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Does putting Windows 7 on the MacBook Air make it the best ultrabook?
Let’s be honest: The ultrabook phenomenon is by and large Intel's and the rest of the PC industry's reaction to Apple’s MacBook Air. Just take a look at a lot of the designs and the features: the influence (and in some places the outright imitation) is obvious. However, while the ultrabooks on the market today have all tried to mimic and beat the Air on one thing or another — price, more storage, and so on — none have managed to pull it off.
In fact, I’ve concluded in almost all of The Verge’s ultrabook reviews that it’s probably worth spending a bit more and buying an Air. However, I’ve realized (thanks to a number of readers) that really isn’t an apples to apples comparison: the Air doesn’t run Windows 7, at least not out of the box, and many who are buying ultrabooks are likely looking for a very thin and light Windows PC, not a Mac OS X laptop.
A MacBook Air running Windows 7 costs a minimum of $1,419 — if you go with the lowest end 13-inch Air ($1,299) and Windows Home Premium ($119.99) — which is quite a bit more than the average $1,000 ultrabook. So, is it worth the extra cash? Are there any tradeoffs? Does Apple make the best Windows ultrabook? Let’s finally make this a fair comparison and find out.
Obviously the Air doesn’t run Windows 7 out of the box, but getting Windows on the Air is a fairly simple process. I’ll briefly discuss that in one of the later sections, but before we get started it’s important to know that for this review I tried out both Boot Camp and Parallels. For those who don’t know, Boot Camp creates a partition on the hard drive and runs Windows natively on the hardware. As the name suggests, you boot directly into Windows. Virtual machine software, like Parallels or VMware Fusion, is a virtualized version of Windows running within another operating system, which in this case is OS X.
The MacBook Air’s design is beyond iconic at this point. In fact, it is so iconic and so deeply associated with how a thin-and-light laptop should look that nearly every ultrabook manufacturer has modeled their machines after the 0.68-inch thick aluminum unibody laptop. (The Lenovo IdeaPad U300s, original Samsung Series 9, and Sony Vaio Z deserve honorable mentions for having unique designs with well-built chassis.) You’re almost certainly familiar with the Air, but I will say that in terms of build quality, the Air is the best thin-and-light machine on the market. While the Asus Zenbook UX31 and U300s came close to matching the unibody build, the Air feels more tightly constructed: the lid and base are solid to the core, the screen hinge exhibits zero wobble, and there’s no flex to the keyboard. The machine weighs 2.96 pounds, though it isn’t as light as the others, especially the 2.47-pound Toshiba Portege Z835.
One place where the Air doesn’t compete with some of these newer ultrabooks — the Folio 13 and Portege especially — is on ports. Apple has outfitted the machine with two USB ports, an SD card slot, a Mini DisplayPort / Thunderbolt port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The lack of an Ethernet jack (and a $29.00 price tag for the dongle if you get it through Apple) is a handicap; Asus actually includes that dongle in the Zenbook UX31’s box. That said, thankfully Apple added back the SD card slot in the latest revision of the Air; Lenovo continues to leave this off its ultrabooks for some reason.
| Dimensions (in.) | Thickness | Weight (lb.) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| MacBook Air (2011, 13-inch) | 12.8 x 8.94 | 0.33 - 0.68 | 2.96 |
| Lenovo IdeaPad U300s | 12.8 x 8.5 | 0.58 | 2.90 |
| Asus Zenbook UX31 | 12.8 x 8.8 | 0.11 - 0.71 | 2.86 |
| Acer Aspire S3 | 12.6 x 8.5 | 0.51 - 0.68 | 2.98 |
| Toshiba Portege Z835 | 12.8 x 8.94 | 0.11 - 0.68 | 2.47 |
| Folio 13 | 12.54 x 8.67 | 0.71 | 3.3 |
| Samsung Series 9 | 12.9 x 8.9 | 0.62 - 0.64 | 2.88 |
The lack of an Ethernet port is joined by one other complaint: the sharp front edge. It consistently irritates my wrists, but if you’re using my colleagues as a focus group, I’m in the minority on this one. And yes, we have at least seven full-time MacBook Air users on staff.
Perhaps it’s not really fair to compare the sub-$1,000 ultrabooks to the 13-inch Air on build quality — material costs are usually the first thing to be cut when going to a budget system — but even so, the Air still tops all the other current $1,100 and $1,200 options (like the Zenbook and U300s) on both portability and pure manufacturing quality. Samsung’s new Series 9 shows some promise on that front with an aluminum build and very thin profile, but I will hold final judgement on that one until we review it.
Can you deal with changing your finger placement?
The keyboard on the Air raised the bar for the industry; the chiclet panel is backlit and the height of the keys is decent despite the thinness of the bottom of the system. It’s a much, much better typing experience than the one provided on Asus’, Toshiba’s, and Acer’s respective ultrabooks, and while the Lenovo has a very nice keyboard with curved keys, it left out the backlight. I’d say the only keyboard that comes close to competing with the Air is the one on the HP Folio 13 — the backlit, soft-touch keys are very comfortable — but, as seen in the chart above, the machine is much thicker. Also, HP doesn’t allow you to adjust the brightness on the keyboard like you can on the Air.
So Apple’s keyboard hardware is great, but how does it interact with Windows? On a basic level things work just fine: adjusting the brightness with the F5 and F6 keys works just as you’d expect, whether you’re in Boot Camp or Parallels. If you prefer those keys default to the standard Function options (i.e. F5 to refresh in a browser), you can change the setting in the Boot Camp Control Panel.
However, the biggest adjustment comes with keyboard shortcuts; the position of the four keys in the lower left hand corner (Fn, Control, Option / Alt, Command) differs greatly from the layout on a typical PC. The Command button doubles as the Windows key, meaning the following shortcuts work: Tab + Command to toggle through open apps and Ctrl + Alt + Delete (or Control + Option (Alt) + Delete). But they’re not in the positions you’re probably used to. (In Parallels Ctrl + Alt + Delete shortcut doesn’t work, but there is a software option just in case things stall or if you want to take a look at the Task Manager.) Annoyingly, you can’t remap these keys in Boot Camp.
Still, the reordering of the keys is a big adjustment: it takes a long time to learn that the Control key isn’t in the corner when you want to quickly copy and paste. If you’re coming from a Windows PC, you’ll probably find yourself hammering the Fn key a lot, and that’s not going to do anything of value. Similarly, if you’re coming from an OS X machine, Command + C and Command + V will only invoke the Start menu and type in useless letters instead of moving text from one place to another. The loss of Home, End, Page Up and Page Down keys is also annoying for Windows enthusiasts, although the excellent trackpad softens the blow.
The Achilles' heel of so many ultrabooks — the Zenbook UX31 and Lenovo U300s especially — has been their trackpads. Many PC manufacturers have attempted to mimic Apple’s large touchpad and integrated mouse button, but none have been able to master it. And the result has been a host of usability issues: regular pointing and clicking suffers, touch responsiveness has been weak, palm rejection has been non-existent, and multitouch gestures, like two-finger scrolling, have been sluggish and choppy. The truth is that no Windows laptop manufacturer has come close to matching the fluidity of Apple’s trackpads.
What every other PC maker has failed at, Apple nails: the touchpad on the Air works better with Windows 7 than any other Windows laptop on the market. Everything works as it should with Windows; navigating with two fingers on the pad is smooth with no jumping cursors, two-finger scrolling is smoother than anything I’ve seen on any other Windows 7 laptop, and palm rejection is top notch. Apple hasn’t supported other gestures in Boot Camp, including pinch-to-zoom and rotate, but they do work quite well in Parallels. Ultimately it’s Apple’s decision how its trackpad works in Boot Camp, but forcing people to pay $79.99 for Parallels to get better touchpad support seems beyond unfair. As an advanced trackpad it works great, but it also works well for those that aren’t quite used to the integrated button. You can configure it for regular tapping and pressing two fingers on the pad enables right clicking.
I could go on and on about how much better the touchpad experience is on the Air, but the big question I’ve always had is: why? Why is it that other laptop makers haven’t mastered the touch experience and Apple has been able to make it work so fluidly, even with another operating system? It turns out a lot of it has to do the hardware. According to Synaptics’ Ted Theocheung, it’s Apple’s use of high quality glass, an image sensor, a wider pad, and a USB controller to connect to the motherboard that makes the experience better than most Windows laptops. Of course, there’s a mix of software in there, but it seems that it’s really hardware that gives Apple the edge. And it is quite a strong edge — I can’t overemphasize how much the touchpad really enhances the Windows 7 experience and eliminates one of the biggest frustrations of the competing ultrabooks.
Apple nails what every other PC maker fails at
Like the touchpad, Apple’s decision to use premium parts shows in the display. The 13-inch 1440 x 900 resolution panel bests most of the others in terms of resolution and pixel density. (Most are at 1366 x 768 at screen sizes ranging from 11.6 to 13.3 inches.) On top of all that, it is also a very high quality display. That means that you can see what’s on the screen from most angles, and there isn’t any noticeable color change when you move the display back, like on the Folio 13. (You do lose brightness when the screen is pushed back to a 45 degree angle, however.) It should be noted that Asus’ Zenbook UX31 has a 1600 x 900 resolution display, but the actual quality of the LCD is not as good as the one on the Air; blues aren’t as crisp and blacks not as deep.
The forthcoming HP Envy 14 Spectre and Samsung Series 9 will also have 1600 x 900 displays, but the bottom line is that Windows absolutely pops on the Air’s high quality panel. (The Vaio Z has a very high resolution 1920 x 1080 matte display, but that model costs well over $2,000.) On top of all that, Apple’s used an anti-glare coating on the screen, and while it isn’t great in direct sunlight, it makes a big difference in readability compared to the competing glossy displays on other ultrabooks. I think it's clear: Windows looks better on the Air's display than it does on any of the other ultrabooks out there.
The speakers still remain decent, although Asus’ Zenbook UX31 beats them in sound quality. M.I.A’s Bad Girls came through fuller on the Zenbook than it did on the Air. Still, the Air’s speakers are loud and perfectly fine for basic personal listening.
Like most of the other ultrabooks, the entry-level Air has a Core i5 processor, 4GB of RAM, and a 128GB solid state drive. Interestingly, the Air beats a lot of the other ultrabooks in benchmarks, likely because of its fast Samsung SSD. Still, how you run Windows heavily impacts the sort of performance you get. I couldn’t run the standard Windows benchmarks in Parallels (they don’t seem to recognize the integrated Intel graphics when virtualized), but in general, I felt Boot Camp was more responsive when opening programs and web pages than Parallels. Of course, the benefit of Parallels is that in Lion you can set it up as an additional Space and then simply swipe four fingers across the touchpad and be back into OS X. Ultimately, it depends on what you’re looking for, but overall performance in both environments has been solid without any lag in either.
| PCMarkVantage | 3DMarkVantage | 3DMark06 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| MacBook Air (2011, 13-inch) | 10134 | 1748 | 4195 |
| Lenovo IdeaPad U300s | 8815 | 1413 | 3357 |
| Asus Zenbook UX31 | 6692 | 1574 | N/A |
| Acer Aspire S3 | 5222 | 1475 | 3282 |
| Toshiba Portege Z835 | 6115 | 1372 | 3610 |
| HP Folio 13 | 8371 | 1523 | 3451 |
| Sony VAIO Z (2011) | 12079 | 1984 / 4019* | 4333 |
| *Denotes discrete GPU score |
I didn’t feel any slowdowns while simultaneously writing this review in Microsoft Word, surfing the web in Chrome with over 10 tabs open, and checking Twitter periodically in MetroTwit. In some cases, I felt it was snappier than other Windows 7 ultrabooks like the Folio 13 or the U300s. And there’s more on this below, but the lack of bloatware really speeds up the general responsiveness of the operating system.
The solid state drive feels fast when it comes to everyday performance, but it’s not as fast as others when it comes to raw numbers. It took one minute and 8 seconds to transfer a 1.8GB file in both Boot Camp and Parallels, which is slightly slower than the U300s and Zenbook over USB 2.0. The USB 3.0 ultrabooks bested that time by 20 seconds in most cases. Of course, the Air does have a higher-speed Thunderbolt I/O port, but currently there are really no consumer-level external hard drives that support those higher speed transfers.
The Air also falls behind a few of the other ultrabooks in resume and boot times, at least in Boot Camp. While it has a very fast solid state drive, it takes a full minute to boot into Boot Camp. It takes 18 seconds to boot into OS X and then an additional 41 seconds to get into Windows 7 through Parallels. That’s behind most other ultrabooks: both the Zenbook and U300s boot Windows 7 Home Premium in less than 25 seconds. Similarly, the Air takes a long 6.6 seconds to resume from sleep running Windows natively in Boot Camp. Resume only took 1.7 seconds in Parallels since it’s simply running on top of OS X, which resumes faster than any Windows ultrabook.
| Boot | Resume | File Transfer | |
|---|---|---|---|
| MacBook Air (Boot Camp) | 66 | 6.6 | 68 |
| MacBook Air (Parallels) | 59 | 1.7 | 68 |
| Asus Zenbook UX31 | 20 | 2.0 |
59.8 |
| HP Folio 13 | 33 |
4.8 |
59.2 |
| Lenovo IdeaPad U300s | 25 | 4.9 |
59.8 |
| *All times measured in seconds |
The Intel HD integrated GPU provides typical graphics performance. Streaming 720p or 1080p video was quite smooth, but Flash gets the system’s fans rolling and can make the bottom of the system quite warm. While some have said that running Windows heats up the system more, I haven’t experienced that over the last couple of weeks.
You'll want to sit down for this — here comes the bad news
| Battery Life | |
|---|---|
| MacBook Air (OS X Lion) | 6:19 |
| MacBook Air (Win 7, Boot Camp) | 4:11 |
| MacBook Air (Win 7, Parallels) |
4:28 |
| Asus Zenbook UX31 | 5:31 |
| HP Folio 13 | 7:07 |
| Lenovo IdeaPad U300s |
5:33 |
| Sony VAIO Z (2011) | 5:27 / 10:34* |
| *With slice battery |
Battery life was one of the more impressive features of the new Air; when I first reviewed it, it lasted six hours and 53 minutes on The Verge Battery Test, which loops a series of websites and images with brightness set at 65 percent. I re-ran that test in OS X Lion when it came time to write this review since the laptop is now six months old and the battery has been heavily used. Still, it managed to last six hours and 19 minutes on the test, which is in line with many of the new Windows ultrabooks.
However, this isn’t a review about the Air running OS X, and sadly, the battery takes a big hit when you run Windows. In Boot Camp, the Air lasted four hours and 11 minutes and in Parallels four hours and 28 minutes. That’s about two hours less than I had gotten just the day before in OS X. This battery life gap has been widely reported in the past, and it likely has to do with the lack of power efficiency tweaks made in Windows 7 for Apple’s hardware. Reasons aside, it’s very disappointing and the reality is that you will get about two hours of additional cord-free time with one of the other Windows ultrabooks than with Windows 7 on the Air.
This is the part in most of the ultrabook reviews where I berate the manufacturers for loading up the laptop with tons of crapware — WildTangent games, shortcuts to eBay, Norton browser bars, etc. — which slows down Windows and litters the desktop. Obviously, that’s not a complaint with the Air since you get the beauty of a completely fresh and clean Windows 7 install. As I said above, it truly makes the computing experience smoother and frustration-free. Whether that sort of experience is worth the premium of paying more for the OS is up to you. (Yes, I am assuming everyone gets their copy of Windows legally!) If you opt to go the Parallels route, you’ll also be spending $79.99 on the full software. VMWare Fusion costs $49.99, though Parallels has long been considered the better solution. (Ars Technica has a great face-off between the two. Spoiler: ultimately they find Parallels to be worth the extra cash.) For what it is worth, our own Microsoft expert Tom Warren prefers VMware; he finds Parallels "a little too deep linked into OS X for my liking." There are also some free alternatives like VirtualBox, but features are limited.
There are two other pieces to consider when talking about software: storage space and setup. Apple makes setting up Boot Camp a very easy process: Click Boot Camp Assistant in Applications and go through the steps. However, because the Air doesn’t have an optical drive you either need to make sure you have a bootable version of Windows 7 on a USB drive or an external CD drive. I set up Boot Camp using an external drive, but I realize many may not have those just laying around. Apple provides a good set of instructions on how to set up Boot Camp. Solutions like Parallels and VMWare Fusion are similarly easy to set up as well.
