#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 upgrade
#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 full
#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 pro
#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 software

If gaming on a Mac is your goal, you still have to pay a disproportionate amount compared with a Windows desktop with the same level of 3D performance.

#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 upgrade

Yes, you can purchase a faster 3D card from Apple, but you'd have to pay a minimum of $2,699 to upgrade even the less expensive four-core Mac Pro.

#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 pro

But our Call of Duty 4 time-demo tests ran at 1,680x1,050 and 4x anti-aliasing, both relatively forgiving settings, and the new Mac Pro was unable to hit an even 30 frames per second. Yes, the 512MB GeForce GT 120 card provides a marked improvement in 3D performance compared with the older Mac Pros. The gaming prospects of our Mac Pro review unit are less exciting.

Interestingly, we saw little difference between our 4GB and 8GB test results, but since we have the scores, we might as well share what we found. Thus, we tested the older system with 4GB and 8GB to account for both higher and lower memory allotments in relation to the new 6GB system. The older model, on the other hand, uses dual-channel DDR2 memory, and so it works fastest in multiples of two.

#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 full

Because the new model's triple-channel memory needs to work in groups of three to take advantage of its full 1,066MHz bandwidth, we kept our review unit with its default 6GB of DDR3 RAM. You also get a 640GB hard drive this time around, double the previous model's standard option.Д«efore we get into our performance tests we should point out that our primary comparison for our eight-core default spec Mac Pro is the eight-core model from the previous generation. Aside from the processing and memory, Apple has also added a 512MB Nvidia GeForce GT 120 graphics card to the new Mac Pro's baseline spec, which amounts to a faster GPU and twice the graphics memory as the older ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT default card. Hyper-Threading can simulate more processing threads on the CPU, for up to 16 threads in total on our eight-core Mac Pro.

With Nehalem comes a few technology upgrades, specifically support for DDR3 memory and the return of Hyper-Threading Technology from the days of Intel's Pentium 4 chips. As with the older Mac Pro, the new model comes in either single-chip quad-core or dual-chip eight-core configurations, but Apple has now upgraded to Intel's Xeon 5500 chips, based on the Nehalem core shared by Intel's Core i7 consumer desktop chips. From the last model, Apple has updated the Mac Pro's CPU, memory, and graphics card. The physical changes to the Mac Pro out of the way, we can now focus on the technology updates.

It's a simple solution to a problem you will only encounter when you add or remove an expansion card, but given the price of the Mac Pro especially, we appreciate that the rod mechanism makes card upgrades that much easier. Rather than relying on the various annoying retainer tabs common to PCI Express graphics slots on PC motherboards, Apple uses a single metal rod that spans across all four expansion slots to hold its cards in place. In addition, the expansion card slots, and the CPUs and memory have also received improved design elements. Apple has preserved the cable-free hard-drive interface we came to love in the older Mac Pro here in the new model, and indeed we've seen numerous Windows vendors imitate this design in the two years since its debut. The optical drives and power supply are concealed behind pull-out metal drawers, and below sits the familiar row of four removable hard-drive trays. The interior is segmented into distinct zones for the various hardware components.

#Apple mac pro desktop 2009 software

Inside the Mac Pro, Apple highlights the benefits of building products within its own hardware and software ecosystem. The Mac Pro features four easy-to-remove hard-drive brackets.