is an iMac G4 worth $100

[spacedcadet]

still going strong

using a G4 dual 1ghz MDD at home with Leopard, CS3 etc. still used for paying freelance work. Looking forward to getting the new MacPro when they finally pull their finger out though. Wouldn't like to use it for full time work.

Amazing that it's still running along just fine!

 

[ibookos9]

using a G4 dual 1ghz MDD at home with Leopard, CS3 etc. still used for paying freelance work. Looking forward to getting the new MacPro when they finally pull their finger out though. Wouldn't like to use it for full time work.

Amazing that it's still running along just fine!

Macs are great computers (my 11 year old iMac G3 that i bought for like $10 dollars is still working great and i love its speakers) I can not see a new pc lasting that long. Do any of you think the new iMac that they are selling now will last over 10 years?

 

[notjustjay]

I would totally buy a "lamp" iMac G4 for $100. If anyone in Ottawa, Canada is selling one, let me know. It will go nicely next to my Cube.

 

[Lord Blackadder]

I bought it and when i went to look it i went to about this mac and their add was all wrong it was actually a 1.25 G4 with 1 Gb of ram (some website says it can work with 2gb but im not sure) and it has the 17 inch screen and 10.4.11 tiger and a superdrive and 80 gb hard drive wow i think i got a good deal and it looks like brand new and it even came with the speakers!

That's not a terrible deal.

I've been using a Power Mac G4 (Digital Audio) with a 1.4GHz OWC CPU and overall it's fine as a web browsing machine, MS Office and even light Photoshop. among other things.

A couple limitations you should be aware of: The G4s can't do HD video, and they can struggle on very eye-candy-heavy pages. Also, they are getting close to obsolete in terms of new software releases. The day is not that far off when new stuff will be intel-only.

With that being said, I think your new iMac should work fine for a couple years and it was less than half as much as an Atom-based Netbook.

 

[brendu]

I bought it and when i went to look it i went to about this mac and their add was all wrong it was actually a 1.25 G4 with 1 Gb of ram (some website says it can work with 2gb but im not sure) and it has the 17 inch screen and 10.4.11 tiger and a superdrive and 80 gb hard drive wow i think i got a good deal and it looks like brand new and it even came with the speakers!

check exactly how much ram it has, im sure its not 1GB... its either 768megs or 1.25Gigs... those iMacs had 1 user accessable ram dimm that is expandable to 1GB and one internal dimm (256megs standard) that could also be upped to 1GB (but not easily)... really 1.25GB is enough when using tiger... you can even put leopard on it if you wanted but I wouldnt spend the money on it... Tiger is faster on it and solid enough for web browsing and basic stuff.

 

[Arrandale]

i have been using an imac g3 for a while now and i love it but i want something that is a little faster so i have decided to get an iMac g4
is $100.00 a good price for one
it has 10.4.8 tiger (imac g3 has 10.3.9)
256 ram (imac g3 has 512)
60 hard drive (imac g3 has 75)
and a superdrive (imac g3 has just a dvd player)

You won't be able to view websites that have flash, and you wont be able to keep more than 2 apps open at a time without making the computer unusably sluggish.

That said, a hundred bucks is a STEAL. That's how much an iPhone costs.

 

[Arrandale]

Macs are great computers (my 11 year old iMac G3 that i bought for like $10 dollars is still working great and i love its speakers) I can not see a new pc lasting that long. Do any of you think the new iMac that they are selling now will last over 10 years?

You bought a mac for 10 bucks?

I am so jealous.

 

[H00513R]

I bought it and when i went to look it i went to about this mac and their add was all wrong it was actually a 1.25 G4 with 1 Gb of ram (some website says it can work with 2gb but im not sure) and it has the 17 inch screen and 10.4.11 tiger and a superdrive and 80 gb hard drive wow i think i got a good deal and it looks like brand new and it even came with the speakers!

Grats! Sounds like a great deal.

 

[madmaxmedia]

It is VERY usable for what you describe, much better than the G3 iMac and well worth the upgrade price you paid.

The more RAM, the better.

 

[jjahshik32]

I bought an iMac G4 1.25GHz version and put a gig of RAM in it and works pretty fast.

If anything I can use this iMac as my "main" machine. The only thing I cant do is view hd content but I can d/l and even extract the same things that I do on my i7 macbook pro.

 

[alust2013]

Gotta love the classic G4. The G4 iMacs and PowerMacs, especially the quicksilver, were some of the coolest machines apple has made. I have been thinking about picking an iMac G4 up myself to keep at home while I am at school just to web surf and such. Only downside being their intensely slow USB 1.1 ports. Oh well, would still be a fun machine to use

 

[dXTC]

You won't be able to view websites that have flash, and you wont be able to keep more than 2 apps open at a time without making the computer unusably sluggish.

That said, a hundred bucks is a STEAL. That's how much an iPhone costs.

Actually, since it's a relatively fast G4, some sites with small to moderate amounts of Flash content will still be viewable. I wouldn't attempt to play Flash games like Farmville, though.

I do agree that the OP got very, very lucky indeed with this deal. The iMac G4's form factor is nothing short of iconic.

 

[topgunn]

iMac G4 is by far my favorite Apple design. I would buy one for $100, easily.

