Usability Review based on first look at 5th Ave store
I just got back from testing an MBA for the first time at the 5th Avenue Store NYC. I am a long-time computer owner/user (over 20 years), have owned many laptops over the years (and certainly demoed nearly a hundred machines), and currently have a MBP 17" 4 GB at home (and there are 2 Windows laptops also in my household). I love Apple equipment and buy it every chance I get (MBP, 2 iPods, 1 iPhone, Airport Extreme, 5x Airport Express). I work in the tech industry and also have a video studio. I am just going to write this review without quoting any stats, purely a report on the UI aspects of the MBA.
YOU HAVE TO SEE IT YOURSELF. No video, picture, or article can truly convey the build of this machine--the robust and solid physicality of the construction, the elegance of the design, the ease of use, and the perfect size-point of the shape and footprint. I know there are other subnotebooks that are smaller, but it's almost as if at this size level, being small would not help that much--and in fact, it would impair basic usability issues.
THIN AS A BRICK (with apologies to Jethro Tull). People talk about how razor thin this thing is--but that's not the real stellar achievement. The killer design success here is that it is not only super thin, it has the solidity (without the weight) of a brick. I closed one, picked it up, put it down, and was just astonished. I don't know if I have ever held a laptop--EVER--that felt as sturdy. It is so sturdy, I would shove it into a briefcase between a few file folders without a second thought.
THE SCREEN AND KEYBOARD ARE FINE. They are perfectly matched together in size, and to the machine itself. The default resolution makes the screen extremly readable. I was able to use the machine without glasses. The keyboard's keys are sturdier than the MBP's, although you have to get used to the gap(s) between them.
TOUCHY-FEELY. Alright, I won't say it's "cuddly," but this IS a very "personal" computer (ha-ha). The feeling of using it is very...well, intimate. The downside of this is that you can't easily share the experience with someone sitting next to you while you work on your MBP 17", but the upside is that it's VERY relaxing and enjoyable using the machine.
KEYBOARD REDESIGN. I have seen nothing written about this yet: the F keys have new commands on them! A number of them have CONTROLS FOR ITUNES. And they work beautifully. I've never been big on these kind of key functions, but I like this. There are some other reassignments--you'll have to see for yourself.
SPEED. The machine I demo'd had the SSD option. This machine was FAST. It was definitely faster than my MBP (w/4 GB RAM) at opening things like Address Book and iCal. I use those for comparison because these apps wouldn't have much data loaded on them, and I don't have much data in these apps at home, either. OK, I wouldn't attempt to run video on this, nor even my 30,000 photo iPhoto library, but running Safari was REALLY fast.
SUMMARY. I know this is not a workhorse machine, and there are serious connectivity issues, but I think this is such a strong, unique entry into the technology field of portable devices that it will pave its own way, much like the iPhone did. The new "niche" created will be that of small, portable, intimate computer for easily computing tasks. Set it up to sync to calendar and address book on your .mac account, and that'll give you the important stuff. And it's so small, I can see never leaving home without it.
