2010 13" Ultimate vs. 2011 13" i5 - Advice Needed

[Divers]

I currently have a 15" i7 MBP and am doing a lot of traveling, so I think I'm going to try a 13" MBA. I mainly do Photoshop work with some occasional (light) FCP stuff.

I'm strongly considering a 2010 Ultimate as I should be able to pick up a like-new one for $900-$1,000. If I go 2011, I would opt for the 13" 256GB i5 version, which would obviously cost much more.

Thoughts/opinions as to whether or not I would be happy with the 2010 Ultimate?

Thanks in advance for everyone's insight...

 

[striker33]

I currently have a 15" i7 MBP and am doing a lot of traveling, so I think I'm going to try a 13" MBA. I mainly do Photoshop work with some occasional (light) FCP stuff.

I'm strongly considering a 2010 Ultimate as I should be able to pick up a like-new one for $900-$1,000. If I go 2011, I would opt for the 13" 256GB i5 version, which would obviously cost much more.

Thoughts/opinions as to whether or not I would be happy with the 2010 Ultimate?

Thanks in advance for everyone's insight...

If you want an Air for traveling, get an 11".

There is very little difference between the 15" Pro, and 13" Pro/Air size wise (other than the obvious thickness differences between the Air and Pro).

 

[KPOM]

Is it the 2010 or 2011 Pro that you have? If you are coming from a 2011 15" i7 Pro, I'd suggest getting the 2011 Air. The Core 2 Duo is noticeably slower. If it's the 2010, it's closer, but still the Pro is more powerful. OTOH, the new Sandy Bridge i5 in the Airs and 2011 Pros equal the i7s used in 2010 in some benchmarks.

The 13" Air is much lighter than the 15" Pro and easy to slip into the front pocket of a suitcase, though the 11" tops them both for portability, particularly on a coach airline tray table. The footprint of the 13" Air and 13" Pro are virtually identical.

 

[AlvinNguyen]

I currently have a 15" i7 MBP and am doing a lot of traveling, so I think I'm going to try a 13" MBA. I mainly do Photoshop work with some occasional (light) FCP stuff.

I'm strongly considering a 2010 Ultimate as I should be able to pick up a like-new one for $900-$1,000. If I go 2011, I would opt for the 13" 256GB i5 version, which would obviously cost much more.

Thoughts/opinions as to whether or not I would be happy with the 2010 Ultimate?

Thanks in advance for everyone's insight...

The new i5 is much more worthwhile. I don't think I can do the previous generation. Although I am a fashion photographer and I use CS5 daily running through RAW files.

 

[smokedog]

There is very little difference between the 15" Pro, and 13" Pro/Air size wise (other than the obvious thickness differences between the Air and Pro).

I beg to differ, after using my 13' MBA for few days. My 15' MBP seems to weigh a ton and just generally feels very cumbersome.

 

[AlvinNguyen]

I beg to differ, after using my 13' MBA for few days. My 15' MBP seems to weigh a ton and just generally feels very cumbersome.

Agreed - I'm trying to switch from my 2011 17" i7 to the 13" Air. From 5.9 lbs to 2.9 lbs is huge. The 15" is 5.6 lbs so still a huge difference.

 

[Divers]

Here are the specs on my MBP:

2.66 GHz i7
4GB
500GB

I should also mention that this is will be my main system, which is why I ruled out the 11". Also, regarding the size, I personally think there's a significant difference between packing the 15" MBP and a 13" MBA!

Thanks again for the advice...

 

[AppleTech22]

I currently have a 15" i7 MBP and am doing a lot of traveling, so I think I'm going to try a 13" MBA. I mainly do Photoshop work with some occasional (light) FCP stuff.

I'm strongly considering a 2010 Ultimate as I should be able to pick up a like-new one for $900-$1,000. If I go 2011, I would opt for the 13" 256GB i5 version, which would obviously cost much more.

Thoughts/opinions as to whether or not I would be happy with the 2010 Ultimate?

Thanks in advance for everyone's insight...

Thunderbolt is going to future proof that machine very well and you're getting that backlight

 

[pezasied182]

I beg to differ, after using my 13' MBA for few days. My 15' MBP seems to weigh a ton and just generally feels very cumbersome.

Same here, my girlfriend has a 15 inch MBP, I have the 13 Air, the difference in size between them is crazy. I can't use her pro anymore, it just seems so big and clunky.

 

[orfeas0]

If you want an Air for traveling, get an 11".

There is very little difference between the 15" Pro, and 13" Pro/Air size wise (other than the obvious thickness differences between the Air and Pro).

15" pro and 13" air have little difference? no comment...

If you need the gpu,get 2010. otherwise 2011.

 

[macjacky11]

15" pro and 13" air have little difference? no comment...

If you need the gpu,get 2010. otherwise 2011.

I agree with the gpu thing. However, the cpu in 2011 is much more powerful.

 

[lukekarts]

Looking at your current specs you're really gonna have to go for the 2011 i5 as to not downgrade in performance so much. The 2010 model will still do everything you want it to, but it's never good to take a step back in performance as you will notice it. The 2011 model on the other had will perform very similarly.