Macbook Air C2D or Macbook Air Sandy Bridge?

[andygabriel]

Do you guys think that if Apple release a sandy bridge Air that it'll be better than the Top Air C2D(2.13ghz, + NVDIA) ?

i already have a macbook 13" early 2008 and i want to upgrade to an AIR but i want it to be more future proof. As you can see i keep my laptops for min 2 years. I'm just worried since Apple moved back to intel GPU. My current macbook has the intel GPU GMA X3100 and i couldn't upgrade b4 coz i didnt have the money.

Now i'm willing to upgrade BUT i can wait if the next macbook Air might be better than the current one. Do you think it'll be a downgrade for apple if they put an intel GPU in it?

BTW i already checked the benchmark for the current Ultimate Air and i'm a bit scared to upgrade since my 2 year old white macbook got a better benchmark.

MAcbook Air 2010(ultimate) score 3041
My white 2008 macbook scores 3326

So will Sandy bridge make the Air a better machine even if Apple put the INTEL GPU? Thx for helping!

 

[lshirase]

of course. SB procs are vastly superior. c2d is a joke.

 

[mellofello]

I haven't found one thing that runs unacceptably slow on my 13 inch (4gb). I went into it expecting the c2d to be very limited but was Pleasantly surprised in how snappy it was.

I should qualify that by disclosing that i do most of my heavy lifting with my i7 iMac.

 

[Buck987]

of course. SB procs are vastly superior. c2d is a joke.

don't let the pretenders sway you.

for many people who really own MBA's the c2d is just fine.

It not a powerhouse for encoding or high level video work but it gets all my business apps done just fine.

And for 929 off the refurb site it was a good bargain.

Only you can decide if you need it now. I guess it depends on your needs and usage.

good luck

 

[Beaverman3001]

If MBA is even a option for you to begin with, chances are C2D is more than enough for your daily needs.

 

[iRun26.2]

of course. SB procs are vastly superior. c2d is a joke.

The MBA is not a joke. The C2D when combined with the 320M does just fine for most people. In fact, most people are rather amazed at how speedy the system is.

If you buy a computer to quote the specifications rather than how useful it is then you will not buy a MBA because of the C2D. That would be your problem.

I look forward to SB in the MBA too but I'm very glad Apple didn't wait.

 

[lshirase]

I never said he/she won't be satisfied with the c2d processor in the mba. i also never said the mba is a joke.....it's undeniable at this point that the c2d processors are extremely outdated and will be replaced very soon. if you don't need one now, wait for the SB proc. the performance boost will be substantial. i had a 13 MBA ultimate, but i sold it after a few weeks of use. it struggled (periodically) with 1080p and photoshop. with the upcoming ULV SB procs, this will no longer be an issue. that being said, if all you're going to use the mba for is web browsing and email, buy one now.

 

[jimboutilier]

of course. SB procs are vastly superior. c2d is a joke.

The only joke is the intel graphics engine that comes with SB.

I'd take a c2d/nvidia combo over a SB for my everyday use anyday. I rarely peg any CPU but I've experienced intel graphics issues many times.

Maybe Intel's next generation will incorporate some of the nvidia technology they acquired but this clearly hasn't happened yet.

If your use is heavily concentrated on CPU and light on graphics it might be worth considering but that's not a really common usage pattern these days.

 

[KPOM]

I never said he/she won't be satisfied with the c2d processor in the mba. i also never said the mba is a joke.

That's how we inferred it when you said the "Core 2 Duo is a joke." It's actually a very advanced 64-bit processor that's far more powerful than the "current" Atom chips that Intel sells (which are about as powerful as the ancient Core and Pentium M chips). You are correct in saying that the Core 2 Duo is outdated since it has been replaced by the Core i-series, but it isn't a "joke."

That said, I agree that the Sandy Bridge version, apart from the graphics, will be a massive improvement over the current chips. The graphics are a slight downgrade.

 

[Scottsdale]

The current MBA is amazing. Also don't listen to crap about C2D as it's paired with a far superior Nvidia GPU to Intel's worthless IGP. Intel's SB is a nice processor but it forces crap graphics on every system it sells.

Many of us have played the MBA waiting game too only to be disappointed and wait for a year plus for minimal or no updates. You could really wait until early 2012 before the updated MBA comes.

If you want an MBA now buy it now. Be happy as it's an amazing Mac. Waiting and hoping isn't fun and it often can drive you crazy and lead you down the path of buying a different Mac just because it is newer rather than the Mac you actually want just because you want to wait for the very latest model.