An ode to the 11-inch MacBook Air

I just placed an order for a 13-inch MacBook Pro. It's the first Pro laptop I've purchased since 2009. For the last year, I've been using the iPad Pro, but before that, my Mac computer of choice — and perhaps my favorite Mac of all time — was the 11-inch MacBook Air.

After 6 years of faithful service, that 11-inch model is now dead, killed by Apple, the 12-inch MacBook, and increasingly thinner MacBook Pros. I'll miss it dearly. To add insult to injury, I don't even have a working model to add to my trove of past computers; my last 11-inch Air was horribly drowned by a spilled water bottle last year, so I have only its lifeless corpse to commemorate my all-time favorite laptop.

The 11-inch MacBook Air was too small of a computer for most everyone I knew; I had many friends who'd outright laugh or baffle at how I could read or type on such a teensy screen. But it was just right for me, especially going from the behemoth of a 15-inch MacBook Pro. Its lightweight and travel-sized body was the perfect fit for my changing lifestyle, especially when I began frequently traveling to tech events and visiting friends across the country.

True, it was often slow and painful to edit video on, and the lack of a Retina display saddened me as the years went on and the other Mac laptops got upgraded one by one. But it was a wonderful computer — a trooper and a good friend — and I'll miss it.

Perhaps the new 13-inch MacBook Pro, with its multitouch Touch Bar and Retina screen, will fill the gaping hole in my heart. The 9.7-inch iPad Pro and Logitech Create keyboard already has, to an extent; lacking a laptop, it's been my new travel computer for the last year, and while it's not a perfect substitute for a Mac, it's a great writing companion. (And it has both a better battery and supports the Apple Pencil, two things my Air certainly lacked.)

And I suppose if I really miss the form-factor, I could consider a 12-inch MacBook, or even look at Apple's refurbished Macs for ultra-low 11-inch deals.

More likely, however, the 11-inch will join my other past computer loves — the hinge-arm iMac, my PowerBook Duo, and the original Bondi iMac — in my memories and Photos library as we move forward into the next era of portable computing.

Enjoy your place in Mac history, old pal. I'll miss you.

Serenity Caldwell

Serenity was formerly the Managing Editor at iMore, and now works for Apple. She's been talking, writing about, and tinkering with Apple products since she was old enough to double-click. In her spare time, she sketches, sings, and in her secret superhero life, plays roller derby. Follow her on Twitter @settern.