Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

iMac G5 and white Intel iMacs

R

retta283

Suspended
Original poster
Jun 8, 2018
3,180
3,482
Just wondering how many of you have these machines and any tidbits you want to share. I am looking at getting a new white iMac, either a 20" or a 24" as mine is a 17".

Love the white iMacs, really classic Apple aesthetic. Always ran pretty good on Tiger too. I didn't put any of them on Leopard or newer.
 
The G5 models had a lot of problems with capacitor failure. Not sure about the Intel. The Intel models also have more options for running a modern OS.
 
velocityg4 said:
The G5 models had a lot of problems with capacitor failure. Not sure about the Intel. The Intel models also have more options for running a modern OS.
Click to expand...
Haven't heard much about cap failure in the Intels, mostly GPU and screen issues
 
The GPUs on the white iMac 24s are prone to failure over time (due to heat) and are expensive to fix. I had one go and a replacement is stupid expensive. A couple rebakes & repastes, smc fan control & finally running it headless w/ an external monitor in its final days nursed it along for a few years but it eventually died a gruesome & unceremonious artifact laden death. If it wasn’t for the generosity of an member here, it would still be dead boxed in my closet. While I do really like mine & with its donor card is running like a champ, I can’t recommend it as anything approaching DD because of the GPU and all the problems it caused me.
 
Last edited:
I've found the white Intel iMacs were generally pretty good minus some issues that can crop up with the LCD panels. I'm currently sitting on about 8 of them in storage that came from the school. Over the years, I can say almost all the ones I've dealt with have been pretty reliable. They're nice Mountain Lion machines.
 
Hrududu said:
I've found the white Intel iMacs were generally pretty good minus some issues that can crop up with the LCD panels. I'm currently sitting on about 8 of them in storage that came from the school. Over the years, I can say almost all the ones I've dealt with have been pretty reliable. They're nice Mountain Lion machines.
Click to expand...

So the flip side of my 24” experience was a 17” we used at a local music studio. The thing was indestructible and to my knowledge is still churning out goodness to this day.

On a side note, I also had the screen fail on the 24” which I replaced. Fun machine & the screen size is great but the headaches it caused oh-boy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: uller6
RhianB said:
The GPUs on the white iMac 24s are prone to failure and are expensive to fix. I had one go and a replacement is stupid expensive. A couple rebakes & repastes, smc fan control & finally running it headless w/ an external monitor in its final days, while being nursed along for a few years, it eventually died a gruesome & unceremonious death. If it wasn’t for the generosity of an individual, it would still be dead in my closet. While I do really like mine & with its donor card is running like s champ, I can’t recommend it as anything approaching DD because of the GPU and all the problems it caused me.
Click to expand...
My 24" (high-end model with the 7600GT) has been in almost daily use for the past three years, often playing 720p / 1080p video which is a more demanding task for such old hardware. No GPU issues have ever surfaced in MacOS.

Around the same time I picked up a couple used 20" iMacs (also from Late 2006) and both were showing lines on the screen and other GPU-related artifacts. On those the ATI Radeon X1600 GPU is soldered, unfortunately.

So based on my experience, I can definitely recommend the 24" from Late 2006. The matte panel is the same one from the old 24" Apple Cinema Display and is still good by today's standards (other than the fact that it isn't Retina or 4K). The main limitation is being stuck running OS X 10.8.5 as Apple dropped support for this capable Mac way before its time (same goes for the 2006 Mac Pro).
 
Last edited:
I believe the capacitor issue was mostly fixed with the later iSight G5s? Someone can correct me if thats incorrect.

I have a 17" Core Duo intel iMac, though. It works great, though being a core duo I don't really have a use for it anymore. PowerPC macs are actually easier to use on Mac OS because of tenfourfox and the wider user-base IMO. As for problems; It has one dead pixel in the screen, and in my Windows 7 dualboot it likes to randomly bluescreen which I attribute to either a RAM or harddrive issue that I've been too lazy to diagnose. Overall I got my $20 out of it that it cost me.
 
