The Value of Voodoo Video

Jonathan Ploudre
2001.12.04

For a while in the late 1990s, Voodoo was the hottest name in video cards. It popularized OpenGL and GLIDE as programming interfaces for 3D graphics used in games. Mac users always paid a premium for Voodoo cards compared to the same card for PCs. You could buy a Voodoo card, but most Mac users bought ATI cards, since ATI was Apple's main supplier.

In 2000, things started to change. Voodoo decided to provide drivers to the Mac market. You can take the PC version of the Voodoo card and flash the ROM to make it work on a Mac. All of a sudden, the price of high quality gaming dropped precipitously. Voodoo developed drivers for the Voodoo3 card, because they were preparing to release the Voodoo4 and Voodoo5 directly to the Mac market.

History intervened. Voodoo essentially went out of business. The result is that the drivers are no longer being updated, and new cards are not being developed. Voodoo is a footnote in PC gaming history.

For low-end Mac users, the Voodoo3 card is a brilliant piece of hardware. On eBay they typically go for $30. That's roughly one-third what you might pay for an equivalent amount of graphics power from ATI. It is faster than an ATI Rage 128. Although I can't do a head to head comparison, in my experience the Voodoo card offers great 3D for games like Myth II, Quake 2, or Diablo II. It has 16 MB of VRAM, so it can run just about any standard monitor at millions of colors.

The card is not for the future-oriented person. Whatever bugs are in the drivers will not be fixed. This is a discontinued product of a defunct company. It is not compatible, as far as I know, with Mac OS X. There may be glitches with certain games that won't have workarounds. Still, it is a bargain at $30. Combined with some inexpensive games that are a few years old, a PCI Power Mac can be turned into a good gaming machine.

On my Power Mac 8600, my Voodoo3 card serves three purposes. First, it has a VGA style adapter like my main monitor has. That saves my adapter for another computer. Second, it has a great 3D accelerator, so I can play an occasional game. Finally, the card enables me to use a dual monitor setup in conjunction with the 8600's built-in video. Having two monitors increases my productivity, since I can have more windows open at any one time.

If you are hoping to add a second monitor to a Power Mac that won't be running Mac OS X, take a look at a Voodoo card. You can find more reviews, tests, and compatibility for the Voodoo3 at www.mac3dfx.com. There is a database of games/computers that will give you a reference for typical frame rates for a Voodoo card with a Power Mac.

Recent Content on Low End Mac

• Anticipation: New iPods Now, New Macs Later, Kev Kitchens, Kitchens Sync, 09.05. The season of new iPods is at hand, but new Macs may wait until 2009.
• Buy a MacBook Now or Wait?, MacBook touch Patents, Samsung X360 Takes on MBA, and More, The 'Book Review, 09.05. Also 20 years of portable Macs, data backup and preservation, universal U-Charge battery charger for Mac 'Books, bargain 'Books from $150 to $2,699, and more.
• Listen to Just the Music with the V-Moda Vibe Earbuds, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 09.05. Well built, the noise canceling earbuds will let you hear all the nuances of your music without letting through background noise.
• Source of iPhone 3G Problems, Army Uses iPods as Field Translators, Gains with Business, and More, iNews Review, 09.05. Also UK bans iPhone ad as 'misleading', iPhone password easy to bypass, GM to offer radios with USB in 2009 models, weather tracking software, and more.
• Macs Gain Ground in August, Consumers Most Likely to Buy Macs, LaCie USB Speakers, and More, Mac News Review, 09.05. Also migrating Time Machine to a new drive and two new keyboards from Logitech.
• Overclocking a Mac mini Got Me Hooked on Souping Up Macs, Adam Geller, My First Mac, 09.04. Stories of hot rodding iBooks, G3 iMacs, and PCI Power Macs on the cheap.
• Apple Will Not Abandon Optical Drives, the Mac Drought, Purposeful Mac Acquisition, and More, Dan Knight, Low End Mac Mailbag, 09.04. Also Mac OS X 10.5 on a G4-upgraded Blue & White G3 and problems using a flat panel display with a Quadra 700.
• Only Leopard Runs Routine Maintenance Tasks after Startup or Waking from Sleep, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 09.04. Mac OS X 10.5 runs routine system maintenance scripts as soon as possible after starting up or waking up your Mac. Earlier versions of OS X do not do this.
• Tomorrow's Solid State Drives and Notebooks, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 09.04. Flash drives are great but have some shortcomings. Some thoughts on building better SSDs and notebooks to use them.

Latest Deals on Low End Mac

• Best iPod touch Deals, 09.05. Refurb 8 GB, $199; new, $284; refurb 16 GB, $299; new, $370; refurb 32 GB, $399; new, $453.
• Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 09.05. Used 1.83 GHz Core Duo, $999; 2.16, $1,125; new, 2.2, $1,450 after rebate; refurb 2.4, $1,699; 2.5, $1,999; 2.6 Santa Rosa, $1,849; rebates on new.
• Best iMac G4 Deals, 09.05. Used 15" 700 MHz CD-RW, $279; 800 Combo, $300; 1 GHz $390; 17" 800 MHz SD, $439; 1.25 GHz, $449; 20", $569.
• Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 09.04. Used 867 MHz Combo, no APX, $490; 1 GHz, $550; SuperDrive, $625; 1.5 GHz w/o APX, $660; w/APX, $675.
• Best Mac mini Deals, 09.04. Used 1.25 GHz G4 SD, $549; 1.42 Combo, $409; new 1.83 Core2 Combo, $569 after rebate; 2.0 SD, $769 after rebate.
• Best 17" PowerBook G4 Deals, 09.04. Used 1 GHz, $779; 1.33 GHz, $799; 1.5 GHz, $859; 1.67 GHz, $910.
• More links in our archive.