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Which is better, the PowerMac G4 or the PowerBook G4?

LOLZpersonok

LOLZpersonok

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Aug 10, 2012
724
18
Calgary, Canada
I found both for sale on the Internet locally and I like both. But I'm not sure which is better as the PowerBook G4 can have a 1.6GHz PowerPC G4 CPU whereas the PowerMac G4 can have two 1.2GHz PowerPC CPUs. And I know they both can have up to 2GB of RAM (In most PowerMac G4 models) but I know the RAM in the PowerBook is better...
 
The PowerMac might be a bit faster, even though it has slower ram. The dual CPU makes a difference, as does the desktop classed hard drive. With the Powerbook, you're mostly stuck with what you buy it with. With the PowerMac, you can upgrade the CPU and the video card.

Some later Powerbooks also have a problem where one of the ram slots stops working.
 
Intell said:
The PowerMac might be a bit faster, even though it has slower ram. The dual CPU makes a difference, as does the desktop classed hard drive. With the Powerbook, you're mostly stuck with what you buy it with. With the PowerMac, you can upgrade the CPU and the video card.

Some later Powerbooks also have a problem where one of the ram slots stops working.
Click to expand...

Can I install an SSD Drive in a PowerBook G4, and will it work? I know I could in my Dell Latitude (Which is from 2004) so I was just wondering.

And...Wouldn't the RAM slot that stops working require replacement of the Logic Board?
 
You can put an SSD into a PowerBook. If one of the ram slots stops working a logic board swap is the only fix. But those can go for almost the price of the Powerbook itself.
 
Intell said:
You can put an SSD into a PowerBook. If one of the ram slots stops working a logic board swap is the only fix. But those can go for almost the price of the Powerbook itself.
Click to expand...

Cool, thanks for the info. There's two RAM slots, right? Or is there more? I'm sorry, I've never owned an Apple computer before, that's also another reason I joined.

I think the Logic Board would cost More than the laptop itself, because I found it for $50. I'm a cheapskate, I know. It probably has some problem with it, but I can hopefully get around to fixing it. As long as I wouldn't have to pay more than $50 for a logic board, I should *hopefully* be fine.
 
666sheep said:
If by "better" you mean faster, MDD wins undoubtfully. By about 20% pure CPU power. DDR2 or DDR is meaningless in G4. Add better graphics cards available to this.
But MDD has 2 disadvantages vs PB:
- it's (let's say) less portable :p
- it's much louder
Both can be upgraded with SSD.

Check this link out too: https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2742556?start=0&tstart=0
Click to expand...

Okay, all I really want to do is use iMovie '06. Would you happen to know if that would run fine on a PowerBook G4?
 
LOLZpersonok said:
Okay, all I really want to do is use iMovie '06. Would you happen to know if that would run fine on a PowerBook G4?
Click to expand...

It'll run perfectly - I run iMovie on my 1.67ghz PowerBook G4 no problems, but the MDD would churn out video a lot quicker than the PowerBook.

If all you want to do is use iMovie then MDD all the way.
 
The failing RAM-socket issue is most prominent in the 5.6 model (15" 1.67GHz "lowres"). That issue is unheard of in the "highres" models (5.8 and 5.9) but even if, those can run their 2GB maximum in 1 RAM-slot if needed. Problem is those still go for serious money.

Dead RAM socket in older 17" models (5,7 5.5 ...) might happen too, but sofar I haven't come accross one having that issue.
 
Thanks all for the response. I hope you guys get notified of this reply.

Anyways, I have found something very suspicious about the seller who is selling the PowerBook G4 I found on Kijiji. They are selling a bunch of computers and accessories and such including other Apple computers like iBooks or Mac Minis. This is what I found, but I'm still not sure if it's actually fake:

I was looking into buying a new PowerBook G4 on Kijiji, and I came across one that was at a very low price.

So, I looked at the location on Google Maps, which reveals that the location is a computer and electronics depot.

I went into streetview and looked at the building, and on the sign on the building, it shows a completely different phone number from the ones posted on the Kijiji ads, however, the address is the exact same as the ones in the ads.

I forgot to mention that this user has many different ads (Mostly computers) that are listed for various prices all of which are realistic for older used computers.

Upon looking up the phone number that I saw in Google Maps Street View, it takes me to a website called ERA: a company that is supposed to rescue and recycle and donate old computers. Looking at the WOT (Web of Trust) ratings reveal that they send spam messages.

