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Looking at the new 2020 Macbook Air to replace my 2010 Macbook Pro, I see that for $1299 I'm getting a quad i5 and 512GB SSD but I see the clock rate on the i5 is only 1.1G.
The quad i5 in my 2011 iMac runs at 2.7G, but it's a much older generation. How will the actual performance compare between it and the new MB Air?
I certainly won't tell you what to buy but I can offer some helpful things. First, consider how important portability is as it relates to your typical computer needs. Second, how important is sheer computing power. Third, do you have mission critical software that cannot be upgraded to work with Catalina. Fourth, what is your budget.
It's not easy trying to figure everything but you can make a three column sheet with important considerations, needs, and wants in the first column. The next two columns are Laptop and Desktop. Then go down the list and putting a checkmark in the laptop or desktop column that indicates which provides the features needed for that consideration. The type of machine with the most checkmarks is the winner. If you think you can put some kind of numeric score for how well each machine type serves your needs, then put a score instead of a checkmark. Add up the scores. The machine with the highest score is the winner. I think you get the idea.
If you have a really big budget, then get one of each. I prefer this option because if one machine is down for repair, you still have another one to pick up the slack. I keep the desktop and laptop reasonably synced so that one is pretty much the same as the other. Some would call this another form of backup. I have multiple backups for the same reason - redundancy in case one backup fails.
I certainly won't tell you what to buy but I can offer some helpful things. First, consider how important portability is as it relates to your typical computer needs. Second, how important is sheer computing power. Third, do you have mission critical software that cannot be upgraded to work with Catalina. Fourth, what is your budget.
It's not easy trying to figure everything but you can make a three column sheet with important considerations, needs, and wants in the first column. The next two columns are Laptop and Desktop. Then go down the list and putting a checkmark in the laptop or desktop column that indicates which provides the features needed for that consideration. The type of machine with the most checkmarks is the winner. If you think you can put some kind of numeric score for how well each machine type serves your needs, then put a score instead of a checkmark. Add up the scores. The machine with the highest score is the winner. I think you get the idea.
If you have a really big budget, then get one of each. I prefer this option because if one machine is down for repair, you still have another one to pick up the slack. I keep the desktop and laptop reasonably synced so that one is pretty much the same as the other. Some would call this another form of backup. I have multiple backups for the same reason - redundancy in case one backup fails.
Thanks a lot for the answer. I was asking for the following reasons:
-- Both machines have turbo boost to 3.7G but starting at 2.7G gives the iMac a better starting point. I can't see the MB Air being able to hit the full boost often because of cooling issues.
-- The only reason I need to buy a new Mac in the first place is that my MB Pro and iMac are at El Capitan and High Sierra respectively and canot be upgraded further. I already have heard from Intuit that next year's TurboTax will require Mojave as a minimum so to do my taxes I need a new machine!!!
-- At current prices, I'm still hemming and hawing about buying a high performance laptop in the first place. Perhaps getting a base level MB Air, which is good enough for browsing, email, etc. and putting the savings towards another iMac or maybe a Mini a few years down the road would be a better idea.
The Late-2011 iMac is faster and has a better GPU.
How to compare the quad i5 in my 2011 iMac to the quad i5 in the 2020 Macbook Air
