Well I have been lurking around mac rumors for a while and finally decided to sign up. I just won the other day on eBay a 1.6 Macbook Air off eBay. It was kept in a ghost hardshell case since it was taken out of the box and doesn't have a scratch on it. Won it for $820 with free shipping and thought it was a good deal. I also have a mac mini 1.83 so it will be my laptop to take to school and also on trips. Still has 6 m.o. of original warranty and I most likely will purchase the extended apple care for it. Anything else you guys think maybe I should get or install on it?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
New to the air community
- Thread starter pvmacguy
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Welcome! I too am new and just got my MBA delivered about 55 minutes ago! Never so happy to see the fedex man (well, almost never, actually I am a freak about getting anything and love to see him deliver any new gadgets I get). In fact, I am using it now and love it so far. I am completely new to Mac OS so it is taking a few minutes to explore and figure out what everything is equivalent to in windows.
Reading through some of the forums on here, I have read some people saying that opening up the air and apply some arctic silver grease helps reduce some heat and makes the fan spool down some more, do you think this would be a good idea to do when I get my air?
I was asking the same thing yesterday, but decided to use it for awhile to see how it works. If it starts having heat issues, i will give it a try. If not, the old saying goes "If it aint broke, don't fix it".
I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you paid way too much for a rev A with lowest specs possible even if brand new. There have been people buying rev Bs for upwards of $150 less.
The rev B/C are far more capable/powerful Macs.
I really think you would have benefited by doing some research about the different hardware in different versions of MBA. The original MBA has a component makeup that lead to overheating, choppy video, and lockups. Many people get around the poor component makeup and overheating by reapplying thermal paste on CPU and with CoolBook software which alters voltage on CPU.
Apple often makes terrible errors on its first version on a product. In the future you would benefit by understanding the differences.
I wish the best with your MBA. I hope it works better for you than my original worked for me. Not trying to be negative but rather truthful.
Good luck.
The rev B/C are far more capable/powerful Macs.
I really think you would have benefited by doing some research about the different hardware in different versions of MBA. The original MBA has a component makeup that lead to overheating, choppy video, and lockups. Many people get around the poor component makeup and overheating by reapplying thermal paste on CPU and with CoolBook software which alters voltage on CPU.
Apple often makes terrible errors on its first version on a product. In the future you would benefit by understanding the differences.
I wish the best with your MBA. I hope it works better for you than my original worked for me. Not trying to be negative but rather truthful.
Good luck.
Sometimes eBay isn't the lowest pricing. Especially for a product that some, like you, don't realize the severity of the differences between models. What happens is lowest spec tend to sell for more in the middle range.
There are people reporting $699 brand new rev B 120 GB at Best Buy.
I really do hope it's everything you hope it will be. For me, I use my MBA as my primary/sole Mac, so I require performance gains in newer models. I suppose if you start with that it will not feel different.
Best wishes.
Yeah mine unlike yours will not be my sole mac, my mac mini is my primary system for videos music heavy usage video editing etc. MBA will be used for me to take to my classes do some notes etc. I feel as if this air will be better than my current netbook which it's replacing. The netbook was just too small in screen size to be able to multi task between PowerPoint, word, and browser. So hopefully this will meet my needs 
and down the road as I save up more money sell this one I just purchase and get a better one ie like you have with ssd etc.
and down the road as I save up more money sell this one I just purchase and get a better one ie like you have with ssd etc.I'm thinking about buying an Air as well and was hoping for some advice.
I've got an iMac that I'm currently using as my main computer and a MacBook that I use as a secondary machine (I travel with it, take it to class and work, etc.). While the MacBook is nice, I'm really envying the size and weight of the Air.
My main concern here is price. I keep very little on the hard drive of my current MacBook (I use Simplify for music and my iDisk for any files). I only use it for web browsing, word processing, and OCCASIONALLY statistical analysis (using Stata). I would be perfectly fine with a Rev. A, B, or C. Again, whichever I can get the cheapest.
All that being said: how much can I expect to pay? Does anyone have any suggestions on where to get it? How much could I sell my MacBook for? (It's an original 2.0 GHZ unibody MacBook with 4 GB of RAM and AppleCare through October 2011).
I've got an iMac that I'm currently using as my main computer and a MacBook that I use as a secondary machine (I travel with it, take it to class and work, etc.). While the MacBook is nice, I'm really envying the size and weight of the Air.
My main concern here is price. I keep very little on the hard drive of my current MacBook (I use Simplify for music and my iDisk for any files). I only use it for web browsing, word processing, and OCCASIONALLY statistical analysis (using Stata). I would be perfectly fine with a Rev. A, B, or C. Again, whichever I can get the cheapest.
All that being said: how much can I expect to pay? Does anyone have any suggestions on where to get it? How much could I sell my MacBook for? (It's an original 2.0 GHZ unibody MacBook with 4 GB of RAM and AppleCare through October 2011).
If I were you, I would sell the MB, and use the money to get a rev B/C MBA from Apple.com refurbished. You can get the rev B 1.86 GHz with SSD for $1349. You can get rev C 2.13 with SSD for $1549.
The absolute CRITICAL part is to get B/C with the Nvidia GPU and Penryn CPU with SATA-II drive controller.
The SECOND MOST CRITICAL part for an exemplary experience is to get the SSD version. The HDD in the MBA is 4200 rpm which is rather slow. Most people used to think of upgrading their HDD as best way to improve performance but that was 5400 rpm to 7200 rpm. The SSD is effectively taking it to 5x to 10x the performance of HDD.