Upon looking up the alternate phone number I saw on Google Maps on another site that talks about phone numbers people have been getting calls from, I saw something to the effects of them 'Taking donated computers, taking some parts from a few of them and selling the rest on Kijiji or eBay'.

So, I looked up the other number posted on the ads. I am taken to their other Kijiji ads for Calgary, where they are supposed to be located. I searched the number on a reverse phone number lookup and it reveals more of their ads on a different site. Two of which state different Canadian cities: Montreal and Toronto.

Weird. But it was only one ad for each of those cities, the rest were all Calgary.

One of the links yielded was to another local classifieds site which revealed the email address of the poster. On this site, they were also advertising the same used products they were on Kijiji. On this other site, the location was the same, the phone number was the same, etc. So, I looked up this other email address and it revealed the location of the address, which was not even in Canada all together!

The location was Mountain View, California.

All the images taken in the ads on both sites bear resemblance and the surrounding areas in the photos appear to belong to this location in Calgary. Here is the poster's listings on Kijiji, you may have to set the Kijiji location to Calgary, Alberta.

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-PostersOtherAds-W0QQUserIdZ30405355

And here is the specific PowerBook I was looking at (Again, you may have to change the location settings):

http://calgary.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-...z-768MB-RAM-60GB-HDD-CD-BT-W0QQAdIdZ404925542

It's a very lucky thing that this PowerMac G4 MDD that I was also looking at isn't being sold by this seller.
 
Goftrey said:
It'll run perfectly - I run iMovie on my 1.67ghz PowerBook G4 no problems, but the MDD would churn out video a lot quicker than the PowerBook.

If all you want to do is use iMovie then MDD all the way.
Click to expand...

Alright, I may as well get the MDD, especially after what I found about the Seller of the PowerBook G4 on Kijiji after a couple hours of researching, IP locating and email tracking. I did that for good reason after I noticed the differences displayed between the info in the ad and the Google Maps Street View of the Seller's location. (See my reply above this reply)
 
The locations of email addresses can be very off. Google is based in Mountain View. That would explain a Gmail address. Or another email service provider could be using Google's web services or really be in Mountain View. Even IP geolocation can be off. My current cable provided one puts me on the incorrect side of the state and my iPhone cellular one puts me in a completely different time zone.
 
Intell said:
The locations of email addresses can be very off. Google is based in Mountain View. That would explain a Gmail address. Or another email service provider could be using Google's web services or really be in Mountain View. Even IP geolocation can be off. My current cable provided one puts me on the incorrect side of the state and my iPhone cellular one puts me in a completely different time zone.
Click to expand...

It's possible considering the email I found is a Gmail email. But it is very weird...After looking at the location of the seller who is selling the PowerBook G4 on Google Maps Street View, there is a sign on the Warehouse building that depicts a completely different phone number from the one given in the ad. And all the seller's ads list the same location with the same phone number as the other ads...It is so weird. But then again, I haven't tried calling it because I don't quite have the cash yet. But I did email them earlier (About 6 hours ago as of this post) and I still haven't received an answer.

Doesn't this seem suspicious to you?
 
LOLZpersonok said:
It's possible considering the email I found is a Gmail email. But it is very weird...After looking at the location of the seller who is selling the PowerBook G4 on Google Maps Street View, there is a sign on the Warehouse building that depicts a completely different phone number from the one given in the ad. And all the seller's ads list the same location with the same phone number as the other ads...It is so weird. But then again, I haven't tried calling it because I don't quite have the cash yet. But I did email them earlier (About 6 hours ago as of this post) and I still haven't received an answer.

Doesn't this seem suspicious to you?
Click to expand...

Possibly an in store phone number and a separate number for online business?

Just call them and question it. I usually stick with eBay, because of the buyer protection.
 
Orange furball said:
Possibly an in store phone number and a separate number for online business?

Just call them and question it. I usually stick with eBay, because of the buyer protection.
Click to expand...

It could also be a personal phone number, but I did get an email back which was different than the one that I found on the other site and I checked it's location and it was in Calgary...

I'd use eBay if the shipping charges on anything more than a pack of 5 pens or the equivalent to that wasn't outrageously high.

