Apple MacBook Air Review 2011 and OS X Lion: Hot Air laptop upgrade
Apple has updated its quite expected MacBook Air, announced two of its new representative, the 11 - and 13-inch laptop. At this time the design has not changed in any way completely, and novelty can be easily confused with its predecessor model in 2010. Externally, the same everything, except for a small icon of lightning on one of the connectors, so Apple connector means Thunderbolt. The changes were technical aspects, Air Line moved to the new dual-core processors Intel Core i5 and Core i7, there was backlight keyboard. The new processors are better, more productive, faster computers. Of course, this is practically not visible in normal use, as their predecessors did not differ thoughtfulness, the point-intensive applications such as iMovie.
MacBook Air model 2011 more closer to the notion of an ideal compact notebook, because with the same appearance and light weight (1.06 kg of 11-inch model and 1.32 kg - 13-inch) units have modern toppings, the new processors Intel, that performance should be comparable with those in the MacBook Pro. Alternatives to the thickness of the body, compact and very little weight, it's just Sony VAIO Z21 and Samsung 900X3A, we have recently seen. In the past generation Air competition did not exist, but now they are beginning to emerge. Sony takes the functionality and record-low birth weight (13-inch notebook weighs just 1.16 kg), Samsung - the relatively low cost. Both were very decent, so if you want to purchase a compact and lightweight notebook on Windows, I recommend to look at them. Now move on to the Air.
Changes, as I said, very little, so that in this material, I will not talk in detail about the design of models, focusing on performance and a new operating system is MAC OS X Lion 10.7, which was even better than the previous release, Snow Leopard . But first, yet look at the exterior of the new MacBook Air 13 "and compare it with its predecessor.
The main technical characteristics
- Processor: Intel Core i5-2557M - 1,7 GHz
- RAM: 4 GB DDR3
- Graphic subsystem: Intel HD Graphics 3000
- Memory: SSD-drive 256 GB
- Display: 13.3 inch, 1440x900 pixels, LED backlight
- Ports and connectors: MagSafe, Thunderbolt, 2xUSB 2.0, memory card reader format SDXC, Jack 3,5 mm
- Wireless interfaces: AirPort Extreme 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0
- Optional: a web camera iSight HD
- Operating System: Mac OS X Lion 10.7
- Dimensions: 325x227x3-17mm
- Weight: 1.35 kg
Design
Design Air 2011 model has not changed at all, it's the same chassis Unibody, machined from solid aluminum plate. The case effectively narrowed to 3 mm at the thinnest part, and due to this effect seems to Air the thinnest notebook in existence. Technically it's not, because the maximum thickness is 17 mm, which is higher than the same Sony VAIO Z21 and Samsung Series 9, but in real life tactile say the opposite.
Widescreen LCD screen has a glossy finish, it is standard for all laptops of the company, and Air - is no exception. Viewing angles are decent, horizontally close to 150 degrees. In color, too, all in order, resolution is 1440x900 pixels (11-inch Air is equipped to display 1366h678 point). Nothing special about the screen, I can not tell, he again did not change compared to its predecessor.
Designed for video conferencing webcam, located on the usual on-screen box above the middle, surrounded by the entire panel frame, preventing contact with the screen keyboard.
Ports and connectors
The number and location of the ports on the MacBook Air in 2011 and has not changed, except for one caveat - the new product brand Mini Display Port is combined with high-speed port, a new generation of Thunderbolt. Hiding under the name Thunderbolt technology Light Peak, presented by Intel in 2009 and allows data transfer at speeds of 10 Gb / s. If we translate dry numbers in a more understandable value, at a rate of 10 Gb / s full-length movie in HD-quality copied in less than 30 seconds.
Thunderbolt technology integrates PCI Express protocol for data transfer and DisplayPort for digital displays. PCI Express allows you to connect to various devices, and DisplayPort is responsible for the transmission of images with a resolution of 1080p and above, as well as up to eight audio channels simultaneously. Note also that the new design allows for up to six devices at once, and it may be the solution with interfaces USB, FireWire, Ethernet, HDMI, DVI, VGA, etc. Of course, this would require the use of special adapters.
