So there’s been a lot of fighting about whether or not the MBA is a “useful” laptop or just a gimmick for the rich and famous (and for those who desire attention.) So let this be a review, not from www.cnet.com , not from some big magazine or a PC fanboy or by a Mac fanboy.

I’ll start by saying this is my first Mac. I’ve grown up on on PCs. My father currently has a Dell desktop and my step mom has a Mac Pro, Powerbook G4, and a MacBook (which dad mainly uses.) The first time I used a Macbook was in December over Christmas break at my dads. I loved how user friendly it was and when they released word of the MBA, I was very excited. Then there were the “problems” people found with it. Let’s go ahead and list those:

1) No Optical Drive

2) Slower Processor than MacBook

3) Small Hard drive

4) “Too thin” (people worried about durability)

5) 1 USB Port

6) No FireWire

7) No way to upgrade

8) Unable to replace battery

Alright I think that about covers them all and I’ll work these problems out in order. Before I do that, let me just start by saying this computer was NEVER meant to be a powerhouse computer. This computer was made for a particular demographic; more specifically College Students and Business “Road Warriors”. If it is power you seek, you can go the way of the MacBook Pro. This is why the MBA was meant as an ultra-portable class, not to compete against its own product line.

So no optical drive, I can see this being a legitimate argument. But how often do you use your optical drive? This is a question you really need ask yourself. The only use I have with my Optical Drive on my PC is for burning movies (that I’ve already bought of course) and playing PC games. Most applications that are available in stores like Best Buy are also available to download online and when you make an account, you can always go back and re-download it!

Slower processor and smaller hard drive. I’ll tell you what, I have a PC that’s 1gb Ram, 3.2ghz Pentium 4 with a 250gb hard drive. The MBA I have is a 1.6ghz Core 2 Duo with 80gb hard drive and it runs faster than my PC and as far as hard drive space remaining, I have 53gb worth. Speed isn’t a problem with this amazing machine.

Some people are saying it’s too thin and therefore isn’t durable. I’ve had people say “It’s a good thing I don’t have one because I’d probably break it by pushing the buttons too hard.” If anything, the MBA is MORE durable than the MB. It’s made of aluminum and is incredibly sturdy.

1 USB port and no firewire can be a problem for some people. This is the second real legitimate argument. I’ve never used firewire but I know about the speed and for those used to having it, you may have withdrawals going to a MBA (however if you’re in the field of NEEDING FireWire, you would know this isn’t a powerhouse and would go with a MBP.) As for the one USB port, I don’t mind too much. I usually use my USB port on my MBA for my digital camera and ipod. In that sense it does its job pretty well. I suppose if I get a Superdrive ($100 add-on) I would use that too but I’ve used remote disk once just to try it out and it works just as fast as installing a CD from an optical drive. What do people plug into all these USB ports on a laptop?

No way to upgrade this computer is a downer, I won’t lie. Everything is welded in and in order to replace the battery (which usually lasts a good 3-3 1/2 hours) I have to send the whole computer off to the factory.

Now as a college student who flies often to visit my Dad, I find this laptop perfect for my everyday use. I recently did a live blog which can be seen in the previous two posts. When I’m flying, the MBA fits perfectly between the barf bag and the latest edition of Sky Mall.

The computer runs all the basic programs I need at incredible speeds. iChat works great, iMovie 08′ starts up quickly, same for Garageband and it keeps up quite well with my iCal and contacts. I really love OS X 10.5.2 and based on my experience with this computer, I plan on eventually getting an iMac. I should also touch down on the fact that the backlit keyboard and LED display work incredibly well. This is by FAR the best display I’ve ever seen on a computer.

For anyone trying to decide on whether or not the MBA is right for them, I hope this posts helps! Below are a couple pics I took of the MBA: