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

Should I buy this? / G4 Functionality

A.Goldberg

A.Goldberg

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Jan 31, 2015
2,557
9,725
Boston
I have the opportunity to buy a 17" PowerBook G4 1.5Ghz/1.5GB RAM/80GB in pristine condition for $50. The buyer states the battery lasts about an hour.

I'm not sure what I would do with it, but it seems like a cool piece of apple history.

What do you guys with G4's do with yours? How well do they handle the internet? How do you think this would compare to my G5 (see specs).
 
Personally, I'd buy it for $50...

With that said, at 1.5ghz it won't be the last generation, high resolution model that many of us really get excited about.

Even so, the 1.5ghz G4 used in these is no slouch, and 12" Powerbooks I have with these CPUs remain perfectly useable. With the Radeon 9700 GPU and 2gb of RAM, the 17" 1.5ghz would be just fine for casual internet use and the like.

It will be noticeably less capable than your G5, although truth be told I don't notice a huge difference between my 1.67ghz Powerbook and my single 1.8ghz G5 in general "snappiness" of the UI and light duty use. Take the time to optimize Leopard for the Powerbook and you will see some noticeable improvements.

Just be sure you use an up to date browser like TenFourFox or Leopard Webkit.
 
]I want to get a iBook G3 Clamshell (if one is ever cheap enough in working condition) or a iBook G4 just to have a portible Mac.

I always did wonder Why the Gx series of PowerPCs began at G3, Why was there never a G1 or a G2? LOL

My eMac is my Daily Driver. I only use my PowerMac at night before i goto bed. I usually check my Googie Voice on my PowerMac or just my business emails and facebook accounts. I will on occasion watch some YouTube. I will upgrade my eMac with a iMac G5 or iMac C2D if i can get one cheap enough when i actually have money to buy one. My MDD I hope to upgrade with a G4 or Intel Mini or a G5 iMac or PowerMac. If i'm lucky i could get a 2006 Mac Pro cheap enough for my needs anyway

Point is... My G4s do every single thing I do on a computer. I really have no reason to NEED to upgrade to G5s or Intels at all. Way I see it, What my G4s cannot do ill just grab my DELL laptop with Linux on it to do it. You really never need a excuse to use a computer. If it can do something you want (such as just a Internet Server) Than that's as good of reason as any.

Although I would prefer a B&W G3 for a Internet Server 'cause in 2015 the things you can do with a G3 is pretty scarce. (I Wonder how soon the day will come that a G4 wont beable to do much anymore) Guess I'll be wishing i bought Intel macs by then! LOL.
 
Last edited:
G3 was an Apple moniker not an official designation, the official name is the PowerPC 740 or 750.

If you want to apply it back then the 601 is the G1, 603/604 is the G2.
 
catzilla said:
I thought the first generations of the PPC were the 601 then 604 and the G3 was related to the 603, I'm sure someone will chime in.
Click to expand...

As per Wikipedia(not always the best reference, I know) you are correct

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PowerPC_7xx

I find this a bit interesting, since the 604 was actually designed to be the "no holds barred" high end processor and the 603 was the budget processor. As per the above, the 604 ended up being a dead end, since the 750 series(G3) ended up outperforming it.
 
To draw a parallel it's not that dissimilar to Intel with Netburst. The "mighty" no holds barred P4 got toppled by a mobile processor, which is essentially what the 603 was designed as.
 
If only companies made G5 upgrades.

You have G3 upgrades for pre-G3s, G4 upgrades for G3 computers, but no G5 upgrades for G4 computers (or even faster G4 processors) such as a 3rd party 1.67, 1.8, 2.0 or 2.8GHz for computers such as the MDD.
 
MatthewLTL said:
If only companies made G5 upgrades.

You have G3 upgrades for pre-G3s, G4 upgrades for G3 computers, but no G5 upgrades for G4 computers (or even faster G4 processors) such as a 3rd party 1.67, 1.8, 2.0 or 2.8GHz for computers such as the MDD.
Click to expand...

I would imagine it's because of the Intel switch. You know that the PPC would also obsolete soon enough. Additionally, one major reason Apple switched to Intel is because IBM could not produce faster processors without running into heat and power consumption issues... Exactly why we never saw a PowerBook G5.

I remember those good old days when everyone was waiting for a PBG5 , rumors were rumors- not mainstream news, and product releases were actually surprises- not confirmation of everything already reported for the last 3 months.

My first Mac was an iBook in 2002 shortly changed to a PowerBook G4 12" 1.5 in 2003. In its day, without a doubt, 12" PowerBook was the best computer I ever owned. Talk about a revolutionary and solid product with a great software. I've had 13 and 15 inch MacBook Pros and Airs along the way plus my Mac Pro. That's why I'm going to get this 17" if I can... Plus the nostalgia of the good old days.

I too have been looking for an iBook G3 clamshell but they're tough to find at a decent price and that are in good shape. I would love to go into Starbucks with one of those and start typing away. All my hipster friends are into buying old typewriters and typing away on them. I'm going to start the next fad of using obsolete computers.
 
A.Goldberg said:
My first Mac was an iBook in 2002 shortly changed to a PowerBook G4 12" 1.5 in 2003. In its day, without a doubt, 12" PowerBook was the best computer I ever owned. Talk about a revolutionary and solid product with a great software. I've had 13 and 15 inch MacBook Pros and Airs along the way plus my Mac Pro. That's why I'm going to get this 17" if I can... Plus the nostalgia of the good old days.
Click to expand...

If you get the 17" and it doesn't meet your needs, PM me and I will take it off your hands.
 
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