Skip to Content

Quad 3GHz Mac Pro vs Quad 2.5GHz PowerMac

Barefeats provides benchmarks comparing the Quad 3GHz Mac Pro (Xeon) vs the Quad G5 2.5GHz Power Mac (G5). This represents the new top of the line vs the old top of the line Mac.

They provide benchmarks for both non-Universal and Universal applications between the Mac Pro 3GHz, Mac Pro 2.66GHz and PowerMac G5 Quad 2.5GHz.

The top-end Mac Pro performed well compared to the Quad G5 with both Photoshop CS2 and After Effects 7.0 despite running under Rosetta emulation on the Mac Pro. Universal upgrades to these applications should provide additional performance boosts.

Meanwhile, Universal applications iMovie HD 6, Final Cut Pro 5, FileMaker Pro 8.5 and Cinebench 9.5 generally showed substantial improvements even in the 2.66GHz Mac Pro vs the 2.5GHz PowerMac.

There's no doubt that both versions of the Mac Pro are faster than the G5 Quad-Core running Universal Binary apps like iMovie, Final Cut Pro, etc. As you can see from the four UB tests we ran in this session, the Mac Pro 2.66GHz was as much as 62% faster than the Quad-Core G5/2.5GHz. The Mac Pro 3.0GHz was as much as 85% faster.

Update: AnandTech provides their review/benchmarks of the Mac Pro.

Related Roundup: Mac Pro
Buyer's Guide: Mac Pro (Caution)
Related Forum: Mac Pro

Popular Stories

Apple Event Logo

Apple Released Seven New Products Today

Wednesday March 11, 2026 7:05 am PDT by
Starting today, the seven new Apple products that were announced last week are available at Apple Stores and beginning to arrive to customers. The colorful MacBook Neo and all of the other new products are on display at most Apple Store locations around the world starting today. Apple Stores have inventory of the new products for both walk-in customers and Apple Store pickup, but...
iOS 27 Mock Quick

10+ New Features Coming in iOS 27

Friday March 13, 2026 2:13 pm PDT by
We're only three months away from Apple's WWDC 2026 event, which will see the company unveil iOS 27. With the fully revamped version of Siri possibly delayed until September, iOS 27 is shaping up to be the update we wanted iOS 26 to be. There will be new Apple Intelligence features, updates for the iPhone Fold, and more, with the latest rumors summarized below. Foldable iPhone Features...
Apple 50 Years of Thinking Different

Apple Announces 50th Anniversary Plans

Thursday March 12, 2026 6:10 am PDT by
Apple today announced that it will celebrate the company's 50th anniversary over the coming weeks, but it has yet to reveal any specific plans. Apple was founded on April 1, 1976, so the company will turn 50 on April 1, 2026. "While Apple is known for looking forward, this milestone offers a special moment to reflect on the journey that has brought the company here, to celebrate the...