Low End Mac Reader Specials
TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com
OWC: We Make DIY Upgrading Easy! Maximize your Apple MacBook / MacBook Pro. Up to 8.0GB Memory, up to 1.0TB HD & More. Easy Guide + Free, Detailed Installation Videos. Click here
Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how
to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full
Tilt Poker Mac.
Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.
Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.
The Webb Chronicles
Picking a Power Mac G4: How Much Mac Do You Need?
- 2006.03.22
Popularity: ![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
![]()
Remember when laptop computers were so expensive and underpowered that a desktop was the best thing you could buy?
Up until recently this was the case with me. My best machine was always my desktop, and a laptop was just an extra toy to take to school to play an occasional Age of Empires round.
Today my PowerBook is my main machine, capable of doing anything I need with room to expand its horizons if needed. My desktops have become backup servers, Solaris/Linux leaning tools, and media center computers for watching movies and playing games.
The trend towards portable power is progressing with no signs of slowing down. However, people like me still have a need for a desktop from time to time - but not for everyday computing.
Apple offers only three desktop machines; the Mac mini, the iMac, and the Power Mac (to be replaced by an Intel-based counterpart later this year).
The mini is nice for the average consumer, but it lacks the expandability that I crave, while the Power Mac is just too expensive. A midrange system, the iMac, is very capable, but also lacks expansion slots like the mini.
I needed something capable of
running the iLife '06 suite as well as Final Cut (in the near future),
graphic software, FTP server, remote access server, and with room for a
SCSI RAID array, but I didn't want to shell out another $2,000 for
something way more powerful than I needed. So I decided to look to
yesteryear's Macs for a solution.
The Power Mac G4 Gigabit Ethernet was the first commercially available PC with built-in 10/100/1000 (gigabit) ethernet, and it sports the beautiful G4 case design. I managed to snag one for under $200 with minimal hardware specs: 400 MHz G4, 128 MB RAM, 10 GB hard drive, DVD-RAM drive (useless in today's world, unfortunately), and a built in Zip 100 drive.
My reasons for choosing this system were simple:
- CPU expandability - For a moderate $150-400 I can easily upgrade the CPU to speeds up 1.8 GHz with dual processors
- Cheap memory - I was able to reuse RAM I had laying around the house, maxing it out at 2 GB.
- PCI and AGP expandability - There are tons of options available for expandability (video, sound, SCSI, USB 2.0, etc.)
- Case space - The case can accommodate up to six internal hard drives with appropriate mounting brackets and power supplies. I've installed an 80 GB boot drive, a secondary 120 GB internal drive, and an external 200 GB USB 2.0 drive.
An important note about this model: The IDE controller does not support 48-bit addressing, meaning that drives over 128 GB aren't supported (see How Big a Hard Drive Can I Put in My iMac, eMac, or Power Mac?). The system may detect a larger drive, but once the initial 128 GB are filled, you may experience anomalies.
There are three ways of getting around this: Find the elusive third party utility that allows for 48-bit addressing in these models, purchase a PCI IDE controller that supports 48-bit addressing, or set up a SCSI hard drive, since SCSI has no 128 GB barrier.
The advantage of the PCI Cards (IDE and SCSI) is that you can gain a speed boost if you purchase an ATA100 or 133 card or a SCSI160 setup.
Needless to say, Tiger runs smooth with 2 GB of RAM, the only glitches coming in when using Dashboard with the underpowered 16 MB ATI Rage video card in this Power Mac. iMovie and iPhoto also run relatively well considering the six-year-old hardware it's running on.
Final Cut Express is an issue, however, since it requires more than a 400 MHz G4 (Apple lists 500 MHz as the minimum). However, this can be fixed in time with the above-mentioned CPU upgrade.
FTP services haven't been tested as of yet, but I don't foresee any issues, and thanks to an external 200 GB USB 2.0 hard drive, backing up my precious iTunes library from my PowerBook is very easy.
At a total cost of less then $300, this system is a perfect companion to my trusty PowerBook, and it cost far less than a Mac mini. It also has the potential of being more powerful when necessary.
How much Mac do your really need?
Recent PowerBook Beat articles
- Clamshell iBook still a fun and practical notebook, 08.11. "Granted, this iBook isn't a speed demon in any way, but it's amazing what a 7-year-old Apple notebook can do."
