So there is lag in a computer, that's slower than a phone?

@dangj307: Probably because you're not looking at full res photos on the phone, or a thumbnail gallery of thousands of photos...

On another note, it would've been cool if the video showed some of what you wrote about (pinching, rotating etc.)

Ohhh, wow, software interfaces for touchpads. Never seen that before, ever.

@dangj307: Also probably had something to do with the HD. Mark, was it the SSD model you guys were using? If it was the PATA model, that would probably explain the lag.

i wouldnt think the pata would lag bad. think this is a problem they will fix before market? because 3grand is way to much cash just for a SSD

multitouch pad = great and all but whatever. my preorder is in. but now I'm having a BIG FUCKING DOUBT about this thing. Which sucks because I didn't even think about it when I hit order...... MACBOOK AIR BATTERY REPLACEMENT PROGRAM. The battery is integrated. Which I don't mind in a phone or iPod. In a laptop? I had three powerbook batteries. THREE. Granted five hours with wireless is nice, I still like to always have extra power.

I never use a touch pad on a laptop unless I'm forced to. Stupid things cramp my hand.

@thechansen: It'll take you 5 seconds to cancel the order... But you won't, will you..?
@Husher: 4200rpm could lag a big megapixel image. Knowing Apple, they probably had the $3k model out for demo.
Now that I've watched the video, though, it looks like they were doing the 3 finger thing wrong. I think the pad was getting confused. You're supposed to keep the fingers horizontal, and his were vertical.

@Zodiack: Agreed. I always carry a little mouse with me if I know I'm going to away from my desk with my laptop.

i figured this ,but did anyone else hear him say that 5 hour battery life was for the ssd devices?
even with duel core cpu it lags?

@WorkingOnYourInvoice:

Cancel the order? You're high. And I'm drunk on the Kool Aid. Rational thoughts like "under-specced" "gimmicky multi-touch" "fucking battery mess" are all tucked neatly into the back of my mind and forgotten. I'll just carry a jump starter with a DC to AC convertor. Problem solved.

@thechansen: You, sir, are a friend of mine. And the SJRDF antenna was seriously upgraded for this keynote, so don't feel too bad.

At first I thought the multitouch was a great idea. The more I see of it, the less I'm impressed. If the device has a keyboard, I'm not sure I see the point - it just look awkward to use.

@WorkingOnYourInvoice:
Got the external superdrive, 1.8 GHZ, and went with stock 80 GB PATA, but I'll be looking for a 32 GB SSD I can slap in there...

I can't tell ANYTHING from this video. The touch gestures and screen were never shown at the same time.

@thechansen: Ha! I wish you the best of luck with that near future SSD upgrade.

Wow. Not impressed at all. One giant step back for multitouch kind.

… so when are we going to get this gesture functions in the regular macbook and macbook pro.

There's one thing I'm wondering about:

Is this actually a capacitive touchpad, or is it a slightly bigger ordinary touchpad, with just a bit of software behind it.

It seems to me, that they simply enhanced the old touchpads, because they already could handle two-finger operations.
If this is the case, then a sw-upgrade could bring all these shiny new features to the existing MacBooks.

@Accordion: ok, you were first, I needed more words :)

Wait wait wait, some of you are pre-ordering this thing already?

@luxera: Of course they do. If you have an iMac or a Mac Pro sitting at home then this is your notebook.
Like distantboy accurately put it in his comment: The MacBook Air is a "device". It is merely an extension, no full-fledged notebook.

Anyone else wonder with the enlarged Touchpad where are your palms supposed to rest while you type? Hmm maybe directly on the touch pad to cause some nice unwanted actions. Viva el Jobs. Bastard I wanted a multi-touch tablet.

I had the money for a macbook pro saved for a while and a $500 gift card on top of that. I needed a laptop, I wanted slim and small. I can use my home computer for the power-processing. This just needs iWork and web.

@luxera: It's called free will. You should try it sometime, you might even like it.
There is a very large segment of Apple users that have been waiting for this for years.

Just release the f*&^*$ update so I can zoom with my macbook. Sure my trackpads small but it could still do it. Dammnit apple, why can't you just do something for the people instead of for your pocketbooks? You already have exclusive rights to all your manufacturing.

I think the Macbook Air, great name by the way, is a really sexy notebook. I think it defines the category-or at least sets the standard for ultra-portables. It's simply stunning.

The multitouch leaves me cold though ... there's nothing it can do that can't be done quicker and with more fine control than with the keyboard and the mouse.

I like the Apple guy's answer when asked for the price. "$1799. Amazing price."

Well I sure am amazed.

rotfl

intel-prototype-ripoff

Hmm... any reason this can't work on a macbook pro? They've got multi-touch gestures already (sort of)

Not too bad...

I have to say i never liked Apple's touchpad... Having one button is already a big problem, but I don't like their two-finger scrolling. I found it isn't that simple to switching from one finger to two fingers.

I prefer virtual scrolling (i.e. you use the right-edge of the touchpad and simply slide up and down your finger). Since most image viewers use mouse wheels as zoom-in and -out (and other programs with Ctrl), you can use virtual scrolling to zoom-in and -out the picture. I'm trying to pinch my touchpad, and it's not that simple movement. And.. to move around the picture, just double-tap and drag?

And for back and forward, three-fingers? Yuk...

I think Apple's application of this technology wasn't that brilliant. I'll see how Apple augments this technology.

Excellent. One step closer to that crappy MacBoard mockup I did a few weeks back.

"Crappy" refers to the mockup, I mean. I would probably buy a real one in a second, as long as it supported my Wacom pen and mouse. Or at least was pressure sensitive.

Maybe I'm going against the river here, but really... I'd rather use a mouse scroll, scrollpad or even click on zooming buttons than use the gestures and touchpad for it.

You have to turn your hand on an awkward and unconfortable position. And it's not much precise too.

I see the point for devices such as iPhone or iPod... but for a laptop? Only if it had a touchscreen.

I think you guys have missed the target audience. Like an iPod, the idea is for this to be with you all the time. So light is more important. End users who are not technical (most of them) never replace batteries (Apple has mastered marketing built-in obsolescence so people will replace this before the battery wears out). If you are a person who thought about the original iPod - no search interface? a wheel is just too slow to cruise my 10,000 song collection, then you are not the customer for the MBair.

And you're missing the larger strategy - Apple not Google - is THE force behind cloud computing. .mac accounts, Time Capsule, remote drive, wireless, etc., solve many of the problems you mention. Battery died? No sweat, go to an Apple store, buy/swap a new machine and restore your last backup. Done.

That is what a college student would want. Or my mom. Not a savvy IT guy.

I'd rather use the scroll wheel on my mouse to zoom rather than try to awkwardly move my fingers around to manipulate a laggy interface.

yeah gestures on a trackpad suck. I still dont like my friends new MBP trackpad. I liked scrolling with the edges using 3rd party software. and I dont need to flip though pictures with three fingers...its easier just to push the arrow button Steve.

why don't you multi-touch my dick?

Hey gary, I'd do that, but my pinky would take up the entire space. maybe if I had the fingers of a 3 year old. Do you like little boys?

Will it work w/ Photoshop?

@WorkingOnYourInvoice: The one I played with today was actually the 80GB HDD model. I'm not sure if they had any SSD models on the floor.

I didn't notice any lag on the sample image I played with, although it seemed to be a medium sized image. I was personally impressed with the rotation and zooming. Three finger flipping actually works well too... and I see the point to it. But if you don't like the MBP touchpad you probably won't like this.

And I believe the main selling point is going to be the size/weight on this thing... it's shocking when you actually see it in real life and pick it up.