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iMac G4?

W

wonga1127

macrumors 6502
Original poster
I've been saving up for a Mac for a while, and am finally sick and tired of using a PC. So today I go out on eBay and find an iMac G4 in my price range, but my only concern is that the technology is too outdated. I would use it for word processing, movie editing and iLife apps, and general internet usage. Do you think it would be too slow for me? I am a big mulittasker, and I am hoping this thing can handle what I do. It has a 1Ghz G4, 1 GB of RAM, an 80 GB HD, running 10.4.8. Good buy?

Also. It doesn't have Airport on it. Are the G4's compatible with Airport Extreme Cards? Are they easy to install, or is it worthy of an Apple Store trip?
 
A 1GHz iMac G4 would be able to perform your listed tasks, but I think that you would be much happier with a Mac Mini with a Core Duo processor. The price difference between the iMac G4 & a Mac Mini should not be that much. 🙂

Apple will occasionally have a 1.66GHz Core Duo Mac Mini (the one with a Combo Drive) for ~$519 USD. 🙂
 
Yea the iMac will do what you want. As for the Mini you will have to purchase a monitor. So it your choice
 
wonga1127 said:
It has a 1Ghz G4, 1 GB of RAM, an 80 GB HD, running 10.4.8. Good buy?
Click to expand...
Hard to say, you didn't mention the price 🙂 That lamp will do all the things you mention, but be prepared for a long wait for that video stuff to encode. If you think you may be doing a fair amount of video, look for one of the newer Intel-based machines.
Also. It doesn't have Airport on it. Are the G4's compatible with Airport Extreme Cards?
Click to expand...
A 1 GHz one will be compatible, older ones used (non-Extreme) AirPort. It is a do-it-yourself installation, the slot is right under the bottom cover plate.
 
My PowerBook G4, which is only slightly slower than that iMac, would take four hours to decode and burn an hour of footage to DVD. My iMac G5 does it in about an hour and a half. A mini with Core Duo would do it in about forty minutes.

That iMac will do everything you need, as would the up to date mini, but the mini will do it far quicker. I'd go with a mini if I were you.
 
That's pretty much my main machine... It will do everything you want perfectly fine.

Keep in mind though, no USB 2.0, and no PCMCIA slot for an upgrade. Still, FW is there, and overall, it's still an extremely useable machine.
 
If it's in your price range, I'd also go with a mac mini. It's much faster that the iMac G4, and about the same footprint
 
The lamp will wor, but the Mini will be better.

As a PC user, You should already have a Monitor, keyboard and mouse.

However, it's nice to see someone save an old G4 from the dump.🙂
 
😉 no problem Plymouthbreezer.

I would expect the OP to post about the purchase... I'd like to see what he/she got. I'd be on the fence just for the screen on the iMac, that thing's beautiful!
 
I don't know why you would want an iMac G4, just go with a Mini like other people have said. Even the cheapest model is much better than the iMac.
 
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