Then there’s the issue of storage. When partitioning the drive in Boot Camp, you must leave around 8GB for OS X. That means you’ll be left with 120GB or so for Windows, which itself takes up 6GB. Going up to the 256GB Air costs $300 more, for a total of $1,599.00 if you go with the Core i5 processor. That price doesn’t include Windows, either. Not cheap.
Apple is never going to make the perfect Windows 7 machine, but in many ways its hardware enables the best Windows experience right now
The MacBook Air is simply best in class when it comes to hardware. The build is outstanding, the touchpad works better with Microsoft’s operating system than any other laptop trackpad out there, and the display makes Windows look better than ever. All that combined with very snappy performance makes the Air more enjoyable to use than many of the other ultrabooks on the market, including the higher end $1,110 Asus Zenbook and the $1,200 Lenovo IdeaPad U300s.
However, there are some insurmountable issues that make the Air with Windows very hard to recommend over the Asus and Lenovo. The battery life is disappointing, especially when you can jump into OS X and get more juice out of the same cell, it’s hard to overlook that the keyboard was crafted for a different operating system, and the price — which is at least $1,500 — is significantly more than other ultrabooks. No matter how you break it down, it’s a lot of cash to lay out for some glaring compromises.
What is clear is that there is not yet a perfect ultrabook for Windows 7 users — one with the perfect balance of features and value. Obviously, Apple is never going to make that machine, but in many ways its hardware enables the best Windows experience right now, even if it hasn’t been tweaked for power efficiency and costs too much for the tradeoffs involved. It might be hard to recommend the Air with Windows over a competing ultrabook based on sheer expense and the reduced battery life, but what’s not hard is seeing exactly where PC makers have to focus their efforts if they ever want to give Windows users a machine that can match up with Apple.
Comments
You know. This isn’t the kind of review I expected out of The Verge.
The first two paragraphs read like an Apple blog…
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
And you didn’t expect that?
nexus - February 10, 2012
Can you explain why you and the poster above you think that the “first two paragraphs read like an Apple blog”? Please try to state your reasoning like an adult with adult intelligence.
vergeuser2011 - February 10, 2012
Because, God forbid, they said something positive about the Air. DOn’t you know, anytime you dare mention Apple or their products in a positive light, you’re automatically written off as a fanboy, worshipper, cultist, biased, etc, as evidenced above.
Danrarbc, the MBA is almost universally pronounced by most tech blogs as the overall best ultrabook on the market. Maybe you should go with the most plausible explanation, which is that it might be true, instead of the ‘Apple is obviously paying everyone off’ conspiracy theories. Obviously there’s a ton of people that love their products, so they’re doing something right. Oh wait, no in that case the consumers are sheep, and the reviewers are paid off. Of course.
Slurpy - February 10, 2012
Expertly said. It’s a shame a site can’t have a positive experience with an Apple product without immediate disdain from the Apple-haters.
As for Mac being the best “ultra book” I think it’s important to note that the term ultra book didn’t even exist until PC manufacturers came up with it in order to differentiate it from standard laptops.
Obviously they couldn’t call them “AirTops” or “CloudBooks”. But for Apple it’s just another divinely crafted laptop in their impeccable product line. Notice the word “book” in the title to try and capture the MacBook magic and marketing power.
While I respect Windows you’d have a hard time arguing that Apple is the preferred product of choice. Just ask RIM.
mrlangston - February 11, 2012
I agree with this completely.
Also I’m not an Apple “fanboy” but the 11" Macbook Air I bought in December is probably the best laptop I have ever owned. I also tried out a Macbook Pro last week because I like this so much and I just found it to large and bulky compared the Air’s design. Carrying the Air around is perfect because it is light weight and barely larger than the notebook I use for work.
I highly recommend the Macbook Air to anyone it’s a very solid computer and worth the cash.
Ed Stevens - February 12, 2012
same thing here. macbook 11" is the best computer I’ve ever had for the reasons you mention. I’ve “downgraded” to a macbook pro, since the air couldn’t handle HD video editing, though.
yrrell - February 13, 2012
Maybe you should read a bit more…
Joanna Stern - February 10, 2012
I felt the same way initially as the OP. Maybe you did it for dramatic effect? It’s a different kind of writing style. Generally, I don’t start off an article or whatever with something so off-putting, but I’m glad that the article ended with some really great objectivity. I know you’re the resident “PC” in a sea of Macs, so maybe I half expected the conclusion, but the first paragraph was a little… much. Again, not my style, but certainly one way to write it.
sooper_verge12 - February 10, 2012
Not to poop on your party but she wrote it, it’s her style. Which to some is fabulous, to others not so much.
BumpyClock - February 10, 2012
Uh, yeah. That’s what I said. Thanks for saying exactly the same thing? :/
sooper_verge12 - February 10, 2012
Ever watch Top Gear? It’s easy to tell the cars they hate. It’s the ones where the reviews start off positive. The ones where the reviews start off negative, and the ones they like.
Mafoo - February 10, 2012
This is a review of the MacBook Air as a Windows machine. The reason she is doing this review is because the natural comparison for Ultrabooks is the Air (being that it’s the first ultra thin laptop, and remarkably successful), but comparing OS X to Windows is like comparing appples to oranges. So instead she did a review of the Air as a Windows machine. All of this considered what is wrong with that opening paragraph? Is it not true? It’s a lead in for a not-so-typical review, where she begins to explain her reasoning for the review.
I will miss seeing your work on this site Joanna. ABC News should be happy to know they have at least one new reader.
baclap - February 11, 2012
“Remarkably successful”? Wasn’t the original basically ridiculed? The latest revisions are pretty good, but aren’t the Ultrabooks also in v1.0 now?
Budo - February 12, 2012
The original was ridiculed by a lot of the tech press, but sold ridiculously well, and now every single manufacturer or notebooks is pushing systems inspired by the MacBook Air. In a year or two, all Notebooks will be Ultrabooks save for rare gaming behemoths.
darwiniandude - February 12, 2012
The Airs are successful in the sense that they are selling very well and many of the other computer manufacturers are copying them (some blatantly). I think in general if a product is selling like hotcakes people would fairly say that product is remarkably successful. What would you say? “Well, they’re selling like hotcakes but they’re not successful.” Because that wouldn’t make sense, would it? (No.)
As for your 1.0 comment, do you want the press to wait to compare the future Ultrabooks with the past Airs? Would that make sense? (No.)
Ex2bot - February 13, 2012
The wording of the opening paragraph is a bit strong as well as being a bit speculative. I think without any concrete evidence that Intel has come out and said, “We’re making ultrabooks to compete with the MBA,” the best you can do is be general about it. Something like:
“One could say that ultrabook phenomenon is by and large Intel’s and the rest of the industry’s reaction to Apple’s MacBook Air. In comparison to the Macbook Air, many of these ultrabooks bear a striking resemblance to the Air with regards to design and features, while attempting to beat the Air in one thing or another (i.e. price, storage, etc.) How successful they have managed to pull it off has yet to be determined at this early stage.
Considering the relatively immature state of the ultrabook market and the rare exception, it has led me to conclude in almost all of the Verge’s ultrabook reviews that it’s probably worth spending a bit more and buying the Air. However… (add rest of the article)."
The rest of the article is brilliant. And as a whole, it’s a very good article.
sooper_verge12 - February 13, 2012
I love your objectivity Joanna. Even though you are an OS X user (if I remember correctly) you still understand that some people want Windows and carefully and fairly find out if the MBA is the best machine for the job.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Isn’t Joanna one of the few Vergers who don’t use a Mac?
the nucular man - February 10, 2012
Nope, she uses a 13-inch MacBook Pro.
Tyler Gold - February 10, 2012
That doesn’t mean she uses OS X as evident by this review. I always got the impression that she was a PC user considering she tried to convince Josh in the Verge show that there are other alternatives to vanilla Windows…
TeddyRolls - February 10, 2012
I think her primary personal machine is a MacBook but she usually has at least one review unit. Last night at On The Verge Nilay told an anecdote indicating that she needed a windows machine for something backstage and no one had one.
Sapereaude - February 11, 2012
You realize that Macs can run Windows, right? That’s kind of the point of this whole article…..
starxd - February 12, 2012
Yeah, and everyone has $200 for Windows in a pinch when needed.
Budo - February 12, 2012
That may be true, but it has nothing to do with the comment I made.
starxd - February 12, 2012
Your comment has nothing to do with the actual point of the article, or the comment you replied to.
Budo - February 12, 2012
Who asked you to get involved? If you read the string of comments you’ll see that my comment has everything to do with the comment I replied to.
starxd - February 12, 2012
You do know how this works, right? I can reply to anything I like.
Budo - February 12, 2012
Obviously. I’m not trying to fight with anybody, so have a nice day., ok?
starxd - February 12, 2012
Last time I bought Winders it was $100. Is it really $200 now?
I had $100 in a pinch because I sleep in a bed stuffed with money. It’s the best way.
Ex2bot - February 13, 2012
I don’t think she concluded that the MBA was the best machine for the job. I think you should maybe read the review or watch the video review.
After reading her thoughts and comparing the specs I would probably recommend the Asus Zenbook to people. The Zenbook is smaller, it has better battery life, and it’s a few hundred cheaper with Windows 7.
Roku - February 10, 2012
I’ve actually had a 13" i7 256gb Air for the last 2 weeks, and it boots straight into W7 Ultimate 64, and I have to say, it’s the best Windows experience I’ve had. The Samsung SSD allows me to actually use the hibernate function without Windows freezing on Resume, I agree with pretty much everything you’ve said in this review, it’s an interesting issue, the only disadvantage I’ve found is that Apple has neutered Windows drivers, my Sony Ericsson MW600 headset no longer pairs with Windows, but it pairs with Lion. A lot of discussions have turned up on the web about people having similar issues with missing or incompatible drivers. Apple has supported Windows installations but it’s only a half assed effort unfortunately. Other than that, no regrets about splashing out on the Air. Good post Joanna.
i_maq - February 10, 2012
Hm, using hibernation of tons of different hardware since about 10 years now. Not something that is special to mac to work. Something that works on about every hardware (that isn’t cheap ass crap). Especially as, from a hardware perspective, it’s really just a shutdown and startup.
Davepermen - February 10, 2012
Agreed. I’ve been using Hibernation with 3 different Thinkpads and it works fine….even better on my T61p with Intel 320 SSD!
zephxiii - February 17, 2012
I read until the mention of the trackpad. The driver Apple makes for Windows 7 is clearly flawed. Especially in terms of 2-finger gestures.
mono - February 10, 2012
Seriously. They suck so bad.
thenewperson - February 10, 2012
I have to disagree. I have found the air’s touchpad when running windows to be the best touchpad I have used.
Frogger40 - February 10, 2012
Initially even I was impressed with the magic track pad on windows, but on a day to day basis, it becomes a pain. Especially double-tap and drag is really flawed.
The best track pad I’ve used on windows is on Lenovo T410.
P.Girish - February 11, 2012
Agreed. I dual boot OSX/W7 on my 13" MBA, and I hate the trackpad under Windows. The tracking is OK, and even the two finger scrolling mostly works, but trying to right-click using it drives me absolutely nuts. There’s basically only one very small spot on the trackpad where I can click to get a proper right-click – almost anywhere else and I’ll get both a left click and a right click at the same time, which is extremely annoying.
GokieKS - February 10, 2012
Download a program called Trackpad++ it fixes the driver issue and gives you better performance.
Ed Stevens - February 12, 2012
I’ve tried Trackpad++ and it offers marginally better performance under windows than vanilla bootcamp at best.
DOLOisSOLO - February 12, 2012
You’re right, its much inferior to the osx multitouch experience. But somehow, the trackpad with Win7 still manages to be better than any other PC trackpad I’ve used. Says alot about the general shittiness of non Apple trackpads. I can’t understand how noone can get it right except Apple, it shouldn’t be that difficult.
Slurpy - February 10, 2012
Download a program called Trackpad++ it fixes the driver issue and gives you better performance.
Ed Stevens - February 12, 2012
So the conclusion is: wait for a better windows ultrabook!
Marko - February 10, 2012
Joanna, thanks for this review. I have zero interest in OS X (tried it, not my thing), but I prefer lightweight, powerful laptops, and I’ve often wondered how an Air would really work as a Windows machine, and this seems like a really fair take on the topic.
tesseractive - February 10, 2012
Thank you. I always wanted someone to review such a setup. I was seriously considering this.
P.Girish - February 11, 2012
Your reviews lack information that back up your opinions. This is my biggest problem with them. Anybody can share their opinion on a product… but someone on a tech blog should be providing a bit more than what I can hear while at the water cooler.
For the record the battery life and lack of some of the touch input options availible under os x are missing for some pretty obvious reasons. Apple didn’t provide the drivers for that functionality. Battery life is not optimized under Win 7 because Apple hasn’t created a better power saving plan and driver for their hardware. Those touch features are not included intentionally in the drivers provided by boot camp.
Can anyone guess why this is? Why does apple want to create the best Win 7 device when they really want people to use OS X and be part of their walled garden?
2disbetter - February 11, 2012
There is absolutely nothing “walled” about OSX. What are you talking about??
And you’re complaining about “a lack of information.” Did you miss all of the objective benchmarks in the review?
starxd - February 12, 2012
You’re cute ;-)
seth_p - February 12, 2012
I strongly disagree with your section on the Apple glass trackpad. The experience in Windows is nowhere near that of OS X.
For example, while two finger scrolling works, the scroll buckets are too large.
The trackpad detection itself is nowhere near as fluid as in OS X, so the cursor is either too jumpy or too slow.
Finally, with palm detection you can’t really rest any fingers on the trackpad and vertically scroll at the same time.
DOLOisSOLO - February 12, 2012
not really. The Air is just that good compared to ultrabooks.
Gandalthewhite - February 10, 2012
This was actually a great piece! This changes the way we look at Win7 ultrabook reviews..
C-c-c-combo breaker - February 10, 2012
Or at least how I look at Win7 ultrabook reviews.. seemingly they’re not as bad as they often seem. Except the touchpads.
C-c-c-combo breaker - February 10, 2012
There’s no way you could have gone through all that content in 9 minutes…
Mike10010100 - February 10, 2012
I admit, this is what I did – read intro, watch video, view benchmarks, think how the sony vaio Z is totally crazy and expensive, and then posted my comments. You got me.
C-c-c-combo breaker - February 10, 2012
That’s okay dude, but there’s so much more to read and check out! I’m taking my time. :-) No doubt it’s an awesome article, but don’t sell it short lol.
Mike10010100 - February 10, 2012
I, on the other hand, am a awesome speed reader. :P
Gandalthewhite - February 10, 2012
I read it in 9 minutes. True, I commented on the intro before reading the rest though because of the premise.
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
but touchpad is partially lack of proper windows support as it doesn’t have native smooth scrolling.
making all the scrolling or actions looking very “laggy”
Do correct me if i’m wrong.
Kaggy - February 10, 2012
I’ve got a quad-core Thinkpad W520, which isn’t exactly an ultrabook, but I do get smooth multitouch scrolling. Zooming however, (maybe because I use Opera) is FUBAR.
C-c-c-combo breaker - February 10, 2012
The key with that is that Windows 7 doesn’t use a “momentum” motif with scrolling. Rather, it’s number of lines per “click” of the mouse. so you can turn the number of lines down significantly, but it will still have a minimum of 1 line per “click” of the scroll wheel.
Smooth scrolling is a timer function that simply interpolates between these mouse “clicks”. In a touch-based environment, you’d use momentum scrolling, which is a mixture of timers and pixel-based translation of on-screen effects.
Mike10010100 - February 10, 2012
it’s also a function of the hardware they choose for the trackpad, but your right to a degree. On my hackintosh’d PC laptops, you could feel the momentum, however they are still no where near as sensitive, and there’s obviously a ton of accidental input software built into the mac drivers, and i’m not sure if for example, my lenovo t510 or my hp mini100’s trackpads are multi touch. (they don’t feel like it)
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Kind of ridiculous to propose buying a mac then hacking Windows on to it. Paying twice for the mac then a Windows license. Guess it works for those who have apple envy.
efjay - February 10, 2012
I would hardly call Boot Camp “hacking” as it’s officially supported by Apple and very easy to do.
goestotwelve - February 10, 2012
1) It is not hacking.
2) Other ultra books are $1,000 – $1,200 and this is $1,400 with a “Genuine” copy of Windows. That is not double
crisss1205 - February 10, 2012
Add $190 for a DVD of Win 7 Home Premium, and we’re getting awfully close the the price of the Vaio Z that was dismissed immediately for price.
