Portable Storage Devices

True, but it's heavier (weighs 50% more), and more expensive (500% more for entry model). The Air isn't for those that value price and portability above all else (including style). And don't get me started about not being able to swap the internal battery without taking apart the case. It certainly looks better than anything else out there, but it's clear that style was the primary goal of the Air.

I'd love to have an EEEPC to play with. It'd be very useful on long flights and in cramped hotel rooms. The trouble is though - I don't do enough flying or stay in enough cheap hotels to make it worthwhile.

 

The Macbook Air, I could use. I have a wifi network wherever I go. The lack of a media writer I don't see as a downside as it's always going to be better to be able to use a networked media writer on the basis that media changes very rapidly. Over the past 20 years I have used the set standard which was 120K 5.25" floppy drives until 1988 then 3.5" 720K until 1989 then 1.44m floppy until 2001 then CD from 1998 - 2005 then DVD from 2001 - 2008. HDDVD and Blu-Ray are trying for the next crown. If I buy a Macbook Air, I know it'll work with whatever media exists in 2009 because it doesn't have built-in media.

 

I like the fact the Air weighs 3Lbs. It's obviously designed to make use of the emerging technology of SSHDs. I bet that when SSHDs drop in price, they'll be in the Air faster than you can blink and the high-end $3700 Air will simply vanish.

 

For me, the Asus doesn't have a high-enough resolution screen and has a SSHD that's about 5% of what I really want. Once those two things are sorted out and the keyboard perhaps maximised then it might be good.

 

For simply using it as a transfer/viewing platform with a bit of email then it looks quite decent. If that were partnered with something like an HD80 or a portable hard drive then I can see a future for it.

I'm using a Hyperdrive and it's been great. Built tough and fast transfer rates.

Rhys, do your other USB 2.0 devices work faster? The time you quoted corresponds directly to USB 1.1 speeds, so something must be falling back.

Yeah, something is wrong. My Hyperdrive transfers a 13MP file in 1 sec.

Rhys,

 

All laptops can make use of solid state hard drives. They use the same connector and bus, and are in the same form factor. I also agree that as they come down in price, they will be much more prevalent. I don't have a problem with the MacBook Air not having a built-in media drive. I don't use removable media, either. It's quite simply that despite all the hype that the Air is meant for a wireless world, you absolutely must plug it in when the battery has given all of it's charge. There is no option to buy a handful of batteries and truly remain wireless. It's like the electric cars that only have a range of 150 miles. What good is that? In that respect, it's a toy, more than a truly portable machine. For a more apples-to-apples comparison (no pun intended, and not including the OS, of course), compare it to the Panasonic R4. True, it doesn't have as large a display, but the resolution is mostly there (only 256x32 pixels shy). True, it doesn't come standard with 2 GB RAM, but you can upgrade it to 1.5 GB. The processor is also a bit slower (by 300 Mhz). However, for those sacrifices, you get a laptop that has 8.5 hours of battery life (with a removable battery) that weighs only 2.2 lbs (1.01 kg). It most definitely doesn't have the style of the Air, and it's not as thin. But, it manages to shave nearly a pound off, provides more battery life, and is 2.8 inches less wide, and 1.5 inches less deep. Oh, and one more thing... you can carry extra batteries with you, so you can truly remain wireless.

That R4 looks neat. My laptop is a big thing - a Presario v2570NR. Having said that I'm planning on getting an Apple Macbook. I did wonder about the Air but I'd like to see how that performs in use first. I am also waiting for SSHDs to drop in price. The low power consumption, fast access and virtual indestructability of SSHDs interests me greatly.

 

I keep toying with the idea of getting an ultra-small portable computer but am wary of new products for obvious reasons. I have a PDA and find that now the software is very hard to find for it since it was made 4 years ago. It still works but crashes so often that there's no point in trusting it with data so I use it solely as a games machine.

It uses a slower version of the Intel processor - that's why they could repackage it. However, it's also very cool, from what I've read. The R4 has been out for a couple of years, so it's not that new. ;-) The Air is very thin, but still covers a large area. You might want to read this <a href="http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/macbook-air-ssd-review.ars">Ars Technica review</a>.

I have (2) Hyperdrive/PD70X that are 3 years old and are still going strong. An 8GB CF card takes under 10 mins to transfer and I have never once experienced a data transfer error.