So, after *months* of deliberation I finally pulled the trigger on a Macbook Air. I previously had a Dell Latitude 840 15″; a fast, modern, all business laptop. It served me well for many months, especially when I didn’t have a desktop machine. It was a fine desktop machine. After I got my new desktop (Mac Pro 8 core) I found myself leaving the ‘ol laptop at home… I would make a decision if I needed to bring it to work each day, most of the time the answer was ‘no’. The decision always left me uncomfortable, like a kid leaving his blanket behind.

I decided it was time for a smaller laptop again. A few years back I had a 12″ Sony Viio. It was a good little laptop, I brought it everywhere. Knowing I wanted a Mac, I had a choice between a standard Macbook (MB) or an Air (MBA). I had to make the decision between speed and size. The Air has the same footprint as the MB, but it thinner and lighter. The MBA size comes with many compromises; limited ports, slow processor, really slow hard drive, and 1/2 the resolution of my Dell.

Considering all those compromises, I LOVE THIS LAPTOP! It fits in my new Tom Bihn sling bag with room to spare, I can’t even tell if it is in there (sometimes making my paranoid). Some things that I didn’t expect…

- The sightly thinner size is an amazing difference when you hold it
- 1.5lbs less is a lot of weight
- The backlit keyboard is great
- Multi-touch oversized touchpad is truly useful
- Apple's hardware and software approach make a difference, thing work well together

Overall I am now a rabid fan. This laptop is perfect for me. I am on a plane 35k over NV in my exit row seat just waiting for someone to give a double-take at my Air so I can evangelize!

MBA FTW