Hans Pedersen - February 10, 2012
Oh, I thought the review said the MBA in the test was $1400 without Win7, and 1600 with a 256GB SSD. Never mind….
Hans Pedersen - February 10, 2012
You also get OS X.
ryan. - February 10, 2012
If you are a student you can get Windows 7 for $15.
colin.stalter - February 10, 2012
every time someone points out that Windows costs $120-300, and someone points out that you can get it for a tenth that price via various obscure, illicit, or obfuscated means, a baby seal is clubbed.
Windows costs at least $120 if you walk into a store to buy it. Period.
And then, its only the Windows limited Home Partial edition. I don’t know how much the Windows Premium Home or Windows Professional Home or Windows Home Professional or Windows Professional Premium cost, but its not $15. It north of $100.
Windows costs at least $120 if you walk into a store to buy it.
Windows costs at least $120 if you walk into a store to buy it.
Just keep saying it, because its true.
(At least its more true that “the MacBook Air costs twice as much as other ultra books”)
the_other_steve_jobs - February 10, 2012
um….no. for a student it costs 64.95 usd (win 7 professional). check for youself → http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/en_US/pd/productID.216644200
as for the 120 dollar mark for windows, that gets you the win 7 home premium while for 200 bucks you get win 7 professional. (remember students get this for 65 bucks which is a 67.5% off discount). win 7 ultimate on the other hand is 220 bucks. proof → http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msstore/list/parentCategoryID.44066700/categoryID.50726100
jeffsyang - February 11, 2012
Hey, sorry it took so long to respond.
https://webstore.illinois.edu/shop/category.aspx?zcid=116
That’s the link to Windows 7 for $10. You just have to be a student. Maybe other school don’t have that deal, but this one is definitely legitimate, as that is how I got my copy of W7.
colin.stalter - February 19, 2012
I’m a university student and I actually got it for free. :)
Freddie AppsHero - April 15, 2012
It’s not hacking, Macs support Windows like any other PC does.
And it’s not kind of ridiculous if the hardware is sufficiently better to justify the extra cost, the conclusion Joanna came to is that it isn’t.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Price quoted for the Air was $1500, the HP starts at $899. Is the hardware that much better? I dont think so.
efjay - February 10, 2012
Are you reading the comment you are responding to?
MayorBloomberg - February 10, 2012
A small observation. If one is rounding to the nearest $100, then $1419 gets rounded down to $1400. If it was $1450 or above then one would correctly round up to $1500.
Luis_de_Camoes - February 10, 2012
… which is exactly why Joanna came to the conclusion that it isn’t. You’re arguing with a point that nobody is making.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
The Air “starts” at $1,299, not $1,500. And yes, the hardware IS that much better.
aperley - February 10, 2012
Indeed. People ignore things like the keyboard, display and trackpad when they price things up, they just look at the internal bits and assume that’s all that matters. I’d say a good quality display, keyboard and trackpad are far more important to the end user experience than pure all out balls to the wall hardware power, but you can’t compare those objectively in a spreadsheet now can you, which we all know us geeks love to do.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
You forgot the high end, extremely solid and thin casing.
ryan. - February 10, 2012
to be honest, I find that highly counterintuitive especially since the casing is made of aluminum and not some kind of alloy. solid to the hand, yes, what metal isn’t? solid as in durable? no. my suitemate dropped his iphone onto his mbp at a height of around 1.5 feet (was sitting at the sofa) and made a dent in it already. additionally, his gf dropped a binocular on her keyboard (she too has a mbp) and split a key in half. the binocular wasn’t even heavy, it is one of those that is as big as the size of a palm. Not to mention, my suitemate and his gf both dropped their mbps in separate instances and dented a corner of the bottom case and lid, respectively. My point is, aluminum or any metal for the matter is solid to the feel but not durable enough especially when strength of elementary metals are proportional to thickness (at 4-6mm thick, not enough). for example, I was able to drop my lenovo g560 from around 4 feet and no problems save for a 1mm nick on the side of my lid. additionally, I once dropped a monster energy drink onto my keyboard aaaaannnnndddddd…. nothing. The only major problem I had was when I accidentally shorted my laptop keyboard with milk… but what laptop keyboard won’t short out if a half glass of milk spilled on the it?
jeffsyang - February 11, 2012
A Thinkpad keyboard.
setspeed - February 11, 2012
The Air actually starts at $999. I’m not sure why Joanna chose to ignore the least expensive Air in her price comparison.
starxd - February 12, 2012
Thank you! I actually opened apple.com in another tab to see if I was right. What’s wrong with the $999 one?
thetylerh - February 12, 2012
How are you paying twice for the mac?
In any case, this is hardware envy, not so much Apple envy.
@JonathanJK - February 10, 2012
Sure…
thenewperson - February 10, 2012
“Guess it works for those who have apple envy”
How is Apple envy if the person buys the Apple machine…?
I’m confused.
Also, I don’t really understand the concept of this supposed “Apple envy.” Sure, a Macbook Air might cost a few hundred dollars than a comparable Windows machine, but for most people who would buy such a Windows machine it’s not enough of a difference to make the Macbook Air unaffordable. In other words, if I have the cash to buy either and I choose the Windows machine, why am I exactly envious? I just chose one over the other…
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
Apple envy? Like all the other manufacturers, you mean? Don’t get salty when someone determines that Apple hardware is pretty fuckin’ good in their professional opinion.
I think a key point is the battery life – if you kinda admit to yourself you can do what you want to do in OS X, you can get some time over a machine like the Asus or other ’Ultrabooks."
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
Why would you pay twice for the Mac? They only charge me once when I buy a Mac. Weird… And it’s not “hacking”. Apple supports Windows through Bootcamp. And it’s not ridiculous at all. If you want the best hardware this is your only choice. The only ridiculous part is wanting to run Windows at all.
starxd - February 12, 2012
Preach on brother! I have bootcamp on my mbp running win 7 just so I can play league of Legends and it runs 7 great. It does run hotter though!! Just waiting for a new patch so on can get rid of window’s for good like I did years ago.
Chillboyx - February 12, 2012
How exactly? Because it says something positive about Apple? Is the only opinion that is valid to you a negative opinion?
The end conclusion is that the MBA is NOT the best thing for running Windows. But is still the best hardware (and of course if you;re an OS X user…then it is wonderful)
WayAway - February 10, 2012
As a Windows 7 user who has also used Macs, but would never buy one himself, I think those first two paragraphs were chock-full of bare-knuckle truth.
cwchase - February 10, 2012
Thumbs up for the laughing man avatar
clay113 - February 10, 2012
So, because Ultrabooks are designed to be the same kind of machines that MacBook Airs are, and because Joanna has determined that the Air is a better machine than current Ultrabooks, that makes this an Apple blog?
Funny. And here I thought she actually used several different machines to come to that opinion. Guess she was just being a fanboi (fangurl?).
Bonn89 - February 10, 2012
I thought it was an honest review… She’s clearly a MAC user and she basically says if you’re wanting to use Win7 then the Mac Air is not the best choice for an ultrabook.
elijahblake - February 10, 2012
I don’t think she is a Mac user… people need to stop equating praise for a platform with one’s choice of platform.
cwchase - February 10, 2012
Joanna is actually solidly in the PC camp in her personal computing choices.
pseudomichael - February 10, 2012
Stop hating on the very lovely and fine, Joanna Stern. The article served its purpose. And I thought it was a pretty good concept for users who need to utilize both OSes…
Refined Street Dude - February 10, 2012
As a Windows user who can happily use both Operating Systems, I don’t feel that that the Verge is biased at all. Factually, Apple laptops are much better designed than windows laptops. The keyboards and trackpads are amazing, and the chassis feels top-notch. Saying that the MacBook air is better designed than most Ultrabooks on the market today isn’t bias – it’s the truth. Samsung comes close with some of their computers, but only Apple perfectly uses brushed aluminum, an amazing chicklet keyboard, and a nearly perfect trackpad.
jackdw - February 10, 2012
Of course, I totally agree with you. It’s impossible for any credible website or publisher to voice a positive opinion WITHOUT them having a huge bias/fanboyism.
This is actually a great review. I’m waiting until the refresh to get a 13" MacBook Air (really hoping fro a 512GB option) and i’ll definitely be installing Windows through Bootcamp.
On the 11" Air I just sold, I installed Windows 8 DP, although the trackpad wouldn’t work after a short while. :(
ConnorTurnbull - February 10, 2012
That’s the point when basically all the Staff preferes Mac
RaphaniacZX - February 10, 2012 via mobile
Why? Because they praise Apple it sounds like an Apple blog? Grow up.
gtinari - February 10, 2012
It’s amusing that an objective review is only considered worthwhile by some people when it supports their own subjective opinions. This was a pretty well balanced review, with some very objective points being made.
egojab - February 10, 2012
Joanna Stern is an Apple fan girl blogger. Didn’t you know?
butcherbird - February 11, 2012 via mobile
Stern just SAMSUNGED you, pal.
nailerr - February 11, 2012
You probably need to read more or visit more websites.
oghowie - February 11, 2012
You know. This isn’t the kind of comment I expect out of The Verge users.
First two lines read like a troll…
soupisgoodfood - February 11, 2012
yeah have the same feelings in the last time….
we all know joshua as a google/android fanboy, the whole stuff is more a mac’ian destination. Even tom warren (winrumors) has changed his writing styles from pro/neutral windows postings on his blog to neutral/poor windows articles…
thought that journalism has to be neutral….
fer.to - February 12, 2012
If I bought a MacBook air I would use OS X Lion.
cdawg92 - February 10, 2012
Good for you bro, thank you for your input.
TriDeka - February 10, 2012
+1
dav1dz - February 10, 2012
Funny how you typed +1 but didn’t ‘recommend’ the comment.
drumdbeat - February 10, 2012
+1
C-c-c-combo breaker - February 10, 2012
I like turtles.
TOMMMMMM - February 10, 2012
I like cheese.
thenewperson - February 10, 2012
I like turtle cheese-fondue.
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
Which one?
ryan. - February 10, 2012
ninja turles!
itsfuntodobadthings - February 10, 2012
For that kind of money, I’d spend a bit more and get a latest-gen Vaio Z. Better screen (compare the brightness levels alone with the Air) and a better video card via the dock. Worth every penny.
emilcaillaux - February 10, 2012
Sony laptops are of poor quality. I’ve had 2 in a row fail me, requiring new motherboards. I work in a clean air conditioned office too. Now using a Macbook and never going back.
JRX16 - February 10, 2012
Did you get a Z? It sucks that Sony’s production line isn’t consistent along all products, to be sure, but I have never been disappointed with their high-end laptops.
emilcaillaux - February 10, 2012
Yup, because as always, one person’s anecdotal experiences are enough to draw conclusions about an entire brand.
My Sony has been running for almost three years now, and aside from a few bugs that I’ve been able to work out, it hasn’t skipped a beat.
Chris... - February 10, 2012
Yup, because as always, one person’s anecdotal experiences are enough to draw conclusions about an entire brand.
Didn’t you just do that in your comment as well?
Evil Weasel - February 10, 2012
Technically, he just dismissed the idea that an experience with a lower end model tells you what the higher end models are.
Hans Pedersen - February 10, 2012
SONY stuff has gone down in quality over the last decade since the PS3 launch. Before then they were considered (and for good reason) the best choice for consumer electronics, but in this world of ecosystems and integration they just haven’t kept up, and the build quality of their products isn’t anywhere near the level it used to be not even that long ago.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
And as we all know, specs maketh the computer. nod
OgilvyTheAstronomer - February 10, 2012
Huh, software (=Windows 7) gets 9 points.
Bumix - February 10, 2012
This might come as a surprise, but it isn’t 1996 anymore. Windows 7 is a great OS.
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
I use both Windows 7 and OSX, and Windows’s usability has improved to a point where it really is a toss-up. However, backing up Windows remains the most astonishingly ass-backwards, retarded, infuriating and all-around brain-dead chore one could imagine. I mean, the least aggravating way to do so is to actually boot into a Linux distro and try to copy it from there. For fuck’s sake. OSX, on the other hand, either you use Time Machine, or if you like your belt-and-suspenders, just clone into a bootable drive from any of the many free utilities that do so.
OgilvyTheAstronomer - February 10, 2012
— “Windows’s usability has improved to a point where it really is a toss-up.”
I would have to disagree, I use both daily and Win7 is a UI and usability nightmare of different apps, screens, settings, interfaces all over the place. The control panel tries to tie it all together but even that is a mess. Win7 feels like an old OS bogged down by legacy gunk from as far back as the XP days… however on the positive side it looks like Microsoft understand this and are paving the way for a much better OS with Win8. It still looks as though there will be plenty legacy crap to content with but by the time 9 comes out I think they’ll have the solid OS they diserve.
ryan. - February 10, 2012
I would have to disagree as well. I use Linux, Mac OS X and Windows 7 on regular basis although not all daily I will admit. I find Mac OS X an annoying mess of dumbing down. Want to view a hidden file in finder? Gotta hop over to terminal for that! Want to use a file extension not in it’s stupid little database of extensions? Well then you got to right click and tell it to open with the program you want it too. Even though Mac OS X is supposed to be UNIX and not give a rat’s ass about file extensions. Mac OS X has lots of stupid overlap in apps too. Why can I watch videos in both Quicktime and iTunes? Doesn’t it just make more sense to use Quicktime? Mac OS X has no legacy issues because it can’t run anything legacy, which is a worse problem. Want to play Diablo 2 or use that copy of Quicken you used to be able to play? Nah, not anymore, that stuff is too old, just buy the new version! Oh? There is no new version? Well that’s too bad! Just use Numbers, it’s basically the same thing right?
salamanderjuice - February 11, 2012
That was one of the most incoherent comments I’ve read in a while.
RusticMachine - February 11, 2012
What are you talking about? Windows Backup in win7 is fantastic.
Simply hook up an external harddrive, go to action center>backup & restore. You’ll have a ton of options on what exactly you want backed up and when you want backup to run. The best part is that you can include a system image. So if your harddrive completely fubars, you can simply pop in a new harddrive, pop in a windows CD or repair disc*, choose backup and restore, and select the latest image from your backup harddrive. Presto! Your entire computer restored to the exact point it was when the image was made.
In other restore methods, win7 does a really good job. Deleted a folder by accident? Overwrote a specific file? Just navigate to where that folder/file was located in explorer, right click, choose properties, and go to the “previous versions” tab. Every backup of that file or folder is listed chronologically. It can’t really be any easier than that. You can also restore files by going to Backup and Restore.
I’m really confused how you can say is, “ass-backwards, retarded, infuriating and all-around brain-dead chore one could imagine.” Maybe you should use a win7 machine sometime.
*You can also create these repair discs in the Backup and Restore center. Just make sure you have a blank DVD!
sag969 - February 10, 2012
I’ve been using Windows 7 since it came out. Perhaps you should use a Mac some time and learn how non-imbecilic OS backups work?
OgilvyTheAstronomer - February 11, 2012
My primary laptop is a macbook pro, and I use time machine to do backups.
I’m not going to argue and say one system is better or worse, I just think they both do a really good job and I’m pretty confused how you think that win7 implements backups poorly.
sag969 - February 13, 2012
+1
RaphaniacZX - February 10, 2012 via mobile
Here’s a second surprise: It’s not 1996, but yet Windows 7 is still not as smooth or refined as OS X. Why is that?
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
disagree
tonewheelmonster - February 12, 2012
I haven’t used Windows since … ever.
That’s 20 years of me not having to use a version of Windows that nearly all Windows users note were “less than great”.
And now that Windows 7 is “great”, its too damn late. I’ve been using Amigas and Macs the whole time… so that was 20 years of great computing, and no Product Activation or viruses.
So who’s the idiot now?
the_other_steve_jobs - February 10, 2012
Funny, I’ve been using Windows and Mac OS simultaneously for the past 20 years and I’ve also had no problems with Product Activation or viruses.
So I guess the idiot is the one who keeps parroting what other people say about a product without actually having tried it.
loopyduck - February 11, 2012
Always the person who offers an uninformed opinion on something they’ve never tried. So that Microsoft user who bashes macs despite not ever using one, or that Mac user who bashes windows without using it “… ever”.
I use both OS X and Windows at home and I’ve had the same amount of “product activation” issues and the same amount of viruses on both.
RobertMoir - February 11, 2012
Umm… Which viruses exactly? As far as I know there are 2 or 3 trojans out there and some “macro viruses” for Microsoft products for the Mac. If there are viruses in the wild for the Mac, you’d think it’d have made the news by now. (Don’t get me wrong, I’m not under the impression that OSX is somehow inherently immune to viruses, just that I find it amazing that @RobertMoir has never had a Windows virus)
s4agilbert - February 13, 2012
Windows 7 is a great operating system. I usually give it an 8 because of the crapware installed. Here you get the untarnished version and it is awesome.
