This is the first post written on my new Macbook Air. My 2016 Macbook Pro needs repair – the batteries and keyboard need to be replaced, and that takes ~10 days in the shop. So I bought a technological upgrade with a very different feel so that I can stay online while the Pro gets fixed.

The Air feels *very* different. It’s tiny. Feels like a toy computer compared to the beefier Pro. But it’s a tiny powerhouse – probably 2-3x the computing power of the Pro (Air uses the new Apple M1 silicon), and 4x solid state storage. I have 1 terabyte of SSD in the tiny Air, which is astounding to an old techie like me. All the computer storage in the world didn’t add up to 1 TB when I started in technology (not an exaggeration, all in the world), and now it’s cheap and common in a two pound laptop. Crazy.

The Air’s display is bright and sharp, with 2560×1600 pixels crammed into a 13 inch display. But not noticeably better than the 2016 Pro’s display.

The keyboard has a different feel, but the so-called “Magic Keyboard” gets great reviews, so I’ll get used to it. It has exactly the same width and spacing as on the larger Pro.

The Air should be a perfect traveling computer – small, light, but powerful. Its first trip will be to Hawaii, coming up Real Soon Now.