Some Questions About the MacBook Air

I had a few questions about the MacBook Air (the original, with X3100 and 80GB HDD), that I want to buy to replace my current MacBook Pro, that I was wondering if anyone might be able to answer.

1. I use my current computer (a 15" 2.2GHZ MacBook Pro) for Photoshop, Illustrator, and VMWare Fusion being the most demanding apps. I know the Air is well below the Pro in terms of power, but before I had the Pro, I did all the same work on a Windows laptop that was almost identical in specs to the Air, and I didn't really have too many problems. So, I was wondering if anyone has any experience running these kinds of apps on the Air, and how well they run.

2. The model I'm looking at is the original, with the Intel X3100 and 80GB HDD. It's available from Apple, refurbished, for $999 with free shipping, which I think isn't a bad deal. However, I would prefer the new model with the NVIDIA 9400M, and I was wondering if anyone knew of some sort of timetable of Apple's refurbished products, i.e. when the new version might be available refurbished.

Thanks for any help.

P.S. For those wondering why I want to switch from the MacBook Pro to the Air, the MacBook Pro I have is the one that came out right before the new unibody style, and I've had horrible case warping problems with it (luckily, I got Apple to replace the bottom case for free, but now my warranty is out). My ultimate goal would be to upgrade to the unibody Pro, but I can't afford it, and I'd rather not use the unibody MacBook because of the sub-par screen (as I said, I do lots of graphics work)

 

Refurbs at the Apple store do not arrive at a scheduled time so you'll have to check daily. I will give you some advice about the Rev A Macbook Air. It runs hot and has this issue about shutting down cores when it reaches 100% of CPU. Also it doesn't run flash videos very well due to the GPU. If you can find a good deal on a Rev B Macbook Air would be much happier in the long run, it runs very cool and has no issue with playing standard def videos and it's quite a fast machine if you get the SSD.

 

I don't think it's a good idea to have a Macbook Air as a primary machine. I would go with the unibody Macbooks. They're also in the refurb store.

 

Yeah, I'd really prefer the Rev B, but I just can't afford the $1800 pricetag.

Anyway, I had another question (actually 2), regarding the core shutdown problem- 1. can you use smcFanControl to help cool down the Air, and 2. has the core shutdown problem been fixed with any 10.5 system updates?

 

There is a program called CoolBook which uses a kext to undervolt and control the behavior of the CPU. It seems to solve everyone's problems with that.

 

Hmm, for 10usD - I definitively will give it a shot. Thanks.

cheers ...

 

Yeah, I just found the CoolBook software- actually looks pretty promising. qhn, if you don't mind, I'd appreciate it if you'd let me know how it works.

Alright, another question. I know it's not a trivial procedure, but I've read that it can be done- upgrading the 80GB PATA hard drive in the MacBook Air. So, I was just wondering if anyone knows where I can buy a compatible drive for it. I believe I read that it uses a not so common connector (not SATA), so I was just wondering if anyone here's had experience replacing the 1st gen Air HDD.

Thanks for all the help!

 

Why don't you just sell your current MBP, and use the $999 you would have spent to get a unibody MBP or the Rev B MBA?

 

Because I can't afford it.

I'd be using the $1100 or $1200 to buy the MacBook Air, and the Rev B isn't yet available refurbished (unless you know where I can get one that cheap).

Unfortunately I'm just one of those poor high school kids trying to save every extra penny for college (coming up in a few months).

 

I've used a RevA 1.6ghz 2gb ram, 80gb HD MBA as my primary machine for about the last 8 months. I transitioned to it from a MBP so...

The MBA is a fantastic travel machine. Mine did not have any core shut down issues so I never bothered with coolbook or smc fan control. I found that with soe tuning it was just powerful enough for my needs although its capacity was a constant issue and I could never have used it as my only machine.

If you are going that route, reinstall the OS from scratch reformating the drive and choosing custom options to leave out all the things you don't absolutely need (good thread over at MacRumors in the MBA section). Ger XSLIMMER or similar utility to reduce the size of applications saving disk space and even more importantly improving load performance. Consider utilities like iFreemem and idefrag to optimize performance. If considering running Windows on a VM choose XP in Parallels 4.

The hard drive in the MBA is its weakest area in both capacity and performance. Its video card is ok for business applications but starts to fall behind for actual video playback (streaming movies etc). The battery is fixed and will likely give you 3-4 hours off AC power but its recharge rate is VERY slow so you need to be plugged in whenever you can.

If I were you I'd consider a standard MB. It has the power and can be expanded easily in capacity to be a great "only" machine and is still pretty mobile. Or if you are not stuck on a MAC, compliment you current machine with a Netbook (an Asus EEE PC with 2gb ram and a big fast HD added could be an excellent all day "school" machine with all day battery life if you pick the right model).

Good luck in your search. The MBA can be a great machine but just make sure its limitations are liveable for you.

 

It's interesting that people have been criticizing the X3100 graphics card, as before I got my MBP, I had a Lenovo with the exact same card, and I had absolutely no trouble playing videos (including 720 HD), DVDs, and I could even play a few old games.

There aren't different versions of the X3100, are there?

 

Nope, only one kind of x3100.

 

Personally, I would go with a Macbook. I noticed that I am a heavy computer user that needs portability. The Macbook Unibody seems more for me. With only a 100 dollar extra in the refurbished store its a nobrainer. I also have a Dell Mini 12 which serves the purpose of a Macbook Air which I bought for 400 dollars. It was a nice purchase as a secondary computer.