Joanna Stern - February 10, 2012
i wonder if josh is going to fire you for what you just said :-)
Formul - February 10, 2012
It starts off with a 10, but gets -1 for being poison.
cwchase - February 10, 2012
He’s going to go to her house and kill her children and her while they sleep.
Then he’s going to drink her milkshake, then hurry back to the set to continue the Abraham Lincoln biopic he is currently starring in.
lsenkowsky - February 10, 2012
Wow, I never noticed, but Abraham Lincoln really did have a J-Top. (that’s what I named Josh’s haircut)
backporchprophet - February 10, 2012
Maybe that’s why she is leaving…
joking.. totally joking
brockorr - February 10, 2012
Respect.
BumpyClock - February 10, 2012
I was gonna type that :-P
notoriousyid - February 10, 2012
I use a MBA but I must agree that Win 7 is an amazing system. I used to hate Windows but after seeing the effort they have been putting in trying to make Windows more stable and secure since Vista, I can’t say that anymore. I wouldn’t use it personally but I have no problem recommending it.
forbore - February 10, 2012
That crapware is not made by MS so you cannot rate MS’ product by the crapware a 3rd party installs on it.
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
Joanna isn’t rating Windows with an 8, she’s rating “Software” with an 8, as part of the review. If in this instance software is stock Windows, great, it’s a 9. If software happens to be plus all the crapware, well then she has to rate the software experience down.
alexh2o - February 10, 2012
That’s what she said. I mean, yes, that is what Joanna Stern said about Windows. A straight install is good, but the 3rd party installs aren’t as appealing.
Yes, we can rate those against what Microsoft sells, because Microsoft powers those machines and is basically a partner with them when they license Windows to them.
And that rating is less, so… isn’t that what you’re saying?
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
Why would you usually give Win 7 an 8 because of the crapware? That’s not Windows 7’s fault.
If anything, fault the manufacturers (Sony, Samsung, whoever) for installing the crapware.
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
uh, because you are rating the software experience on that machine: If you went to the store and bought this computer, this is the software experience you would have.
tkbrdly - February 10, 2012
Uh, again, that is not Microsoft’s (the maker of Windows) fault. And again, you should fault whoever installed the crapware: Dell, Samsung, etc etc. Blaming the OS for stupid shit done by other people is unfair.
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
Uh, she is faulting whoever installed the crapware, by lowering the review score of their product’s software experience.
alipscomb - February 10, 2012
Read again; she said she faulted the OS:
“Windows 7 is a great operating system. I usually give it an 8 because of the crapware installed”
Tikigawd - February 13, 2012
She did not say she faulted the OS. You just quoted her saying that the OS is great. The “it” she is referring to is the software experience. She is not faulting Microsoft whatsoever. She is praising them and Windows 7 by giving the software experience a 9 when the OS is untarnished. But this isn’t a typical software experience, because you don’t usually get pure Windows 7 on a laptop out of the box, so typically she’s not just rating the OS, she’s rating the OS and the other software that comes pre-installed on most computers. When it isn’t pure Windows 7, and the crapware installed worsens the experience, she faults the party responsible for that by lowering the score of the software experience, thus giving the company responsible’s product a lower review score.
If I reviewed a recipe for a Frosted Flakes and Shit Pie and said, “Frosted flakes are amazing and I love them, but this pie isn’t great because of the shit” no smart person would say that I was blaming Kellogg’s for the pie not tasting good.
alipscomb - February 17, 2012
The rating is called Software, not OS. When Microsoft starts making their own laptops and sells them without crapware, their products will score a 9 in Software. In the meantime, manufacturers like HP and Dell that install additional software in the form of crapware will continue to score lower for the Software experience they provide.
loopyduck - February 11, 2012
Either that or uninstall the crapware which is causing the lower software score. It’s a bit disingenous to go to the trouble of loading a complete new OS on a machine, and then not spend 10mins deleting a couple of programs you consider crapware from a comparable machine when you want to pit them head to head.
setspeed - February 11, 2012
It’s a bit disingenous to go to the trouble of loading a complete new OS on a machine, and then not spend 10mins deleting a couple of programs you consider crapware from a comparable machine when you want to pit them head to head.
PLEASE IGNORE MY LOWER COMMENT, I FAIL AT EDITING BEFORE POSTING.
setspeed - February 11, 2012
AND I FAIL AGAIN! I MEANT PLEASE IGNORE MY FIRST COMMENT!!!!
setspeed - February 11, 2012
She said her rating was on the OS:
“Windows 7 is a great operating system. I usually give it an 8 because of the crapware installed”
Tikigawd - February 13, 2012
I think it makes perfect sense to give an untarnished version of windows the same score that they give OSX, because they truly are a perfect example of different strokes for different folks. I don’t think anyone could make an objective determination of which is better.
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
You can in certain areas. Working with print media (font rendering, built in rich PDF support and so on) for example, OSX is clearly the winner, but going with gaming performance, Windows is clearly the winner. Most others areas are entirely subjective to the user, but there’s a few places where you can objectively say one IS better than the other.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
OS X is so much better than Windows as long as you’re not a hardcore gamer.
JRX16 - February 10, 2012
or a hardcore designer/engineer
german.almaraz - February 10, 2012
Nearly all designers have a Mac :)
MegaM - February 10, 2012
:)
drumdbeat - February 10, 2012
this scares me a lot
i_always_lie - February 10, 2012
Linux is better suited in many instances for engineering as you can cluster them more easily and the software tends to be more optimised for this kind of scenario.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
My first thought was someone designing a hardcore bridge.
jonmilani - February 10, 2012
Erm, sir.. I beg to disagree. I have a cat.
BumpyClock - February 10, 2012
…and run Windows 7 ;)
TriDeka - February 10, 2012
I say hardcore, not baristas.
german.almaraz - February 10, 2012
Sorry, meant graphic designers. NEED EDIT BUTTON.
MegaM - February 10, 2012
only in the US..
justifyer - February 10, 2012
That’s courtesy of the educational system however. Most designers are taught on Macs going to a time when they were the better machine for the job. That is no longer the case. For example Photoshop used to be built out for the Mac and then ported over to PC. That’s no longer the case. Anyone can design on either platform.
Me Ted - February 10, 2012
My experience with designers, particularly where I ask for help with apps is they almost always primarily use a Mac for the design work, that’s not to say they don’t have a Windows machine. I have one which blows my Mac away by sheer performance.
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
I use both platforms for design. The Mac is (to me) by far the better platform for it. The built in tools like PDF, instant preview of pretty much any file type (you can even view PSD’s and Illustrator files and so on without having ANY Adobe software installed). OSX also renders fonts far far FAR more accurately than Windows does. It lets the actual font itself handle the kerning and so on rather than forcing it into a grid. This is crucial when it comes to print. Adobe stuff has it’s own font engine, but just having the better support at the OS level helps improve things. Even PDF’s render better on OSX (even in the crippled Mac version of Acrobat, not that I ever use that, I just use Preview).
You can achieve the same things in Windows just fine, it just tends to be less hassle on the Mac. Less hassle = less frustration = healthier blood pressure levels lol. I find I’m far more efficient on OSX than Windows too doing the same tasks in the same software.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
Blurry fonts vs sharper fonts, no difference in kerning
Their are plenty of articles on the web that cover this.
Fonts for display on screen are better for PC, easier on the eye, crisper.
While Mac’s give a more accurate refelction of printed result, at the expensive of sharpness.
Adobe Bridge does everything that Windows media preview can’t do, and more. Finder’s best feature over Explorer, the rest I find gimmicky, such as cover flow.
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
Most graphic designers are going to manually kern larger title fonts as well, no automatic method gives superior results every time
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
Optical does a damn good job most of the time, it’s amazing how much difference there is between that and metric especially when applied to body copy. That’s kind of like the different between OSX and Windows font rendering. Metric is more grid based, optical is based on the visual spacing, and looks FAR better in most cases (unless you’re using a poorly designed font found online for free that hasn’t been professionally made).
You’re right with titles and so on too. Designers will see imperfections in something as small as 1 pixel while most people wouldn’t notice if it was half a mile out of place lol. We’re OCD about this stuff.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
OSX trusts the font designer to do a good job while designing the thing, Windows takes all that trust and shoves it in a pixel grid and kills the subtleties of the type. The kerning is obviously going to be different if they’re confined to a grid, so no, they’re not the same. Bridge is still more of a PITA to use than Finder, I can’t get on with it on either platform unless I have to use it. I never use cover flow, I use column view, something I wish Microsoft would copy for Explorer.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
With Windows 8 you can drag and drop on to breadcrumb bar, giving a similar result to colum view, except you don;t have a messy complex screen fill of many panels, that get smaller and smaller
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
Eh? What panels?
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
Each time you expand down the colum view, you get another panel, making it an awkward complex looking screen, with smaller and smaller panels.
http://osxdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/mac-os-x-finder-column-view.JPG
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
They don’t change in size, and they’re a perfect visual representation of where you are.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
I’m just saying you can do something similar with breadcrumb bar in Windows 8 that’s all.
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
I’ve not used that yet, let’s hope it’s as handy as column view. That’s one area I think Explorer really needs to take note from Finder, and if they have, then thumbs up Microsoft.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
A million times this. I used them both as well as Linux but this is why the Mac is better for design. None of the “fanboy” arguments ever mention this.
creativereason - February 10, 2012
I’ll just leave this here, then…
Study: Apple Logo Stimulates the Brain
OgilvyTheAstronomer - February 10, 2012
Yes, so why not go with the platform that easily supports both.
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
I guess that depends on what you call a “designer,” because all the designers at my workplace (where airplanes are designed) use Windows machines.
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
I found this today. I would think a major architect qualifies as both creative and professional. Pause the video at 1:08. Cheers
set7set - February 12, 2012
http://vimeo.com/29402609
sorry here is the link.
set7set - February 12, 2012
Not sure if that is true… most CG animators use HP elitebooks running windows or linux…
jugganutz - February 12, 2012
as well as Z series workstations.
jugganutz - February 12, 2012
only in the US..
justifyer - February 10, 2012
Except product designers, engineers, generally are running windows. There’s still essential software that is Windows only. Dual boot isn’t necessarily worth it in the professional scene either. Having to boot between OSs just to use one program or another is really, really annoying.
Maybe graphic designers, illustrators, web designers are hanging around on OS X, but even then, that’s just a preference of the individual.
Dino_the_Dino - February 10, 2012
Product Designer her. MacOSX all the way. I keep a virtual machine to check some files (SOlid Workd mainly) from the production engineers, other than that, my workdlow has gone OSX all the way.
I do have a hackintosh though, imac is too expensive for the gpu you get and i DO game a bit (tf2, LOL, Portal)
Edensuko - February 10, 2012
You’re point is kind of silly. Many engineering programs now run on OS X. Engineering companies tend to use Windows, yes, but I don’t quite get your point. Most businesses tend to use Windows. Are you suggesting this is somehow proof that Macs are less capable? Why is this proof exactly?
TechMark - February 10, 2012
I run engineering programs that don’t even work well in Windows 7, so i have to use them on a Linux box. In industry, there are a LOT of programs that are developed on one and only one operating system, so they all have their reasons for existing and arent going anywhere
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
Yeah, I was going to mention that also but wasn’t sure if that was still the case. There are a lot of programs that only work in the Unix environment. I know years ago most 3D modelling tools were done on largely dedicate Unix-based machines.
TechMark - February 10, 2012
A friend of mine is an engineer, and most of their milling machines and so on use software that only exists for Windows XP SP1. Anything else and it just refuses to work, so they have to keep those machines away from any kind of network other than among themselves. Their machines are so specialised that the software was written specifically for them but the company that wrote it is no longer in business, and the machines are no longer supported beyond the mechanical level.
This kind of scenario happens all over the place in so many industries, but people tend to forget or ignore it lol. To upgrade the software they’d have to either commission someone to recode the software, or buy all new machines, something they can’t really afford (though at some point they’re going to have to and it’ll cost them even more when it finally does happen).
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
He said all designers use OS X. I’m just saying that’s not true. That there is software that is limited to a single platform and that it may or may not be essential to their profession (example solidworks/rhino for product designers). There’s dual booting/virtualization, etc., but honestly it’s just preference. I switched to Windows because I was sick of trying to switch between OSs just to use a specific program.
Dino_the_Dino - February 12, 2012
“hardcore engineer”? What kind of engineer? What apps?
As an engineer myself, in the release engineering field, I’ll take OS X over Windows any day. Great GUI, great keyboard shortcut consistency, and great Unix support under the hood.
Windows has gotten better with Powershell, but still has a ways to go.
drakino - February 10, 2012
I would say an engineer OTHER than a software engineer like yourself. People who program tend to like OSX for the reason you specify – the unix base
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
As a Hardware Engineer, Windows offers much better CAD tools for schematic and printed circuit board layouts.
qbert1111 - February 10, 2012
you mean your particular cad programs aren’t available on anything but windows.
the tools for mac i’m sure are available.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Currently, nothing powerful enough to be useful for more than a hobby project is available outside of Windows. Something like Altium on OSX would be interesting.
qbert1111 - February 10, 2012
i’m not in your field but
kicad, fritzing, eagle, qucs, icircut. of those, the only one that looks hobby is icircut.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Eagle is the only selection in your list I’d consider using, but since it exists on all platforms (including Linux) there’s no reason for me to buy Mac hardware to use it.
qbert1111 - February 14, 2012
I’m 100% certain Apple engineers don’t use Windows for their product designs, so unless they’re using software they wrote themselves (which is very likely), then clearly something good enough exists on the Mac platform, you just haven’t found it.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
And if they are using software they wrote themselves, then clearly something good enough still exists on the Mac platform, you just haven’t written it yet.
mickbab - February 11, 2012
They actually do use Windows. Solidworks/ProE specifically. That’s Windows only. It might be on Mac hardware, but it’s being run in Windows.
Dino_the_Dino - February 12, 2012
This is true, but CAD tools are coming over.
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
I’m a programmer and I prefer Windows whenever possible but a lot of the time I have no choice. I’ve been doing mostly mobile development lately so I’m forced to use Mac for iOS and Windows for Windows Phone. I do get a choice with Android, though, and I choose to run it on Windows because I just find Microsoft’s OS to be easier to navigate.
I also do all of my graphics design work on Windows, but that’s largely because I owned Windows versions of my graphics software before I had a Mac. I’ve never actually tried the Mac alternatives, but I’ve never felt compelled to either.
Chefgon - February 10, 2012
it largely doesn’t matter and its what you were brought up on these days.
There was a time when Video editing and audio editing (ah DAE on windows is the stuff nightmares are made of) Were horrible chores on the platform.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Even what you were brought up with doesn’t matter. I used Windows since 1998, I still do. But I prefer Lion. People will ship to whatever they like better.
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
slip? And if you make a concious effort to change OS’s like you did, yes they will change.
I mean more like, “getting over the hump” in terms of adoption. Being able to quickly figure out common tasks etc.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
I’m more efficient in OSX after just 2 years than I ever was in Windows with 20 years experience. OSX just works better for me in every way (almost). At the OS level, there’s only a small number of things I prefer on Windows to OSX, one being able to easily batch rename files, but having said that, using automator gives you FAR more options. That’s actually a perfect example of when more steps are more useful, as they give you better control. I often find that Windows has more steps to achieve the same things OSX does in very few.
Personal preference, but the world would be boring if we were all the same.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
truthy!
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
I was much the same way. Grew up on DOS and Windows, discovered Unix systems (Solaris/Linux), and then migrated to OS X over a decade ago. All that Windows experience did little for me in day to day efficiency compared to my OS X experience.
Yep, agreed. It’s why I turned pretty hostile towards Microsoft when I realized the dirty tricks they were doing to force Windows as the only desktop OS. The entire ecosystem stagnated. People who didn’t like windows lost. People who did like Windows also lost, due to no force for innovation being present. While I personally like OS X, I never want it to be the only viable choice.
drakino - February 11, 2012
Video editing on the PC wasn’t a pain for those of us using Newtek products. ;)
TheStrange - February 10, 2012
Science also prefers Unix and you’ll find lots of people within scientific fields using OS X.
ryan. - February 10, 2012
I am in college for a CS Major and pretty much everyone uses windows. We had a couple classes where the teachers forced us to use Unix but usually we all just use windows.
