replace graphics card or get a mini?

[pdpardue]

okay, so I've still got my dual 1.8 g5 powermac but the graphics card is starting to go out. it has a radeon 9800 in it and 2.25 gb of ram. Finding a replacement graphics card is getting harder and harder. So, my question is if replacing the card is worth it or if I should replace the whole computer with a mini. In some regards a new mini is a better machine than what i've got. For one, my pm is still a g5, the minis are intels. My pm is only a dual 1.8, the low end minis start at 2.26. My pm has 2.25 gb of ram, minis start at 2. my pm has 128 mb vram, minis have 256 (though shared with system ram).

anyway, I'm sure that the list goes on and on, any suggestions?

 

[chaosbunny]

Go for the mini. It will run circles around your G5. The more ghz don't mean as much as the much newer and more efficient processor structure. Even a 1,8 ghz Core2Duo would run faster than your G5. Same goes for the video card. The nvidia 9400 is much better than a radeon 9800. Apart from that, the mini will come with a warranty, but with the G5, who knows what could break next?

 

[TarmacNinja]

okay, so I've still got my dual 1.8 g5 powermac but the graphics card is starting to go out. it has a radeon 9800 in it and 2.25 gb of ram. Finding a replacement graphics card is getting harder and harder. So, my question is if replacing the card is worth it or if I should replace the whole computer with a mini. In some regards a new mini is a better machine than what i've got. For one, my pm is still a g5, the minis are intels. My pm is only a dual 1.8, the low end minis start at 2.26. My pm has 2.25 gb of ram, minis start at 2. my pm has 128 mb vram, minis have 256 (though shared with system ram).

anyway, I'm sure that the list goes on and on, any suggestions?

obviously with the mini you have the benefit of the intel chipset. i personally will never have windows on my mac so i dont much care about the chipset. although newer OS's will be coming out and its a way to be future proof.

as for a videocard upgrade www.macofalltrades.com has a geforce 6800ultra AGP for 150 or so. thats where i got mine and had a very pleasant transaction with them.

 

[js81]

Even though GPU upgrades for that PowerMac are expensive, I'd recommend it over the Mini route - unless you were looking into a new machine any way. $150 is way better than $599, if you're happy with it otherwise...

 

[thejadedmonkey]

Also keep in mind that the mini will use a lot less power than the G5.

 

[pdpardue]

also

Should also mention that the pm has 1.3 tb of internal drive space with a 300 gb and 1000 gb drive. I also do a lot of graphics work, mostly aperture and photoshop, but I've also done some video in the past though it's been a while. How would a base mini stack up with those applications compared to my aging pm?

 

[chaosbunny]

Should also mention that the pm has 1.3 tb of internal drive space with a 300 gb and 1000 gb drive. I also do a lot of graphics work, mostly aperture and photoshop, but I've also done some video in the past though it's been a while. How would a base mini stack up with those applications compared to my aging pm?

Like I said, a current mini would outperform your G5 in every possible way. As for the HDs, just get an external (Firewire 800) enclosure and continue using them. Or give the G5 a new job as a server.