I recently bought a MDP to VGA cable for my 13" Mid-2010 MacBook Pro. Using iStat, I found that even watching videos made the processor heat up to 80*F. Is this normal, or is there a problem? (The monitor is 20")
Decoding video always heats up the system, be it an iMac or a MBP. 80 F is nothing to worry about.
If you have an external DVD or Blu-Ray player you can touch it while it's playing and it gets quite warm.