Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Monday, 21 January 2008 19:47
Opinion and Analysis
Page 1 of 2
The trend for technology to go thin has been with us for some time – I still have an old Sony portable CD player somewhere that’s barely bigger than a CD inside its plastic jewel case – and everybody’s seen the Motorola RAZR. The 30GB 5G iPod, the Nano and then the iPod Touch also propelled thin tech further, and now it culminates in the MacBook Air.
Although the world has seen ultrathin notebooks before, whether you love or hate the MacBook Air, the image of ultrathin computers is more firmly implanted into the mind of billions of people than ever before thanks to Apple.
As with various iPods and the iPhone, clones of the MacBook Air are inevitable, especially thanks to the work Apple encouraged Intel to do in creating their smallest ‘full’ Core 2 Duo yet – unless Apple has some kind of exclusivity period on the new processor that precludes the competition from getting their hands on it quickly.
Just like the iPod clones, the real iPod, or in this case, a real MacBook Air, is likely to still be more stylish and more desirable than any of the clones, most of which will surely offer a plethora of additional features, just like iPod clones have inbuilt FM radios and voice recorders.
But these extra features aren’t enough to dissuade most people wanting a digital media player from buying an iPod.
There is, of course, a big difference in price between an iPod and a MacBook Air. However, just as iPod clones are usually cheaper, so too will some MacBook Air clones likewise be cheaper.
The might come with smaller screens, or more cramped keyboards. They’ll probably come with at least two USB ports, instead of just one, amongst other features that Apple ‘left out’.
Still, if recent iPod history is any guide, Apple's version will be the more popular - especially seeing as the MacBook Air can run Windows just as nicely as any other Intel-based Mac.
In the tech world of 2008, being thin is the "in" thing. But it's not the only thing, as you'll see on page 2...
