Dell's 8600 GT vs Macbook Pro 8600 GT

Hi all,

I want to buy a new laptop and my final decision is between a Macbook Pro with a 8600M GT 128mb DDR3 and a Dell 1520 with a 8600M GT 256mb DDR2.

My question: For heavy gaming performance, WHICH IS BETTER?

 

Macbook Pro hands down. No competition. DDR3 > DDR2. End of story. (Assuming same amount of ram, and comparable cpu).

 

The pricetag itself is a large difference. OSX or Windows also is a very large factor.

 

KiwiBoy is right. You have to download Rivatuner and adjust the Dell's GPU to match the Macbook Pro, since it comes in the box downclocked to 400Mhz.

A lot of people dont like having to do that, so they are willing to spend the extra $1000.

 

And the hassle to get WinXP installed on MBP is another factor. Full acceleration only with Parallels. Does that cost extra?

 

No! a 128MB GPU will choke on almost everything before it comes close to using it's actual speed.

In other words, anything that would actually need the power of the 8600GT will choke with only 128MB, make shure you get atleast a 256mb card.

 

hey i just ordered a 128mb MBP literally 5 minutes ago and yes i have looked very extensively into this and many other things, for about 6 months. and in the benchmarks both the 128mb DDR3 and 256mb DDR2 are about the same around 2900 3dmarks06, and in real life scenarios they are also very comparable but at higher resolutions anything 1440x900+ the 256mb will be useful, but still its not going to be a vast difference. there are also a lot of other things about the choice to consider, they are specs wise very similar but at the same time vastly different.

 

Get a G1S, it had GDDR3, but isn't downclocked like the Macbook Pro's is.

 

If you don't mind the looks the G1S would be a really nice medium for you.

MBP is a very nice.. But about 1000$ more.

And another 100$ or so for windows.

If you go with a MBP you may as well bite the bullet and go 256 vram.

 

I have downclocked my 256 meg 8600m gt to represent a DDR2 gpu from dell, my friend has the 128 meg 8600m gt.

It varies, but they do end up pretty close. I feel like the 128 meg fast version is a little bit better than the 256 meg slow version. But the 8600m gt does end up being limited by 128 megs of ram.

 

Thank you all..

Hey Sheldon77, I am in the same situation as you were before buying the MBP. Here are the specs and prices of the two computers I must decide on:

MBP: $ 2,000:

* 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
* 1440 x 900 resolution
* 2GB memory
* 120GB 5200 rpm
* 8x double-layer SuperDrive
* NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics with 128MB SDRAM DDR3

Dell 1520: $ 1,700

Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB/4MB cache)
Genuine Windows Vista® Home Premium Edition
High Resolution, glossy widescreen 15.4 inch display (1440x900)
256MB NVIDIA® GeForce® 8600M GT DDR2
2GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 at 667MHz
160G 7200RPM SATA HDD
CD / DVD writer (DVD+/-RW Drive)
Intel® 3945 802.11a/g Mini-card
Integrated 2.0M Pixel Webcam
Integrated Sound Blaster® Audigy™HD Software Edition


WHICH ONE WOULD YOU GUYS CHOOSE, CONSIDERING:

You like games.
You care a little about the looks (laptop design) and sizes.
You don't care about the price difference.
You are willing to start using Mac OSX for the first time.

I appreciate your comments and suggestions!

 

Both are pretty close in games. Tie.

The macbook pro looks much sleeker and is smaller. Winner: macbook pro

Price Difference: Winner: Dell (but you don't care)

Willing to use mac osx: Winner: None.

If you specifically wanted to try out mac os x, that would be a point for the macbook pro. But if you are just going to suffer through it then that might be a point for dell.

So if you want windows, then its a tie overall for design vs primary operating system.

if you want os x, then the macbook pro wins on both design and operating system.