This interface was first made ​​his debut on the portable PC and still find it difficult to use in the absence of peripheral devices that support the new standard. But again, Apple stands a pioneer in its field, introducing the technology not previously been used. However, the emergence of solutions with support for Thunderbolt said peripheral manufacturers Aja, Apogee, Avid, LaCie, Promise and Western Digital. Not a bad list, which will only grow over time. Let's see whether this technology will spread to other computers manufacturers.
Other ports and connectors are the same: two USB2.0 ports on both sides of the body, corporate power connector MagSafe, a 3.5 mm jack and a microphone on the left, the reader SD memory card on the right, and the speakers and vents are hidden in the hinge between the two halves . Almost nothing destroys the integrity of the design of the new Air.
Keyboard and Touchpad
Air Keyboard 2011 is remarkable, in addition to the known layout of the course and soft keys added backlit keyboard, as the older model MacBook Pro.
The touchpad is also made in the trademark style: a large area devoid of buttons - the function of a single button for a long time does the touchpad itself, and multi-function support allows you to comfortably perform a variety of actions, in addition to conventional scrolling and zooming. OS X Lion supports multitouch gestures are new, but more on that later.
The hardware platform
The following configuration: Intel Core i5 processor with a frequency of 1.6 GHz (11-inch) or 1.7 GHz (13-inch), optional Core i7 to 1.8 GHz frequency, but this custom configuration. Online is the most common first two. There are 2 to 4 GB of RAM standard DDR3, Intel HD graphics adapter 3000, and an array of flash capacity from 64 to 256 GB. Younger konfigarutsiya MacBook Air 11 "is $ 999 in the United States, the older 13-inch - 1599 with the Core i7. And if in the previous generation of Air freezes could be hard when watching Full HD (1080p) video, the work of iMovie, then there are no such problems, the smoothness of the ideal.
Impressed with the time from sleep state, it takes no more than 2 seconds. When you open the lid the laptop wakes up almost instantly, and instantly falls asleep.
To evaluate the performance of the system we have used the tool Xbench, compare the scores from the previous generation of Air:
MacBook Air 2011:
Xbench Score 192.88
CPU Test 199.06
Thread Test 366.05
Memory Test 494.78
Quartz Graphics Test 286.30
OpenGL Graphics Test 124.16
User Interface Test 107.52
Disk Test 356.48
MacBook Air 2010:
Xbench Score 121.65
CPU Test 98.48
Thread Test 176.39
Memory Test 140.40
Quartz Graphics Test 103.81
OpenGL Graphics Test 83.69
User Interface Test 115.69
Disk Test 223.53
The program of the new Air CINEBENCH gave the following results: OpenGL 11.02 fps, CPU 2.12 pts. Of course, the built-in Intel HD graphics 3000 - not the best choice, but for a compact and thin laptop is the only option. Actually, the competitors have exactly the same video cards.
The battery life
Charge the battery lasts for 7 hours of Wi-Fi and a month in standby mode. Outstanding options, but it is - on paper. However, they are not so different from those contained in the mode of working with text, application package iLife, Wi-Fi enabled laptop lasted more than 6 hours. To watch the video, I think we can expect the same results. That is, at best solutions from other vendors. 11-inch Air is working a little less than 5 hours. In standby mode, the laptop is discharged very slowly, the trip can not be afraid, that he suddenly turned off, just being in the bag.
Mac OS X 10.7 Lion
July 20, 2011 Apple announced that presented in early June, the operating system Mac OS X Lion is available for download in the online store App Store for Mac costs about $ 30. This update is Mac OS X is the eighth, it was pretty massive and more than 250 new features. Below I will list the main ones.
Allow phonetic typing
There are additional gestures Multi-Touch, they are best illustrated by the following picture:
Full-screen applications. OS X Lion came (finally!) support full-screen applications. Surprisingly, this was not before, of course, but now this feature is. In the right corner of the program has a special button that expands the window. At the same time you can open multiple full-screen applications, together with applications of standard size. And easily switch between full screen and normal view.
