What The 11.6-Inch MacBook Air Could Look Like

John Brownlee ()

What The 11.6-Inch MacBook Air Could Look Like

Last month, the always somewhat suspect Digitimes asserted that Apple intended on going head-to-head with the netbook market by releasing an 11.6-inch MacBook Air something later this year. Here’s one fan’s wishful thinking Photoshop on what such an Air might look like.

There’s nothing too hard to buy about the way Apple would choose to layout the keyboard on an 11.6-inch MacBook: as netbooks have shown, twelve inches is the sweet spot when it comes to not compromising keyboard size. Nor is the trackpad hard to swallow, given the fact that Apple will doubtlessly eliminate the physical button from future Air trackpads.

Making the Air even thinner seems like a pipe dream, though: Apple’s not about to switch over to an Atom chip, which means a thinner Air would come at the expense of battery life. And where’s the black glass bezel that Apple’s favored for all of their modern computer designs?

Still, I’d buy a smaller Air if the price was right and Apple could match the existing MacBook line’s battery life: my Hackintosh netbook is getting woefully long in the tooth.

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[via 9to5Mac]

20 comments »

About the author

John BrownleeJohn Brownlee is news editor here at Cult of Mac, and has also written about a lot of things for a lot of different places, including Wired, Playboy, Boing Boing, Popular Mechanics, Gizmodo, Kotaku, Lifehacker, AMC, Geek and the Consumerist. He lives in Cambridge with his charming inamorata and a tiny budgerigar punningly christened after Nabokov's most famous pervert. You can follow him here on Twitter.

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Posted in Macbook, News |

  • Darcy McGee

    So some guy learned how to copy images of the current MacBook Air and use the “scale selection” function in Photoshop and you publish him?

    Pfffft. Your standards are slipping.

  • Poppa

    Why would Apple need to go head to head with the Netbook market? Netbooks are so cheap and under powered, a Apple Netbook Air would be to costly.

  • Daniel

    I have 2nd gen air and love it, always wondered weather they could get it smaller, hope they do more of a redesign then just shrinking it down

  • jeff

    A smaller, netbook-size MacBook Air would be fantastic!

    It obviously wouldn’t compete with netbooks on a price level, but on every other front it would blow any netbook out of the water. Apple users have shown that they don’t mind paying a premium for quality… and quality is one department that netbooks are sorely lacking in.

  • charli

    What is a netbook. It is a subcompact designed to get on the Internet and browse, read email etc.

    Apple has that. It’s called an ipad.

    Fact is that the Macbook Air is a joke. It is overpriced and underpowered and an ipad can do everything it can do well excluding one thing. Videochat. Gen2 ipad will likely have a front facing camera, if not the double of the iphone, and then there will really be no need for the Air and it will be pulled.

  • http://cultofmac JL

    “Bring it”

    “I want one”

  • http://www.twitter.com/ubermatik Theo Hodkin

    Apart from it wouldn’t have that background wallpaper, would it?

  • http://geek.derekmartin.ca Derek Martin

    They won’t drop the price to $500, but they might put a retina display & bigger/faster SSD in it and keep the price where it is.

  • http://fort90.com/ fort90

    Better late than never I guess. Was always pissed that we got an iPad instead of a Mac netbook, so happy to know it might happen.

    Or perhaps it’s a big joke and we have to keep hearing from obnoxious iPad zealots that it’s just as good as a device that has a physical keyboard (which is why many of us have not, and may never bite).

  • Maxx

    Different devices for different needs/people. Not sure why this is such a difficult concept for the Internet to accept.

  • Benjamin

    Lighter weight would be welcome, even if it took a bit off the battery life. One or two more USB ports and an SD card slot would do wonders.

  • Erin’s Dad

    Sign me up as a whore for all things Apple, but I really can’t make sense of an 11.6″ Air for what would be, what, $1,200? I’m using a 13″ MacBook right now, and can’t imagine paying a premium for a couple ounces of weight loss, no optical drive, lesser specs.

    Make it $500-$600, I’m there. Anything more, no. Different people do have different needs, but I think they’d have a problem selling this machine in a quantity to justify production.

  • http://www.Twitter.com/thoj101 Tyler

    Ummm…wasn’t the iPad apples answer to the net book market. How useful would a computer like that be. Ooooo 11.6 inch display?

  • MEES

    For those who diss on the MBA

    I’ve been using one for years. I’ve travelled with it internationally. I’ve created a website with it. I’ve used it as a back-up when my office computer died, I’ve handled a legal case with it, I’ve watched a movie on it, I’ve dropped a few times, I’ve sliced bread with it.

    I habe the entire CS4 suite and it works great. I have 3k photos and 2.5k songs. It drops jaws when I do presentations.

    It isn’t a powerful computer but it does way more than a netbook. I don’t whine about just one USB port either. I use a hub but most of the time I don’t need it.

    It gets the job done. it super thin and strong.

    All I would ask for is a higher resolution screen.

    MBA rocks and I can slice you with it. Any questions?

  • Sandy Gravel

    Quite simple for me the iPad is flawed by a lack of Microsoft support. Cant use it for Excel can’t use it to give Powerppoint presentations. It’s great for we-surfing, games and Email not business…… I do love it though….but it stays at home and doesn’t travel due to lack of business functionality.

    I have money itching for the 11.6″ MBA – HURRY UP !!!!! That would come everywhere with me…..

  • Surely

    Considering Apple’s tendency to build in smaller and smaller trackpads I find this rumor very believable.

  • Garland2

    erm… For some reason I thought a new MacBook Air would be bigger?
    as thin but 15″ perhaps…..

  • CuX

    A MacBook Air mini would be great.
    Sign the petition:
    http://macbookair10.net

  • ally

    this so awesome i just bought 7 hours ago and im already using it perfectly for everything and anything!!!!!!

  • http://www.varidion.com David Mac

    This is a must, I want a device with a keyboard, good screen, good battery life and snow leppard… Come on apple give us a new macbook air, with all of todays technology