Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Would an '09 MBP to a new 11inch MBAir be too much of a downgrade?

N

NameUndecided

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Mar 28, 2011
751
68
I've been considering selling my MacBook Pro 13inch that was released in summer 2009 and getting an 11inch MacBook Air -- maybe with a 256gb ssd instead of 128.

This current MBPro has 2.26ghz and 4gb of ram. The MBAir would have 1.6ghz and 4gb of ram. It may look like less power on paper, but I imagine that the SSD and improved processor will make up for it -- but I don't know for sure.

I don't play a bunch of games - especially nothing large and graphic intensive. I just use my notebook to surf online and download and chat and other rather basic stuff. But there is Plex and 1080p video and that. I just wanted to know if I would have to expect either a noticeable slowdown, or faster speeds, or not much difference at all if I were to "upgrade" in this way. I just think that I'd like a more minimal computer and the smaller screen doesn't really bother me.

Any input is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
 
I would think it would be an improvement. The SSD is REALLY nice compared to a HDD. The processor is an improvement (see Geekbench scores). The added portability is a HUGE plus. The battery is similar ( I believe).

I love my Air, even more than my Pro!! (I'm even selling my Pro to buy an external display, the Air is that great.)
 
I admit that when I got my 2011 MBP 17", it did feel like a downgrade compared to my 2011 MBA 11".
 
I have a 13" i5 256Gb Air and a 15" 2.4Ghz, MacBook Pro (4.1) and for me and my use the Air is a tremendous advancement. My Air plays 1080P mkv`s with no issue even ones with huge bit rates that choke the older Pro.

I would look at the 13" Air as you are gaining significant real estate on the desktop having the same resolution as the 15" Pro`s and the battery life is significantly longer.
 
I had a 13" MacBook Pro (Mid-2009) with a 2.53 GHz processor, 4GB of Ram, and 256GB Hard Drive. Last week I received the 11" Air with i5 processor, and the 250GB SSD.

I love this machine. The computer restarts and wakes from sleep very quickly, and all of my apps open up very fast. Unfortunately though, I still haven't had a chance to load up all of my old files from my time machine back-up yet since i'm still waiting for a USB cable to use, but I assume that even after I've installed everything that the machine will still run very fast. Once I install everything I'll have to try out Photoshop, iMovie, and iPhoto to see how they run as compared to my 2009 Pro experience.

But other than that, everything runs a lot faster because of the SSD. Also keep in mind that the 2.26 GHz processor of your Pro isn't the same as the 1.6 GHz of the Air, because the Pro is an Intel Core 2 Duo while this new Air has an Intel Core i5.

The only negative thing I have to say about the Air after using it for the past week is that the screen isn't nearly as good as my old 13" Pro's. The resolution is great, but the contrast or the colors or something just aren't as good, and it has been getting rather annoying.
 
Wow, the advantages and praise are a lot better than I was expecting. Thank you for the feedback.

I also see that a 13inch MBAir would only be $100 more than an 11inch with a 256gb SSD. I was kind of leaning toward a smaller notebook, but that's certainly something to consider.
 
NameUndecided said:
Wow, the advantages and praise are a lot better than I was expecting. Thank you for the feedback.

I also see that a 13inch MBAir would only be $100 more than an 11inch with a 256gb SSD. I was kind of leaning toward a smaller notebook, but that's certainly something to consider.
Click to expand...

Yeah the 13" is great, because you gain more battery life, more screen real-estate, as well as a built-in SD card slot. I chose the 11" inch though, because I wanted the most portable laptop Apple made, and the engineering of this machine still amazes me. It seems impossible to me that something so powerful and functional could fit in such a tiny space and still look incredible.
 
M-5 said:
Yeah the 13" is great, because you gain more battery life, more screen real-estate, as well as a built-in SD card slot. I chose the 11" inch though, because I wanted the most portable laptop Apple made, and the engineering of this machine still amazes me. It seems impossible to me that something so powerful and functional could fit in such a tiny space and still look incredible.
Click to expand...

This. I love the 11" so much.
 
NameUndecided said:
Wow, the advantages and praise are a lot better than I was expecting. Thank you for the feedback.

I also see that a 13inch MBAir would only be $100 more than an 11inch with a 256gb SSD. I was kind of leaning toward a smaller notebook, but that's certainly something to consider.
Click to expand...

You may also want to consider upgrading the 11"s CPU as the 1.6Ghz is very different to the 13"s i5 1.7Ghz. The i7 1.8Ghz is significantly faster than the i5 1.6Ghz, however it is only marginally faster than the standard i5 1.7Ghz in the 13". Put your money into the SSD and go for a 13" 256Gb you wont be disappointed. My wife has the 11" Air and it`s a fantastic computer for casual use, the 13" is better suited to serious work, runs cooler, has a longer battery run. In general it will can completely replace a 13" Pro barring those that have specific memory/graphic requirements.

The 11"s strength is it`s ultra portability and for this there are some trade off`s, the 13" is less so with fewer compromises.
 
Wow, a LOT of MBP owners on this forum either also own an Air or replaced their MBP with an Air.

I've been thinking of buying a 17" MBP to maximize on portable screen real estate ... I'm on a computer 8 or more hours on a day the added real estate would be nice. Although the Air's size can't be beat.
 
