On Jan 16, 1:36 am, Roy Schestowitz <newsgro...@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
> The MacBook Air misses its mark
>
> ,----[ Quote ]
> | So Apple has just announced its MacBook Air, a very thin, very
> | snazzy-looking, not-so-cheap $1,799 notebook.
> |
> | [...]
> |
> | However, there are a few companies that are actually starting to get it.
> | Small, Linux-based boxes such as the Asus EEE and the Everex CloudBook don't
> | have the sleek designs of the Vista (and Mac) devices, and they suffer from
> | awkward keyboards and some OS issues, but they are lightweight, functional,
> | and (at $400) inexpensive enough to grab as a useful tool rather than as a
> | showy investment.
> `----
>
> http://blogs.computerworld.com/the_macbook_air_misses_its_mark
>
> Related:
>
> Review: Eee laptop PC shreds the rules
>
> ,----[ Quote ]
> | Unencumbered by Windows, the Eee boots up so quickly I didn't bother counting
> | the seconds. Its Wi-Fi chip links with the Web in a flash, and its webcam -- a
> | feature missing from many laptops triple the price -- turns it into a video
> | messaging device with the help of eBay Inc.'s Skype, which comes pre-loaded.
> | There are USB ports for peripherals, a port to connect to a monitor, and --
> | most essential -- a flash memory slot to expand its meager storage. Battery
> | life is advertised at 3.5 hours.
> `----
>
> http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080110/ap_on_hi_te/techtest_asus_eee
>
> Linux is about to take over the low end of PCs
>
> ,----[ Quote ]
> | Opinion -- Sometimes, several unrelated changes come to a head at the same
> | time, with a result no one could have predicted. The PC market is at such a
> | tipping point right now and the result will be millions of Linux-powered PCs
> | in users' hands.
> |
> | [...]
> |
> | Microsoft will fight this trend tooth and nail. It will cut prices to the
> | point where it'll be bleeding ink on some of its product lines. And Windows
> | XP is going to stick around much longer than Microsoft ever wanted it to.
> | Still, it won't be enough. By attacking from the bottom, where Microsoft can
> | no longer successfully compete, Linux will finally cut itself a large slice
> | of the desktop market pie.
> `----
>
> http://www.desktoplinux.com/news/NS2414535067.html
It doesn't really seem that the MacBook air is intended to compete
with devices like the eee. In fact, that seems to be a role more
suited to the the iPhone. The MacBook air is more likely to replace
or expand the MacBook Pro. Still, MS should be very worried as they
are now being attacked from all sides with mobile products that
closely resemble their palmtops of the late 90s, and yet these
competing products are so innovative, particularly compared to Vista
UMPCs, that they make one wonder what they've been doing over the past
decade.
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