[harrisjamieh]

There have been SO MANY threads on the topic 'help, do I get a MB or a MBP', its crazy! Can we make some sort of sticky detailing the Pro's and cons of each machine, with information on how the better hardware in the Pro will benefit different people?

I know things like this are not usually done, but its absurd how many comparison threads there are. Either this, or start shutting down new MB/MBP threads that crop up.

[turtle777]

Good suggestion.

-t

[Lateralus]

I'd consider it if somebody were to write up a really good comparison.

[imitchellg5]

I would do it, I just helped my doctor ( ) choose between MacBook or MacBook Pro.

[harrisjamieh]

OK, so I've written one, which I've posted below. If anyone sees any changes/additions that need to be made, just post them here, and we can make the post as good as possible before putting it up as a sticky.

----

The MacBook and MacBook Pro's have quite a lot in common, yet there is a substantial price difference between the two Apple portables. The idea of this sticky is to help people, who are in the market for an Apple notebook, to decide which machine is best for them.

Firstly, these are features that both machines have in common, and hence will not affect your decision.

MagSafe power connection
FireWire 400
Optical audio in/out
Front Row
iSight camera
Gigabit ethernet
Airport Extreme & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR

667Mhz Front side bus
DDR2 PC2-5300 RAM


The following features occur in the MacBook Pro only:

ATI Radeon x1600 w/128 or 256 GDDR3 Video Memory
Aluminum construction
Backlit keyboard
Larger screen & larger choice of display sizes
Choice of Matte/Glossy display finish
SuperDrive as standard
Full DVI output with Dual Link support
2.0 Ghz or 2.16 Ghz Core Duo Processors
Single SODIMM RAM, 512MB or 1GB

The following features occur in the MacBook only:

Plastic case
Choice of white or black colours
Mini DVI output up to 1920x1080
Latchless lid closeure
Intel GMA 950 graphics with 64MB shared memory
Combo or SuperDrive options
1.83 Ghz or 2.0 Ghz Core Duo Processors
Dual SODIMM RAM, 2 x 256MB


How the upgrades in the MacBook Pro will affect different users;

Graphic Designers;

Using Adobe Photoshop, users will benefit very little from the performance advantages the MacBook Pro has over the MacBook in terms of graphic performance. Photoshop does not utilize the graphics hardware anymore than does Pages or Safari. The MacBook Pro does have an advantage, being the additional screen size which will be a welcome improvement over the MacBook, as more information can be displayed on the screen at one time.

Animators;

Using software such as Apple's Motion will require a MacBook Pro, as the graphics hardware is heavily relied upon during this process.

Video Editors;

Again, video editing takes up very low graphics resources, and in terms of editing on the MacBook Pro or MacBook, very little difference will be seen. However, the MacBook Pro does offer the advantage, as it can be configured with a 7200RPM hard disk drive, which is very useful when editing footage from multiple cameras. Furthermore, the additional screen size will be a welcome improvement over the MacBook, as more information can be displayed on the screen at one time.

Gamers;

If you are a gamer, there is no choice but to pay for the MacBook Pro. It has far superior graphics technology built in, which will greatly improve game-play over what can be achieved using a MacBook.

Light users, including email, web, and word processing;

The MacBook will have no real disadvantages compared to the MacBook Pro when used in this situation, apart from the backlit keyboard on the MacBook Pro, which could be seen as a valuable feature to some whilst typing.


Aside from differences mentioned above, some users may benefit from the additional speed available to MacBook Pro users through the purchase of a machine featuring a 2.16 Ghz Core Duo processor, which provides a clock speed 0.16 Ghz higher than the 2.0 Ghz available in a MacBook.

Also, buyers of the 17" MacBook Pro will benefit from FireWire 800, an extra USB port, and a Dual Layer SuperDrive, along with the obvious benefit of extra screen size.

[tooki]

Some suggestions:

MacBook: specifically mention that it's single-link DVI, and that it supports 1920x1200 (NOT 1080!!) resolution thus precluding only 30" displays.

Make a note that while MacBooks have limited BTO hard disk options, its drive is so easy to swap out that just about anyone can do it, thus opening all drive options to MB owners.

