11-inch

When a hot Apple product hits the market, it has a tendency to spur a cottage industry of accessories. The MacBook Air is no exception, with several companies making MacBook Air cases and covers.

Since the Air's design hasn't really changed in the last couple of years, most of the cases, covers, and sleeves that worked for the older 11- and 13-inch 2010 and 2011 models should work with the updated 2012 MacBook Air versions.

As always, feel free to make your own suggestions for cases and covers you like and we'll consider adding them in the next update.

Click on any image to start slideshow. Cases are listed in alphabetical order.

Updated August 8, 2012 with four new cases.… Read more

Editors' note: This post was updated October 26, 2012, with all 2012 MacBook Air and Pro reviews, including the 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina Display.

As 2012 draws to a close, we've seen the death of one MacBook, the 17-inch Pro, and the addition of two new models -- 13-inch and 15-inch MacBook Pros with thinner bodies and high-resolution Retina displays. All now have third-generation Intel Core i-series processors, Thunderbolt ports, and USB 3.0, while the two new Retina models even have HDMI outputs, a long-requested feature.

The Retina models are impressive reboots, walking the line between slim … Read more

Add Maingear to the very short list of PC vendors selling an 11-inch gaming laptop, with the new Pulse 11.

The 11-inch gaming laptop has had a bit of an up-and-down history. First the Alienware M11X made a big splash at CES in 2010, then it was quietly discontinued this year, just as Intel's new Ivy Bridge CPUs hit. At the same time as the Alienware model was going away, boutique PC maker Origin introduced the Eon-11, an 11-inch gaming laptop in the same vein. … Read more

The 11-inch gaming laptop is the textbook definition of a niche product. In fact, up until now, there's really only been one serious entry in that category, Dell's Alienware M11x. Origin (coincidentally co-founded by some former Alienware employees) is now getting into the game, with the EON11-S, which the company calls a "compact high-performance laptop."

Interestingly, this new model won't actually double the number of 11-inch gaming laptops available, as the Alienware model is being quietly discontinued. That's a shame, as we liked the M11x, even if it wasn't the most practical for … Read more

LAS VEGAS--The netbook's not quite dead yet. The Lenovo IdeaPad S200 features a next-gen Intel Atom processor, and it should offer a significantly better experience than previous-generation 10-inch Atom netbooks.

The rise of low-cost 11-inch ultraportable laptops began last year with a wave of affordable computers powered by AMD E-350 APUs. The colorful IdeaPad S200 series does include an AMD-powered version (the S206), but it's the Atom version that bears the most interest for us.… Read more

Last October, Apple's 11-inch MacBook Air debuted. The tiny, slim ultraportable was the smallest laptop Apple had ever made. Its combination of size and power earned it a four-star review, with caveats: it had a last-generation Core 2 Duo processor, lacked a backlit keyboard, and omitted an SD card slot. We're glad to find the newly released, back-to-school-timed 2011 MacBook Air update fixes two of our three complaints, while keeping a $999 starting price.

Both 11- and 13-inch MacBook Airs have been updated with new, faster second-gen Core i5 processors. The new Air also, finally, has a backlit … Read more

While it may feel like Netbooks have dropped off the face of the earth in the post-iPad era, inexpensive 10- and 11-inch laptops still lurk out there, although they're changing with the times. While many Netbooks used to be and still are Intel Atom-based, with minimal processing capabilities and hovering around $299, a few 11-inch laptops have emerged with more powerful AMD-based processors and onboard graphics.

We've reviewed several of these ultraportables with E-350 APUs, such as the HP Pavilion dm1z and Lenovo ThinkPad x120e. The $379 Acer Aspire One 722-BZ608 has an AMD APU (the company's … Read more

If we can recall one laptop that turned heads more than any other from this year's CES 2011, it might be the Samsung Series 9. Thin, curved, and very reminiscent of a Windows version of the MacBook Air, the Series 9 has finally been given a release date--and that date is tomorrow.

Now, here's the not-so-great news: the price is $1,649. We knew the Series 9 was that expensive back when we first covered the laptop during CES, but we held out a little hope that the well-designed 13-incher might get more aggressively priced. $1,699 makes … Read more

Update: We've updated our hands-on video with additional impressions after our first 24 hours with the new MacBook Air.

The new hardware announced at Apple's Back to the Mac press event was on display immediately after for attendees to poke and prod, including the new 11 and 13-inch MacBook Air models. Beyond that, our review sample of the 11-inch version is now winging its way back to CNET's New York labs for testing and benchmarking.

My initial hands-on impression of the new MacBook Air is largely positive. This is a product that--in its previous life--had a dedicated cult following but never found a real mainstream audience because of its high price and because it didn't do enough to distinguish itself from the rest of Apple's 13-inch laptop lineup. It was thinner and lighter, but still not quite different enough to justify the hefty investment.

By doing more to differentiate the product, and dropping the entry price, the new MacBook Air may succeed in carving out more than an enthusiast niche for itself.

If anything, the addition of an 11-inch size is a nod to the past several years of laptop development, where small, inexpensive Netbooks started as a niche market, with 7- and then 9-inch screens, then moved into the mainstream with 10- and 11-inch versions. Since the start of the MacBook era, Apple had largely ignored the shift in laptop prices and sizes, opting instead to stick to the higher end of the market, and not going below 13 inches (although there are still many fans of Apple's older 12-inch PowerBooks out there). … Read more