Primate Labs Blog

Do you think you'll be able to add benchmarks for the CTO 2.8ghz MBP?

MacBook a compelling machine for people looking for a smaller MacBook Pro.

except that Firewire is MIA

I would expect the 2.6GHz to be faster than the 2.53GHz processors, but was quite surprised to see the other results. I wonder if snow leopard will improve this or if this is purely a matter of chipset hardware.

The data show the big dilemma I am faced with: sell my early 2008 MBP 2.4Ghz for a new MB 2.4Ghz. The performance is near or better than my notebook that cost $900 more when new! With all the new features on top of this, it looks like my MBP is going on eBay stat!

I'm quite disappointed that Apple choose the more power hungry T9400 instead of the T9500 for their 2.53GHz chip. I wonder how well the 2.8GHz performs though.

processor performance is virtually unchanged in the new MacBooks

Integer performance is about the same but the new non-pros show clear improvements in the other benchmarks - ~5% increase for FP and streaming despite a 5% cut in clock speed for the entry machine. I would guess that the extra memory bandwidth is enough to stop the integrated graphics disrupting processor memory access during normal* usage.

*Non-gaming, it would be interesting to see how processor performance varies with graphics workload.

Firewire is overrated. Get over it.

They'll rev the MacBook at MacWorld 2009 and put FW800 in it.... won't they?
tear trickles down cheek
sniff, sniff

I would have liked to see comparisons of older MBPs (2006, 2007). These are models a lot people use that are considering upgrades to the Late 2008 release.

What this doesn't point out, is that the Late 2008 2.0 Ghz MacBook should be compared to the Early 2008 2.4Ghz MacBook, since they both shared the same price point of $1299.

When you look at it this way, you see a 300 - 500 point difference, with the older model besting the newer model.

So in essence, you're getting a slower computer at the same price because it's got a pretty new look.

I got the new macbook in last night, the biggest improvement is that is runs way cooler than than my old white case macbook. That is big plus, a laptop you can really use on your lap!

Good luck trying to sell your MacBook Pro Michael. I just bought a discontinued brand new 2.4 GHz MacBook Pro for less than the new 2.4 GHz MacBook that was released this week. I may not have the sturdier unibody, but now I get a wider screen, and best of all I get a FireWire 400 and and a FireWire 800 port! :)

I am faced with a dilema too, I could either get the new 2.4GHz MB or early 2008 MBP refurbished for the same price... new MB has that beautiful design and equal or better performance with processor and memory, MBP has twice the graphics memory in a dedicated GPU... and a bigger screen... I would love to hear your opinions???

I see no reason to upgrade to the new model. Early 2008 model will be a worthy upgrade at 2/3rds of the price.

the new books & pros are looking great, but where are 3.06ghz ?!

with the possibility using both graphiccards simultanosly ? (in the mbp)

the decision is easier for me. mine is gen1 mbp. it runs hot, is so much slower than my ex-g/f's model from last year.

the pain is that next year will be significant gains w/ nehalem.

@ James

Here is run of Geekbench 2 on my Late 2006 MBP 2.16Ghz (15 in) model.

http://browse.geekbench.ca/geekbench2/view/82092

Here is a bench of a Late 2007 MBP 2.33Ghz (17 in) model.

http://browse.geekbench.ca/geekbench2/view/82083

Excuse me, the Late 2006 MBP 2.33Ghz (17 in) model.

Oops! Sorry, I misread the specs! Sorry guys.

Great information.

I sold my Early 2008 MBP 2 days before the announcement (at a great price). But I was very disappointed by the glossy screen of the new models. (I may get over it once I try them...)

I bought the same MBP I had before (NEW!) for 400 bucks LESS than I sold mine second hand a few days before. So be quick to sell your gear as it will keep on dropping fast !

Reading this data makes me believe I made the right choice, but it's funny to see how the new models became great gaming systems.

Maybe they deserve the be called PRO after all, for Pro-gamer.......

But as a photographer, the Early MBP does just great.

I bought the new MB (2.4Ghz/2GB/Backlit keyboard) yesterday. After EPP and tax, it came to $1600. This is my first Mac. I have a Lenovo T61 (14.1/2.4Ghz/2GB) running XP. I cannot see a size difference in the screen, but the macbook is lighter and immensely faster. Boots up and shuts down so much faster than windows. Launches applications atleast 3 times faster. It took a few minutes to get used to the new trackpad (specially converting tap to a click and figuring out how to drag sliders) and the keyboard layout; once done the mac OS felt like second nature. I agree it feels cooler on the lap, almost half the thickness of my T61. More importantly, it has infinite sex appeal.

I was very upset on Tuesday that Steve increased the price of the 2.4Ghz MB, instead of reducing the price as everyone and I was hoping. Later that evening Steve spoke to me (I watched the keynote presentation) and told me that it would have cost me $700 more if I were to buy the same class of machine (MBP, aluminum, LED-backlit etc) on Monday. Needless to say, I was sold.

