The Technology Context – B101 Academic year 2010/11 Name: Rohit Sabhnani Student ID: ECE00360 MacBook Air

The website for presentation

MacBook Air…? Apple  The MacBook Air is the next generation Notebook which is created by the company “Apple”. It has a 13.3" model and a 11.6“ model which was released in late  Its body is completely made out of aluminum just like the MacBook Pro.

Its Performance. (1/2)  Well to talk about the features of it then, Apple has not compromised with it at all when it comes to performance.  It uses the “intel Core 2 Duo” and it has 1.4 GHz with a option to go to 1.6 GHz.  The MacBook Air comes standard with 2 GB RAM, which is fixed and non-upgradeable but in late 2010 MacBook Air have the option to specify 4GB of RAM at the time of purchase.

Its Performance. (2/2)  In 2008 the MacBook Air was announced with 128 GB (solid-state) and 120 GB (hard drive) but in 2010 only SSD storage is available, in 64 or 128GB capacities on the 11" model, and 128 or 256GB on the 13".

Its Keyboard and Track pad  The MacBook Air has a full size keyboard just like other laptops. It also has a backlight function which will help you to work in dark.  Multi-Touch track pad for precise cursor control; supports inertial scrolling, pinch, rotate, swipe, three-finger swipe, four- finger swipe, tap, double-tap, and drag capabilities

How long can it last?  If we look at average battery life for laptops, they are around 3-4 hours and the life of battery is directly related to the cores also so if its i7 means the battery life is going to be a bit more less, but the battery life for MacBook Air can last upto 5-7 hours on a single charge and if you decide to put the MacBook Air on the standby mode then you do not need to worry about the battery as it tends to save a lot energy that the battery can stay alive till 30 days!  Built-in 35-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery

No CD Drive??  Without a cd drive how can you install the latest software's or play games? Well MacBook Air already had planned that, you can just use the DVD or CD Sharing option.  This feature will allow you to access the DVD drive “wirelessly” from a nearby Mac or PC so you can install applications from a DVD or CD and have full access to an optical drive without having to carry one around.

Go Green!  The MacBook Air casing is made from aluminum which is fairly easy to recycle since aluminum can be recycled without any loss of natural qualities. It also makes the MacBook Air easier to carry around due to its light weight, yet strong durability to withstand damage and it helps to give a shiny silvery appearance. Moreover, it is also corrosion resistant.

Go Green!  The removable batteries in traditional notebooks are designed to be replaced every year or two, which means lots of batteries are used up and discarded. But the battery in the new MacBook lasts up to five years — or 1000 recharges. So it uses just one battery in the same time a typical notebook uses three, reducing waste and environmental impact. And to help ensure that batteries are disposed of in an environmentally responsible way, Apple offers a battery take-back program in 95 percent of the countries in which it does business.

Go Green!  The new MacBook Air packaging is 53 percent smaller than that of the original MacBook. And smaller boxes are much better for the planet. Because smaller boxes means Apple can fit more boxes on each shipping pallet. This means more products will fit on each boat and plane. When fewer boats and planes are used, fewer CO 2 emissions are emmitted. It’s one seemingly minor change, But it has a major positive impact on our environment.

Go Green! The Macbook air actually produces 4 times less CO2 emissions per hour compared to a standard 60 watt light bulb.

Go Green! The MacBook Air meets the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, making it ENERGY STAR qualified. ENERGY STAR 5 sets significantly higher efficiency limits for power supplies and aggressive limits for the computer’s typical annual power consumption, the MacBook Air conforms to this standards.

Go Green! The MacBook Air meets the stringent low power requirements set by the EPA, making it ENERGY STAR qualified. ENERGY STAR 5 sets significantly higher efficiency limits for power supplies and aggressive limits for the computer’s typical annual power consumption, the MacBook Air conforms to this standards.

iLIKE The Pros  Lightweight and extremely thin design, makes it really and highly portable.  Full size keyboard.  Long battery life hours under "normal" conditions.  Made of out recyclable material – Aluminum.  Innovative technology allows you to "share" DVD drive from networked computers (Windows or Mac).  Powerful notebook for a presentation.

iDISLIKE The Cons  No built-in Ethernet port - Wireless only.  No removable battery – Have to send it to the company to replace it.  No built-in DVD drive, so you will need a MAC or a PC beside to access the DVD drive.  Thin case does not allow for a larger. internal hard drive 80gb maximum.  Quite expensive for a netbook, when compared to others.  Only 3 connectors available  USB port  Headphone jack  mini DVI port for connecting external display