As I mentioned before, I've been playing with the SSD version of the MacBook Air for a couple of weeks. And despite the fact part of me was hoping that my review unit would be delivered in a paper envelope, it came in packaging that was only slightly less attractive than the Air itself, which is saying a lot. When I pulled the Air from its box hand held it up for my wife to see, her response was short and to the point: "wow".

Powering up the Air for the first time I was quick to notice that it isn't the fastest machine to boot up. It takes about four seconds before you hear Apple's customary power chime, then another 55 seconds before you can login. The same goes for shutting down - you can be waiting for a full minute for the Air to do what it has to do before it's off. Fortunately, I discovered that the Air is very efficient on battery life when in sleep mode, and waking from sleep is pretty much instantaneous (although it does take a little bit to connect to your wireless networks), so just shutting the laptop is definitely the way to go.

The build-quality of the Air is fantastic. I was carrying this thing around by the screen, by the corner, by the keyboard, and it didn't feel compromised in any way. There was no fear of ruining my data either considering I was using the SSD model, although if I were to buy one of these, I'd probably opt for the hard drive option - the premium on the SSD isn't justifiable.
The keyboard is the same as my iMac (and the MacBook), so it was a familiar and comfortable experience.

One of the first things I tested after pulling out the Air was the transferring of data wirelessly between it and my iMac. Considering there's no DVD drive, this is the only way you can install software on your machine (unless you download it from the web). The process itself is fairly simple, but it isn't exactly quick. And you have to be selective about what you actually put on your Air - 64GB (or 80GB for the HDD version) isn't a lot of space. My music and photos stayed on my iMac, but by turning on sharing I was able to access them over the network anyway when I was around the house. You can't playback a DVD or CD using the remote drive option, but I didn't really want to do that anyway. Did you?

Over the course of the past two weeks, I haven't missed the optical drive once. I haven't missed an ethernet port or having more than one USB port either. That's probably just how I've been using the device, and may be different for other people, but I barely noticed at all. And despite reports of the USB slot being too small, all of the thumb drives I've stuck in there have worked perfectly. I'm still waiting to test out 3's new wireless internet stick though.

If there is one area that really does make me sit back and pause in my recommendation of the Air it is the mobile Internet situation. It would have been easy for Apple to add a SIM card slot to the Air's body. Instead, you're either restricted to having no internet when you're out and about, using a USB dongle device (which are ugly and cumbersome), pairing with a 3G phone over Bluetooth, or risking the possibility that the USB stick wireless modem won't fit in the USB slot. In any case, having an internet card sticking out the side makes the Air harder to fit into bags, and does detract from its visual appeal.

Battery life is pretty good, especially if you remember to switch of Airport when you're not connected to the web. Its lasted me four hours without Airport switched on (the time it takes me to catch the train to the city and back). Another brilliant inclusion is two plugs for the charger - one that plugs the transformer straight into the wall and one that adds a couple of metres of cable.

So, what's the verdict? The more I use the Air, the more I need to own it. This laptop isn't for everyone - if you use your laptop as your main computer, for example, you'll probably miss the features like a DVD drive or an ethernet port. But if you have a desktop and need a laptop to compliment it when your out on the road (blogging from events, for example), then this is a superior piece of kit.

Still, I'm not going to buy one just yet. For a start they're too expensive (it's only $200 less than a MacBook Pro, yet has less features), and I have a feeling that the next generation may just include that SIM card slot - I have no evidence to back that up, before you ask. So despite my lust, the common sense side of my brain is keeping my wallet closed - for the time being, at least.

If you have any questions or would like me to qualify any points, feel free to let me know in comments!

[MacBook Air on Giz]

Tags: apple | computers | laptops | living with | macbook air | regulars | reviews