Oh Macbook Air how I love you...

[vi edit]

So I've always thought this thing was a brilliant little device...but I never understood how nice it was until I got my new work assigned laptop.

It makes my MBA seem like an absolute feather in comparison...

https://public.bay.livefilestore.co...XkgO91Hu5EJ6A4YqD0XESOj1Q/IMG_1365.JPG?psid=1
https://public.bay.livefilestore.co...IPQI5ClACW-T0DhgBM3Ia8SnA/IMG_1362.JPG?psid=1

That's an HP "Elitebook" 8560. Let me tell you...the only thing Elite about it is the weight and footprint. And that's not a good thing. Where my MBA barely is noticed in my backpack, this thing is a boat anchor bulging out at the edges because it's so long.

The trackpad on it laughable and pathetic. The build quality also atrocious. Razor sharp edges around all of the USB ports and some of them are even bent from the factory. The chintzy little light at the top of the LCD bezel barely opens without breaking the camera next to it. And it's still no replacement for a lighted keyboard.

And speaking of keyboards, the off shifted keys are a pain in the ass and have terrible spacing and miserable feedback. And while you get a full size number pad, HP flaked out and gave you directional arrows even smaller and tighter spaced than what's on my MBA.

The matte screen is blurry, and even though it's massive, it barely has more functional resolution than the 13" display on the MBA.

And as far as speed goes, the MBA flies through basic office tasks while still getting double the battery life.

Now I know these two devices are at opposite ends of the spectrum for users...but having to lug that brick around with very little added hardware value other than some extra CPU processes to spare and extra space on the spindle drive just makes me realize how sweet of a device my MBA is.

That HP book is anywhere from $800-$1500 depending on specs but my MBA was only $1099 for the 4g/128g model.

Well done Apple.

 

[JackBurton]

I LOVE the MacBook Air! I'm waiting for the new Ivy Bridge version expected to be released later this year with the main feature being, 3 monitor support (including the laptop display).

 

[TuxDave]

I don't suppose you work for Intel. I was issued that same exact model and I only refer to it as lapzilla. It's so stupidly heavy and oversized for a laptop that I use to VNC into a server to do my work.

 

[BlueWeasel]

This is exactly the reason I'm about to get an Air.

Question is do I go ahead and get a 13/4GB/128GB SSD now or wait?

 

[Pia]

I wuv my 2010 Air. Same nice screen, keyboard feel and level of finish the current models have. Better GPU (!), lesser CPU and slower SSD, but my productivity is not capped by those things anyway. There just isn't much to complain about in this machine.

BlueWeasel, always a good idea with Macs to wait for the next round when you can. In this case there are several specific reasons to wait: reduced power consumption from Ivy Bridge, greatly improved GPU performance (it really lagged behind this gen) and the multi-monitor Thunderbolt mentioned by JackBurton.

 

[Printer Bandit]

MacBook Air -- Buy only if you need it - Approaching the end of a cycle

http://buyersguide.macrumors.com/

 

[sygyzy]

Not quite redzone yet. Still 100 days to go (at least).

 

[fr]

I had that same series EliteBook. I think the USB ports on the left were USB 3.0. The pins were bent from the factory and wouldn't accept any devices so I had to get it repaired. I did show that book light to everyone in the office though.

 

[MrX8503]

Dang, that is one huge laptop. I'm not sure how HP expected people to lug that thing around. I own a MBP13, which I'll probably replace with a MBA when Ivy/Haswell comes around. I believe a lot of laptop users will be switching to ultrabooks in the next two years.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Dang, that is one huge laptop. I'm not sure how HP expected people to lug that thing around. I own a MBP13, which I'll probably replace with a MBA when Ivy/Haswell comes around. I believe a lot of laptop users will be switching to ultrabooks in the next two years.

I think the issue is more IT departments who don't care what they dump on their users than a lack of good choices from the major OEMs. For example I know Dell offers 15' Latitudes with the option to upgrade to a decent 1600x900 display or an excellent 1920x1080 display yet most places stick their users with the crappy default screen then blow whatever money they saved on a huge hard drive and expensive processor upgrade.

 

[vi edit]

I think the issue is more IT departments who don't care what they dump on their users than a lack of good choices from the major OEMs. For example I know Dell offers 15' Latitudes with the option to upgrade to a decent 1600x900 display or an excellent 1920x1080 display yet most places stick their users with the crappy default screen then blow whatever money they saved on a huge hard drive and expensive processor upgrade.

I just wish I had a choice. I don't do a lot of CPU intensive stuff for work...I'm not running huge reports, doing CAD or video editing. I also have zero need for massive amounts of disk space. That's what network shares are for. But I do want a higher resolution display to be able to free up more screen real estate for multi-app tasking without tabbing.

