Performance difference between 32bit and 64bit Leopard/Vista

Is there a difference in performance in the between the 32-bit and the 64-bit version of Leopard and Vista? I know there are more features in 64-bit versions, but how about general speed (loading times and such)? Are the 32-bit versions slower than the 64-bit verions? If so, is it by much?

And... Time Machine is still avaliable on the 32-bit Leopard, right?

But if anyone can tell me whats on the 64-bit Leopard and not on the 32-bit, it would be greatly appreciated as well.

 

the only difference in features should be the bit (32/62) difference, otherwise they should be exactly the same. programs will only be faster if they are 64 bit, and depending if they also make use of the other cores, can be quite faster then 32bit with a single core.

 

When I was using XP 64 I did notice a bit of a difference in speed. Not much, but I've had some friends who had a nice increase in speed in some apps and games that support the 64 bit architecture.
Overall, I doubt you'll see much of a differnce though, except for a few applications. However, we'll probably see that change within 2 years when 64 bit becomes more the norm on desktops.

 

Programs aside, how about just the OS in general? Like loading the control panel, and opening files/folders and general navigation within the OS?

 

You shouldn't really notice a big difference with loading things like the Control Panel - I mean, its basically like saying will you be able to type faster because you have MS Word in 64-bit. You'll maybe only notice a speed up when working with large files.

 

With modern computers, that stuff is gonna be pretty snappy. Gone are the days of waiting 5 minutes for the control panel to open. Really, at the moment at least, 64-bit is more for high-end apps such as Mathmatica or video renderring. Everyday stuff does not benefit from 64-bit.

 

Actually, my computer now does take 5 minutes to load the control panel. I don't think it's really supposed to use Windows XP. This is why I am so paranoid now- I don't want a repeat of this with my lapotp.

 

And would there be much of a difference in Photoshopping speed if i use a 32-bit photoshop?


And... what features are in the Leopard (64-bit version) that are lacking in the 32-bit version?

 

There is no difference in features. Until Photoshop is 64-bit, you won't see a difference. Once it is you may notice a difference when working with very large files.

You have to understand that there is a lot of hype surround 64-bit. Unfortunately it is not really deserved. Average users will never know the difference. It is not like 64-bit is going to arrive and we will see this revolutionary change in computing. It really is not that big a deal.

**EDIT** There is one big advantage. It allows more RAM. 32-bit is limited to 4GB I believe. 64-bit is MUCH more than that. So in the next 5 or so years it will be necessary, but right now, for most people 4GB is probably 4x more than they need.

 

Yeah, not sure what features are missing in OS X 32 bit. hopefully not a lot.

And yeah, 32 bit processors are limited at 4 gigs, and 64 bit at 16 gigs.

On another note, the big arena for 64 bit processors are servers. Thats really it.
I know that Vista 32 will not allow native HD DVD (or was it blu-ray or both) play back. You have to get other software to allow that. Not sure if OS X will have to do that as well. I believe that came down more to copyright issues put forth by the manufacturers or something... But not really sure.

 

Actually, hallownil, I just looked it up. 32-bit supports 4GB like you said, but 64-bit supports 16 exabytes. For those intereseted it goes gigabyte, terabyte, petabyte, then exabyte. Apparantly there are artificial constraints put on the maximum. For instance the Mac Pro only supports 16GB, whereas Dell is over a workstation that will support 32GB.