Apple Inc. chief Steve Jobs on Tuesday introduced an ultra-slim laptop computer that he billed as the world's leanest laptop, media reported.

The new Apple notebook, the MacBook Air, is 1.93 centimeters thick at its thickest point and 0.41 centimeters at its thinnest, small enough to fit in a manila envelope, which is how Jobs demonstrated it to a crowd of Apple fans at the Macworld Expo.

"It's the world's thinnest notebook (computer)," Jobs said with a smile. "We went out and looked at all the thin notebooks out there and tried to distill a best-of-breed."

The new notebook does not come equipped with an optical drive for playing CDs and DVDs, though one is available as an option for 99 U.S. dollars. Instead, Apple has equipped it with remote software that lets users play DVDs and CDs on another computer as if they were on the notebook.

The MacBook Air notebook, which has a 13.3-inch screen and full-sized laptop keyboard, weighs 1.36 kilograms and has battery life of five hours. The ultra-lean laptop is priced at 1,799 dollars and will begin shipping in two weeks, Jobs said.

Jobs also confirmed the consumer electronics company's foray into online movie rentals, revealing an alliance with all six major movie studios to offer films over high-speed Internet connections within 30 days after they're released on DVD.

By the end of February, Apple will have more than 1,000 movies for online rental through iTunes, with prices of 2.99 dollars for older movies and 3.99 dollars for new releases.

The company also unveiled a string of new features for the iPhone and a new version of Apple TV that does not require a cable for users to play movies from iTunes directly on the television.

(Xinhua New Agency January 16, 2007)