M-5 said:
The only negative thing I have to say about the Air after using it for the past week is that the screen isn't nearly as good as my old 13" Pro's. The resolution is great, but the contrast or the colors or something just aren't as good, and it has been getting rather annoying.
Click to expand...

Agreed, the Air`s colour gamut and contrast are not in the same league as the Pro`s, however the display does benefit considerably from careful calibration. There are several threads on the subject and numerous .icc files to download and try for both the LG & Samsung displays...
 
entatlrg said:
Wow, a LOT of MBP owners on this forum either also own an Air or replaced their MBP with an Air.

I've been thinking of buying a 17" MBP to maximize on portable screen real estate ... I'm on a computer 8 or more hours on a day the added real estate would be nice. Although the Air's size can't be beat.
Click to expand...

17" MBP is truly a desktop replacement and to some extents like carrying a desktop ;) I would look at the new Air in some detail if colour accuracy is not a huge concern, as it will for the most part be faster in day to day tasks. Sure the 17" will be the clear winner in heavyweight computational tasks, yet to keep up with the Air you going to need to upgrade to SSD.

This is exactly why I choose the 2011 Air, and will wait on the next generation of MBP once you have seen one in action they are difficult to dissmis. Hopefully Apple will integrate the same blade type SSD into the MBP for the OS, ditch the ODD in favour of a high capacity HD for data, reality will probably be something less...
 
I've been using my 11" Air for about everything. Editing RAW photos, Final Cut Pro X, etc...

It's simply the most amazing Mac I have ever owned. I see no point of using the thicker Macs other than for out-of-the-office photo assignments, you can always get a real estate display by pairing it with an external display, such as the new Apple Thunderbolt display.

I still own a 15" MacBook Pro i7 for the AG Hi-res display alone.
 
Queen6 said:
Agreed, the Air`s colour gamut and contrast are not in the same league as the Pro`s, however the display does benefit considerably from careful calibration. There are several threads on the subject and numerous .icc files to download and try for both the LG & Samsung displays...
Click to expand...

Is the slightly, comparably, lesser screen quality an issue that applies to the 13inch Air as well, or just the 11inch? (fingers crossed it could just be an 11inch compromise.)

I'm also thinking now that I could just wait until the summer to upgrade - that way it would be an even more amazing difference from this two-year-old MBPro. Decisions. Because there really isn't anything wrong with this current computer. It will just be nice to have one that's truly lightly-tossable and portable and all the rest.
 
NameUndecided said:
Is the slightly, comparably, lesser screen quality an issue that applies to the 13inch Air as well, or just the 11inch? (fingers crossed it could just be an 11inch compromise.)

I'm also thinking now that I could just wait until the summer to upgrade - that way it would be an even more amazing difference from this two-year-old MBPro. Decisions. Because there really isn't anything wrong with this current computer. It will just be nice to have one that's truly lightly-tossable and portable and all the rest.
Click to expand...

No both Air`s are the same regarding display quality. Your MBP will certainly carry you till summer 2012 and Apple may well update the MBA, although I suspect the MBP will be first for the next generation of processors. The Air will always be lesser in some areas compared to the Pro`s. The display quality is not poor, simply less than the Pro offers.

If I were you I would look at an SSD for you MBP, ditch the ODD. You will get a huge performance increase for a few hundred $ and you can sit it out to mid to end 2012 and see what Apple brings to the table ;)

I bought the Air as my MBP is a 4.1 (last of the "Classic" Pro`s) and although it holds it`s own I don't want to invest any $$$ in it other than to keep it going, as the upgrade path is limited. The Air in simple terms destroys the 4.1, all the same it`s been a phenomenal machine very much paying for it`s self. 2012 I hope for a redesigned, significantly faster, slimmer MBP; Air on steroids, quad core, discrete GPU, 8Gb RAM, blade SSD & HD combo, IPS display - I can but dream...
 
We went from our old 15" 2008 MBP to our new 13" MBA just last week. Not had it long obviously but so far the air has outperformed the old MBP in almost every aspect.

The MBA is just so fast. We did spec it to as high as you could spec it in an attempt to kind of future-proof it.

Would definitely recommend one to replace you MBP. I'd class it as more of an upgrade than a downgrade if I'm honest. Would also go for the 13" as I felt the 11" was just too wee!
 
Still amazes me how everyone, including myself gravitate towards the Air.

I think the trend is definitely more people going from the MBP to the Air.

Even going from 15 and 17" I rarely read about anyone complaining about the smaller screens.
 
the HDD in our early 2008 MBPro (2.4 Core2Duo / 4gb memory) carked it the other week, so I bought an OWC SSD drive to replace it. (no advert intended) :)

now the thing fairly flies!
starts up in 15 seconds and loads apps as quick as

SSD is what makes all the difference. :D

so there's the alternative for MBP owners to not gravitating toward the Air - though I must admit, the form factor and lightness is very appealing.

(sort of like the mistress on the side - oops, that was naughty)

can't wait for the new-look MBPro's rumoured to be coming in early 2012
 
Went from 2009 13" 2.53Ghz MBP to a 2011 13" i5 MBA and it is night and day. My air beats everything that the pro could do plus more. Highly recommend the upgrade if a CD drive isn't really a need.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back