13. Discussion Of 32 Bit Performance Test v6 On Windows XP Pro X32 AMD ML-42 And Windows XP Pro X32 Intel Pentium M 760

First let me make one thing perfectly clear. I am not trying to start any religious wars about AMD vs. Intel. I chose the Aspire 9500 only because it was the closest thing I could find to the MSI MS-1029 in configuration. You should draw absolutely no manufacturer-based conclusions about the test results.

Look at the composite scores at the bottom of the chart. As you can see, the results are a bit mixed, but factoring in the Aspire 9500's slower processor, more and faster memory and SATA HDD the few differences are minimal. Based on this admittedly not perfect test it is reasonable to say that there is little to no advantage in running 32 bit Windows on a notebook with a 64 bit processor.

Conclusions

This article is about two seemingly different issues. The first issue focuses on MSI's MS-1029 64 bit barebones notebook computer and the advisability of purchasing one. The second issue has to do with the advantages and disadvantages of running 64 bit and 32 bit applications on the 64 and 32 bit versions of Windows XP Pro. In reality the two subjects are closely intertwined.

The MS-1029 is a very nice computer that you can customize to your own needs and budget. However, you need to ask yourself if the time is ripe for you to own a 64 bit notebook. In making your decision, consider the short supply of 64 bit applications, the higher power demands and heat output of 64 bit CPUs, the limited memory capacity of most notebooks including the MS-1029 and the lack of even the most basic of 64 bit utilities for such things as touchpad management and screen brightness and volume settings.

Because 64 bit applications are rare, if you use Windows XP Pro X64 you'll be running most apps in the WOW64 32 bit emulator. Now consider the relatively small differences in performance between a 32 bit application running under WOW64 and the same application running on a 64 bit processor under Windows XP Pro X32 or on a regular 32 bit processor like Intel's M 760. It's hard not to ask the question, "Do I really need a 64 bit processor in my notebook today?"

Bottom Line: Unless you plan to keep your notebook long enough for 64 bit apps to flood the market and you've got the bucks to buy all new apps and you're willing to put up with the limitations of 64 bit computing mentioned above at least for a while, stay with what you've got or go for a 32 bit notebook with a high powered CPU, more memory and a fast disk drive.

If you want to build your own 32 bit notebook using a barebones system, take a look at MSI's very nice MS-1016, MS-1022, MS-1035 and MS-1047 notebooks. Some models come with serious GPUs and can support Intel Pentium M CPUs up to 2.26 GHz.

MSI's MS-1022 barebones 32 bit notebook system supports Pentium M processors up to 2.26 GHz and has an NVIDIA GeForce Go 6200 with 128 MB VRAM.