Would I notice a difference in speed...

From my Macbook Pro late 2008 2.53 Core 2 Duo w/ Vertex SSD

to a...

Stock 2.2 i7 Macbook Pro w/ 5400 rpm hard drive?

I think that, for basic tasks I won't see huge gains, but for more demanding applications I will benefit greatly.

When I tested out the i7 at the Apple Store, Safari just seemed to load very very very fast. But I'm not sure if that has to do with the connection speed. Perhaps Apple Stores have very fast internet to help them sell.

 

There isn't much of a perceived performance gain between the C2D and Core-i7. The hard-drive will definitely play a huge role in performance overall, from boot times to application load times (plus battery savings). The best two upgrades any computer can receive is more memory and faster hard-drives. Processor speed is less impactful, unless you are going from a Pentium 4 to a Core-i7. Only then will you really notice a difference in speed.

 

I dont know I went from a t2500 to a P7350 and really noticed the difference. The power difference is actually the same from going from a core 2 duo to a i7 quad

 

There is definitely a perceived gain, that many generations in computer lingual is a lifetime. Never mind the quadrupling of threads., or the great optimized architecture, faster bus speed, doubling RAM speed, ehhh. Yes, you'll notice.

And why can't you slot the SSD in the new MBP?

 

Honestly the i7 with a 5400rpm drive would seem to be less snappy than the SSD+C2D setup, but you could always use the SSD on your new one.

 

Actually, tests have shown that SSD doesn't save all that much battery power compared to traditional hard drives. I think the most I came across was a 10% increase in battery life when using SSD and that was a slower model. Many people were expecting larger differences but traditional hard drives are still pretty much just as power efficient as SSDs. Of course, SSDs still have much faster read and write times.

 

It depends on the SSD. The aforementioned Vertex options are quite the gas guzzler and offers minimal battery life gain. On the other hand, Intels be sipping that wattage, which should bring the MBP's 6 hours to over 7.

 

Firstly the speed will definitely depend on what you would be doing.

Obviously the i7 will come with better ram and all so for processing itself, you will see a HUGE difference in the long run and VERY intensive programs.

However, the 5400rpm is a SERIOUS bottleneck for your system... It is like having an engine of a Bentley but your gear system is that of a toyota Camry or something.

Therefore, when loading softwares or doing things that require lot of access, you might actually see quite slower speed with the 5400rpm.

But then again, the answer to your question would be that it will 100% depend on what you will be doing.