even if AMD was doing marginal, if Apple switched fully to them from Intel, that's over 10% market share growth right there, which is a large increase. So Apple alone should help shore them up. I hope they don't do it though. I have yet to use a AMD laptop CPU that wasn't power hungry, hot, and slow...
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New MBA vs Black MacBook
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But AMD's roadmap shows they have solved those problems. Their future CPUs are much cooler and nearly as efficient as Intel's CPUs in the mobile platforms. In addition, they offer a gigantic leap in terms of quality of the integrated GPUs over Intel and would allow Apple to use a high quality integrated GPU that's more energy efficient than the best Nvidia has to offer.
We need to look at these things as a total package. If the discrete GPU doesn't work in low-end Macs given Apple's strategy, then what exactly is the best plan moving forward... I feel AMD has the best complete package when considering CPU, GPU, and chipset as a whole.
Intel has the best CPUs, we can all agree to that, but Intel is being anti-competitive by simply changing the rules and terminating Nvidia's license agreement. The result is a situation that hurts us consumers as we're required to use their inferior IGP if we want to use their superior CPU.
So there are a few possibilities, but given Apple's resistance to leaving an integrated GPU/chipset model, I believe AMD offers the best solutions beyond C2D CPUs in low-end Macs. The other three possibilities are discrete GPUs with Intel CPUs, Intel's Core i-series CPU with IGP onboard, or negotiating a truce (or having the justice department step in) between Nvidia and Intel forcing Intel to allow Apple to use Nvidia GPUs with Core i-series CPUs.
We can all pray that Intel gets wise, or the justice department speeds up their process, but in reality Intel terminated Nvidia's licensing agreement because Intel wants to sell its integrated IGP on Core series CPUs along with Intel's own chipsets. Intel wants it all, and that's not what's best for consumers. In addition, Apple could change its strategy with low-end Macs and use discrete GPUs in the 13" MBP and Mac mini and Intel's integrated GPUs in the MBs and MBAs. However, I don't believe that will happen. Apple wants to lower the price of Macs, and it needs to keep costs down for components, production, software integration and etc to keep margins where its stakeholders are comfortable.
If money isn't a limiting factor, you would be happy to have the new MBA. Thre improvement in performance won't definitely be noticeable. In my case, I even noticed it going from the current base model 13" MBP to the base 11" MBA, more noticeably when opening apps. Launching Microsoft Word used to take 6-10 secs, now takes 2 seconds.
In your case, battery life and portability will drastically improve. You also no long need to be wiping off finger printing every week.
The more I'm reading up on the Fusion, the more it looks like a distinct possibility. I'm sure Apple will at least consider it, if nothing more than to keep Intel honest.
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How do you know there's going to be a new generation in a couple of months. Are you just basing it on past releases or has there been an announced/rumored release of new SSD's?
I'm really thinking about doing this to my White MB and am just stuck on the storage vs price comparison right now.
The MBA will me MUCH faster because of the SSD and the extra RAM. It will handle what your going to do very well 
Toshiba and Intel are coming out with the next generation of chips. There have already been leaks of intels 3rd generation drives. In theory, the new drives should cost less than half as much as the ones we have today per gigabyte. Realistically though, there will be so much demand that the prices won't drop TOO much, at least not at first. You would probably want to see when the intel drive comes out and then buy it instantly, because it will sell out within hours and you won't be able to get it at anywhere near MSRP afterwards.
Keep the Black MacBook. Upgrade to a GOOD solid state drive (OWC Mercury Pro). Maybe up the RAM to 4gb. Your computer will absolutely scream and will be faster than the new MBA.
However, the new MBA will still be better in some ways by virtue of being a 2010 machine, such as the larger trackpad, better battery, much better integrated graphics, and unibody construction.
However, the new MBA will still be better in some ways by virtue of being a 2010 machine, such as the larger trackpad, better battery, much better integrated graphics, and unibody construction.
I agree. I would add that it's a good idea to keep in mind that the MBA's most important attribute is its incredible light weight and small size. It is these factors that make it unique. Its standard flash storage is also a big deal, although SSDs are widely available for conventional computers and getting cheaper all the time. There is a premium to be paid for thinness and lightness so, inevitably, those who can live with a much thicker and heavier computer can easily find more computing power for less money than the MBA provides. For those of us whose computing needs are better served by ultra lightweight computers, though, the compromises we must make to have them are worthwhile.