ThatGuy707 - February 11, 2012
or if you need to use office! MS Office for Mac is UGLY, slow, buggy as hell and so on. And the alternatives, like iWork, are not so good in terms of compatibility.
For example, stay away from OS X if you need to use an excel file with macros or complex functions: if you edit the file on Excel for Mac, you won’t be able to open it later on a PC. :/
mendo - February 10, 2012
2008 was all those things. Office 2011 is quite nice.
TechMark - February 10, 2012
i would say easily 50% of the comments made about mac products are from people who’ve never used them. It’s easy to identify in their posts, as they make obvious errors when talking about them.
he’s probably opening macro doc’s in 2008, which doesn’t support macros all together, and wondering what’s happening.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Using Office 2010 on one Windows 7 machine then using the same version on another Windows 7 machine can often times end up not working together all that nicely. It’ll change your formatting willy nilly, so the simple fact iWork works as well as it does with Office documents is rather impressive, considering Office can’t even get proper consistency between the same apps on the same os… both made by the same company.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
Or if you want a button that will consistently maximize windows… Still my biggest annoyance with Mac OSX.
PopcornPenguin - February 10, 2012
It’s not a maximise button. It’s a zoom button which resizes the window to the largest it needs to be to display the content.
urpert - February 10, 2012 via mobile
The way the zoom button works on OSX works is one of the things I like the most about the OS. Only being able to maximise windows just doesn’t make any sense when you’re using a larger monitor.
blackNBUK - February 10, 2012
because all monitors are the same size. Because the way you learned it is right, and the way we learned it is wrong, right?
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
I’m learning something here…
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
Like other’s said, it’s a zoom function, not maximize.
However, if you’re on a Mac, install BetterTouchTool, and it’ll let you enable Windows 7-style snapping. So, dragging a window to the top of the screen maximizes it. It’s really nice and something Apple should copy from Windows 7 for the next release of OS X.
lsenkowsky - February 10, 2012
Game incompatibility is just too big of a hit for me.
Picxal - February 11, 2012
it sounds like using W7 on an Air is like shooting yourself in the foot … but even with that bullet stuck in there, you are still better off than with what the competition offers
Formul - February 10, 2012
To conclude: The Vaio Z is the best Ultra-book :D
So worth the money.
Tj00139 - February 10, 2012
It depends what OS you want…
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Ultrabook implies Windows 7
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
Ultrabook is just a marketing term. We, as informed Verge readers know that by Ultrabook they mean, thin and light.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Ubuntu :)
Tj00139 - February 10, 2012
I didn’t ask.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Bloat.
chrishind10 - February 10, 2012
Oh yes, because obviously all real Linux users are supposed to compile their own kernel and custom-built Gentoo ಠ_ಠ
Ubuntu, as much as I don’t like the recent changes made to it, is probably one of the best Linux distro’s out there and would run awesome on a MacBook or any other ultrabook, if you didn’t have any problems with drivers.
IrrationlArtist - February 10, 2012
No… you just install arch and add in the essentials.
Drivers + Lynx + Nano and I would be pretty much sorted on a ultrabook.
chrishind10 - February 10, 2012
Nano?
ViM!
TotempaaltJ - February 10, 2012
Nano for now, until I wrap my head around the shortcuts in ViM, it will happen eventually!
chrishind10 - February 11, 2012
when people make these posts, they should just come out with it and say,
to conclude: whatever i bought, is the best x :D
So worth the money.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
This review just tickles me with joy. What a cool idea!
Nathan Ingraham - February 10, 2012
Wait, Windows 7 can run on an ARM processor?
ROCK5T3ADY - February 10, 2012
What does ARM have to do with the Intel-powered Air?
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
Probably ignorance
BumpyClock - February 10, 2012
APPLE NAILS WHAT EVERY OTHER PC MAKER FAILS AT, APPLE NAILS
Did you proofread this article before you posted it?
Joest - February 10, 2012
I think they were talking about Apple Nails
TriDeka - February 10, 2012
Those look like candy
Tikigawd - February 10, 2012
or apple pills lol.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
barf
PanaMusica - February 13, 2012
AMAZING.
urpert - February 11, 2012
Joanna, in the table of weights you have the Air and the Toshiba’s weights mixed up.
Great article!
bonjean - February 10, 2012
Hmm, not to sound sexist but I find women just like Macs more hence the favorable review..
pookguy88 - February 10, 2012
I actually LOLed at this comment.
Joanna Stern - February 10, 2012
:D
drumdbeat - February 10, 2012
That is the most absurd bullsh*t I have read on the internet so far this week. Congratulations!!!
SweetZombieJesus - February 10, 2012
Prefacing that comment with “not to sound sexist” didn’t help anything
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
“Some of my friends are women!”
urpert - February 11, 2012
What about children? Will somebody please think of the children…!
You may not realise it but some of our greatest men started life as children.
theREALdotnet - February 11, 2012
it’s trendy, let’s be honest. I always laugh when I see skinny jean wearing guys and girls all with their macbooks, who bought it becuase of the trendy factor.
that sure is an expensive tradeoff to have an glowing apple logo just to surf the web
boswd - February 10, 2012
So a large portion of the Verge team are just trying to be trendy? The guys behind jQuery are just trying to be trendy? The guys behind Reddit (sans one who uses Ubuntu) are just trying to be trendy? All those developers who want a quality Unix based OS with solid hardware are just trying to be trendy? All those scientists who prefer a quality Unix based OS are just trying to be trendy?
ryan. - February 10, 2012
Congratulations, you don’t know what you’re talking about. I own absolutely 0 Apple products, and I even get annoyed when I see people saying the only worth in Apple is to be ‘trendy’. Unix kicks the crap out of DOS systems, and OS X is pretty much the only commercial Unix-based OS for consumers that runs on laptops.
IrrationlArtist - February 10, 2012
DOS systems? Theres been no DOS system released since WinME.
Xale - February 11, 2012
Im currently not an apple user either. Although (in my opinion) there is that factor with their media devices, I do not think that to be true about their laptops. Unix rules… aw was already noted.
itsfuntodobadthings - February 10, 2012
VioletBlue, is that YOU?
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
Are you absolutely sure about those boot times? How can it be faster to first boot Lion and then boot a virtual version of Windows, than to just boot directly into Windows?
Anyone with a MacBook air and Bootcamp to confirm the 66 seconds boot time?
GebradenKip - February 10, 2012
Some of the Boot Camp drivers are pretty bad, I wouldn’t be surprised.
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
Yes, I can confirm, it takes forever to boot up windows through boot camp, but it does run great when it finally does.
Fernandez21 - February 10, 2012 via mobile
I don’t understand why. I have Win7 running in bootcamp on a late-2009 i7 iMac and it boots as fast as any PC booting into Windows. I’ve never noticed a difference.
ryan. - February 10, 2012
I have an early 2011 MacBook Pro with Windows 7 Pro running in Parallels 7. Surprisingly, it only takes approximately 16 seconds to boot to the login window. I ran Bootcamp on my old setup, but it’s REALLY nice in Parallels 7. I use it for domain administration at work and also for antiquated ActiveX based banking applications.
Specs:
2.0 GHz i7 Quad (base model)
8GB memory
OS drive = 120GB OWC Mercury Extreme Pro 6G SSD (SATA III)
Data drive = 128 Samsung 470 SSD (SATA II) <<< Windows VM installed on this drive
802.11at - February 10, 2012
Great piece Joanna. I have been contemplating getting an Air to do exactly what you wrote about!
sixela - February 10, 2012
“This battery life gap has been widely reported in the past, and it likely has to do with the lack of power efficiency tweaks made in OS X for Apple’s hardware”. Shouldn’t this read “This battery life gap has been widely reported in the past, and it likely has to do with the lack of power efficiency tweaks made in Windows 7 for Apple’s hardware”.
stephenallred - February 10, 2012
Whoops. Fixed.
Joanna Stern - February 10, 2012
No, you’re both wrong, it has nothing to do with Windows7. It has everything to do with old deprecated bootcamp drivers. Apple is the one that writes the bootcamp drivers for Windows; an example are legacy IDE drivers for the hardrive subsystem that impact the system’s IOPS and inability to switch off discrete cards when available on a bootcamped macbook.
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
As all Apple haters love to tell us, Macs are just PC’s, with a different OS on them and a shiny Apple logo. The hardware in them is largely “off the shelf”. The Boot Camp drivers are usually for things like the FaceTime camera, trackpad and keyboard shortcut buttons and so on, the rest is almost always going to be also available in Windows machines and as such you’ll be able to find more optimised drivers for them. Windows Update tends to find a bunch of them for example.
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
Bootcamp is managed solely by Apple. Apple controls all aspects of drivers and firmware regarding their wares. Bootcamp software, which runs the machine’s disk subsystem in legacy IDE mode and installs deprecated generic drivers, pretty much cripples the Windows experience. You have the present review at hand.
Don’t know what haters tell you, but Apple hardware inside them is the same as the hardware inside the VaioZ. If it was different Windows would not work at all. What Apple does is make use of special TPM’s to control what you can install on their machines or not. You will never be able to run natively and solely Win7 x64 on a mac, only through bootcamp.
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
this!
itsfuntodobadthings - February 10, 2012
Considering the MBA in question doesn’t have a discreet GPU, and only uses the Intel HD 3000 component, just which mystery drivers are you referring to that causes such a death to battery life?
Ephemerol- - February 10, 2012
I was talking in general not on this specific case as I wrote “when available”.
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
Very interesting, thanks Joanna. Might I suggest that whenever refreshes the Air (or adds that mythical 15" Air we’ve been hearing about), you add a separate section to the computer as a Win7 machine?
kevinivek - February 10, 2012
I have Win7 on my MBA but running under Parallels 7 rather than Bootcamp. This works superbly unless you want to play games.
Despite the battery life hit it is still way better than the Dell crap I was given by the company previously
Ironically the only app I needed it for (MS Project) I no longer need as I can use iTaskx in my new job.
Boghog - February 10, 2012
Oh, not wishing to advertise but you can get Parallels 7 for $49 along with a bunch of other stuff from macsuperbundle at the moment.
Boghog - February 10, 2012
Best hurry though! It ends today!
MadusMaximus - February 10, 2012
I forgot about that… I’ve had a link just sitting on my desktop for two weeks. Just went and bought it… Thanks for the reminder! My Parallels 6 keeps reminding me that 7 is available.
ILL TROOPER - February 10, 2012
Thanks Joanna… you should do a followup review of Windows 8 Consumer Preview in a few weeks on the MBA and see what the battery life increase is.
qBitnaut - February 10, 2012
Actually, Tom Warren just had a similar idea. Definitely seems like something we could do.
Joanna Stern - February 10, 2012
Hopefully we can do it. It wasn’t particularly easy to run the Developer Preview in boot camp, and the tools didn’t work properly afterwards.
Tom Warren - February 10, 2012
I have been testing the Dev Preview on my Samsung Developer Tablet, the HP TS9300 and various Dell Optiplex and Latitude models. I haven’t had any Mac hardware available to test with just yet, so I wasn’t aware of those issues. Hopefully the beta will work a bit better in boot camp for you guys.
qBitnaut - February 10, 2012
I’ve been running the dev preview in VirtualBox…needless to say it didn’t run smooth.
It ‘installed’ just fine though.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
I’m not sure now much useful information you’ll get from such a test. A bunch of stuff could change before Window 8 is actually released and as far as I know Apple haven’t updated their drivers for Windows 8 yet. Any battery life results could be very different in a few months time.
blackNBUK - February 10, 2012
It’s seems like it’s at least something that at least one person at Microsoft is looking into for Windows 8:
http://blogs.msdn.com/b/b8/archive/2012/02/07/improving-power-efficiency-for-applications.aspx
trunksy - February 15, 2012
Without updated drivers, I wouldn’t expect a huge change in battery life, but I too would like to see this.
Chris... - February 10, 2012
yes but the tendancy to be “touchy” based on metro + Trackpad can put it ahead of the usability game… or not.
jpcarvalhinho - February 10, 2012
True, but I think it would be an interesting test to see how much they’ve improved the code. Microsoft has put a lot of focus into reducing memory usage and power consumption. It would speak a lot to the under-the-hood changes in Windows to see another half-hour to hour of use added over Windows 7 without 3rd party driver optimization.
qBitnaut - February 10, 2012
I’d imagine it won’t increase that much for the Air, the drivers are likely the primary thing harming battery life in 7.
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
I think it’s worth it just to have OS X and Windows 7 in one.
NicholasNavarre - February 10, 2012
you could also hackintosh your ultrabook …
mnu - February 10, 2012
Hackintoshing varies wildly depending on the hardware you are running, I once did it to a laptop known for it’s compatibility with hackintoshing and it still worked like crap, so many issues. Not worth it at all.
Hackintoshing is only worth it if you build your own.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
FTFY.
/hackintoshed tons of PC laptops, it’s more fun when it’s hard.
//worst thing you’ll have to do is get a new wifi card and flash the bios to accept it.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
My machine had working wifi but no ethernet. It only supported 1 core. It didn’t fully support some graphics technologies (meaning certain applications didn’t work), it would crash, it was slow. It was dreadful.
And I did flash the BIOS.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
you needed to go with a different kernel what can i say. iboot emulation doesn’t work for everyone. I’ve had solid AMD X2 64’s Pentium Ds, Core Solo’s etc.
You have to play around, and enjoy playing around. Mind if I ask what machine? I would be more than happy to look up hardware support for what was missing.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Dell Inspiron 6400. I have no intention of doing it again. I got rid of the machine a long time ago.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
haha fair enough. Please note that it’s changed quite a bit. My lenovo t510 updates via software update (as do most core based laptops these days)
it’s a ton different from the 10.4 10.5 days.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
I was doing it with 10.6, it was about a year ago.
I already had an iMac but wanted a laptop with OS X too. I now have a MBP so no need to even try Hackintoshing again.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
Joanna, I honestly don’t understand why Air trackpad with Windows 7 (natively) gets any praise. Using Parallels, I can understand, but natively, Apple’s trackpad drivers for Windows are junk. I’ve heard you praise the touchpad so many times in reviews and the podcast and I just don’t get it…
In particular, there’s two core issues:
a) When you try and double-tap drag, there’s a completely unresponsive period of about 1-2 seconds where the mouse simply does not move. Not only does this make dragging windows an annoying task, if you go to try and double click an application (with double tap) then instantly move off to do something else, you often end up accidentally click dragging.
b) Right click drag is impossible with the Air touchpad in Windows. Two finger double tap simply does not work. Certainly annoying for those who like to move files between folders with that gesture.
I know these issues may sound specific, but they’re certainly core to Windows usage patterns. I often wonder if a single-touch touchpad with left and right click buttons would be favorable in Windows, heh. That said, I agree with the article that the Air hardware is still vastly superior to most ultrabooks… for now.
DigitalDJ - February 10, 2012
I completely agree with regards to the trackpad complaints. I bought my 2011 Air as a Windows machine, but I find myself using OSX more, specifically because of the awful tracked experience.
One issue that infuriates me is when I’m typing and the cursor will jump to where my mouse pointer is located. Words can’t convey how annoyed I get with this. It ‘forces’ me to use the much less satisfying Word for OSX.
Coming from a Windows laptop prior to this, I can safely say that while the trackpad wasn’t great, it wasn’t this bad.
On the plus side, since I am using OSX more, I absolutely love the gestures. This is an amazing trackpad when you use it with the intended OS.
Stephen J. - February 10, 2012
I’m glad I’m not the only one who finds the double-tap dragging delay annoying. I find it really, really difficult to use Windows on my MBA because of this. I thought someone must have come up with a fix for this behavior, but apparently not.
wbrendel - February 11, 2012 via mobile
Didn’t this blog make a huge post about how Ultrabook™ is an Intel trademarked term and not a general term for “thin notebook?”
KitF - February 10, 2012 via mobile
This is a blog?
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
Who cares? ‘Tannoy’ is a brand name and people use it for ‘public address system’. ‘Hoover’ is a brand, but people use it for ‘vacuum cleaner’, the list goes on.
WayAway - February 10, 2012
I’ve always said the best Windows experience you can get is installing it on a Mac or building your own machine. No OEM crap, no crappy Norton 30-day trial or anything. Just pure Windows.
Entegy - February 10, 2012
Or just buy another machine and wipe out the OEM install. They even provided a serial on the PC for you.
Danrarbc - February 10, 2012
And how many people do that?
Entegy - February 10, 2012
Probably a lot more people than those who know how to build their own machine…
andynormancx - February 10, 2012
idk about that. Building a machine = lego’s.