Project Alice said:
I have a 17" Core Duo intel iMac, though. It works great, though being a core duo I don't really have a use for it anymore.
Click to expand...
Out of curiosity, does it have the ATI X1600 or the GMA950 (which would make it one of the very short-lived education-only models)?
[doublepost=1555954037][/doublepost]
redheeler said:
So based on my experience, I can definitely recommend the 24" from Late 2006. The matte panel is the same one from the old 24" Apple Cinema Display and is still good by today's standards.
Click to expand...

Is it an IPS panel with good viewing angles then? Some sources say the iMac only went IPS with the 21.5in/27in 2009 models.
 
Amethyst1 said:
Out of curiosity, does it have the ATI X1600 or the GMA950 (which would make it one of the very short-lived education-only models)?
[doublepost=1555954037][/doublepost]

Is it an IPS panel with good viewing angles then? Some sources say the iMac only went IPS with the 21.5in/27in 2009 models.
Click to expand...
The education white Intel iMac was sold until April 2009.

The only Intel iMac to not have an IPS display is the 2007-09 20" alu iMac. It's a TN panel. All the rest are IPS.
 
Some things to consider if you do purchase another:

1.) Due to their age, Repaste the cpu & GPU. Thermal pads on the 24” GPU memory will be a gooey melted marshmallow mess at this point so you’ll need to replace those.
2.) since you have it apart, upgrade the hdd to a cloned ssd.
3.) blow out any & all dust accumulation.
4.) download smc fan control & ramp up the fans when performing graphically intensive processes.

When you take it apart, keep all your screws in a couple ice cube trays. The front facing facade lifts straight up & off once you’ve cleared the ram bay at the bottom. Take care to not damage any of the cabling ie: thermal sensors etc. ifixit has some great tutorials. Best of luck.

Enjoy it :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: z970
I have one in my classroom that I use fairly regularly. I got it for free about five years ago from a recycle pile at a local computer shop with a bad power supply; a new one fixed it right up. I repasted it while I had it apart, and it's been serving me well and reliably ever since. I keep it next to the door in my classroom and use it to post announcements, seating charts, and weird schedules.
I haven't found any 'gotchas' with it yet, although I don't do much intense with it. It's been a solid and reliable computer that, other than getting it dead, I haven't had any issues with!

Screen Shot 2019-03-07 at 3.19.10 PM.png

IMG_7997.jpg
 
  • Like
Reactions: netsrot39 and 1042686
Found a pic I snapped back in 2014 when I couldn’t get the machine stable w/o removing the lcd & running an external monitor. The heat of the lcd is surprisingly significant. At this point, ultimately a reflow, repaste, new thermal tape & smc fan control got it back up n running & stable for a couple more years until the original GPU died for good around 2016 or so.

https://www.instagram.com/p/rVJ35DFNZW/?utm_source=ig_share_sheet&igshid=y508w8eg3sg7
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: LightBulbFun
I have a 17" iSight G5 (with both bad caps and failed GPU, fixed and running smoothly) and a 20" Late 2006 Core 2 Duo with a bad PSU that causes GPU glitches and crashes when under load (it only runs with 2.5" drives, 3.5" ones require too much power, at the point where it won't even boot without crashing at the login screen).
When it runs, the 20" is blazing fast considering its age and I absolutely love it. I'm going to find a replacement PSU and fix it for good.
 
  • Like
Reactions: z970
The PSU on these are a pretty easy swap as long as you keep track of your screws. Switched out one on my buddies that was causing random shutdowns & other mischief. IIRC it was $30 usd on eBay for the replacement & took maybe 20 minutes or so.
 
RhianB said:
The PSU on these are a pretty easy swap as long as you keep track of your screws. Switched out one on my buddies that was causing random shutdowns & other mischief. IIRC it was $30 usd on eBay for the replacement & took maybe 20 minutes or so.
Click to expand...
Yep I know, I already completely dismantled it (and I mean, completely) :D
 
RhianB said:
So the flip side of my 24” experience was a 17” we used at a local music studio. The thing was indestructible and to my knowledge is still churning out goodness to this day.

On a side note, I also had the screen fail on the 24” which I replaced. Fun machine & the screen size is great but the headaches it caused oh-boy.
Click to expand...

I recorded my first album on a 17" iMac G5 1.8 GHz single core. Loaded it up with 2 gigs of RAM - wow - that machine was a beast running Logic Pro 7! It ran damn hot, but never had any hardware issues for the ~5 years it was in service.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1042686
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back