MacbookPro 17 end 2006 compared to Macbook Pro 13

Question

Hello
How is the MacbookPro 13 / 2,4 / Geforce 320M compared to the Macbook Pro 17 / 2,33 / Ati X1600XT / rev 2,1 / end 2006 ? And specially, is the graphic card really better ?
Thank you
Message was edited by: LaurentR2D2

Answer 1

The Core 2 Duo CPUs are essentially the same, though the 13" uses faster RAM and can use more of it (up to 8GB as opposed to 3GB). The GPUs have the same external monitor resolution capability (up to 2560 x 1600), but the 17" has a built-in dual-link DVI output. To drive a monitor larger than 2048 x 1560 with the 13" you'd need to buy an expensive mini-displayport to dual-link DVI adapter. As for which GPU is faster, I can't speak to that. Your 17" has 256MB of dedicated VRAM; the 13" GPU uses 256MB of the main RAM.
Your 17" has much greater expandability provided by its ExpressCard slot, and it has two FireWire and three USB ports instead of one FW and two USB in the 13". The 17" has audio in and audio out ports instead of the combined one in the 13," which can only be used as an input or an output, not both at the same time. The 13" would give you longer battery life, all other things being equal. Of course the 17" has a much larger, higher-resolution screen, so unless you're using an external monitor most of the time, the 13" screen will feel very small and restrictive to you.
Message was edited by: eww