JesseDegenerate - February 10, 2012
Or order a PC from the Microsoft Store?
wootbetogod - February 10, 2012
I just realized that this whole article was a troll. Well played Joanna, well played…. Or maybe its a humble-brag—shoot, I’m not sure anymore…
cwchase - February 10, 2012
How is this a troll?
WayAway - February 10, 2012
On top of creating a topic that so intimately relates Apple and Microsoft together, which is bound to stir something up, you should just watch the latest Vergecast…
cwchase - February 10, 2012
I personally don’t understand the ultra book fad. Its not like a regular laptop isn’t portable and if you really want something for its portability, then thats what tablets are for.
I feel that ultra books are coming from the fact that personal computers are all becoming powerful enough that there is very little difference in performance, unless you start to nit pick (things like track pad functionality, slight differences in keyboards, and several second differences in boot times). So instead of trying to up the specs of the normal personal computers, companies are just trying to shrink their products, then make a new market from it.
rfwpresto - February 10, 2012
I think you answered your own question there. Save for more “niche” usage cases, damn near any computer you can buy right now will be plenty powerful for normal usage. So, instead of manufacturers partaking in the horsepower race, we have them really streamlining the devices… emphasizing build quality, portability, battery life, and ergonomics instead. I quite like this trend, honestly.
floobie - February 10, 2012
You won’t understand until you carry around an 11" laptop that has all the computing power you’re likely to ever need (with the exception for high-end gaming, but you can game on the MBA just fine also). At that weight and size it’s virtually no added drag to bring your laptop with you.
I would say, though, that this is likely more of a city issue. If you live in the suburbs the furthest your computer is likely to go is from upstairs to downstairs.
TechMark - February 10, 2012
I can’t help but think that the whole ‘ultrabook’ fuss could end up backfiring on Intel.
Whilst the Air originally had lesser specs, it has now become a viable proposition as a primary laptop, and yet somehow, Apple has managed to pull this off without coming across as creating a ‘new’ product line. Whilst the Ultrabook is being touted and described as a slimline, full fledged laptop, at the same time, I wonder if consumers will dismiss them as better featured netbooks. When Vizio said they were saying ‘Thin & Lite’ rather than Ultrabook, I understood – it’s the same approach as ‘Air’, descriptive of the product, not a generalisation.
Still like the look of that Lenovo, but the Air has that special something (perhaps it’s the knowledge of the build materials).
Cannot wait to see your review of the Vizios, Joanna!
atomicsolar - February 10, 2012
I can understand the attraction to an ultrabook/Air. I ordered a laptop recentely (Lenovo u400). It’s not considered an ultrabook, but it is less than an inch thick, pretty light, and it has that unibody build to it. I would have gotten the u300 but I need a larger hard drive and an optical drive.
I love the portability of it and the element of style that is inherent in the unibody-style design. Plus, it’s got a nice discrete graphics to do the fun stuff.
wootbetogod - February 10, 2012
One came in 2003 and the other 2008. Guess which?
Danhese007 - February 10, 2012
One cost nearly $4,000. Guess which?
DigitalDJ - February 10, 2012
The one with no touchpad came out early?
Gadgeteer21 - February 10, 2012
Yeah, $4k, no trackpad. Brilliant! Glad Apple copied them. /s
TechMark - February 10, 2012
I think the OP’s point was that the chiclet keyboard and the ultrabook concept was pioneered by Sony. That Apple took the concept and refined it is undeniable.
emilcaillaux - February 10, 2012
And Joanna’s point is that most companies are lazily following the refined concept of Apple which is considerably different from Sony’s.
Gadgeteer21 - February 10, 2012
Adding a trackpad is “considerably different”?
MindHead - February 10, 2012
You mean adding a track pad, changing the shape to teardrop, using machined a unibody aluminum, putting SSD by default, having the ridge around the keyboard, having a different hinge mechanism style, etc, etc. aren’t “considerably different”?
Give credit where credit is due. Macbook Air was a trendsetter if there ever was one and Ultrabooks take their styling cues from Macbook Air, not Vaio.
Gadgeteer21 - February 10, 2012
Some people just hate Apple.
jonmilani - February 10, 2012
How can you think they are anything alike aside from the keyboard?
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
One was a terrible user experience, awfully under-powered, the other one not. Guess which?
Keep in mind that it was Steve Jobs that really twisted Intel’s arm for the processor used in the original MBA. Based on the success of that original MBA, Intel made the chips even better.
TechMark - February 10, 2012
What happend with the Visio ultrabooks?
german.almaraz - February 10, 2012
They are vapor for the moment.
Deadguy2322 - February 10, 2012
Waiting for windows 8 on ipad 3 review.jk!
Nice review.
deva_p - February 10, 2012 via mobile
I imagine a jailbreak would be in order.
Apple would be insane to allow some kind of virtual BIOS app onto the store.
chrishind10 - February 10, 2012
It seems a little sad that Apple, who supports Windows as an after thought, makes one of the best Windows machines, while Manufacturers who build nothing but Windows machines can’t build a truly competitive product.
DBsync - February 10, 2012
It’s not really; as Macs are essentially PCs. They work the same way. Screen/keyboard/trackpad etc. Apple has made a really good laptop, but it’s not because it’s a Mac. All the things that make it one, introduce issues when running Windows. The specific keyboard, differences, the battery life, extra expense of separate OS purchase. If someone makes a Windows laptop that trounces a Mac, it won’t be because it runs windows, necessarily, it will just be the cross-platform hardware design and engineering.
Duotronic - February 10, 2012
A reasonable, level-headed comment, found right here in the wild. I think I’ll take a picture.
lundsh - February 10, 2012
It’s not one of the best, it has an average score, 7.4
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
Average? 8.8 for the 13in on Verge.
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
Ahem…this specific unit, pay attention jaggedspike.
id4andrei - February 10, 2012
No, you be more specific. The OP hasn’t stated which model and neither have you.
jaggedspike - February 11, 2012
I’d like to see this same review with the Win8 CP like someone else mentioned.
laserfloyd - February 10, 2012
I’d say at this point, it’s pretty pointless, even stupid to buy an Ultrabook..
Just wait a couple more month and there should be many many Ivy Bridge newer Ultrabooks designs
Sorr - February 10, 2012
Tech enthusiasts haven’t been hearing this since the beginning of time or anything. There is always something better on the horizon, at some point you have to actually make a purchase or you will be waiting forever.
jayfehr - February 10, 2012
This maybe valid on cellphones market, but Intel makes a new platform once every year..
I don’t see your point.
Sorr - February 13, 2012
Never thought I’d say this, but the Asus actually looks better than the Air. Atleast in my opinion.
Ronaldj666 - February 10, 2012
you really cant beat Apples track pad. Although i think 2nd gen Lenovo U300s or X series will be the Win7/8 machine to beat
omenshyne - February 10, 2012
It’s not really necessary to say that Windows users can be confused with the keyboard mapping when using Windows on a Mac keyboard – I run Bootcamp on my Macs and immediately remap the OSX bindings to match Windows traditional hotkey combos.
ranhalt - February 10, 2012
It’s funny when these blogs come out, and everyone calls it bias. If you say something great about the Mac, you’re just an Apple fanboy. If you say something great about Windows, you’re just a Microsoft Fanboy.
Joanna is about as unbiased a reviewer as your ever going to find. If she says the Mac is better at something, it’s simple because it is.
Mafoo - February 10, 2012
Or maybe because she thinks it is. While multitouch capabilities on a trackpad are very cool, I personally can’t stand trackpads without real buttons.
lundsh - February 10, 2012
it’s wrong to rate Air for windows! it’s not fair
Hadi Farnoud - February 10, 2012
what if all you want is a windows ultra portable? Wouldn’t you want a review that tells you how good the air would be at that task?
Mafoo - February 10, 2012
Great review on this topic.
Still, interesting that there was so much focus on running Win7 on the Air via Bootcamp rather than using a virtualization software such as VMware Fusion, Parallel, or VirtualBox. All these provide a far better user experience since you can easily jump from OS X to Windows without waiting for the Win7 partition to boot. You can also have apps from Windows and OS X appear together in the OS X interface, as well as get the ability for both evnvironments to share access to files.
One other advantage with a virtualization software is that it allows you to migrate your physical windows system into a virtual machine that you can deploy in the Air. This allows you to avoid buying another Windows license for your Air.
joeYYY - February 10, 2012
Regarding the migration, I used VMware Fusion to migrate my old Dell laptop into a virtual machine on my MacBook pro. Fusion also provides a way to easily do this physical to virtual migration over the network.
joeYYY - February 10, 2012
Personally, I would have liked to see more mentions of the Vaio Z in this article. If you’d consider paying the price premium for the Air, because you’re interested in the best overall ultrabook experience, maybe you’d consider paying the additional premium to get the highest end, too.
Sure – the Air might still best it in a few areas (like the Trackpad), but there are a lot of categories where its clearly the top, so if the question you’re posing is “does Apple make the best Win7 ultrabook”, well, the answer is probably no.
deekovb5 - February 10, 2012
Bootcamp boot times would be quicker if Apple would support booting Windows in EFI mode, instead of the legacy BIOS emulation mode they use today. Seems the current issue is that the Windows EFI installer still requires a legacy video ROM to be present, something Windows 8, and Windows 7 SP2 is addressing.
Apple then needs to make newer drivers to keep brightness and other hardware control buttons functioning properly.
drakino - February 10, 2012
Interesting review for sure. It’s no secret that battery life in Bootcamp is nowhere near the battery life in OS X.
Seems like sort of a waste to buy a Macbook Air to run Windows primarily, though. The Macbook Air might be leading the ultra book pack, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t other totally serviceable native Windows ultra books out there.
floobie - February 10, 2012
I bought the 11" Air this summer before the Ultrabooks came out. There still really isn’t an Ultrabook that matches the 11". I pretty much agree with the review. It’s a great Windows notebook except for the power management. I started out running BootCamp and using the Air plugged in most of the time so I didn’t notice the issue.
For me the issue isn’t really the battery length (I find it similar to OS X if running straight). OS X is more aggressive in it’s power management (e.g. the screen dims very quickly). The issue is the sleep performance is much better using OS X. If you flip the Air down in OS X it eventually does the nice hybrid sleep. I haven’t found a way to get it to sleep and then hibernate in Windows and I tried this a lot.
So now I run VMWare Fusion on the BootCamp partition. I think this gives you the best of both worlds if you can figure it out. The downside is that there can be licensing issues with the software. The vast majority of the time, I’m just booting up to run Chrome so the underlying OS doesn’t matter. When I need to do work or Steam, I need to use Windows.
dbtom - February 10, 2012
Joanna, thank you for this review. It was very thorough, informative and critical of all parties in the right places.
re: Keyboard – I would never ever get used to that keyboard as I am a heavy shortcut user, and that placement issue is not something I knew about until I saw this review. I still have a huge hate-relationship with Canadian style keyboards, and from experience, I have never been able to get used to them in over a decade, so I’m sure I’d find it the same with this Command/Control difference on the Macbook Air.
weetigo - February 10, 2012
There you go again Verge!!! What the hell is wrong with you guys?
You took excellent pictures and video, used lots of whitespace, didn’t dramatize anything, were extremely thorough and professional. Then your conclusions was very objective and thoughtful of how people like to use a small notebook.
On top of all that, the review was interesting and entertaining.
I don’t know what the hell you guys are smoking, but keep doing it.
KittenAppreciatorUSA - February 10, 2012
Macbook Air 2012 review: Part 1. Nothing to see here. The Verge: still an Apple loving site. shame.
Can you test the HP Folio with OSX to see if it is a better buy than any of the overpriced Apple crap with OSX? Do it, then I will respect you.
or better yet since we are on this topic HP Touchpad with {CS when you get the chance.
Ricardo Dawkins - February 10, 2012
All of those methods you listed require hacking and something that is not supported.
crisss1205 - February 10, 2012
I wonder if the Verge staff all wear the same shoes.
You know, it’s treated like a dirty secret that Manufacturer B will release a device to compete with something Manufacturer A made that was popular. This is what you want. Imagine if the only cars with seatbelts or airbags were made by the company to first introduce them. It would suck. The real dirty secret is the conformist consumer who will focus on one criteria over other concerns. It’s bizarrely true that people want their laptops to look like a Macbook. And PC makers are sadly responsive to this. I never have an issue with someone’s personal taste, but I find it frustrating when it’s so predominant, to the exclusion of other styles, that it stifles variety. I’ve always thought Sony makes the best looking hardware. I don’t need everyone to agree with me, just enough that it makes Sony’s efforts worth their while.
Duotronic - February 10, 2012
Very well said. The PC makers are way, way, way too responsive to Apple.
Apple itself is fully aware that it is merely proposing one of many possibilities. It’s sad to see everyone else (both fans and haters) respond to it like it’s the only game in town, and then accuse Apple of wrongdoing, because it so totally need not be the only game, and it is not “wrong”.
ball- - February 12, 2012
“The ultrabook phenomenon is by and large Intel’s and the rest of the PC industry’s reaction to Apple’s MacBook Air.”
Wait. WAIT. WAIT.
The MacBook is Apple’s reaction to the ASUS netbook. Right? So what are you sulking about, darling?
agnel.kurian - February 10, 2012
Even if what you said is true, it doesn’t make what she said false.
CtrlAltDel121 - February 10, 2012
That’s absolutely hilarious. Good one! Really glad we had that crappy netbook market, otherwise Apple would have never thought to try to build a smaller laptop.
TechMark - February 10, 2012
You said the cheapest Air is 13 inches one, why didn’t you mention 11’’ for 999?
Romario77 - February 10, 2012
Great post.
You somehow managed to tread down the middle of the Mac vs. Windows POV with minimal fanboism in the comments. They actually agree for the most part. Its shocking.
Your entire series on ultra books has been one of my favorite things to read on the verge. Not to discredit any of the other content. The reviews, videos and insight are well thought out and objective. Thank you!
whiteboard - February 10, 2012 via mobile
Huh. Not bad. I was considering boot camping for a couple of games, since they don’t work that spectacularly in parallels.
cf_torchie - February 10, 2012
I haven’t used any Ultrabooks myself, but I do use an Asus UL30A when I’m at work (the only modern PC we have in the media lab) and I’ve found the touchpad experience to be pretty good. It’s not as good as an MBP, but it’s certainly usable (this is coming from someone who hates using touchpads in general).
Two finger scrolling works exactly as I would expect and is very fast. There’s also a nice feature built in that opens a new tab if I click with two fingers (since there’s a dedicated right-click button) and I love that feature.
So, my point is, maybe the issues are more specific to Ultrabooks, or maybe i just have different standards for touchpads, especially coming from a non-Mac user and someone who hates touchpads in general, but I don’t really get all of these complaints… Yeah they’re not as good as their MB counterparts, but they’re far from painful to use in my experience.
notoriousyid - February 10, 2012
I love the look of Apple products, just hate the software. Their software is always too limiting. I catch every video review I can that the Verge produces. Out of all the tech news out there online, the Verge has the highest quality videos and experienced people explain the products. I love this site.
sentinelred - February 10, 2012
What the hell? What is limiting about OSX?
Saad Salman - February 10, 2012
He might not be familiar with OS X.
jaggedspike - February 10, 2012
In terms of being able to run and access software, Windows dominates in my opinion, that’s why I got of OSX, aside from that OSX is a beautifully built OS, what we would expect from Apple.
motoxrider365 - February 10, 2012
It’s limiting because he hasn’t used it. I know every version of OSX and Windows spanning the last 15 years inside out, and I choose to use OSX for both my business and personal life. Not once have I felt ‘limited’, or not been able to accomplish a task I can accomplish in Windows. True, OSX dosn’t have every single piece of windows software available, but who cares? The major stuff is there, and for everything else there’s alternatives, and oftentimes superior ones. The only area I can think of where OSX is limiting is gaming, and thats fair, but is an area I personally couldn’t care less about.
Slurpy - February 10, 2012
GPU acceleration, subpar network stack, and any situation where the mac essentially needs to work as anything but a ‘solo’ machine. You’re completely fucked when Apple, once again, decides to screw up some of their drivers – potentially leaving you stuck for months without a proper fix. You’re trying to come off as experienced, but there are too many obvious parts which hint to you yet being an amateur.
Xale - February 11, 2012
You are right, all that bloatware really robs performance and battery life, not too mention increase price! So how do we remove MAC OS again? I didn’t catch that part?
