2011 13" maxed-out MBA (Sandy Bridge i7) vs. 2012 13" base MBA (Ivy Bridge i5)

[blumpkin]

Has anyone done a comparison of the two? I've looked pretty thoroughly, but maybe I'm not looking hard enough. I can't seem to find it anywhere on the tubes.

I had a maxed out 2011 MBA and sold it (long story). I missed it a lot, so I went to the Apple store a couple of days ago and picked up a base 2012 just to see what was up. Still feels lightning quick to me... Haven't used it nearly as much as my 2011, but so far I think it's identical. One thing I've noticed is that boot/shut down times are even faster (I know that's not a basis for thorough comparison, jus' sayin').

 

[mikeray]

I know they did use a faster ssd for the 2012 so that makes sense

 

[KPOM]

From a CPU perspective, this year's i5 is pretty comparable to last year's i7. The i7 last year had a maximum turbo boost of 2.9GHz. This year's i5 has a maximum turbo boost of 2.8GHz. The Ivy Bridge processor also has a much better integrated graphics processor.

 

[Ptdr]

With the 2012's i5 you get USB3 and a 8gb option, battery life at least as good as the 2011's i7.
Processor and memory performance also above according to benchmarks :
https://www.macrumors.com/2012/06/12/benchmarks-for-mid-2012-macbook-pro-and-macbook-air/

2012's, it's a no brainer...

 

[Oli3000]

Geekbench for memory/CPU essentially identical, but you get faster SSD, USB3 and faster graphics (and theoretically better battery life). So yah, 2012 base.