The Lounge

Unless you've been hiding under a rock, you can't fail to have been enticed by the new advertisements from Apple, pushing their super-slim Macbook Air as the next blow in their heartwarming battle with Microsoft. Billed as "the world's thinnest notebook", the TV ads do a great job of emphasizing just how slim the Air is, by placing it next to the mailing envelope it came in.

I have to admit, as soon as I saw it I knew I'd have to take a closer look for myself. After all, something that small can't be as good as even the normally reliable Apple says, can it? Time to get my investigative cap on!

First impressions are good - the Macbook Air truly is a stunning piece of kit to look at. In a way, you're almost afraid to open it up because your fingerprints will spoil the admittedly beautiful aesthetics. And boy, is it thin! It's only 0.76-inch thick, and even goes as small as 0.16-inch along its front edge. When Apple say this is the "world's thinnest notebook", you'd better believe it. It also benefits from Apple's increasingly beautiful design - sleek and sexy, it's the Jessica Alba of notebooks. 

Feature-wise, the Macbook Air is a bit of a mixed bag. On the plus side, there's a wonderful trackpad that builds on the intuitive iPhone pad. Using three fingers will let you browse forward and back on your browser, while your thumb and forefinger lets you zoom in and out of photographs and documents. It's an easy-to-use interface, and once you've tried it, it's hard to go back to the more traditional track pads.

Also on the plus side is the remote disc feature. To keep the size of the Macbook Air down, there's no optical drive. Although this caused a bit of a stir amongst Apple fans and detractors alike when it was first announced, the lack of an optical drive isn't as much of a hindrance as you might think. With the remote disc function, you can actually access any optical drive of either a PC or a Mac, as long as they're using the same network that you are. Personally I wasn't that keen on it, as it could be a pain to get linked up and I missed the fact that it didn't allow me to stream music CD's or DVD movies through the remote disc, but I guess it's a small price to pay for the look of the Macbook Air. Plus you can still buy a separate USB DVD burner if you really want to, although Apple's matching one will set you back around $99.  

However, just like the Ewoks from the Star Wars saga may have been small and cute but actually turned out to be pretty annoying, so the Macbook Air has some serious flaws. Perhaps the biggest is the Air's connectivity - or rather, lack of it. Due to its size, it only comes with one USB port. I mean, come on - the PlayStation 3 has four USB ports alone! For a company like Apple to make this basic error in design is pretty unforgivable. It doesn't have an Ethernet jack either, which again is a major no-no in my book (although you can buy a USB-to-Ethernet adaptor for $29). 

The processor speed is slow as well - depending on the model you go for, you're looking at either 1.6GHz or 1.8GHz. Combine that with an 18-inch hard drive that runs at 4,200rpm as opposed to the industry standard 5,400rpm, and the Macbook Air is noticeably slower than both its contemporaries and competitors.

The chief let-down for me, though, is the fact that you can't replace the battery by yourself. Although a battery should see you through a computer's life, taking away the option for the owner to replace it themselves is a bit naughty. For shame, Apple...

So, what did I think of the Macbook Air? If I'm honest, I would say it's a bit like the Star Wars saga - why mess with something that isn't broke? The Air is a bit like the new trilogy - amazing to look at, but ultimately lacking depth. Stick with the original trilogy, and go for something like the Sony VAIO TZ170, or even Apple's own Macbook Pro series, which is similarly-priced and gives you a lot more bang for your buck.

Of course, if you're one of these people that loves style over substance, and are happy logging onto the Internet via Wi-Fi, then by all means, this is quite possibly what you've been waiting for ever since you first discovered the Adult Channel when your parents went to bed. It's sexy and will make you feel all fuzzy, but you know it's a guilty pleasure...

Prices for the Macbook Air start at $1,799 for the 1.6GHz model, going up to a hefty $3,098 for the 1.8GHZ version with a 64GB solid state drive.