[BoulderDash]

Hi there,
Is there a website that I can use as a reference to see the difference between my current iMac:

iMac 20-inch 2.0 GHz PowerPC G5
1 GB DDR SDRAM
Mac OS X 10.4.11

And the one that I have on order:

iMac 24-inch 2.8 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
2 GB 800MHz DDR2 SDRAM
Mac OS X 10.5.2

I looked at running something like Primate Labs Geekbench, but then saw that it costs $19.99. I'm not saying that it's not worth it, but I don't feel like spending that amount just to see once what the difference may be.

Thanks!
BD

[Big Mac]

Xbench: Comprehensive Macintosh Benchmarking

[amazing]

xbench is way too variable, even the same computer will a fresh restart will vary considerably. Try cinebench

Cinebench 10.1 software download - Mac OS X - VersionTracker

[BoulderDash]

Say,
Thanks for the tips... I'll be giving them a shot after work (and also, whenever my new iMac ships).

BD

[mduell]

Xbench is poo.

Tell us what you do with your computer and we can probably find benchmarks for those apps on the same or similar hardware.

[jfpoole]

You only have to pay for Geekbench if you're interested in running Rosetta benchmarks or 64-bit benchmarks. Geekbench's 32-bit benchmarks are free.

[stukdog]

Since it looks like the original submitter had his question answered, I thought I'd ask one more question on the line of benchmarking. Are there any tools out there that can benchmark a Mac as a server? Things like mySQL performance, FTP performance, etc?

(I know there are separate tools out there, but wondered if there was one similar to GeekBench. I wanted to compare a G4 Tower to a Intel Mac mini. I know the mini performs better, just wondering by how much.)

Any thoughts?

[zerostar]

Well, Lets just say I went from:
PowerMac G5 Tower, dual 2.5GHz
4.5GB Ram, 500GB HD
Radeon 9800Pro

To My Baby:
iMac 24" C2D 4GB Ram 2.4GHz 320GB
Radeon HD 2600 Pro

and the iMac absolutely SPANKS it.

I did some testing and if you are interested I will post it later (it's at home), I did mostly video encoding, xbench & photoshop tests.
But this "consumer machine" killed my once top-of-the-line Professional Tower.

You will love the new iMac, the 24" screen is gorgeous (no problems like the 20") and the styling & speed is so slick.

I would dump 4GB in it if you are going to be pushing it hard... RAM is around $80 for 2x2GB sticks and you can sell your 1GB sticks.

[mduell]

Originally Posted by stukdog 

Since it looks like the original submitter had his question answered, I thought I'd ask one more question on the line of benchmarking. Are there any tools out there that can benchmark a Mac as a server? Things like mySQL performance, FTP performance, etc?

(I know there are separate tools out there, but wondered if there was one similar to GeekBench. I wanted to compare a G4 Tower to a Intel Mac mini. I know the mini performs better, just wondering by how much.)

What's the goal? So you can have a composite score with little to no meaning in any context?
I'm serious, not trying to be sarcastic. What is the value of such a benchmark?

[BoulderDash]

Hey there,
Thanks a ton to all for replying with such great info. Here are some thoughts on the suggestions:

Xbench: Ran well... but really fluctuated amongst three tests. Their results upload never worked, either. So, hmm?

Cinebench: so many options that I didn't quite know if I was running it correctly. I'm sure it's really great, but figuring it out (and having to input your own specs at the start [from what I could tell]) was really kind of a drag. In the end; I never knew if I ran it correctly (admittedly, I didn't want to invest more then 30 minutes on learning it, being that I wouldn't be using it more than twice) and I never got a final screen with any information to note and compare later. So, not for the casual user.

Geekbench: Ran well... and best user interface of the bunch. Also, loved the fact that I could upload my results to their website and into my own personal Profile (so that I could later upload other results of mine, saving me the trouble and archiving it). And, as stated above, I was wrong in saying that all of its versions cost... the base 32-bit benchmark version (which I used) is free**. Now whether or not I'll need the pay-for 64-bit benchmark version to test my new iMac, I'm not sure (considering myself a casual user that's not sure when that's needed).

zerostar, I hear you... and 4GB RAM in the works! Take it easy,
BD

** Primate Labs: Under the "Purchase" icon on the Geekbench product page, instead of simply stating "Geekbench costs $19.95 and you'll receive your serial number immediately after purchase"... why don't you specifically note what you noted above in this post. Just saying; my eye was drawn to that sentence on your website, and it didn't differentiate amongst your product offerings.