MacBook Air 11 inch

[beanbag]

I'm planning on buying a laptop for the wife for her birthday. She keeps stealing mine so I think it's time she had her own!

As everything in my home is Apple, I figured a MacBook Air would be best, but she doesn't like anything too big so I figured the 11 inch MacBook Air would be ideal.

However, is it genuinely a full-size keyboard or is it one that's been squished together making it next to impossible to use?

She doesn't need anything mega powerful, and while I did consider the MacBook Retina, I don't like the lack of ports and the price. Plus in Gib a MacBook Air 11 inch base model is only £540 which is a cracking deal.

Any feedback on the usability of it would be great.

[beanbag]

Cheers. I think it's a done deal. She only needs it for email, web browsing and some photos. We have a huge storage server at home so 128GB SSD will be just fine. It's a shame however the 13 inch version has a much faster SSD controller but I suppose you need something more to justify those extra dollars for the larger version.

[beanbag]

Good point with regards to the palm rest.....that could actually be a small issue as she uses the laptop while on the couch. It would rarely if ever be on a desk.

I'll have a play with them some time this week. Just need to decide by next week and hope they have the one I want in stock!

[beanbag]

Digitalize said:

The MacBook Air is a dying product, maybe not next year, but the year after, there will just be the Retina MacBook and the MacBook Pros.

I agree but since it's my wife's birthday in just 2 weeks, I can't really wait that long. Plus the MacBook Retina is double the price for little more than just a marginally bigger screen at a higher resolution.....(and no ports)

[beanbag]

RikonLondon said:

GIB? Whats that?

Gib = Gibraltar

I work in Gib but live in Spain. Perfect combination

[beanbag]

J4CKO said:

Does she just use it for web browsing ? my son has nicked my 17 inch beast of a Dell XPS to take to Uni and I decided I wanted something slinky, I too have a lot of Apple in the house but the Laptop I realised I just used for web browsing, I bought a Toshiba Chromebook 2 HD and it is superb for browsing, it weighs a third of what the Dell did and doesnt sound like hovercraft when its trying to cool a full on Desktop processor.

The Macbook for the web browsing doesnt offer anything else so the Chromebook is fine, I have a decent work laptop, Ipad Air 2 and a desktop so can do other stuff, but these are ace for surfing and the odd email, plus it cost £219, not £1500 so if its not needed you could save yourself a few quid.

I agree in principle but everything in my home is Apple based including my wife's iPhone and iPad. I also have a timecapsule so if she has a MacBook Air, everything will simply work seamlessly and sync perfectly.

If you are a techie, then it's also fine but my wife isn't and I getting my MacBook Pro back means I also don't want to be pestered with lots of questions on how to use it.

Anyway, I've just ordered a base MacBook Air 11 inch for just £540

[beanbag]

LordGrover said:

Your main problem with your apple kit is it lasts too darn long.
My 13" MBP is coming up to five years old and it still works brilliantly. Battery life is down a little to just under 5,000 mAh from 5,770 but still provides hours of use between charges.
Everything else still whistles along.
I want some new shiny bling but I really can't justify it. Yet.

Exactly, and it holds its value. I sold my 5 year old MacBook (unibody version), for €400. It was €1,000 new so that's tremendously low depreciation for a laptop! I've also just sold my iPhone 5S for €350. My new 6S will be pre-ordered on Saturday!