- Italy, a virtually untapped market ready for the Mac, 07.27. iPods are everywhere in Italy, but finding a Mac in use or a dealer that sells them is another story.
- The PowerBook 3400: Surprisingly useful and spry with the Classic Mac OS, 05.16. The last PowerBook before the G3, the PB 3400 actually outperforms the "MainStreet" PowerBook G3 - and it's generally available for under US$100.
- Picking a Power Mac G4: How much Mac do you need?, 03.22. Today's laptop computers can be great primary computers, but sometimes you need things only a desktop model can offer. A used Power Mac G4 can be a good choice.
- More in the PowerBook Beat index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: Power Mac 4400, Nov. 1996 - Apple does cheap to compete with clones - and nobody is impressed.
- Group of the Day: Puma List is for anyone using Mac OS X 10.1.
- November 7 in LEM history: 00: PowerBook Lite dreams - Our first Macs - 01: OS 9, OS X, or Linux? - 02: Xserve for the classroom - 03: Panther on slot-loading iMacs - High capacity Lombard/Pismo battery - 05: Clean keyboard residue from laptop screen with ROR - SeaMonkey - 06: Dan Bricklin, inventor of the spreadsheet - Turn any Mac into a gameshow buzzer - 07: The transforming PowerBook 1400 - PowerBook 540 on Compact Flash
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Quad-Core CPU Makes Sense in MacBook Pro, OS X 10.6 Causing Overheating, Overseas Power, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.06. Also Late 2009 MacBook reviewed, how to add RAM to new MacBook, 18.4in Acer notebook used Intel i7, and SanDisk SSD chosen for Sony VAIO X.
- Dumping Macs for Google Apps, SSD in iMac, Late 2009 iMac Performance Problems, and More, Mac News Review, 11.06. /newsrev/09mnr/1106.html
- WiFi Paranoia, iMac-O-Lantern, Magic Mouse Does Click, Free Clipboard Managers, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.05. Also strange time stamps, problem with ColorIt on Intel Mac, and the story behind OS X 10.5.4 install discs.
- IDE Is Dead; Long Live SATA!, Dan Knight, Mac Musings, 11.04. SATA has displaced parallel ATA. While IDE hard drives haven't disappeared, the best deals are in SATA hard drives.
- QuickTime X in Snow Leopard Imports, Trims, and Publishes Video Quickly and Easily, Alan Zisman, Zis Mac, 11.04. The long, slow process of importing video into iMovie to edit it, then render it to another format, is history as QuickTime X does that much more quickly.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.03. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 8-core. $2,299; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.26 8-core, $2,799; 2.93, $4,999.
- Best iPhone Deals, 11.03. New 8 GB iPhone 3G, $$99; refurb 16 GB 3GS, $149; new, $199; 32 GB, $299.
- Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.03. Used 867 MHz SperDrive, $348; 1 GHz, $499; 1.33 Combo, $298; SD, $559; 1.5 Combo, $448; SuperDrive, $589.
- Best Power Mac G3 and PCI Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used beige 300 MHz, $25; G4/366, $49; blue & white 350, $80; 400, $90; 450, $105; PCI video cards from $15; shipping additional.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.02. Used 400 MHz, $50; 733 MHz, $69; 933 MHz, $209; 1.25 GHz dual, $299.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.02. Used 2.0 GHz, $800; 2.2, $900; 2.4, $1,000; refurb 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,949; 3.06, $2,169; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
- Best Mac mini Deals, 10.30. Used 1.33 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.42, $389; 1.5, $419; 1.83 GHz Core Duo, $350; Core 2, $439; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $770; Server, $990.
- Best G4 iBook Deals, 10.30. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $225; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1 GHz, $349; 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz SuperDrive, $498.
- Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 10.30. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.5 CD, $4; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
- More deals in our archive.
About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts
Navigation
Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Video Cards
Email Lists
Favorite Sites
MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System
6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Affiliates
The Apple
Store
Mac
Connection
B&H
MacMall
TechRestore
ExperCom
Crucial
Memory
batteries.com
Advertise
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
Mac FAQ
Abandonware
Petition
Mac vs. PC Info
Mac Connection
B&H
MacMall
TechRestore
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com
