14 DAY TRIAL // No, really why would you buy it? Because it's practical? But there are lots of similar machines that do Air's job perhaps twice as good. Do you buy it with its wireless capabilities in mind? Huh, I doubt that anyone would count wireless software installing as a plus for a notebook. So, I guess that leaves its "I'm the thinnest there is" feature. If that's enough to fork out 3 Gs for the high-end (solid state) flash drive model, then you have your answer.
Leaving aside that Toshiba says their Port?g? R500 is the thinnest, the MacBook Air doesn't even sport a user-replaceable battery, but that's ok, 'cause Apple will gladly take it off your hands for 5 working days to do the job for you. Remember to make a backup of all your files before you proceed though and... oh yeah, have about $129 ready to spend for the swapping, if you live in The States.
On the more technical side, MacBook Air uses a fair amount of RAM (2 GB). Both processor versions of the Air are quite low on clock speed, but hey, that's just another reminder that you're buying it 'cause it's small and comfy to carry around, not to mention stylish.
This is only the tip of the iceberg as far as compromises go for the Macbook Air, since Apple's latest notebook has just three lousy ports - a jack, a mini DVI video-out port and the USB 2 port. Given that an Ethernet port is something users don't have to bother their heads with, you can only imagine what is the lifespan on that USB port. Not to mention the headache you get from trying to connect more than one device to your state-of-the art notebook. But hey, it's thin!
Say an overworked USB isn't the problem? How about the lack of an internal optical drive? If that's not enough to convince you that MacBook Air is the equivalent of diet Coke, then I don't know what is.
But the bottom line is that all these omissions have only been made for keeping the weight and temperature down. So, while the MacBook air does pretty much everything most notebooks can do, it is indeed that elusive laptop making you a better man when traveling by train or by plane. I don't expect anyone who knows what they're doing to go for the high-end model ($3,099.) as a primary machine, nor do I expect anyone of the same class going for it as a secondary work-entertainment tool, so the Air's future is uncertain, to say the least.
However, as a man carrying this thing around, female attention is guaranteed. Maybe you'll even be giving that tired USB port a break...