JimmyFal - February 10, 2012
You can remove OS X by just installing Windows like you would on any other computer. Boot from the CD
crisss1205 - February 10, 2012
I really don’t understand this review. Why is the air being judged as a Windows Ultrabook when it was never intended to be one. Its like saying, “Oh my Xbox has an overactive fan, why don’t I review of it as a hairdryer!?” It seems cruel to say it has poor battery life in Windows and high price (when you add Windows) when it wasn’t intended for that purpose.
However, if I follow the lead of the review and treat it as a Windows Ultrabook then I think Joanna has missed out a huge point. There is complete disregard for the fact that the Macbook Air comes with Mac OS X. For the price (of including Windows) you get two operating systems. One with full access to the iLife suite, which is certainly a major selling point. There is no other Windows Ultrabook that offers this. Why is that not taken into account at all? When judging it as a Mac machine the ability to dual boot into Windows is always seen as a positive. It should be the same when judging it as a Windows machine.
tclare - February 10, 2012
Is iLife really that great?
I barerly used it when I had a Mac, just like a barely use the free Windows Live Essentials on my PC. I find Live essentials allows me to to do everything that iLife can do (except garageBand)
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
I think its good enough to count as an advantage when comparing the Macbook Air to other alternatives.
tclare - February 11, 2012
But the question she set out to answer is for those people who are buying the Air instead of a Windows Ultrabook, and doesn’t plan to use OS X, period. To these people OS X is only as meaningful as one of those quickstart thingies you get with any number of Windows laptops.
ball- - February 12, 2012
I’d rather just get the ultrabook with Windows 7 already on it, then duo booting process with Boot Camp.
Zc456 - February 10, 2012
The article’s fine. People are bitching about it being written like a fanboy, and to them I say “so what?” Reviews are suppose to be subjective. Otherwise they’d all be exactly identical. If you don’t want her opinion, then why the hell are you reading the review in the first place?
warmonked - February 10, 2012
Because they want her to share their opinion and validate their worldview. Otherwise her review is useless/biased/invalid/whatever. That’s the definition of objectivity for most people- their opinion, and whoever shares it.
Slurpy - February 10, 2012
Ya’ll should review the MacBook Air running he Windows 8 consumer preview. I bet the battery performance will improve.
MrGLStacy - February 10, 2012
I have Windows 8 running on other hardware. It really isn’t happy without a touch screen. It can be made to work like W7 with a registry tweak, but then there’s really no benefit to using W8 is there?
geebake - February 10, 2012
I have an 11" MBA (128gb) that has been my primary windows laptop for abut 7 months now. I’m a windows developer and use it to write code all day long most days. You can certainly argue that the 13" would be a bit easier on the eyes, but I’m good with the 11". I have the OSX partition shrunk down as far as it will go and only launch OSX once in a blue moon. I think this is the best Ultrabook option out there.
Battery life hasn’t really been a problem for me. I’m plugged in 99% of the time. What is a tad annoying is the keyboard/trackpad. I would love to be able to remap a few keys. The trackpad is the biggest problem. It’s hyper sensitive and when I’m typing, it’s not unusual for my thumbs to come to close to it and change the entry point. I usually use an external mouse and would love to find a way just to turn the trackpad off.
With that being said, I’ll never go back. I love this machine. a bigger SSD would be nice as would more battery life, but I’ve been very satisfied for quite a while now.
geebake - February 10, 2012
Thank you for this. I have wanted to hear about someone who uses an 11 inch Air with Windows. Since the 13 inch Air gets just over 4 hours, what would you think the 11 inch Air with Windows 7/Boot Camp gets? This may be hard to answer since you keep it plugged in most days but I am very interested to know.
JamieHarper - February 10, 2012 via mobile
I run about 3.5 hours with Windows on my 11" Air with Windows 7 and Boot Camp. Using Windows in VMWare Fusion does a little better, and I do that more often than booting into Windows. Fusion lets you use your Boot Camp partition as a virtual machine.
The Verge hasn’t reviewed one yet, but the new HP Folio looks like a better answer to the Ultrabook question than anything the PC manufacturers have put out so far. About 4 ounces heavier than the 13" Air, and I think that all went into the battery.
DanThies - February 10, 2012
It really is hard for me to say since I’m plugged in most of the time. I can tell you though that if you use a lot of wifi, it’s not that long. I’d say 4 hours max with wifi on and the display fairly bright.
geebake - February 10, 2012
I’d take my Cr-48 over a MacBook Air anyday.
GreenishApples - February 10, 2012
Yes, please do. Matter of fact, take all of them.
Ephemerol- - February 10, 2012
Excellent review, thank you. I have wondered about your opinion on this combination of Apple hardware and Microsoft software.
Slightly off topic: As a PC user, I have often wondered if I could get by with an Air, Office365, Chrome and LogMeIn Free (when needed). I suppose it depends on the use case but this seems like a solution that could work as well. At least you would get 2 hours of battery life back while still being able to edit PC documents without losing any formatting on conversion.
JamieHarper - February 10, 2012 via mobile
Would have been much better if the OP simply stated how great apple is. And that everything else sucks.
There are mega loads of data that prove beyond the slightest doubt that people will always overlook flaws in purchases tied to social status.
To paraphrase the Cranberries, "it’s in your head, zombies"
evildog - February 10, 2012
Now if only I could also go the other way. I’m sorry, I love Apple’s design, but I can’t justify the Apple Tax. I can get two full featured normal sized laptops for the price of one 13" Macbook Air. It gets even more gross at the Macbook Pro price point. I’m very depressed to see all the PC manufacturers going with such high pricepoints for Ultrabooks.
I’d would like to run OS X, though. I know that Hackintosh’s are a reality, but I am not running that perfect conflux of hardware.
keverson42 - February 10, 2012
Please list me some PC ultrabook that share the same specs (core i5/7, BT 4.0, SSD standard, large multitouch trackpad) as well as the unmatched build quality of the MBA at a notably lower price, then come back here and tell us about the ‘apple tax’, otherwise your post is useless. I like how you don’t actually compare the price of the MBA to PC ultrabooks, you try to sensationalize the price by comparing it ‘normal sized’ laptops, a pointless comparison.
Slurpy - February 10, 2012
I did. I said I was depressed that they were going with higher price points for Ultrabooks, which they are. They are following the example of Apple’s pricing model for these devices. They don’t do more than a traditional laptop, but they cost a lot more. Your response IS actually useless though. I was simply saying I’d be interested in running OS X, but not paying for the hardware. I don’t see a point a in running Windows on a Macbook, but going the other way, yes, I would like that. Get your head out of your ass, and just try taking a comment at face value once or twice, before berating them for being a fanboy, while boldly claiming your own allegiance in a spectacular text book example of hypocrisy.
keverson42 - February 13, 2012
I got a little question:
I read about your love for the touchpad. While I can somehow understand that, I can’t really say that I’m ‘that’ happy with mine, to be honest. I got one of the first unibody 15" Macbook Pros and I don’t know if it’s the drivers, but the touchpad doesn’t feel that well to me. So, it’s either Apple made some progress in the last few years with drivers for W7 and/or touchpad hardware or the Ultrabook touchpads are ‘really’ a POS – and no, I don’t mean Point of Sale.
Germian - February 10, 2012
Decent review, even if there was some very fanboy(er… girl)-ish moments. This has always been the elephant in the room when it comes to Apple products and it’s nice to see a fairly objective look at it.
Biggest surprise was the battery hit. I figured it would take a hit, but 33%. Is OS X really that well optimized for its hardware?
And the trackpad quality from non-Apple makers is what makes me think I will be going the BootCamp route when I decide to get a new laptop.
Apocalyptic0n3 - February 10, 2012
You lost me when you said it weighed less than the other options except for the Toshiba…but shockingly the chart right below this shows that those products actually do weigh less than the MacBook Air…
mdbick - February 10, 2012
You’re right. Joanna, you may want to fix that.
.ben - February 10, 2012
Very well done and honest review. Looks like to me the Mac software is best on a Mac and PC software is best on a PC. And Linux is good for everybody’s gander. Can’t we all just get along??
kingcomtech - February 10, 2012
Cheers!
thejellymon - February 10, 2012
I really liked this article. You don’t get reviews like this that hardcore users really want to know about. What’s more perfect is I was thinking of getting the MBA w/ W7 for my fiancee, thinking it was a perfect marriage.
Good thing I didn’t as you tested it out for me! Keep these unique reviews coming—things that techie’s want to know.
Maybe try building a PC and bring OSX to it? Would be a great article to see if its worth the trouble…
thejellymon - February 10, 2012
Thank You, Joanna, for making clear what many dual-platform users have known since roughly 2007: Apple makes the best experience for Windows and OSX interfaces.
gunderson - February 10, 2012
…..on the Performance section when Sony beats MBA on every aspect, you didn’t mention it all but talk about the performance difference between running windows natively and on a VM…… Do we really care if Windows is set to be the primary OS?
Another thing about Ultrabook is I feel 13" is very awkard size….. I perfect 11" for the light tasks…….. If caring about the performance, a 15" laptop is more like the way to go..
Noah Fang - February 10, 2012
Really nice review Joanna and great work on the video showing things side by side. People that didn’t get that this was a hardware comparison more than an OS one, they would never get it anyways. They just want to see their own truth repeated everywhere. Peace.
gorus - February 10, 2012
“The 2.96-pound machine also weighs less than those competing options”. Actually according to your own chart it weighs more than all the ones you listed above…
MacBook Air (2011, 13-inch) 2.96 lbs.
Lenovo IdeaPad U300s 2.90 lbs.
Asus Zenbook UX31 2.86 lbs.
Samsung Series 9 2.88 lbs.
doyleman7 - February 10, 2012
Great review othewise.
doyleman7 - February 10, 2012
Reading the first two paragraphs and then reading “Let’s make a fair comparison”
Yeah, OhhhhKaaay
I’ve said this before about this site, it REALLY REALLY needs to diversify. If a write is an apple fan, an apple junkie etc. , that’s great, but when 95%of your writers are? AND trying to run a electronic gadget on ALL different tech gadget, it make it very tough to see truely objective reviews and pieces.
There are very talented Android blog writes, MS writes and Blackberry etc out there.
VERGE PLEASE PLEASE make this a more rounded tech site.
boswd - February 10, 2012
You’re obviously the one with the bias. You should actually read the article and the replies she’s made to the comments.
walropodes - February 10, 2012
I am an Apple user AND a Windows user, bot suck in their own ways. But with the Air, you can’t bash Apple, the facts are Apple got it right, and you can see that when other manufacturers basically make knockoffs of it and call it an ultrabook of their own.
Running Windows on it does throw up some red flags, but I am right now, and it’s great. I have a Windows machine I bounce back and forth to throughout the day, and I can operate both keyboards with no issue.
Defending the folks at the verge, there’s no bias.
motoxrider365 - February 10, 2012
Translation: “You don’t write articles that I like! I think your writes shuld write more stories on gagets dat I like an in ways that dont show dey biases. This sight shuld be more roundeded site like AndroidrulziPhonedroolzROFL.com wich is a much betterer sites with more objective writes”.
And to which I say; Nay, sir. Nay.
Ephemerol- - February 10, 2012
“Ultimately it’s Apple’s decision how its trackpad works in Boot Camp, but forcing people to pay $79.99 for Parallels to get better touchpad support seems beyond unfair.”
Yeah! I mean, Apple should fully support Windows! Boot Camp isn’t enough; must go further!
Oh, wait, it’s called competition. The fax that this review is even necessary shows the failure of W7 ultrabooks generally.
Perspectively - February 10, 2012
An excellent review, and well done. Thanks, I was wondering how this would stack up. Looks like a Dell Ultrabook for me after all. Dell XPS 13 in February or the soon to be announced Latitude Ultrabook this summer? Hmmmmm
BeLogical - February 10, 2012
In regards to the trackpads, I wonder if HP’s Spectre will change things? I realize that it’s not out yet, so no one knows for sure. In terms of materals, it’s supposedly a glass pad. And HP has gone as far as renaming it to the HP ImagePad. It sounds like it might be the first MacBook style trackpad. Of course, that could also be just fancy marketing…
WhiteNiteLite - February 10, 2012
3D Mark 2006 is so outdated, what is the point of running this., and Vantage is designed for Vista. It would be better to use 3D Mark 2011, so latest Direct X 11, and multi-core etc are used correctly, otherwise it’s may be a misleading result.
In the future why not upload results to Futuremark, really easy to do, and you get more detailed results, that would be helpful for readers to check over results. Here are my results for desktop PC on 3DMark 2011:
http://3dmark.com/3dm11/1534957 (2267 in extreme mode, 6513 in performance mode)
Also if using 3DMark 2011, you need to specify which test you are doing, E, P, or X (Entry, Performance, Extreme)
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
Also Cinebench would be a good benchmark for OpenGL performance, and is cross platform
Braden99 - February 10, 2012
sweet
ValleyKings - February 10, 2012
totally
Verged - February 10, 2012
Awesome article! I agree, the Apple trackpads are the best trackpads out there right now. It’s a real shame that the battery life with Windows 7 on the MBA is terrible right now though. I wonder how it’ll be with Windows 8 because they’re having to optimize for more mobile devices?
walropodes - February 10, 2012
I didn’t actually think of that, but now I am excited. Windows 8 on MBA could be a killer if they nail the power management for notebooks.
motoxrider365 - February 10, 2012
I had a Windows partition on my Mac for a little while, but I deleted it. OS X is just a better operating system. Unless you really need to use a specific piece of software that is only available for Windows I see no reason for installing Windows on Mac hardware.
Alex Rafat - February 10, 2012
Remapping keys is trivial using a tool like SharpKeys. I use it in BootCamp to make the command (apple) key on my iMac bluetooth keyboard my control key and the control key my windows key. So I can use the same muscle memory in either environment.
suckeffect - February 10, 2012
Good article. I have come to the same conclusion. I keep looking at the new Ultrabooks as they come out. Each time I think, for that price I should just get a Mac!
The Control key on a MacBook keyboard is a real issue. Consider using SharpKeys or a similar utility to remap the left command key so it functions like a Control key. Once you have done this, Windows on a MacBook gets a whole lot better.
blueskymike - February 10, 2012
FYI – under speakers etc, you might include that the audio jack in the MacBook Air also supports the Apple earbuds or headsets with the built in volume/pause/skip button on the wires. You wouldn’t believe how many times I use the headset from my iPhone with my existing non-Mac laptop, the microphone and earbuds work but no the volume or controllers. I wish my regular laptop supported the extra functionality!
Tee_ - February 10, 2012
That the MBA is good enough for Windows is an advantage because:
Ultrabook: Windows, no option Lion/Snow Leopard
MBA: OS X, option Windows
While there are more apps available on Windows, there are many apps only available for OS X that make it worthwhile to have. Plus if in a family, you have a mix of iOS and Android device owners, the iOS person can use OS X to sync his device on OS X over Windows.
Sure, you can hack Windows onto a MBA, but that is way, way, way harder than installing Windows via Bootcamp.
menevets - February 10, 2012
I would interested in seeing a similar review with a 15" Macbook Pro. Especially if battery turns out to be as much of a drop.
Also; you will be posting a review of the Razer Blade soon right?
Gryphus_1 - February 10, 2012
in the end, getting a MBA is really close to having it both ways. sure its more expensive but a you cant easily fix a laptop that comes with a bad screen, keyboard or trackpad.
Having a MBA with windows 7 could be a good gateway to learning to live with OSX, step by step.
I my case, I still prefer windows (xp).
CharleyTony - February 10, 2012
I HAVE to disagree with losing points on the keyboard, it’s nothing you can’t get used to, and if you are like me and are already used to it, you will love the spacing. Plus, the back light is lovely.
Also, I can get 5-6 hours out of the battery, I don’t like a blinding screen so I turn it down, battery life shot up it seemed.
motoxrider365 - February 10, 2012
Since when is Apple required to make their products work as well for a competing OS as they do their own?
jeffnucci - February 10, 2012
We love our Macs with Win7 so much we take them into daily meetings with Microsoft in Redmond, WA – I’ve issued them all my employees – http://bit.ly/A94lnU
Michael Brophy - February 10, 2012
You need to commend the software, probably windows didn’t got a minute of integration testing with Mac hardware
gamepop - February 10, 2012
Having an ipod and iPhone I think I’m into Apple products and design and being a windows fan must put me in a minority, but is it stupid of me to think that at the end of the day the price difference is too big to justify the expense for the regular man on the street! I am a geek and would gladly get a MBA if I had the money but seriously, the world outside this community thinks about value for money in this current climate! People will take the saving in £ or $ and put up with the little glitches or quirks for something that looks practically the same.
