Macbook Air: The Wrong Envelope

January 16th, 2008 at 2:00 PM - Columns and Opinions by Vern Seward

Well, I hate to say it, but this time I believe Apple missed the mark with the MacBook Air.

Sure, itis thin, the thinnest computer Iive ever seen (virtually anyway). Yes, ignoring optical drives and relying on wireless is bleeding edge technology reminiscent of the first iMacs that shunned diskette drives and proprietary cables for USB. Of course, itis the prettiest little thang on the market, and Apple will likely sell a zillion of them. Itis Apple pushing the envelope (pun intended) and thatis what they do best.

Yet I keep thinking that, in this case, Apple is pushing the wrong envelope.

Watch a Steve Jobs interview or keynote and one thing youill likely hear him say is that Apple listens to its customers. Jobs said as much when he introduced Apple TV 2, which eschews Macs and PCs and lets you grab music and movies directly from iTunes. On that count, I believe him: Apple TV was just not getting enough attention and part of the reason was that using it required some technological hurdles that many people just could not get over. By eliminating the need for a Mac or PC Apple has made Apple TV far more accessible.

When it comes to computers, however, Apple seems more interested in dictating what consumers should want instead of giving them what we want.

Take the ill-fated Cube for example: When the Cube was introduced people were clamoring for a mid-sized Mac Pro. The logic was that many people wanted the versatility and open architecture the Mac Pros offered, but at a less expensive price point. Such a device would not compete with iMacs, which was thought of as the consumer computer.

Instead of a mid-sized Mac Pro that would have made working stiffs happy Apple came out with a box designed for an executiveis office. The Cube was one pretty machine, and it was even capable of accepting internal upgrades beyond memory and hard drives.

The Cube was bleeding edge technology at the time -- outside-the-box thinking -- but Apple thought outside the wrong box. It did not address the wants and needs of a segment of Appleis customers and offered up something no one (except maybe Steve Jobs) wanted or needed, so the pretty, pricey Cube languished on store shelves.

I have a feeling that the MacBook Air is this yearis "Cube." Nearly everyone Iive talked to, both Mac and PC fans, want a small laptop. If youive read the blogs and forums leading up to Macworld you couldnit help but come away with a sense that people were looking forward to a small, lightweight device. The MacBook Air is small, but compared to devices like the ASUS EEEPC, the MacBook Air suddenly becomes not so small.

I know I donit want or need a full blown OS while Iim on the go, the iPhone proves that people can get along without the whole of OS X while out and about. What I want is the iPhone or iPod touch on steroids, a small package with some innovation built in.

In fact, if you compare the EEEPC with the MacBook Air you might find that while the EEEPC is not as thin and does not offer that nice multi-touch pad, it does offer enough horsepower to do 80 to 90 percent of what you might want to do. For me, thatis plenty.

I also believe that many were waiting to see what Steve Jobs announced at Macworld, holding off buying the ultra-portable theyive had an eye on in case Apple offered something better. I wouldnit be surprised if ASUS sees a big jump in EEEPC sales this month.

As for me, I also donit have US$1800 to buy a MacBook Air, and I doubt Iid buy one if I did have the cash to spend. Instead Iim going to pay $400 for an ASUS EEEPC. Itis not a MacBook Air, but Iill be a happy camper all the same, and so will my wallet.

Vern Seward is a writer who currently lives in Orlando, FL. He’s been a Mac fan since Atari Computers folded, but has worked with computers of nearly every type for 20 years.