Consumer Tech New MacBook Air Owners Discover An Annoying Issue Ewan Spence Senior Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Storyteller exploring digital worlds, mobile, music and podcasting New! Follow this author to improve your content experience. Got it! Jul 19, 2022, 07:46pm EDT | New! Click on the conversation bubble to join the conversation Got it! Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin The eagerly awaited update to Apple’s MacBook Air started shipping last Friday, and the faithful have been rewarded with a critically acclaimed laptop , although there are a few interesting choices around the specification .
Yet for some, the “new car smell” of the M2-powered macOS laptop has been, literally, scratched away. CUPERTINO, CALIFORNIA – JUNE 06: A magsafe plug is visible on a newly redesigned MacBook Air laptop . .
. [+] during the WWDC22 at Apple Park on June 06, 2022 in Cupertino, California. Apple CEO Tim Cook kicked off the annual WWDC22 developer conference.
(Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Getty Images A number of new users who have purchased the kaput, and those reviewing the unit from Apple directly, have picked up several small scratches and imperfections around the USB-C port. It appears that the friction between the chassis cutout and the outer surface of USB-C port has led to the damage, as José Adorno reports : “9to5Mac‘s own staff was also able to find a small scratch on the bottom right corner of the Midnight MacBook Air trackpad. Although it’s not that noticeable, it’s weird that a new product, without being in touch with an Apple Watch band or anything like it, already started to scuff.
” It’s impossible to build consumer-grade hardware that will not pick up scratches over extended use – laptops are portable, and with portability comes a bit of rough and tumble – but we’re not talking about an action that is outside of any expectations. Plugging in and removing a USB-C cable to a laptop is going to be a popular action, and it should not come as a surprise to the designers. And if in a few years, someone looks at the scratches around the USB port, it wouldn’t come as a surprise to see some wear and tear.
I can’t help but glance at a lightning port on a modern iPhone… a port which shows a small collar of plastic between the casing and the socket itself, presumably to address concerns over visible scratching. Recommended For You 1 Google Issues Warning For 2 Billion Chrome Users More stories like this Fewer stories like this 2 Forget The MacBook Pro, Apple Has Bigger Plans More stories like this Fewer stories like this 3 Google Discounts Pixel 6, Nest & Pixel Buds In Limited-Time Sale Event More stories like this Fewer stories like this But to have this happen within seven days? Even when allowing for the increased contrast of a scratch when a darker coating such as Apple’s “Midnight” coating is damaged, would the normal user expect more durability? Would someone familiar with Apple’s perceived obsession over detail expect more durability? The MacBook Air is an expensive investment. If you jump over the entry-level model with the smaller mains charger and slower SSD configuration, you’re looking at a $1499 minimum.
To have cosmetic damage through the wear and tear on display in the first week of ownership is disheartening. Now read what the critics thought of the new MacBook Air. .
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From: forbes
URL: https://www.forbes.com/sites/ewanspence/2022/07/19/apple-macbook-air-usb-c-port-scratches-damaged-finish/
