As Apple rolls out a new generation of MacBook Pros, data from the last quarter of 2010 shows that Apple shipped over 1 million MacBook Airs during that period.

The lightweight and improved 11 and 13-inch MacBook Airs were a hit with customers. Concord Securities Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo told AppleInsider that total of 1.1 million of the ultra thin notebooks were shipped during the three month period that ended in December.

These numbers by far exceeded expectations, and were 63 percent higher than what Ming had previously predicted, which was 700,000 MacBook Airs sold. The high numbers were also anticipated by AppleInsider which estimated that MacBook Airs would sell quickly to make up a third of Apple’s notebook business and would sell at a 1 to 2 ratio compared with MacBook Pro offerings. Apple announced that it had sold 2.9 million notebooks in the last quarter of 2010, so according to Ming’s figures, 40 percent of those notebooks were MacBook Airs. Apple doesn’t divulge specific sales figures for various types of notebooks for competitive reasons.

These sales numbers come a week after the launch of the new line of MacBook Pros which have been lauded for their speed thanks to the Thunderbolt boasting speeds 20 times that of USB 2.0, according to the Daily Telegraph. It also has a “unibody” design, a flawless screen, and a slightly backlit keyboard.  A Cnet review gives the MacBook Pro 4 out of 5 stars saying it has much faster CPU performance, longer battery life, one of the largest and smoothest click pads and a high resolution 720 megapixel HD webcam.

The Daily Telegraph argues that the only competition MacBook Pro could face is through the MacBook Airs which offer utralight portability at a cheaper price.