Make a note that the RAM configurations you list are ONLY the default, and that both MB and MBP models have two user-accessible RAM slots with the same maximum capacity.

tooki

[turtle777]

It would be great if someone could post some links to websites that compare the performance, sort of like an extended reference. It would help people to decide if the performance differences are worth the money.

-t

[harrisjamieh]

The MacBook and MacBook Pro's have quite a lot in common, yet there is a substantial price difference between the two Apple portables. The idea of this sticky is to help people, who are in the market for an Apple notebook, to decide which machine is best for them.


Firstly, these are features that both machines have in common, and hence will not affect your decision.

MagSafe power connection
FireWire 400
Optical audio in/out
Front Row
iSight camera
Gigabit ethernet
Airport Extreme & Bluetooth 2.0+EDR

667Mhz Front side bus
DDR2 PC2-5300 RAM: 2 RAM slots, allowing for a supported maximum of 2GB in each machine, with a theoretical maximum of 4GB


The following features occur in the MacBook Pro only:

ATI Radeon x1600 w/128 or 256 GDDR3 Video Memory
Aluminum construction
Backlit keyboard
Larger screen & larger choice of display sizes
Choice of Matte/Glossy display finish
SuperDrive as standard
Full DVI output with Dual Link support - maximum resolution is 2560x1600, hence support for 30" Apple Cinema Display
2.0 Ghz or 2.16 Ghz Core Duo Processors
Base models come with Single SODIMM RAM, 512MB or 1GB, dependent on model
Greater Build-to-order options on Hard Disk Drives, including size and speed

The following features occur in the MacBook only:

Plastic case
Choice of white or black colours
Mini DVI output withOUT Dual Link support - maximum resolution is 1920x1200, hence support for 23" Apple Cinema Display
Latchless lid closeure
Intel GMA 950 graphics with 64MB shared memory
Combo or SuperDrive options
1.83 Ghz or 2.0 Ghz Core Duo Processors
Base models come with Dual SODIMM RAM, 2 x 256MB
User replaceable Hard Disk Drive allows drive to be swapped out at any time with minimal effort


How the upgrades in the MacBook Pro will affect different users;

Graphic Designers;

Using Adobe Photoshop, users will benefit very little from the performance advantages the MacBook Pro has over the MacBook in terms of graphic performance. Photoshop does not utilize the graphics hardware anymore than does Pages or Safari. The MacBook Pro does have an advantage, being the additional screen size which will be a welcome improvement over the MacBook, as more information can be displayed on the screen at one time.

Animators;

Using software such as Apple's Motion will require a MacBook Pro, as the graphics hardware is heavily relied upon during this process.

Video Editors;

Again, video editing takes up very low graphics resources, and in terms of editing on the MacBook Pro or MacBook, very little difference will be seen. However, the MacBook Pro does offer the advantage, as it can be configured with a 7200RPM hard disk drive, which is very useful when editing footage from multiple cameras. Furthermore, the additional screen size will be a welcome improvement over the MacBook, as more information can be displayed on the screen at one time.

Gamers;

If you are a gamer, there is no choice but to pay for the MacBook Pro. It has far superior graphics technology built in, which will greatly improve game-play over what can be achieved using a MacBook.

Light users, including email, web, and word processing;

The MacBook will have no real disadvantages compared to the MacBook Pro when used in this situation, apart from the backlit keyboard on the MacBook Pro, which could be seen as a valuable feature to some whilst typing.


Aside from differences mentioned above, some users may benefit from the additional speed available to MacBook Pro users through the purchase of a machine featuring a 2.16 Ghz Core Duo processor, which provides a clock speed 0.16 Ghz higher than the 2.0 Ghz available in a MacBook.

Also, buyers of the 17" MacBook Pro will benefit from FireWire 800, an extra USB port, and a Dual Layer SuperDrive, along with the obvious benefit of extra screen size.

The following links will provide more information on performance differences between the MacBook & MacBook Pro:

Macworld: First Look: MacBook benchmarks in black and white

http://arstechnica.com/reviews/hardware/macbook.ars/5

[harrisjamieh]

so, are we gunna do this..?