But most people bitch about that...it's too small...I can't read that...ect. Hell, I'm probably in the 10% of people that even have my laptop display open with an extended desktop to a 2nd screen at my office. The other 90% have their lids down and just using a single monitor.

 

[cheez]

https://public.bay.livefilestore.co...XkgO91Hu5EJ6A4YqD0XESOj1Q/IMG_1365.JPG?psid=1
https://public.bay.livefilestore.co...IPQI5ClACW-T0DhgBM3Ia8SnA/IMG_1362.JPG?psid=1

I have a nice kitchen.

I agree, nice kitchen.

 

[petertheripper]

i've been wanting to get one for a while.. i dont want to wait any longer!

 

[Pliablemoose]

Yep, the MBA is a treat to use...

 

[disports]

Certainly is, did you guys buy Applecare for it? I've got to decide within the next couple of days to extend it or not

 

[postaled]

I think the issue is more IT departments who don't care what they dump on their users than a lack of good choices from the major OEMs. For example I know Dell offers 15' Latitudes with the option to upgrade to a decent 1600x900 display or an excellent 1920x1080 display yet most places stick their users with the crappy default screen then blow whatever money they saved on a huge hard drive and expensive processor upgrade.

This is true.

I hated giving everyone the same model laptop as the OP with that screen, I am pretty sure it was something like 70 dollars to upgrade the screen, yet I was told it wasn't necessary.

Its just silly having screens with such a low resolution nowadays(unless it;s sub 12")

 

[fr]

Every single person I've given a 17" 1920x1200 screen to has had me change it to 1024x768 because "everything is too small."

 

[Th3Loonatic]

Where I work there is now an option to switch out from the Eltebook 8560 to a Lenovo T520. Engineers been complaining about the weight and reliability of the Elitebook

 

[lokiju]

Bought the last release of the MBA 13" on release day and have no regrets. I did buy the prior release of it but with the core duo processor in that it wasn't cutting it for me and I returned it.

This one is much improved in performance and great.

I'm allowed to do the BYOC (bring your own computer) program at work after I've been here a year. Going on 6 months now but figure once I hit my year mark I'll start planning what Macbook I want then. I'm hoping the Pro's will go Air thin with the power of the Pro line. I would really love if they'd make a way to use a real dock with the Pro's also as I do have dual 23" widescreen LCD's at work that I currently use with my Lenovo ThinkPad T520 (work provided) and dock and it's nice to be able to just dock in and out without touching cables.

With the BYOC program they give an amount of money to me to buy whatever I want. I think it's $1,500 or $2,000 but one of the requirements is to buy an extended warranty that covers 2 years also.

So it'll probably not cover 100% of the cost for a Macbook plus warranty but should cover most of it.

 

[Don Vito Corleone]

Certainly is, did you guys buy Applecare for it? I've got to decide within the next couple of days to extend it or not

Personally I would, but the machines are very well made and should hold up well over time. If you do decide to buy it, you can get a discount on AppleCare on eBay.

 

[RavenSEAL]

Congrats, you compared a business class tank with an ultra portable notebook.

 

[vi edit]

Congrats, you compared a business class tank with an ultra portable notebook.

Congrats I even mentioned that they were complete opposites in my OP.

That being said, HP is doing everything it can to try and mimic the MBP and failing miserably. The aluminum chassis, "glass" touchpad, spacing between keys and shape of the keys. Although it's not as bad as the Envy line which is just a blatant rip on the MBP...even down to the appropriate name.

 

[RavenSEAL]

Congrats I even mentioned that they were complete opposites in my OP.

That being said, HP is doing everything it can to try and mimic the MBP and failing miserably. The aluminum chassis, "glass" touchpad, spacing between keys and shape of the keys. Although it's not as bad as the Envy line which is just a blatant rip on the MBP...even down to the appropriate name.

According to Apple, EVERYONE is trying to copy them. Have you seen how many stupid patent lawsuits they've been pushing around?

Just because you(as a company) choose to use silver casing instead of black and other companies started doing the same doesn't mean you own the trademark to the world.

 

[alent1234]

According to Apple, EVERYONE is trying to copy them. Have you seen how many stupid patent lawsuits they've been pushing around?

Just because you(as a company) choose to use silver casing instead of black and other companies started doing the same doesn't mean you own the trademark to the world.

so they told pegatron to stop. they were the ones that paid for those machines in the first place and spent months working out the design and manufacturing issues.

it was the fact that pegatron was making the exact same cases for asus. they should have worked on their own case design. foxconn makes other phones, apple isn't telling them to dump the business

 

[ViviTheMage]

I LOVE the MacBook Air! I'm waiting for the new Ivy Bridge version expected to be released later this year with the main feature being, 3 monitor support (including the laptop display).

HD4000 is what I am hoping for...much better gaming

I do love the MBA as well, just solid little beast!

Too be fair, I think those elitebooks are meant to be semi rugged? Shame that they come from the factory with bent pins though...