That might not sound like much of a leap over my last-generation MacBook Pro. But my laptop would have been left even further in the dust if it had a 5,400-rpm hard drive in it instead of an SSD.

If you want more power than the two Core i5 chips offer, you can opt for the 2.66 GHz Core i7. The i7 can spool both cores to 3.06 GHz or, if you're maxing out just one, hit 3.33 GHz. Of course, to get that speed, you'll have to buy the $2,199 15-in. MacBook Pro or get an i7 as an option on the top-end 17-in. model. (The i7 processor would be good for something like high-definition video encoding, because it's 50% faster than the previous generation's 2.8-GHz Core 2 Duo processor, according to Apple.)

How the 15-in. MacBook Pro stacks up to a Core i5 iMac and Core 2 Duo MacBook Pro.

That kind of power is great if you're a video editor or rendering something in a 3D modeling app like Modo. If time is money, you might be able to justify the extra expense. But for most not-quite power users, the i5 should suffice. Not only is it fast and energy-efficient, but it also runs at a relatively cool 115 degrees Fahrenheit during general use. (Watching hi-def videos in full screen through iTunes kicked the temperature up to 153 degrees, but I could barely hear the cooling fans turning.)