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Copy 60 MB Folder
The copy folder test not only stresses drive performance but also takes advantage of faster processing capability & caching schemes. Copy 128 MB File
In the single file test the the processor & caching capability of the machine is less of a factor. As you can see, one area where portables have a lot of ground to make up, when compared to desktop computers, is in the area of drive performance Import QuickTime DV Into iMovie
In this test only 55% of the processing power of the Dual GHz Tower was being used, while 100% of the PowerBook's processor was saturated with data. This is good news if you want to do other chores with your Tower while you import that 50 GB movie. It is bad new if you don't. There is some bottleneck in the process that keeps the dual processor machine from performing up to its potential .. wasting valuable processing capacity. Perhaps the drive is not feeding data quickly enough to the processor or there is some limiting factor in the software itself. Burn CD
CD burning only uses a fraction of the processor
to get the work done. In the case of the 12 inch PowerBook,
only 15% of the processor was being utilized. The 15 inch PowerBook only used 5% of the computer processing capability.
Let 1000 Windows Bloom
Let 1K Windows Bloom is a simple carbon application that opens and closes 1,000 windows. This gauges how fast screen redraws are taking place. The 12 inch notebook is probably hurt here because of the lack of a L3 cache. Large Document & Database Type TestsMicrosoft Office X Word Macro
A Macro (series of complex actions) was run in Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet program. Excel is part of Office X Microsoft Office X Excel Macro
A Macro (series of complex actions) was run in Microsoft's Excel spreadsheet program. Excel is part of Office X AppleWorks Search And Replace Test
This test takes place in a large AppleWorks document. Machines with larger chip caches do better in this test Finder File Search
Jaguar's new File Search function relies on both processor and drive performance
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| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 69% | 61% |
BareFeats Photoshop Test Suite - mimics a production type workflow in Photoshop. The PowerBooks are fairly evenly matched.
Photoshop 7 - AltiVec Tests
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 57% | 51% |
Certain of the functions of Photoshop can take special performance advantage of the G4 processor. A dual processor machine runs rings around the PowerBooks.
Photoshop 7 - Normal Tests
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 82% | 75% |
Other Photoshop functions cannot run any faster under a G4 when compared to a G3 of the same clock speed
iMovie 2 - Water Ripple Effect
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 79% | 69% |
A Ripple Effect is applied to an iMovie. This function appears to respond well to the G4 processor. It also utilizes dual processors, but again 40% of the processing power of the dual machine was left on the table. You need to plan your work so that you can soak up that extra power. Both the PowerBooks processors were maxed out.
AltiVec Fractal (Carbon)
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 43% | 43% |
The Fractal program has been highly tuned to take advantage of the G4 and is precisely the type of work that the G4 was made for. It will also gobble up whatever processing capability is present. This is a good test for assessing the fundamental processing potential of each machine. Really highlights the processing advantage of a dual processor machine
Encoding/Decoding Tests
QuickTime Sorenson Encode
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 83% | 77% |
A Sorenson encode compresses a QuickTime movie for streaming on the Web. The version of Sorenson which is incorporated into QuickTime does not take advantage of dual processors, though it is our understanding the the professional version does
QuickTime Convert To DV Stream
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 72% | 64% |
Converting QuickTime movies to DV allows you to import them into iMovie.
iTunes 3 - MP3 Encode From CD
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 55% | 53% |
During the encode 65% of the processing capacity of the dual processor machine was used. On the PowerBooks 100% was used. All three machines read CDs at up to 24X
StuffIt 6.5 Expand
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 82% | 72% |
Multitasking
iTunes MP3 Encode + AppleWorks Search & Replace + Finder Copy (Multitasking)
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 63% | 48% |
MP3 Encode, AppleWorks search & replace and folder copy are all carried out at the same time. In a production type environment the Dual Processor Towers make a lot of sense ... if you do some planning.
QuickTime Encode + Fractal (Multitasking)
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 68% | 64% |
QuickTime Sorenson encode and Fractal render are both carried out at the same time.
QuickTime DV + iMovie Ripple (Multitasking)
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 52% | 47% |
QuickTime DV Encode and iMovie Ripple Effect are performed at the same time. Dual Processor machines rule the day
MP3 Encode + Photoshop Normal + Word Macro (Multitasking)
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Scores as percentage of Power Mac Dual G4/1 GHz | 100% | 47% | 37% |
The MP3 Encode, Photoshop Normal and Word Macro tests are all run at the same time
Gaming
Giants Highest Frame Rates
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Actual Frame Rates | 105 | 55 | 39 |
Giants Average Frame Rates
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Actual Frame Rates | 45 | 21.6 | 18.3 |
Giants Lowest Frame Rates
| Machine | Power Mac Dual 1 GHz | PowerBook G4/867 15 Inch | PowerBook G4/867 12 Inch |
| Actual Frame Rates | 21 | 11 | 9.3 |
For very demanding games you can't beat a Tower .. at least not yet
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