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One of the complaints consumers express about the MacBook Air is image quality from the built-in iSight camera. The disappointment stems from Apple's use of the 0.3 mpx VGA sensor (640 x 480 resolution). In comparison, the regular MacBook and MacBook Pro both use the newer 1.3 mpx webcams that output a full 1280 x 1024 image.

On the plus side, the MacBook Air can support an external camera, so if image quality is your only concern, consider this a workable kludge. Another potential solution is buying one of Apple's new 24" cinema displays with a built-in 1.3 mpx camera, made specifically for interfacing with the entire MacBook line.

Bear in mind Apple also releases free firmware updates on a regular basis. These, alone, can improve image quality considerably.

If you're in the process of spec'ing a new Mac, be aware that the Air has a slower processor speed than its portable siblings; lacks a swappable battery; has no optical drive; has only one USB 2.0 port, and no Firewire or built-in Ethernet ports (although the USB Ethernet cable is an affordable option); has no audio-in jack; and has non-expandable memory, limited to 2 GB (still suitable for most business applications).

The nicer features include LED back-lighting, full-size keyboard, awesome NVIDIA GeForce 9400M graphics card (speaking as a part-time 3D modeler, I can tell you NVIDIA boards are outstanding), wireless 802.11n and Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR standard, and an optional $99 USB SuperDrive available.

If you're looking for an ultra-light laptop for business use, the MacBook Air is a nice choice. If you're working on design and graphics applications, the MacBook Pro would be the preferred option.

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16y ago

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