My parents are thinking about buying a new computer since our Windows box has been acting weird lately, and they don't want to deal with the viruses and spyware. They don't want to spend a lot of money though so I was thinking that they could get a G4 powermac. what i would like to know is what model would be the closest in power to what they have now which is a P4 at around 2GHZ with I think 512MB Ram. they mostly would use it for internet and Word so could someone recommend a Mac that would be at least the same speed as what they have now for those things.
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what Mac should my parents get?
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I agree with tekmate on looking into a Mac Mini. The next step would be the iMacs, which are great machines.
For internet and Word, a mini would be great. I'd go with that over an old G4.
I tried to get my parents to buy one, and their "computer savvy" friend told them a pc would be infinitely better... and now they don't use it because the firewall software has screwed it up... so they say, I refuse to look at it.
Edit: I can see wanting a tower for expansion, but for Word and internet...?
I tried to get my parents to buy one, and their "computer savvy" friend told them a pc would be infinitely better... and now they don't use it because the firewall software has screwed it up... so they say, I refuse to look at it.
Edit: I can see wanting a tower for expansion, but for Word and internet...?
i recently upgraded my parents to an C2D iMac. we were looking at minis but just decided to replace everything with the all-in-one. they love how everything fits behind the screen and how cool it looks.
i think the iMacs are perfect for switching people. the minis are good, too, but the iMacs are better for conveying what Apple really is about - simplicity (everything in one unit) coupled with style and performance.
the low-end iMac isn't too expensive, either. yes, it's more than a mini, but you get a monitor, keyboard, mouse, and more power.
i think the iMacs are perfect for switching people. the minis are good, too, but the iMacs are better for conveying what Apple really is about - simplicity (everything in one unit) coupled with style and performance.
the low-end iMac isn't too expensive, either. yes, it's more than a mini, but you get a monitor, keyboard, mouse, and more power.
I would just get a new mini. Why get a computer that's already a few years old and used when you can get a new one for not much more?
And, as mentioned, why would you need to expand if all you're doing is web browsing and WP?
And, as mentioned, why would you need to expand if all you're doing is web browsing and WP?
I have a g4 mini with 1gb running tiger. before that, it only had 512 mb. it run fine for web and word processing...
Honestly for Word and the Web you don't need a whole lot of power. For Tiger, 384 MB was plenty even on my 500 MHz G3 iMac. 768 MB is much better but o well. A new intel chip is far and beyond better than my G3.
running Tiger on my old G4 mini with 512MB RAM was painful. i know others say it works fine, but i like my computers to zip - or, at least, not take forty bounces before Safari opens.
If this is their first Mac, they should get a heck of a machine. I would suggest some form of an iMac. They will probably provide all the necessities your parents would need in a computer. If they are interested in portability, go for a MacBook. Good luck!
Minis start at $600 (new) and G4 Powermacs start around $900 (above 1ghz). You could get a dual processor Powermac for a little more but otherwise minis are a much better deal IMO.
Like someone else suggested take them into an Apple store. Depending on your style the looks of the Apple line will sometimes be the only sale point necessary. Then you might end up getting them to spring for a nice shiny iMac.
Like someone else suggested take them into an Apple store. Depending on your style the looks of the Apple line will sometimes be the only sale point necessary. Then you might end up getting them to spring for a nice shiny iMac.
Why? Since you can't buy something like an iMac in the PC world for any amount of money, and you can't buy something like a MacMini in the PC world for a reasonable price, it is quite possible that their reasons for wanting a tower are quite irrelevant to a Macintosh.
You can always buy an iMac, leave the old PC where it is with the cables unplugged, and pretend it is a tower.
?? Last longer? Why exactly? With a Mini you can hook up the latest and greatest display as prices keep dropping, not so with an iMac.
You can dual boot just as well with a Mini as an iMac.
I'd suggest an Intel Mini.
I'd have to vote for the Mini too. I'm not so sure what's so appealing about a tower that they would limit their search to that, but of course they're not my parents. If all they're going to do is Internet and Word than they can even get away with a G3 (not that I would reccomend that ). Unless they want to dish out more money for the iMac, a Mini is more than enough for their uses. Like other people said, you already have a monitor, that's a big plus. To buy a G4 Powermac because you can "expand" it for Internet and WP, doesn't make sense to me when you can buy an Intel Mini for about the same price, brand new. I'd say Mini or iMac, don't waste your money on a G4, before you know it they're going to drop G4 support on a lot of software. They're already dropping G3 support left and right and in reality the G3 isn't that old. Either machine will last them a long time based on their uses.
). Unless they want to dish out more money for the iMac, a Mini is more than enough for their uses. Like other people said, you already have a monitor, that's a big plus. To buy a G4 Powermac because you can "expand" it for Internet and WP, doesn't make sense to me when you can buy an Intel Mini for about the same price, brand new. I'd say Mini or iMac, don't waste your money on a G4, before you know it they're going to drop G4 support on a lot of software. They're already dropping G3 support left and right and in reality the G3 isn't that old. Either machine will last them a long time based on their uses.