Hoggy - February 10, 2012
I have to agree with this
see_wor - February 10, 2012 via mobile
Way off topic but do they just delete comment threads here an not tell posters?
LordInsidious - February 10, 2012
Meh. Not worth it, I’d rather just go with that Samsung ultrabook at CES or throw Ubuntu on the Air in the review.
fifa - February 10, 2012
Great review, although it’s disappointing that running windows kills the battery life. If the air came with Nvidia graphics rather than intel 3000, i would have bought it instead of my 15" MBP. The Vaio Z was way too overpriced to consider for a “small” laptop, and probably shouldn’t be in the list of “ultra books.”
powerofT - February 10, 2012
I’m happy for you Macbook Air. And I’mma let you finish, but the Spectre is the greatest laptop of all time. Of all time.
DeanStephens - February 10, 2012
Apple should cut the support for Windows! jk
Saad Salman - February 10, 2012
Nah, its what gets a lot of Windows users (including me) to try – knowing that they can go back to Windows if they have to.
Mut most use it less and less the more they use OSX
Boghog - February 11, 2012
Kind of sad that the world is still clinging on to their Windows. I would never waste the money to get Windows on my Air, simply because OS X is a superior operating system. The only real excuse is gaming, and gamers should be considering something more powerful than the Air anyway, IMO.
juliankossmann - February 10, 2012
I don’t get it. If you are a windows user because some specific software is not available on a OSX, then it is justified. But some windows users don’t use OSX because simply it is different, yet these same people are the champion of competition in mobile space. why?
Saad Salman - February 10, 2012
Well, they are usually championing “competition” as long as it uses Vanilla Android – they really don’t want competition, they just want cheap
Boghog - February 11, 2012
so basically,
1. windows is shit on laptops
2. OEMs can’t make decent laptops
gw guys!
sighclops - February 10, 2012
well… apparently.. in your mind ‘decent’ = the best laptop on the market.. that’s retarded logic
21tiger - February 11, 2012
no, they’re mostly terrible.
stop trolling
sighclops - February 12, 2012
10/10 touchpad rating should not matter for a windows user. I personally always prefer a mouse even it is a ultrabook or netbook or tablet whatever…
Garen - February 10, 2012
FUN FACT: Ben the PC Guy, current Microsoft evangelist and Jujitsu blackbelt, created Parallels! I know because I talked to him this week and I just thought it was interesting that a Windows 7 lover was involved in put Windows on your Mac! Interview is here :http://techblitzblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/interview-with-ben-pc-guy.html
techblitz - February 10, 2012
What I got out of this: Apple doesn’t care about helping out Microsoft’s products. If you want to have an Apple you have our OS.
byderekj - February 10, 2012
May I introduce you to MSN Messenger for Mac?
LMFAO
21tiger - February 12, 2012
Strange… my Macbook Air gets more battery life on Windows than on OSX…
zhokwave - February 10, 2012
Strange how you timed it…
21tiger - February 12, 2012
I’ve been waiting for this review for a long time, I’m so glad The Verge finally did it. Last year I was in the market and I really, really wanted to go to with an 11" MBA for the hardware alone. I figured I’d get used to OS X to where I could use it daily, or resort to Win7 in Parallels.
But I didn’t, ended up going with the Toshiba Z835. I got it for $700. I could have almost bought two Z835s for the price of one MBA (configured online, 11" w/ 128GB SSD/4GB RAM). Unfortunately, at this time in my life that’s a difference that really matters. I don’t really regret it. No futzing with the keyboard and gigabit ethernet on the Z835 has come in very handy.
But hey, there’s always next time. Next time, eleven inches all the way. (Please let there be a decently priced 11" Windows machine next time around…)
Sternreisender - February 10, 2012
the “battery test” is complete hogwash. only the macbook air will actually retain it’s long battery life while the winbooks will LOSE more than half their battery capability after about 2 months.
techtard - February 10, 2012
>Citation needed
Calling bs.
jmanes - February 11, 2012
WHAT I’VE LEARNED FROM THE VERGE IS. . .
WHAT I’VE LEARNED FROM THE VERGE IS. . .
. . . . . APPLE PRODUCTS.
jmanes - February 11, 2012
Haha, that’s hilarious.
ethn - February 12, 2012 via mobile
That’s one review. Here’s mine. I own a Mac Air 11 and its one fine machine. Lion has some good stuff, but eww. I prefer the older OSX at my work station. My Air has Window 7 and I find it clunky working on it. It’s so difficult using the right click function that I end up using my wacom. In fact I prefer my Sony Z mouse button where you can actually see and takes less pressure to press button. Even better is the double tap on the pad to select. The nice slim look is nice, but its annoying that connection adapter like HDMI and ethernet is not included in the price. Each cable cost about 45 bucks! Air is nice, but I still prefer the Sony Z.
Roach_779 - February 11, 2012
Parallels cant replace a windows machine. The experience is horrible. Duel booting is better, but the graphic performance is shit, and drivers crash. Thought that was common knowledge? Its practically irresponsible to even suggest to a shopper that a mac running Windows is a practical alternative to a PC. WTH?
bradygossett - February 11, 2012
Driver problems? Dude… that IS the windows experience LOL..
21tiger - February 11, 2012
haha, I guess so!
My iMac never crashed until I started using bootcamp. The keyboard driver would crash to the point of causing the BSoD every single time I attempted to wakeup… every single time… Every time… Every
bradygossett - February 11, 2012
For me, boot camp is nice to have as an option but i just dont see the need to run windows except for some games maybe. Otherwise i could stay in osx full time. The macbook and Air are still both winners in my book
AwwwYeah - February 11, 2012
The Air starts at $999 if you remember the 11-inch model exists, obviously you forgot that. Apparently you have some hatred to the 11-inch?
Some people may prefer the compact and portable 11-inch to the larger 13-inch. If I wanted to carry around a 13-inch laptop all day, I’d stick with the MacBook Pro. If I was to get the Air, it would be the smaller 11-inch for all the benefits I listed above (compact and ultra portable). The 11-inch is small enough to fit in any backpack or handbag easily, whilst the 13-inch would be more limited to what bags you can carry it in.
Don’t dismiss the 11-inch just because you prefer the 13-inch. By saying “The MacBook Air starts at $1,299” you are doing just that, and it sounds really bias.
EPJS - February 11, 2012
My thoughts exactly. I own the 2011 11" MBA and I love it because it is ultra portable, fits in my back back even with being inside a Hardcandy bubble case. Seems odd that this model was treated like it doesn’t exists, when in fact the 11" MBA is the top selling model by Apples numbers…..
Captainsmooth - February 11, 2012
I have long been puzzled as to why anyone would buy a Mac anything to run Windows. They were not designed for Windows which is proven by the fact that Apple can not or will not write decent drivers for it. If you want a Mac use OsX it works great on a Mac and if you need Windows for some reason then forget about the Mac and get a great Windows machine and save the windows tax an the Mac. Both OsX and Windows 7 are great systems. Personally I have used both a Mac for several years but now Windows 7 machines because I like the way they work and the software available.. Now I will say the Mac does look better but conformance and cost are more important to me in the long run
Paul888 - February 11, 2012
Uh Switchers who’ve invested in Windows only software?
21tiger - February 11, 2012
What the review did not mention when considering whether the Air is worth the cost difference is what the real cost difference is or even if there is one.
It is something that has always been lacking in computer reviews, but cost of ownership surely is more important than initial purchase cost.
Given the average life of a Mac compared to a PC and the high resale value of Macs I think you will find that most Mac users spend less on computers over their lifetime than PC users do.
I paid £900 including upgrades for the 2007 White MacBook that I am currently using. If I listed it today on eBay I could get around £475 – £495 for it. Chances are I might give it another year before upgrading at which time it will probably still sell for around £425.
The Apple tax does not exist, it’s just called sensible economics. My previous Mac was a 15" Titanium PowerBook Which I bought in 2001. How many PCs does the typical Windows user go through in 11 years?
I have no doubt there are plenty of well built PCs that will last for years but those are priced much closer to the equivalent Mac and would have nothing like the resale value after 4 to 5 years so I would venture to say, if anything Macs are cheaper.
The ‘you can buy a PC with similar specs for half the price’ brigade are ignoring the fact that said PCs are the ones which bring the average life of a PC down to 18 months to 2 years.
Boringoldchelsea - February 11, 2012
Hardware wise I think my MBA is possibly the perfect laptop. I don’t even think OSX is that much better than Windows 7, but the build quality and battery life on this thing is just amazing.
oghowie - February 11, 2012
http://zenbook.asus.com/product/?c=4 asus actually post different benchmarks. PC Mark Vantage differs drastically. Mistake?
hdvdeo - February 11, 2012
Yep the result is roughly 2x higher, according to Asus
Braden99 - February 11, 2012
Really interesting review, I really enjoyed it!
Robe1kenobe - February 11, 2012
I guess Joanna used outdated benchmarks or bad drivers. Poor comparison I should say.
hdvdeo - February 11, 2012
I don’t understand why everyone is not calling the Mac Book Air an Ultrabook©
The Mac Book Air has the same Intel© architectures as all other Ultrabooks.
The fact that the Mac Book Air with comparable price is much more expensive than other Ultrabook© should be sufficient to justify the difference in quality.
$999 for a 11" MBA can get you any other 13" Ultrabook€
gpmoo7 - February 11, 2012
My 6 year old Dell Inspiron E1405 running WindowsXP on a first gen CureDuo processor sleeps and resumes in exactly 2 seconds on the dot every single time. No machine should take 6-7 seconds to resume in 2012.
Mekkel - February 11, 2012
CoreDuo**
Mekkel - February 11, 2012
Most of the “ultrabooks” seem to have at least one major compromise which could be seen as a trade-off for the price advantage they have over the Air. However, a fair and objective comparison should either a) take the money saved into account or b) focus on a Windows 7 notebook that is priced the same as the Air- say, for example, the Samsung Series 9.
The Series 9 matches the Air on specs and has a great form factor without looking like a copy. It’s black, it doesn’t taper much, it has silver edge accents, and so on. The keyboard is backlit [back-lighted?] and fantastic to type on. The trackpad’s integrated buttons are reliable and easy to use. Battery life is solid.
To me, the only way one could be considered “better” than the other would have to be related to OS preference. As a Windows user, my opinion is that the Series 9 is the best notebook I’ve ever used. The UX31, which I had before the Samsung, hit a lot of the right points…but something was just, well, “off.” The Series 9 is far better.
There are Windows notebooks out there to match the Air – it’s just that many reviewers seem to feel that a Windows system has to be cheaper in order to be on the same playing field. a $1300 Windows 7 notebook is “too expensive,” or “priced precariously in Macbook Air territory”….and the ‘ultrabooks,’ though less expensive, are docked for lacking certain features.
AardvarkAdventure - February 11, 2012
The series 9 (at least the first generation) is not compatible with Intel WIDI.
JJMora - February 12, 2012
Looks the macbook air battery is wonderful on OS X lion but now on windows and that what you should of said when you finished your video. Great review.
FrankyApple - February 11, 2012
Why don’t you get the 11 inch Macbook Air? It starts at $999, so that would bring the cost down.
Lbrown - February 11, 2012
For me the biggest disadvantage of the Air (and also the Zenbook) is that they are not compatible with Intel WIDI.
JJMora - February 12, 2012
What do you use WiDi for?
Sternreisender - February 12, 2012
There are Home, End, PgUp and PgDn keys on a Mac keyboard, they just aren’t labeled. They are Fn+Left, Fn+Right, Fn+Up and Fn+Down, respectively.
gormster - February 12, 2012
So Joanna (and everyone else writting here) I’m not trying to be a jerk but do younger people not give a damn at all about the social implications of buying Apple products? Are your gadgets so important that you don’t give a hoot about the suffering of the workers making them? Besides the obvious fact that even if you say that everyone uses the same contractors to make laptops so they’re all guilty (and anyone who read the NY Times articles will see that this isn’t the case, Apple uses it’s superior buying power to force additional concessions from its suppliers increasing pressure on the suppliers to abuse their workers) Apple has the ability if it wanted to help the workers who produce their gadgets. It seems to be the hype of hypocrosy to drink “fair trade” coffee at Starbucks while buying and promoting Apple products. Forget the arguments about a bad job beats no job, that doesn’t have to be the case when Apple is so incredibly profitable. Would any of you choose a job like being a line worker for Apple suppliers for yourself or your loved ones? Does it not matter because “they’re not like us”? As an old man I come from a generation that at least tried to help the world by ending wars, the peace corps, etc. We may have failed, but at least we weren’t totally self absorbed.
solom01 - February 12, 2012
You’re being silly if you think other corporations are not doing the same thing, or if you think they haven’t been doing the same when you were our age. Many large corporations, American or otherwise, are known for being very bad offenders in this respect from 30,40,50 years ago, or even earlier. Did you try to do anything about that? Did it work?
Just based on that, your argument is not worth listening to.
And also, I think you should understand this: we can care about the misfortunes of everyone in every walk of life, every social strata, but we can’t carry everyone else’s burden with us. Noone is capable of handling that. It is only when we strive to do our own parts to the best of our abilities, that we are making the most contribution to the world.
ball- - February 12, 2012
“give a hoot about the suffering of the workers making them”
Where the f*ck do you think Windows Phones are made? How about every PC ever made?
You ignorant sod.
21tiger - February 12, 2012
So what do you propose? To Joanna?
hdvdeo - February 12, 2012
Good review, although there is one important thing missing.
That’s mainly because Apple disables AHCI for SATA devices running in boot camp, thus meaning that the SSD won’t get TRIM support, which of course is kind of a bing thing. Stuff like this should of course be mentioned in the review, as I’m sure a lot of people would think twice about buying an Air for Windows use when they’ll have to run the SSD in IDE-mode.
sponplat - February 12, 2012
Are you kidding me? this isn’t worthy of a review.
The non-windows keyboard and poor battery life is a huge deal-breaker. Nobody wants an ultrabook with 4 hours of battery life. Also, partitioning that already small SSD for Bootcamp is not a good idea at all.
All you’re doing by buying a macbook air to run windows is to handicap yourself.
FalseAgent - February 12, 2012
I use a 13" Air bootcamping into Win7 as my primary machine – it’s rock solid. The bootcamp trackpad driver is definitely a weak link. I upgraded to an amazing 3rd party driver called trackpad++ that adds gestures, turns off the pad while typing, etc. you can find it here: http://trackpad.powerplan7.com/
jsound - February 12, 2012
i use my macbook air with windows 7 just for MW3. OS X is so flush on the macbook air who would want windows? by far the best windows experience out though. Oh the irony. Just shows how good Apple is at what they do.
Enough.
Laugh.
patrickclover - February 12, 2012
Nice balanced article. Good to see. Pity about trackpad support and battery life in native windows. I suppose long term the insanely hi resale value of Macs is a plus too.
darwiniandude - February 12, 2012
While the trackpad support is not that great, I’ve found that the Macbook Air trackpad is still leagues beyond the quality and usability of any Dell, HP or Sony trackpad. Why can’t those manufacturers get it right?
meesebyte - February 14, 2012
I think it comes down to this..
Not the editor of the review
If you must have the glowing logo on the back of the Air & its trackpad\Keyboard…. Buy one… You’ll be paying $200-300 more + the cost of Windows ($199)
If not.. Buy the Asus UX31 and save a little dough… They both have merits… Just decide which are more important to
volvoshine - February 13, 2012
Heres me wishing apple would just give up the software game, i must admit i LOVE their latest hardware, but would ‘PERSONALLY’ preffer windows.
Frenz - February 13, 2012
It would be good to be able to download the battery test application, I run bootcamp with Windows 7 and use OSX and dont see anywhere near the difference in battery life stated this article.
One thing I have noticed is that the display brightness indicator in Windows bootcamp seems very different to that in OSX, with the toggle set to 50% the display in Windows is much brighter than in OSX…….I usually run Windows at a lower bightness setting than in OSX (but the screen is the same actual brightness if you know what I mean :-) )
I think for a battery test you should measure the min and max actual brightness levels of the display and take an average, or just test at a pre-defined brightness level. (I know this is a difficult thing to measure).
What I also like in Windows 7 are the different power options available, I can limit the CPU to 50% of its maximum frequency in powersaving mode, this works really well to save battery as it stops flash etc from causing the CPU to jump over 100% (intel turbo boost).
Does apple disable intel turbo boost when disconnecting from mains power?
MEC - February 21, 2012
MacBook Air with Windows 7 review: the ultrabook to rule them all?
Yes.
Jally - May 6, 2012
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