January 15, 2008 Apple’s Steve Jobs unveiled the world’s thinnest notebook (0.16 inches at its thinnest point, 0.76 inches at its thickest) at MacWorld today. The new US$1800 MacBook Air is powered by Intel Core 2 Duo processors running at 1.6 GHz or 1.8 Ghz, has a full-size, back-lit keyboard, a 13.3-inch display, five hours of battery life, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and a large trackpad designed for multi-touch gesture support. It comes standard with 2GB of memory and an 80GB 1.8-inch hard drive, with an optional 64GB solid state drive. Countless features make the MacBook Air a compelling proposition for road warriors, including its 3 pound (1.36 kg) weight and "instant on" start-up
As the Air doesn’t have an optical drive, users can buy the companion US$100 SuperDrive, or wirelessly access the optical drives on remote PCs or Macs to install software applications.
The MacBook Air SuperDrive is powered by MacBook Air’s USB port, eliminating the need to carry a separate power adapter.
Every MacBook Air includes a micro-DVI port so users can connect to Apple’s 20-inch or 23-inch Cinema Displays to extend their desktop or connect to projectors and other displays via DVI, VGA, Composite and S-video adapters. MacBook Air includes USB 2.0 for plugging in peripherals or charging an iPod or iPhone, a headphone jack and Apple’s acclaimed MagSafe Power Adapter designed especially for mobile users.
Every MacBook Air comes with iLife ‘08, the most significant update ever to Apple’s award-winning suite of digital lifestyle applications, featuring a major new version of iPhoto and a completely reinvented iMovie, both seamlessly integrated with the new .Mac Web Gallery for online photo and video sharing. The new MacBook Air also comes with Leopard, the sixth major release of the world’s most advanced operating system. Leopard introduces Time Machine™, an effortless way to automatically back up everything on a Mac; a redesigned Finder that lets users quickly browse and share files between multiple Macs; Quick Look, a new way to instantly see files without opening an application; Spaces, an intuitive new feature used to create groups of applications and instantly switch between them; a brand new desktop with Stacks, a new way to easily access files from the Dock; and major enhancements to Mail and iChat. .Mac members can use the new Back to My Mac feature to browse and access files on their home computer from a MacBook Air over the Internet while out on the road.
The new MacBook Air embodies Apple’s continuing environmental progress with its aluminum enclosure, a material highly desired by recyclers; Apple’s first mercury-free LCD display with arsenic-free glass; and brominated flame retardant-free material for the majority of circuit boards as well as PVC-free internal cables. In addition, MacBook Air consumes the least amount of power of any Mac, and its retail box, made primarily from 100 percent post-consumer recycled material, is 56 percent smaller by volume than the previously smallest MacBook packaging.
The new MacBook Air will be shipping in two weeks at a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US), and includes:
* 13.3-inch LED-backlit glossy widescreen display with 1280x800 resolution;* 1.6 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor with 4MB L2 cache;* 800 MHz front-side bus;* 2GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM;* 80GB hard disk drive with Sudden Motion Sensor;* Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100;* Micro-DVI port (includes Micro-DVI to VGA and Micro-DVI to DVI Adapters);* built-in iSight video camera;* built-in AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;* one USB 2.0 port;* one headphone port;* multi-touch TrackPad with support for advanced multi-touch gestures including tap, scroll, pinch, rotate and swipe; and* 45 Watt MagSafe Power Adapter.
Build-to-order options and accessories include the ability to upgrade to a 1.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor; 64GB solid state drive, MacBook Air SuperDrive, Apple USB Ethernet Adapter, Apple USB Modem, Apple MagSafe Airline Adapter, Apple Remote and the AppleCare Protection Plan. Additional build-to-order options also include pre-installed copies of iWork ‘08, Logic Express 8, Final Cut Express 4 and Aperture™ 1.5.
