What are the differences between the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air and the "SD/Firewire 800 - Mid-2009" 13-Inch MacBook Pro?

When EveryMac.com compared the original MacBook Air to the "White and Black" polycarbonate MacBook models available at the time it was noted that the "regular" MacBook was designed as a relatively inexpensive system for day-to-day use by a mass market whereas the "MBA" was a premium product for a niche audience.

A comparison of the the subsequently released "Late 2008" MacBook Air and "Unibody" Aluminum MacBook concluded that:

The MacBook "Unibody" models still are intended for use by a mass audience and the MacBook Air is intended for those interested in a premium, lightweight product.

However, as the MacBook "Unibody" is decidedly more "premium" in its design and weighs less than its predecessor, and offers greater performance, connectivity, and expansion at a lower price point than the MacBook Air, no doubt some users who would have considered the MacBook Air when compared to the "White & Black" MacBook models will decide to buy a MacBook "Unibody" instead.

On June 8, 2009, Apple again "shuffled the configuration deck" a bit and essentially decided to "push" the "Unibody" MacBook line "up" into the "Pro" category with modestly enhanced performance but a significantly improved display, connectivity, battery life and more. For the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air, however, the company made far less dramatic improvements compared to its predecessor but cut prices substantially (by a whopping US$700 for the high-end configuration).

The significant price cut offered by the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air is perhaps a quiet admission from Apple that the market did not find the pound and a half advantage in weight provided by the MacBook Air it replaced to be worth the disadvantage in performance, connectivity, expansion, and price when compared to the "premium enough" MacBook "Unibody" line.

Photo Credit: Apple, Inc. (13-Inch MacBook Pro - Left, MacBook Air - Right)

Compared to the "Late 2008" MacBook Air model that it replaced, the "Mid-2009" models are very similar, but include an external 10/100Base-T Ethernet adapter (previously US$29), have better battery life (5 hours of runtime up from 4.5 hours), a slightly faster processor at the high-end, and lower introductory pricing -- US$1499 and US$1799 (down US$300 and US$700 from the replaced models, respectively).

The pricing is a substantial lowering of the "premium bar" -- and the fact that the entry-level MacBook Air is now the same price as the "high-end" 13-Inch MacBook Pro is quite notable -- but for all practical purposes, these MBA systems retain the same comparative limitations of the replaced models in terms of performance, connectivity, and expansion.

Meanwhile, the 13-Inch MacBook Pro has modestly increased performance and higher RAM capacity compared to the "Unibody" MacBook line it replaced, but a significantly improved display (on par with the MacBook Air), backlit keyboards on both configurations, improved battery life -- 7 hours up from 5 hours -- but with a "built-in" battery design (like the MBA), and a Firewire "800" port and SD card slot. Introductory pricing was reduced by US$100 for each configuration as well.

Compared to each other, the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air and 13-Inch MacBook Pro models use effectively the same architecture, but the MacBook Pro models have faster processors, longer battery life, and superior connectivity -- two USB 2.0 ports, Gigabit Ethernet, Firewire "800", and an SD card slot -- compared to one USB 2.0 port and no onboard Ethernet, Firewire "800" port, or SD card slot for the MBA. Somewhat oddly, the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air continues to have a comparatively simple "one button, three finger" multitouch trackpad, compared to a "no button, four finger" multitouch trackpad for the MacBook Pro.

Additionally, the 13-Inch MacBook Pro models are designed to be easy to upgrade the hard drive and RAM, compared to the MBA which is a challenge to upgrade the hard drive and has 2 GB of non-upgradable memory). The 13-Inch MacBook Pro also has a convenient internal optical drive whereas the MacBook Air requires the usage of an external one or software workarounds.

These differences are perhaps summarized most conveniently in a chart:

Mid-2009	MacBook Air	13" MacBook Pro
Processor Speeds:	1.86, 2.13 GHz	2.26, 2.53 GHz
Video System:	NVIDIA GeForce 9400M	NVIDIA GeForce 9400M
Video Type:	Integrated	Integrated
Video Memory:	256 MB*	256 MB*
Display Size:	13.3"	13.3"
Backlighting:	LED	LED
Native Resolution:	1280x800	1280x800
Ext. Display:	2560x1600	2560x1600
Hard Drive Size:	120, 128 GB**	160, 250 GB
Default Memory:	2 GB	2 GB, 4 GB
Max Memory:	2 GB	8 GB
Gigabit Ethernet:	No†	Yes
USB 2.0:	Yes (1)	Yes (2)
Firewire 800:	No	Yes (1)
SD Card Slot:	No	Yes
Ambient KB:	Yes	Yes
Multitouch Trackpad:	3-Finger	4-Finger
SuperDrive:	Optional (External)	Standard (Internal)
Size (Inches):	.16-.76 x 12.8 x 8.94	0.95 x 12.78 x 8.94
Weight:	3.0 lbs (1.36 kg)	4.5 lbs (2.04 kg)
Max Battery Life:	5 Hours§	7 Hours§
Intro Price Range:	US$1499, US$1799	US$1199, US$1499

* Both systems "borrow" main memory for video function. Minimum graphics memory usage is 256 MB.

** The MacBook Air "Core 2 Duo" 1.86 13" (Mid-2009) and "Core 2 Duo" 2.13 13" (Mid-2009) ship with a 120 GB hard drive and a 128 GB SSD, respectively.

† An external 10/100Base-T Ethernet adapter is provided, but due to the bandwidth limitations of USB 2.0, the MacBook Air cannot support Gigabit (10/100/1000Base-T) Ethernet.

§ Maximum battery life as reported by the manufacturer.

Ultimately, the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air remains a system for those who place a premium on weight over performance, connectivity, and expansion -- corporate managers who travel frequently, for example -- but the price-to-performance premium of the "Mid-2009" MacBook Air compared to the 13-Inch MacBook Pro is dramatically less substantial than it was for previous models. Whether or not this will encourage more users to purchase a MacBook Air rather than a 13-Inch MacBook Pro remains to be seen.

Site sponsor PowerMax sells the MacBook Air and the 13-Inch MacBook Pro free of sales tax.

Please refer to the Ultimate Mac Comparison feature to dynamically compare any MacBook Air model to any other G3 or later Mac.