 

[zudo]

Sounds like a steal, well done!

I can't believe how negative some people on here are being. I use my PowerBook g4 as my main machine and that includes using lightroom! Admittedly I am about to finally upgrade but seriously, these old machines still run fine if you show a little patience.

I agree though, the more ram the better.

Enjoy your classic machine

 

[prss14]

I know this forum is filled with people who update their computers every year, but man. With 1gb of ram and 1.25 he is more than fine for the internet and office and a lot of other programs. The real problems with the old computer, in my opinion, is the video card. Other than that if you are willing to wait 5 sec. most things run just fine. IF I had to do a lot of media editing all day I wouldn't want one, but my $30 eMac is as fast as many of the much newer pc's at my school. No doubt it will be a great 2nd computer. Enjoy.

 

[jjahshik32]

Gotta love the classic G4. The G4 iMacs and PowerMacs, especially the quicksilver, were some of the coolest machines apple has made. I have been thinking about picking an iMac G4 up myself to keep at home while I am at school just to web surf and such. Only downside being their intensely slow USB 1.1 ports. Oh well, would still be a fun machine to use

The 1.25GHz iMac G4 flat panel models has usb 2.0 and it works very fast. Even better yet, I have my 2TB external hdd connected to the iMac G4 and use its faster 7200rpm desktop hdd via firewire 400 to extract all my 9GB + files and it works just as fast as a mac pro desktop!

I can still view youtube videos fine (have to use click2flash to open the youtube videos on quicktime player and plays smooth as butter) but I cant view 720p/1080p content.

 

[alust2013]

The 1.25GHz iMac G4 flat panel models has usb 2.0 and it works very fast. Even better yet, I have my 2TB external hdd connected to the iMac G4 and use its faster 7200rpm desktop hdd via firewire 400 to extract all my 9GB + files and it works just as fast as a mac pro desktop!

I can still view youtube videos fine (have to use click2flash to open the youtube videos on quicktime player and plays smooth as butter) but I cant view 720p/1080p content.

Nice! I did not know that. That would be very helpful for transferring iTunes files and such.

 

[liamwillib]

I still think that iMac G4 is one of the best computer apple made. The whole apple revival started with original iMac, then iMac g4 took it to the next level, around the same time iPod came as well, the rest is history.

I always wanted an iMac g4, but since I like the portability, i went with a powerbook, then a macbook.. But imac G4 is worth around $100. I am actually looking for an iMac G4 (broken lcd or non-working condition), just as a mod project for iPad dock..how cool it will be just to tilt around the tablet when it is docked with KB etc..

computer with a personality

I love the G4 iMac design and LOVE the idea of an iPad mod. Can't believe no one else has commented in this idea, seems so right. Much like some of the patent designs or rumors from a while ago of a tablet docking into the back of one of the current form factor iMacs, just even more elegant.

 

[jobi]

request for Black adder

Hay Blackadder I have a question but I am kinda new here (first day) ,
so I dont know if U can reach/read this . Its about an older thread were U mentioned to buy a pc X800 XT, did you buy it and does the rom work.
I am thinking of doing the same.

Best Jo (mailnaarjobi@gmail.com)

That's not a terrible deal.

I've been using a Power Mac G4 (Digital Audio) with a 1.4GHz OWC CPU and overall it's fine as a web browsing machine, MS Office and even light Photoshop. among other things.

A couple limitations you should be aware of: The G4s can't do HD video, and they can struggle on very eye-candy-heavy pages. Also, they are getting close to obsolete in terms of new software releases. The day is not that far off when new stuff will be intel-only.

With that being said, I think your new iMac should work fine for a couple years and it was less than half as much as an Atom-based Netbook.

 

[LastLine]

Sorry as uch as I love the iMac G4 I have to say, if it's not Intel it's not worth it these days, unless you really can't afford more wiat and get an old mini or white Intel iMac

 

[kernkraft]

You bought a mac for 10 bucks?

I am so jealous.

Don't be! Others might agree with me that you are better off spending $100 on a G4 iMac or even less on an eMac than $10 on a G3 iMac. G3 iMacs look great, but they are significantly slower than G4 ones.

I think for $100, the iMac is a good buy, provided that it's in reasonable condition. However, often it makes sense to spend marginally more to get the best possible version of the particular item. For example, I wouldn't get a 1 GHz eMac as I stupidly bought one last week on Ebay for £5.50 (I was bored). Meanwhile, I have two 1.25GHz ones from the garage. Also, by the time I get an Airport Extreme card and some RAM, I'm starting to question why I didn't buy a 1.42 GHz version with a 160GB HDD and the wireless card included. They go for less than £100 and they have twice the video RAM. My brother's daughters would love those machines.

Another thing to know about these old Macs is that although, in theory they can run Leopard, there is no point of going over Tiger. I felt the difference between the two 1.25 GHz eMacs (1GB RAM in each, half of what they can take) and I can imagine that a 1GHz iMac or eMac will hardly be able to handle anything on top of Leopard.

There is something heart-warming about having a use for these older computers regardless of manufacturer. There is nothing wrong with frugality. In fact, now I'm questioning, whether I needed 3 brand new aluminium Apple laptops a few times in the last two years, when two of these old workhorses were just collecting dust in the garage. Even Spotify runs finely on them.