New MacBook Air is Out

The new MacBook Air has landed, and folks all over are recording their impressions of the slightly-revamped ultraportable. Obviously there's very little to note externally, with the same packaging and design to the computer -- the only real difference is the new mini DisplayPort plug to replace that totally oddball microDVI plug.

What's much more exciting is what's under the hood, namely integrated graphics (NVIDIA 9400M) with enough juice to, say, play back a YouTube video without overheating the computer to a point of non-usability. Shocking, we know. Booting is a snap (25 seconds in informal testing) with that new 128GB SSD, the computer runs cool and core-shut-down-free, can handle full HD video, and outputs to external monitors without a problem. Apple really hamstrung an otherwise interesting computer in the original Air with a criminal lack of power and cooling, and we're happy to report that they seem to have righted those wrongs -- though MacBook Air 1.0 owners still have little recourse, unless you count a $1,799 "upgrade" as a viable move.