Apple Releases New MacBook Air and Mac Mini with Mac OS X Lion Preinstalled

New 2011 MacBook Air

New 2011 MacBook Air

Last week, rumors and reports from various sources suggested that Apple would be releasing an updated Macbook Air with a faster processor and integrated Thunderbolt technology. On Wednesday, Apple did exactly that and released new Macbook Air models with Sandy Bridge chips from Intel, thunderbolt ports and Mac OS X Lion preinstalled.

The latest Sandy Bridge chips are also included in the new Mac Mini, also introduced today. Both the Macbook Air as well as the Mac Mini retain their original design but get major internal changes as they now support Bluetooth 4.0, a new specification that offers ultra low-power data transfer and has the ability to open the Macs to a variety of new wireless peripheral devices.

Apple also brought back the Backlit keyboard to the Macbook Air, a feature that was in the original but was removed in the Fall 2010 refresh. The Macbook Air and new Mac Mini will be shipping with Mac OS X Lion pre-installed, which also released today alongside the new hardware.

“Portable, affordable and powerful, MacBook Air is the ultimate everyday notebook,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “MacBook Air features our most advanced technology and is an ideal match for Lion, especially with its new Multi-Touch gestures, full-screen apps, Mission Control and Mac App Store.”

The new Macs join the Macbook Pro with Thunderbolt technology and have the ability to hook up to Apple’s new LCD display

Apple has truly stepped up the game in terms of affordable, portable, and powerful with the latest iterations of the Macbook Air, Mac Mini, and the driving force behind them, Mac OS X Lion.

{via MacRumors}

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