Apple MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2006) vs Apple MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008)

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MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2006) compared with MacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008)

	AppleMacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2006)	AppleMacBook Pro (17-inch, Early 2008)
Overview
Released
Released	May 2006	February 2008
Display
Screen size
Screen size	17″	17″
Resolution
Resolution	1680 × 1050	1680 × 1050
Brightness
Brightness	300 nits	–
Touchscreen
Touchscreen	No	No
Display type
Display type	Widescreen TFT display; matte at launch, with glossy option added later in May 2006 with millions of colours. Exact panel technology and refresh rate unpublished in the maker sources read.	17-inch TFT widescreen display at 1680 × 1050, matte or glossy. Optional 1920 × 1200 LED-backlit display; exact panel technology and refresh rate unpublished.
Performance
Processor
Processor	Intel Core Duo 2.16 GHz (MacBook Pro Early 2006)	Intel Core 2 Duo 2.5 GHz (MacBook Pro Early 2008) or Intel Core 2 Duo 2.6 GHz (MacBook Pro Early 2008)
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	2
Graphics
Graphics	ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 (256 MB GDDR3)	NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT (512 MB GDDR3)
Memory
Memory	1 GB or 2 GB	2 GB or 4 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	100 GB to 120 GB	200 GB to 300 GB (better)
CPU
CPU	Dual-core Intel Core Duo at 2.16 GHz, with 2 MB shared L2 cache and 667 MHz frontside bus. The record retains the maker’s clock and model rather than copying an unverified retail-chip specification.	Intel Core 2 Duo at 2.5 GHz or optional 2.6 GHz, with 6 MB shared L2 cache and an 800 MHz frontside bus.
GPU
GPU	ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 (256 MB GDDR3)	NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT with 512 MB GDDR3 video memory
Memory type
Memory type	667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM in two SO-DIMM slots; 1 GB standard, configurable to 2 GB.	2 GB of 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM, configurable to 4 GB, in two SO-DIMM slots.
Storage type
Storage type	120 GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard drive, configurable to 100 GB at 7200 rpm. 8× SuperDrive with 2.4× double-layer DVD+R writing.	250 GB 5400-rpm Serial ATA hard drive; optional 200 GB 7200-rpm or 300 GB 4200-rpm drive with either processor. 8× SuperDrive with double-layer DVD writing.
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 5.5 hours	–
Battery capacity
Battery capacity	68 Wh	–
Weight
Weight	3.1 kg	–
Thickness
Thickness	25.9 mm	–
Width × depth
Width × depth	392 × 265 mm	–
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Removable 68 Wh lithium-polymer battery; up to 5.5 hours in Apple’s test. Maker reference weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process.	Removable lithium-polymer battery. Capacity, life, metric weight and dimensions are omitted because the surviving maker launch notice and exact manual do not publish them. Macworld describes the model as 6.6 lb; this original unit is retained without conversion.
Charger
Charger	85 W MagSafe Power Adapter	85 W MagSafe Power Adapter
Materials
Materials	Aluminium enclosure	Aluminium enclosure
Colours
Colours	Silver	Silver
Connections
Ports
Ports	3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack, MagSafe	3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack, MagSafe
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	AirPort Extreme 802.11g	AirPort Extreme 802.11n; compatible with 802.11a/b/g
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	2.0 + EDR	2.1 + EDR
Webcam
Webcam	Built-in iSight camera	Built-in iSight camera
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Port detail
Port detail	3 USB 2.0 ports, FireWire 400 and FireWire 800, Gigabit Ethernet, MagSafe, dual-link DVI, ExpressCard/34, separate combined optical digital audio input/line input and combined optical digital audio output/headphone output, and Kensington lock slot. VGA adapter included; composite/S-video adapter optional.	Three USB 2.0 ports, FireWire 400 and FireWire 800, Gigabit Ethernet, MagSafe, dual-link DVI, ExpressCard/34, separate combined optical digital audio input/line input and optical digital audio output/headphone output.
External displays
External displays	One external display up to 2560 × 1600 alongside the built-in screen through dual-link DVI; included VGA adapter, optional composite/S-video adapter.	Supports an external display up to 2560 × 1600 pixels alongside the built-in display. DVI-to-VGA adapter included; other display adapters optional.
Keyboard
Keyboard	Full-size backlit keyboard with ambient light sensors, 78 US or 79 ISO keys, 12 function keys and four arrow keys; embedded numeric keypad	Backlit keyboard with ambient light sensors and revised function keys; the previous embedded numeric keypad is removed.
Trackpad
Trackpad	Scrolling trackpad with a separate button; two-finger scrolling, tap, double-tap and drag.	Multi-Touch trackpad supports two-finger scrolling, pinch, rotate and three-finger swipe.
Speakers
Speakers	Built-in stereo speakers	Built-in stereo speakers
Microphones
Microphones	Built-in omnidirectional microphone under the left speaker grille	Omnidirectional microphone beneath the left speaker grille.
In the box
In the box	MacBook Pro, removable battery, 85 W MagSafe Power Adapter with AC wall plug and power cord, install/restore DVDs and documentation. Apple Remote and DVI-to-VGA adapter included. Mac OS X 10.4.6 Tiger and iLife ’06. Apple’s 24 April 2006 notice states shipping the following week, supporting May month precision without an exact delivery day. The optional glossy screen was introduced later in May and is not treated as an original launch configuration.	MacBook Pro, removable battery, 85 W MagSafe Power Adapter with AC wall plug and power cord, DVI-to-VGA adapter, install/restore DVDs and documentation. Mac OS X Leopard and iLife ’08; Apple Remote sold separately. The retired SP4 spec sheet is unavailable, so maker launch notice and exact early-2008 user guide supply core specifications.