What are the "pros and cons" of the MacBook Air? Is it the right Apple notebook for my needs?

Like any other purchase, only you can make the decision whether or not the MacBook Air is the right notebook for you, but you can evaluate the pros and cons of the model to see if your needs are met. This "run down" may be helpful in making a decision:

Pros:

• Only three pounds.
• Stunningly beautiful, thin design.
• Bright, LED-backlit widescreen display.
• Full-size keyboard with backlighting and ambient light sensor.
• Clever "multi-touch gesture" trackpad (but inferior to the "four finger gesture" trackpad used on all Aluminum "Unibody" MacBook and MacBook Pro models).
• Acceptable battery life.

Cons:

• Slow compared to "regular" MacBook/MacBook Pro models available at the same time.
• Slow and small hard drive or expensive SSD.
• Non-swappable battery.
• Processor and RAM cannot be upgraded, hard drive is relatively difficult to upgrade.
• No internal modem or Ethernet (adapters are available and included starting with the "Mid-2009" models, but no Gigabit Ethernet connectivity is possible).
• No Firewire port, single USB port, no SD card slot, no ExpressCard/34 slot.
• No internal optical drive (external option available).
• Relatively expensive (but comparatively less so starting with the "Mid-2009" models).

Basically, if you are looking for a beautiful, lightweight notebook Mac with a reasonably large display and full-size keyboard and have modest performance, expansion, and connectivity needs -- and you are not on a tight budget -- then the MacBook Air might be the perfect system for you. For those with plenty of available cash who need a lightweight "companion" system to a desktop, the MacBook Air also fits the bill admirably.

If price, performance, connectivity, screen size, or expansion are high priorities -- but weight is a lower priority -- a MacBook or MacBook Pro would be a better choice. Site sponsor PowerMax sells the MacBook Air, MacBook, and MacBook Pro.