I would prefer a rev B/C with Nvidia GPU and HDD to ANY original MBA even with SSD. I would prefer a B with SSD to EITHER a rev B/C with HDD.
Last most important feature is the clock speed of CPU between B/C. However, when thinking long-term most HD video playback programs like iTunes recommend 2 GHz. At the same time, I played HD fine on my 1.86 GHz rev B. Consider though that 1.6 GHz may be too slow a few years down the road for a lot of apps.
I think you would be happy with your MBA for a long long time if you buy a 2.13 GHz rev C with SSD. At $1549 it would be like new and include a one-year warranty. You could extend it out many years if you wanted.
Finally, I see no reason why you couldn't sell both of your current Macs, buy a rev C 2.13 GHz MBA with SSD for $1549, and an 24" LED ACD for $599. Throw in the MBA SuperDrive, MobileME, and a Time Capsule, and you're setup with the ultimate Mac user experience. It's the setup I have, and it will be far superior to a two computer system. I absolutely LOVE my Mac setup. I would never go back to two computers, as the Nvidia 9400m drives the 24" LED ACD amazingly. If feels like a Mac Pro to me (will not if have HDD), as the SSD really makes up for slower other components.
I have fallen hard and fast for my Mac setup. I recommend it to many people, and I cannot say how many people have PM'd me stating they bought the MBA with SSD and LOVE it. Then they buy the 24" LED ACD and again LOVE it. Most end up selling their iMacs as they realize the LED display is better and the MBA is faster than their iMac ever was.
Good luck.
$820 is not a bad deal for a recent mac with warranty left on it, regardless of the specs. Let's not kill another mac user's excitement over a new computer.
If you do plan to keep the machine for a while, maybe you should consider investing in a PATA ZIF SSD to increase the storage and improve the performance. Coolbook may be useful, ethernet adapter may come in handy, a 60W or 85W power adapter (if you have the MBA raised on a stand) will hasten the incredibly long charging time. I have found the quick charging to be very handy.
If you do plan to keep the machine for a while, maybe you should consider investing in a PATA ZIF SSD to increase the storage and improve the performance. Coolbook may be useful, ethernet adapter may come in handy, a 60W or 85W power adapter (if you have the MBA raised on a stand) will hasten the incredibly long charging time. I have found the quick charging to be very handy.
Thank you!
The ethernet adapter is coming with it selling sold all accessories he got for it. The higher wattage charger is a good idea. I tried looking for HDD or SSD upgrades last night for it but alas couldn't really find anything. Maybe if you know of a place on the net?Scottsdale: I really appreciate the time and thought you put into that post. I'm going to mull it over the next few days and then decide on what to do.
My biggest obstacle to doing what you're saying is that I like having an "always on" Mac, mainly stemming from the fact that I solely use the AppleTV as my medium for watching my DVDs.
That being said, I'm going to wait until after the 9/9 Apple Event before I purchase. There might be a surprise Air announcement (doubtful) or some kind of Apple media server (less doubtful, but still not likely) that would solve my biggest problem with going you're route.
Does anyone have any suggestions on where to get the cheapest Airs? Like i said, my main concern here is price. I've been following the Best Buy thread, but my local one doesn't have the Rev. B mentioned.
Thank you!
Runcore sells an ssd from 16gb-128gb for the air in theory faster than apples ssd and cheaper.
Thank you for the info. Looked those up and astounded at the prices!
Ill just be sticking with the 80 GB and down the road just getting a new air with SSD already installed lol.
I think we could get a new Air sometime between September and November. However, I suspect it would just be a new high end MBA. I suspect it will have the 256 GB SSD and 4 GB RAM we all want. I also think it makes sense because Nvidia may not be providing chipsets/GPUs for the Arrandale CPUs... Apple may want to pair up the same Penryn SL9600 with an Nvidia GPU before the Arrandale CPU update.
If we don't get a new MBA before Arrandale, I think we still want Penryn CPUs in the MBAs. I don't want an Intel integrated graphics setup on the MBA - it would be disaster! I will take a slightly inferior CPU over losing the Nvidia GPU.
Yeah mine unlike yours will not be my sole mac, my mac mini is my primary system for videos music heavy usage video editing etc. MBA will be used for me to take to my classes do some notes etc. I feel as if this air will be better than my current netbook which it's replacing. The netbook was just too small in screen size to be able to multi task between PowerPoint, word, and browser. So hopefully this will meet my needs
it is not just the specs, the rev A's are known for hinges breaking under normal use. as scottsdale said, a little more research may have done some good. the same machine in the refurb store is $999 and with a full warranty. or as he said some best buys have new rev B 1.6 120gb HDD for $909.
as said, I hope it works great, i had a rev A when they came out and it did not have the heat issues. so they are out there.
but if you get it and start noticing issue, i would offload it right away and look at a REV b refurb.
Well my air came in today, and its awesome!! Its like it came brand new out of the box. Not a scratch on it because of this ghost protector on it, its like it has a giant screen protector on the whole outside of the computer. The fan hasnt even come on yet and ive been using it a good deal. The hinges seem a little loose than what my other laptops have been like but ill make an apt. at a genius to get them checked out.
Going Intel Integrated is a step backwards in my opinion. The 9400 has been a great GPU!
4gbs of ram is great. i don't want 256GB SSD only because the air is my 2nd computer but CTO for other users would be nice.
Speed boost would be nice too but honestly 2.13 is plenty fast for my day to day usage.