design. With MacBook Air, mobile computing suddenly has a new standard.

With a full 13.3 inch screen featuring backlit LED technology, screen resolution was not compromised with the new slim design. Along with that comes a full size baclkit keyboard. A built-in ambient light sensor automatically adjusts keyboard and display brightness for optimal visibility. And with the oversize multi-touch trackpad, you can pinch, swipe, or rotate to zoom in on text, advance through a photo album, or adjust an image. This is similar to the system found in the new iPhone and iPod interfaces.

The MacBook Air comes equipped with a micro-DVI port, a USB 2.0 port and a headphone jack all concealed well by a latch door. Even the power port has been slimmed down for this model. It also comes with 2gigs of internal memory as well as an 80gig harddrive. It even has an iCamera as a standard feature.

Now the specs of this machine are incredible and revolutionary, but what really makes this machine special and crucial to media in today's world is its wireless features. It all starts with the fastest-available, next-generation 802.11n Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR built in.

In redefining thin, MacBook Air has shed something you no longer need: the optical drive. That’s because MacBook Air is built for the wireless world. So instead of watching DVDs, you can rent movies wirelessly from the iTunes Store. And instead of backing up files to a stack of discs, you can back up files wirelessly using Apple’s new Time Capsule. However, for those times when you still need to install software on MacBook Air from a CD or DVD, a new feature called Remote Disc lets you wirelessly use or “borrow” the optical drive of a Mac or PC in the vicinity. So you can have full access to an optical drive without having to haul one around. Lets just hope there is one actually around when you need it.

Its a fun mac, no doubt about that. It revolves around the concept of today's "wired" generation, and focuses on portability and functionality. Is it the future of interactivity for today's streaming digital world? We will soon find out.

--J