Will a New Macbook Air perform better than my pro?

[CorvetteZR1]

Contender 1:

2011 13" Macbook Air
1.86
4GB
128GB Flash Storage

vs.

2010 13" Macbook Pro
2.26
2GB
160GB HDD

Which one will perform better? I want to buy the Air but do not want to downgrade in performance. Also, will the 2011 Air with the 1.86 processor be able to handle Apple's next OS with ease?

 

[iBookG4user]

Any processor intensive tasks will perform better on the MacBook Pro and any tasks that involve accessing the hard drive/SSD will perform better on the MacBook Air. (Editing photos, encoding video, etc. will be better on the MacBook Pro and opening applications, opening files, booting up the computer, etc. will be faster on the MacBook Air)

One thing of note, you can always upgrade the MacBook Pro to have a SSD but you can never upgrade the processor on the MacBook Air.

 

[CorvetteZR1]

Any processor intensive tasks will perform better on the MacBook Pro and any tasks that involve accessing the hard drive/SSD will perform better on the MacBook Air. (Editing photos, encoding video, etc. will be better on the MacBook Pro and opening applications, opening files, booting up the computer, etc. will be faster on the MacBook Air)

One thing of note, you can always upgrade the MacBook Pro to have a SSD but you can never upgrade the processor on the MacBook Air.

That's a good point. Is the processor in the Macbook Air the same design as the one in my pro albeit with less processor speed? Or, are they fundamentally different designs and models?

 

[aleni]

for overall use, the MBA will be much faster because of the ssd. if u upgrade your ram to 4GB and put SSD on the mbp, it will be faster than the air, but 1.86 vs 2.26 isn't that much. remember the air is very sexy and much lighter if you are into that thing.

 

[CorvetteZR1]

for overall use, the MBA will be much faster because of the ssd. if u upgrade your ram to 4GB and put SSD on the mbp, it will be faster than the air, but 1.86 vs 2.26 isn't that much. remember the air is very sexy and much lighter if you are into that thing.

Yea. Actually, the weight is the biggest factor in my purchasing a MBA. I can't wait to lighten my bag. I'm just hoping the experience of using the computer isn't poor and that it will handle Apple's next OS release.

 

[aleni]

Yea. Actually, the weight is the biggest factor in my purchasing a MBA. I can't wait to lighten my bag. I'm just hoping the experience of using the computer isn't poor and that it will handle Apple's next OS release.

for your information, i installed Lion Developer Preview 2 on my base 11" air ( 1.4ghz and 4GB) and it runs like a champ. it's not even a final release yet.

so no worry about the 13" mba

 

[halledise]

Contender 1:

2011 13" Macbook Air
1.86
4GB
128GB Flash Storage

vs.

2010 13" Macbook Pro
2.26
2GB
160GB HDD

Which one will perform better? I want to buy the Air but do not want to downgrade in performance. Also, will the 2011 Air with the 1.86 processor be able to handle Apple's next OS with ease?

q1: the Air - by a country mile.
q2: yes

 

[ecib]

Contender 1:

2011 13" Macbook Air
1.86
4GB
128GB Flash Storage

vs.

2010 13" Macbook Pro
2.26
2GB
160GB HDD

Which one will perform better? I want to buy the Air but do not want to downgrade in performance. Also, will the 2011 Air with the 1.86 processor be able to handle Apple's next OS with ease?

I use both the new 13" MBA and MBP.

The Air will blow the MBP away in normal day to day use. If you are doing very processor intensive things (I dunno, maybe a ton of Photoshop?), the MBP will be quicker in those circumstances, but I have yet to see it. I use it for work processing, spreadsheets, internet, youtube/hulu videos etc and light photoshop FYI.