I found a $75 PowerBook G4 on eBay...Shipping would have cost $200. I make sure to never pay more than $50 on shipping on most items. So that means there is nothing I'm gonna buy on eBay unless it's a power adapter, RAM or a hard drive. :(
 
For computers on eBay, I generally buy only from other Canadians, for two reasons: 1) US sellers often quote wildly wrong shipping costs and 2) customs duty. I don't think I'd be worried about either the phone number issue or the recycler issue: it is possible that the computers he's selling were found to be usable. Hence recycling would not be necessary. As to the email issue, a lot of people who buy and sell have one email address that they use for eBay or Kijiji but different email addresses for their business or personal lives; that's certainly what I do.
If you are buying from Kijiji, stick to the golden rules: see it in person and actually try it out. The fact that the seller is a business would give me more confidence than the usual Kijiji situation. Sellers on Kijiji usually meet in a neutral location and usually only give out their cell numbers and a disposable email address. With a business, you can find them if there is trouble.
I would also not really be confident that Google street view is up-to-date: after all, for me, it shows my intersection but not my house. :)

BTW, both the Powerbook and the Powermac use PATA hard drives. You would need an adapter to use an SSD (since it has a SATA connection) on the Powermac; I doubt that you could fit an adapter into a Powerbook, so you would need an IDE SSD. Those are significantly more expensive.
 
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I would go with a PowerMac G4 any of the G4s will do but the MDD, as been said, is indeed the fastest.
 
mike457 said:
For computers on eBay, I generally buy only from other Canadians, for two reasons: 1) US sellers often quote wildly wrong shipping costs and 2) customs duty. I don't think I'd be worried about either the phone number issue or the recycler issue: it is possible that the computers he's selling were found to be usable. Hence recycling would not be necessary. As to the email issue, a lot of people who buy and sell have one email address that they use for eBay or Kijiji but different email addresses for their business or personal lives; that's certainly what I do.
If you are buying from Kijiji, stick to the golden rules: see it in person and actually try it out. The fact that the seller is a business would give me more confidence than the usual Kijiji situation. Sellers on Kijiji usually meet in a neutral location and usually only give out their cell numbers and a disposable email address. With a business, you can find them if there is trouble.
I would also not really be confident that Google street view is up-to-date: after all, for me, it shows my intersection but not my house. :)

BTW, both the Powerbook and the Powermac use PATA hard drives. You would need an adapter to use an SSD (since it has a SATA connection) on the Powermac; I doubt that you could fit an adapter into a Powerbook, so you would need an IDE SSD. Those are significantly more expensive.
Click to expand...

I've always been confident with my businesses on Kijiji until now though. I've currently got 13 computers and the most worried I've been in picking one up (Because I get them all on Kijiji with the exception of three) was when I had to go to Forest Lawn, which is a terrifyingly ghetto neighborhood in Calgary and there isn't a lot of those in Calgary. And it's worse since I live in a new neighborhood in my city.

This one is worries me more than that though. Search up 1301 34 ave southeast Calgary on Google Maps (It's a warehouse, not someone's actual home, it's a supposedly public business) and you'll see what I mean. Thing is, on their Kijiji listings are also a few non-functional items. Which would be strange for a recycling company to be selling non-functioning computers, monitors or projectors.

I do understand that Google Maps Street View isn't up to date. Even though I've lived where I live since 2003, the image of my house looks to be taken around 2005 or so. And when going in streetview in Calgary, some places it's summer and all the trees are green and flowers bloomed and it's hot out whereas some streetview images are winter with snow, like the picture of my house.

If I'm going to have to do that with a SSD I'd rather not then. After I get my PowerMac G4 or PowerBook G4 I think I'll just put a SATA SSD in my main computer since it's mainly SATA.

----------
LeoTheLion89 said:
I would go with a PowerMac G4 any of the G4s will do but the MDD, as been said, is indeed the fastest.
Click to expand...

It's hard to decide! There are two machines I want and both are a price I'm willing to pay! The PowerMac G4 I found is indeed an MDD and that is a major reason I want it but I also want the PowerBook G4 because it's portable and would suit well for a laptop replacement considering it's more powerful than my Dell Laptop (Despite having the same graphics memory and my Dell having a slightly weaker Intel Celeron CPU)
 
Yeah I know what the OP means about wanting old machines; I *was* going to buy a G4 Cube (not in the best of condition) and an iMac G4 (a bit expensive). A shame really. :p

What do you mean by better? :p
 
LOLZpersonok said:
If I'm going to have to do that with a SSD I'd rather not then. After I get my PowerMac G4 or PowerBook G4 I think I'll just put a SATA SSD in my main computer since it's mainly SATA.
Click to expand...

FWIW, the adapter on a Powermac is not much of a problem. I installed one in my Cube in order to use an SSD that I bought on sale from NCIX. If I recall, the adapter was less than $20.

I looked in Street View, and I see what you mean. That wouldn't inspire me with confidence either.
 
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