Need current MBA users' help

Question

Hi all,
Im currently using a 2009 Macbook Pro 15 inch with core 2 duo 2.66 Ghz, and im thinking of switching to a MBA 13 inch...
things that im concerning right now...
1. Weight (well, MBA does weight a lot less)
2. Heat (even watching HD videos produces heat that sometimes I cant bear.. I tend to use it on my lap)
3. Performance (its 1.83 vs 2.66, will it be a huge performance drop down?) (how about the video card performance? 9600m gt vs 320m)
regarding the heat issue, will the MBA be cooler? can current user gives me some temperature stat? e.g. while playing games? watching HD videos?

Answer 1

Hi,
This is my 2ed Mac, my last one was a 2010 Macbook pro 15 inch; here are my experiences of the differences between the two laptops.
1. The air weight very close to what its name suggests. I can feel a big difference in the reduction when it’s in my backpack compared to the MBP.
I know there is only a small difference for something to carry on your back, but it does make day to day walk more pleasant.
2. The bottom of the air near the black strip only gets slightly warm when watching HD video. I can comfortably hold the bottom of the air for long period without felling uncomfortable.
The MBP on the other hand getting very hot after extensive CPU and GPU usage, there is no way I can hold the laptop with my hands for more than 30 seconds without feeling uncomfortable. I’ve not installed any temp monitor programme on the air, but my old MBP was hitting up to 90C when running at 100%.
The fan is about same noise level when running full speed, but the MBP had two fans, so the air is slightly quieter.
3. I’m sure there is a performance drop in processor speed for the air, but the air has a much better graphic processor and a SSD. Which more than makes up for the lack of CPU speed. I can watch HD video and run windows 7 virtually with the 1.86Ghz process without any slow down.
For example, the air converts songs from AIFF(lossless) to 320kbps ACC at a rate of 29X. My old MBP i7 2.66GHz can hit 48X, and my desktop i7 4.2GHz at 75X. So the 1.86 GHz processor in the air is still very fast (the CPU in the air uses 50% of processor power, much more than other two CPUS).
However, the processors do get pushed to the limit compared to the MBP. So it depends on what you want to do on the air, as long as the tasks are not very CPU intensive, you should see an improvement compared to your MBP.
On the other hand, if you need a laptop for intensive CPU tasks, its better to wait until next spring if you can when Apple updates the MBP line.
Hope this helps.