Feeler: Power Mac G5 2004 2x1.8GHz

[BlueRevolution]

I am trying to figure out if it would be feasable for me to sell my Power Mac to be replaced with a MacBook Pro. If I decide to do so this will turn into a firm sale in a few months, once I receive the MBP.

2x1.8 GHz G5
512 MB DDR 3200
80 GB SATA HD
ATI Radeon 9600 XT 128 MB
Combo drive
Airport Extreme card (upgrade)
OS X 10.4 (upgrade)

The G5 shipped in July 2004 and has served me well. However, I am moving across the country this summer and am not sure if I want to bring it along through who knows how many moves.

If I was planning to keep it I would upgrade the RAM and possibly the graphics card, but the processors are still blazing fast and have never left me wishing I'd gone for the 2x2.0 GHz model at the time.

The case is in good condition, and the only hardware problem I have is with one of the temperature sensors which reads too high most of the time, leaving its fan to run faster than normal and generate a fair amount of fan noise, nothing unseemly but certainly noticeable. The sensor never reads below what it should and is unlikely to cause damage if left unrepaired. I have not asked for a quote for fixing this problem.

It will ship with the original box and all contents except for the Apple mouse, which I gave to my sister. It will also include the documentation and driver CD which accompanied the Airport Extreme card, and the box and all DVDs that came with the Tiger upgrade, including an iWork '05 30 day evaluation copy.

Based on my research on eBay I think $1400-$1600 USD would be a reasonable asking price.

Apparently not, asking price lowered to $1200-$1300 USD.

[Photos will be available if this becomes a FS, it seems dumb to take them for a feeler though.]

[ucscc10]

1400...i was hoping for that for my dual 2.0, and even then i thought that would be too high. a lot of your stuff is stock- only 512 ram, 80 gig HD, and then a 2 revision old computer, you may want to set your sights a little lower.

[jamesi]

why would you sell your powermac G5 for a MBP? your computer is faster and more expandable not to mention how much you paid for it in the begining. just hang on to it, upgrade it and get your moneys worth. the MBP is hyped up alot.

[macpastor]

why would you sell your powermac G5 for a MBP? your computer is faster and more expandable not to mention how much you paid for it in the begining. just hang on to it, upgrade it and get your moneys worth. the MBP is hyped up alot.

I think that the MacBook is faster than his configuration... 1.8 G5 and 1.83 Intel Core Duo head to head beat the Dual 2.3Ghz according to MacWorld. This is what I read and studied on. My MacBook whips the pants off of my G5 I had previously. I mean WHIPS IT!. This baby is fast. So, for once there is a laptop that can run with the big boys.

That being said, I think the new PowerMac is going to burn.

[gizzard]

Did you buy AppleCare on this computer?

[BlueRevolution]

1400...i was hoping for that for my dual 2.0, and even then i thought that would be too high. a lot of your stuff is stock- only 512 ram, 80 gig HD, and then a 2 revision old computer, you may want to set your sights a little lower.

well I'm basing my asking price on what I've seen them go for on eBay (around 1500 for a stock 2x1.8). Macs seem to hold their value better than PCs. after all, it's still mighty fast for most things even though it's pushing 2 years now.

why would you sell your powermac G5 for a MBP? your computer is faster and more expandable not to mention how much you paid for it in the begining. just hang on to it, upgrade it and get your moneys worth. the MBP is hyped up alot.

for me the biggest issue is mobility. like I mentioned, my G5 is still serving me as well as I'd expect a brand new computer to. from the benchmarks I've seen, it looks like the MacBook Pro is slightly faster than my computer, except possibly for hard drive-intensive tasks... and for that I have a 7200 RPM external.

Did you buy AppleCare on this computer?

nope.

[topgunn]

well I'm basing my asking price on what I've seen them go for on eBay (around 1500 for a stock 2x1.8). Macs seem to hold their value better than PCs. after all, it's still mighty fast for most things even though it's pushing 2 years now.
Just for reference, the Apple Store refurb section has a dual 1.8Ghz for $1,299 plus tax. For most of us, that puts the price over $1,400. And that is for a computer with less RAM and a weaker video card. But, it does include a full warranty and the most recent copy of iLife (and Tiger but so does the OP's computer).

In my opinion, $1,400 is a tad high and $1,300 would be what I sell it for on these boards. You may be able to get more on eBay but you also have to pay more in fees.

[PixelGlitch]

Just to add to Topgunn's comment, the ones from the Apple Refurb Store have a Superdrive.

Considering it doesn't come with a mouse and may have a sensor problem (and no warranty), I would price this between $1200 - $1300 on this board. I'm sure you could get more on eBay, but don't forget the fees. The final value fees in addition to Paypal fees can get you for almost 10%.

Might be worth just keeping it. Throw in another Gig of ram and a WD Raptor hard drive and you'll have a zippy little G5.

[BlueRevolution]

ok, thanks for the advice. if that's all I can get for it I probably won't be selling, since I don't have the extra money to spare for the MBP.

thanks for all the feedback though.

[yojitani]

I think that the MacBook is faster than his configuration... 1.8 G5 and 1.83 Intel Core Duo head to head beat the Dual 2.3Ghz according to MacWorld. This is what I read and studied on. My MacBook whips the pants off of my G5 I had previously. I mean WHIPS IT!. This baby is fast. So, for once there is a laptop that can run with the big boys.

I haven't been able to find the results that back this up. In the last issue of MacWorld, the verdict was that the intels were a "mixed bag" - and even on the site now, don't see the results you are referring to. The only majorly 'zippy' improvement over my 1.8 dual I've noticed is page rendering time in Safari... not the forum for this kind of discussion, but I would appreciate a link or reference.

Thanks!
Yoji

[tjwett]

if this helps, i just got $1500 for my Dual 1.8 G5 w/64MB video, 1GB RAM, 80GB hard drive, no Airport. you should be able to get your asking price. put it on craigslist.

[BlueRevolution]

on a related topic, can anyone recommend an escrow company that's fairer than PayPal?

[topgunn]

escrow.com