Mission Control - a system control center, where you can see it all - desktops, running programs, Dashboard, and go to any application and the folder with just one touch.
App Store for Mac is built into the system. Just like the App Store on iPad, App Store for Mac enables you to search and download a variety of applications, the interface here is exactly the same as the iPad or iPhone to your organization. I am glad, that Apple is gradually brings these operating systems, and the App Store - is not the only element in the new iOS OS X Loin. New applications are installed directly in one step Launchpad. App Store for Mac will keep track of your application and let you know when there will be an update for them.
Launchpad - a new way to store all the applications on the Mac. In fact, this "main menu", which by design, again, is completely copied from the iPhone / iPad. Icons can be grouped into folders, delete immediately, it is here formed downloaded software from the App Store for Mac.
Resume. Now the application that you have closed, open on the same spot where you left off. Resume function also allows you to restart your Mac and immediately return to work, all applications will be exactly as you left them before you reboot. Quite a handy feature, you must agree.
Autosave - another useful feature, aimed at improving users' convenience. Documents are saved automatically, no need to press Command + S.
Version - a new feature that allows you to track the history of your documents, creating backups and displaying them one after the other versions - from new to older. You can see all of the documents, restore a previous version or make a copy of older versions of the new.
AirDrop - sending files wirelessly with other users AirDrop, at a distance of approximately 9 meters away from you. To send a file, simply drag it over the name of the user. If the user agrees, the file will appear in its folder "Downloads".
Mail. In OS X Lion Mail application uses the entire screen, which displays the full-length messages and a list of messages to their fragments. All conversations are a chain of posts in chronological order, the search function markers Mail offers to help find the message. The new panel "Favorites" provides access to frequently used folders.
Lion Server. OS X Lion Server includes a lot of improvements that allow more control over the server, and Mac users who have access to it. Profile Manager allows you to remotely manage computers that use the Lion and the device iOS, such as iPad and iPhone. You can send updates to users on a wireless network through a delivery service notifications. In the Lion Server also adds the ability to exchange files with iPad; improved Wiki Server, iCal Server and Mail Server, as well as built-in Xsan.
In principle, this is the main thing in Lion. Of course, many other programs have changed, for example, address book, settings of the system have become more like those settings in iOS, and indeed to all appearances, as in Apple borrow good finds and bring together its operating system. What is the result obtained, a single operating system for tablets and laptops, is not yet clear. But this possibility is not excluded. In any case, the update MAC OS X Lion I liked it, especially valuable additional gestures, app store, launchpad, and full-screen mode.
Сonclusion
After using the new MacBook Air, I can not say that substantial changes have occurred. This is not, so if you already have a previous generation of Air, I would have waited for the update. It is unlikely that you have worked with heavy video or games on the Air, to notice the braking, because this laptop is made for other purposes. Air sample in 2011 is better cope with such problems, but it also remains a compact laptop. Integrated Graphics Intel HD 3000 is not bad, but it discrete, of course, far away.
Core i5 and i7 in a custom build - nice addition to the subjective impressions of the laptop faster than its predecessor, and OS X Lion, with its new features is running more smoothly on the new hardware, this is understandable, but the difference is not significant.
Whatever it was, MacBook Air as being one of the best compact laptops, and it still is. Little change? The ideal thing is difficult to do better, and that is why they are very little. Appearance, materials, dimensions and weight - give the impression of a very expensive and high-quality stuff, and the best on the market, probably not. The only competitor that really deserves attention - the new Sony VAIO Z21, it is still easier for Air, had a better screen, more powerful stuffing and a similar price. Sony has finally returned to the premium segment with a good proposal, and it is possible to compare the Z21 with a new 13-inch Air.
But for 11-inch Air is not a competitor of Sony. But there is a Samsung, a Series 9 (900X1A), who aspires to the same segment. But for much less stuffing Samsung Air with its ULV-CPU Core i3 and not the best battery life, high-gloss dirty hull.
And if last year was the Air does not competitors, but this year the two companies have already caught up in this segment. The choice is, that's good. And the price is correct the beginning of official sales.
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