The MacBook Air is designed for thinness; it is also lighter than most competing models. The computer features a glossy LED backlit display and a full-size keyboard, as well as a large trackpad that responds to iPad-related Multi-Touch gestures such as pinching, swiping, and rotating. With the release of Mac OS X Snow Leopard, the Air's multi-touch trackpad also supports handwriting recognition of Chinese characters.
On the 11-inch MacBook Air, the left side of the computer has a MagSafe power connector, a USB port, a headphone jack, and a microphone.] The right side of the computer has a USB port and had a Mini DisplayPort, now replaced by a Thunderbolt port in the 2011 version. On top of the screen bezel there is a webcam, first dubbed iSight and now the FaceTime camera.
The MacBook Air was the first subcompact laptop offered by Apple since the full-featured 12" PowerBook G4 was discontinued in 2006. It was also Apple's first computer with an optional solid-state storage drive.] ArsTechnica found "moderate" performance improvements of the 64 GB[note 2] solid-state drive of the first generation Air over the standard 80 GB hard drive in tests. On October 14, 2008, new models were announced with improved capacities of 128 GB (solid-state) and 120 GB (hard drive). For the late 2010 MacBook Air, only flash storage is available, in 64 or 128 GB capacities on the 11" model, and 128 or 256 GB on the 13".
The CPU in the first-generation MacBook Air was a custom engineered Intel Core 2 Duo Merom that was 40 percent of the size of the standard chip package.[18] For models of late-2008,The CPU was replaced with a low-voltage Core 2 Duo Penryn chip with 6 MB of cache, running on a 1066 MHz bus.
The MacBook Air has no user-replaceable parts. The flash memory and battery are enclosed within the casing, with RAM soldered onto the logic board. The flash memory, engineered to be difficult to access, has a 128MB cache[20] and a mSATA connection to the logic board. The battery can be replaced using normal screwdrivers, though it is unclear whether this process would void the computer's warranty.[22][23] As part of the out-of-warranty service, Apple offers to replace the battery for a fee.The optional MacBook Air SuperDrive.
On the 11-inch MacBook Air, the left side of the computer has a MagSafe power connector, a USB port, a headphone jack, and a microphone.] The right side of the computer has a USB port and had a Mini DisplayPort, now replaced by a Thunderbolt port in the 2011 version. On top of the screen bezel there is a webcam, first dubbed iSight and now the FaceTime camera.
The MacBook Air was the first subcompact laptop offered by Apple since the full-featured 12" PowerBook G4 was discontinued in 2006. It was also Apple's first computer with an optional solid-state storage drive.] ArsTechnica found "moderate" performance improvements of the 64 GB[note 2] solid-state drive of the first generation Air over the standard 80 GB hard drive in tests. On October 14, 2008, new models were announced with improved capacities of 128 GB (solid-state) and 120 GB (hard drive). For the late 2010 MacBook Air, only flash storage is available, in 64 or 128 GB capacities on the 11" model, and 128 or 256 GB on the 13".
The CPU in the first-generation MacBook Air was a custom engineered Intel Core 2 Duo Merom that was 40 percent of the size of the standard chip package.[18] For models of late-2008,The CPU was replaced with a low-voltage Core 2 Duo Penryn chip with 6 MB of cache, running on a 1066 MHz bus.
The MacBook Air has no user-replaceable parts. The flash memory and battery are enclosed within the casing, with RAM soldered onto the logic board. The flash memory, engineered to be difficult to access, has a 128MB cache[20] and a mSATA connection to the logic board. The battery can be replaced using normal screwdrivers, though it is unclear whether this process would void the computer's warranty.[22][23] As part of the out-of-warranty service, Apple offers to replace the battery for a fee.The optional MacBook Air SuperDrive.
Apple incorporated several features in the design of the MacBook Air, such as the reduction of toxic chemicals like lead, to make it more environmentally friendly. The MacBook Air contains no BFRs and PVC wiring, meets Energy Star Version 5.0 requirements, has a recyclable enclosure, and is rated EPEAT Gold; its display is made from arsenic-free glass and does not contain mercury. To reduce the computer's size and weight, several features were sacrificed. It was Apple's first notebook since the PowerBook 2400c without a built-in removable media drive. It also omits a FireWire port, Ethernet port, line-in, media card slots (except the 13" 2010 and 2011 model, which has an SD card slot), and a Kensington Security Slot.
To regain the features of an optical drive, users can either purchase a external USB SuperDrive or the bundled Remote Disc software, only for disk browsing or software installation, to wirelessly access the optical drive of another computer[29] that has the Remote Disc program installed.[30][31] It can also be used to reinstall the system software from the included installation DVD. Remote Disc supports NetBooting, so the MacBook Air can boot from its installation DVD in another computer's drive, which requires Remote Install Mac OS X to be running on the remote computer. The software does not allow playback or information of DVDs or CDs, nor installing MS Windows.[29] For these features, an external USB drive is required.[29] More recent versions of the Macbook Air replaced the installation DVD with a USB flash drive containing the system software, eliminating the need for the remote install.
The 2010 revision includes two speakers for stereo sound while earlier versions have one speaker located under the keyboard.