Its not discussed here, but I heard the battery life is shorter than the early 2008 MB. My home laptop hardly leaves home; so battery life is not an issue for me.

The 2.4Ghz version of both the MacBook and MacBook Pro seem to be dead even on performance.

Considering the 2.4Ghz Mac Book now has an illuminated keyboard and supports extended monitoring, I am having a tough time justifying a MacBook Pro 2.4 Ghz over the MacBook.

Johnny

Well what would be expected when you ship essentially the same processors (slower in some cases) and use lower latency DDR3? At least performance isn't lower across the board. They've been able to lower power consumption and make them a little thinner whilst keeping the performance relatively static. Of course what this test misses is graphics performance, which will be higher across the board. But for day to day use, not a major change. This is why I'd wait for Snow Leopard to drop and then buy the latest MacBook then, which may have a similar architecture than now, but at least will likely have better specs or free upgrades for the same price.

Any improvement over an early 06' macbook?!?!?

I would love to see those benchmarks! Anyways, i'm selling my 1st gen MB and getting this sucker! It can actually use 4gb of ram, instead of 2 which is one of the most important reasons i'm upgrading!

You have the current MBP as a T9400 at 2.53 Ghz. Isn't it a P9500?

i really enjoyed your interesting article

thanks john

like a few other posters, i'm wondering whether to keep my late 2007 black macbook (with 4MB of L2 cache) a little longer?
ESPECIALLY as the prices (which ever way you wanna look at it) have gone UP!!! : (

cordial regards to all

roberto

Thanks Ivan for the data on the 2006 performance comparison.

I bought the early 2008 MacBook Pro 11 days before the announcement, and the day after the announcement got my $400 refund. On the 3rd we all knew that new Apple laptops were coming on the 14th, and I had a very strong suspicion (from the leaked photos) that they would be glossy-only. For that reason alone, I had to have the older model.

Now that the new ones are out, I am even happier with my $1600 MacBook Pro. This is the fastest and nicest laptop I've ever owned. Yes, the new one is sexier, but mine has a nicer keyboard, a much nicer (matte) screen, is just about as fast and has long since had the bugs exorcised (hopefully the nVidia graphics defect doesn't bite me).

It's good to know that the early 2008 MacBook Pro can still be considered state-of-the-art. In fact I have just bought one on sale because in my opinion the nice features of the new generation (solid body, new trackpad) do not outbalance the setbacks (glossy screen, reduced battery capacity).

No doubt the whole performance can't be illustrated by a few benchmark results as the processor is not the only player in the game. Move to NVIDIA boosts the graphics processing and that's where the performance relies in comparison to predecessors.

Just bought a new early-2008 15" MBPro 2.4 GHz for $1450 (after rebate, inc shipping and taxes) on Amazon. Going to sell my White 13" MacBook 2.2 GHz to offset the cost.

Why not the new model?

Firewire for me is a big deal still. I've got a Firewire mixing board I use weekly that would run me at least $400 to replace with a USB model.

I got a matte screen. I hate glossy screens, like the one on my current MB.

Never, EVER buy Rev A hardware from Apple. Google it. Nightmare. Always a nightmare.

I personally find the new MB line to be really ugly. The black on silver is garish, and the black border around the screen seems silly to me. It screams "look at me" instead of the classic pro-but-stealh look of the "last gen" MBPros.

Here you go Brien

Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T9600 @ 2.80GHz
4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
320 GB 7200 RPM Drive
Mac OS X 10.5.5 (Build 9F2114)

Overall 3646
Integer Score 3227
Floating Point 5123
Memory Score 2721
Stream Score 1801

Did you take into consideration hard drive size and speed. I didn't notice any specs included in the tests. Which hard drives were used in the units that were tested?

I was going to by an early 2008 powerbook since they are on sale but the NVIDA 8600 chips are defective and failing in high numbers due to heat. Good luck.

Will the speed of the base model macbook be adequate? The more expensive model is faster I noticed. Possibly... coming from windows I am unfamiliar with the speed required to effectively use the OS.
Thank you for your comments.

It's hard to choose between Macbook 2.0GHZ and Macbook 2.4GHZ.Is that worth 300$ plus for the minor enhancement of CPU and harddrive capacity?I am a little comfused.Can anyone make a choice for me?Thanks,guys!

Well nice man, u did benchmark a mac book model where the main upgrade was the GPU & implementation for graphical advanced UI or rendering operations ..... and since snow leopard will use the gpu much more then the system right now ... ur benchmarks are .. lets say ...... JUST A WASTE OF TIME .....

go and benchmark some IBM oder DELL powerhorses if u want to check out CPU performance .... what a dumbass .......

I would like to see some comparisons of 2006 vs. 2008 Macbook pro

How will it compare when Open CL comes out with OSX SN? Then they might be more worth the upgrade!

The latest macbook pro (17 inch) is said be the best in performance so far. And the 8 hour battery life as well :)
[http://xploretech.blogspot.com/2009/02/macbook-pro-17-inch-is-here-is-it.html]

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