1) Are the new MB just as powerful or close to just it as the old 2.2 MBPs? (I see on my old MBP it was 4MB shared where the new MP is 3MB shared) Is that a big deal?
2) is it worth upgrading? I really like the new design and screen.
3) How bad is the performance of the air compared to pro if I'm not doing any intense editing etc...
1. As stated in the post above, the performance difference is small. The main difference is that the new MB/MBP use penryn chips compared to your older Merom. While performance is similar, the penryn chips are able to achieve better battery life and run significant cooler (65nm merom vs 45nm penryn).
2. Worth upgrading is dependent on what you do with your laptop. Since you say the pro was too powerful for your needs anyways, then perhaps the MB is right for you. It's worth noting the screen on the unibody MB is inferior to the MBP. I find the glass screen a bit too reflective.
3. If you're not doing any intense editing, you can probably expect to feel a snappier system with the air's SSD.
In most cases, the Air performs BETTER than the pro (the latest SSD model).
The Air's SSD is snappier than HDD for sure, but I think a more accurate statement would be in most cases
in tasks that are not GPU/CPU intensive the air performs better than the pro. To generalize "for most cases" and say the Air performs better than the Pro is just incorrect. In any CPU/GPU intensive task, the air does not even compare.
The SSD in the new Air is inferior to the Intel X25 that have been released (1.8" and 2.5"). If you're looking for snappy - pick one up for your MB/MBP.
thanks everyone for your replies so far...
I really want the air but the new MB looks great too...This is where I'm really torn. If I got the MBA I would get the SSD. If so, which would you get? the MB or MBA with SSD? Also, you asked if 2gig wouldn't bother - if 2gigs is enough to run programs then it wouldn't. The most intense work I use my computer for is iMovie or some simple web program. Do I need 4gigs. Which will make the computer faster SSD or an extra 2gigs? Also, if I do get the air and put fusion on, will 2gigs not be enough?
Thanks,
NYU02
Are you considering a rev B MBA SSD? If you're considering a previous gen MBA with SSD, do note that it is SIGNIFICANTLY inferior to the rev B SSD. The rev B uses a 2nd generation SSD which is a vast improvement to the rev A SSD.
1. 2gb seems like enough for what you do.
2. Since you don't seem to use any programs that are resource hogs, you will probably find an SSD more worth your money.
3. There are plenty of people that run fusion with only 2gb. It really depends what you plan to run in fusion.