Apple's new ultralight MacBook Air laptops will start at $999. (Getty Images)

Apple CEO Steve Jobs unveiled the thinnest, lightest Mac laptop yet with features borrowed from iPhones and iPads, hoping to grab more market share from Microsoft’s Windows PCs.

The new MacBook Air starts at $999, weighs as little as 2.3 pounds (1 kg), and measures 0.11 inches (0.3 cm) at its thinnest to 0.68 inches (1.7 cm) at the rear. It is designed to replicate the versatility of popular devices like the iPhone and iPad on its venerable computer line, and will incorporate Facetime video chats and an apps store.

Running on flash storage like the iPad rather than hard drives like conventional computers, it can power up instantly and store data twice as fast, executive said. Get the full story »