Which one: iMac or 733MHz G4?

reynard · March 3, 2002 10:09PM

I currently have a 333 iMac and want to upgrade. I?ve narrowed it to the 733MHz Power Mac G4 tower or the new G4 iMac. Until the new LCD iMac came out, I had assumed I would eventually upgrade to a low-end Power Mac. I wanted a bigger and better monitor than on my iMac. Now Im having a hard time deciding. Perhaps there is a feature that someone will point out that I havent considered that will help me chose.

I don?t need a lot of power. I have purchased a video camera and may do a little altering in Photoshop. Later this year I plan on going getting a broadband connection. I will give my current iMac to my son and will probably want to network the two computers with an ethernet cable.

I?m a teacher and through the education store Apple is offering previous generation G4, 733MHz model for $1252. With a flat 17? CTR it comes to $1500. The specs between the two computers are similar. I would upgrade the RAM on both to 512. Though I won?t do much gaming, the iMac does seem to have a better graphiscs card--a geForce2 vs. ATI Radeon 750 for the tower.

Im leaning toward the iMac but with the prices so close, I want to be sure Im not missing some important factor. I?ll list the perceived benefits of each for me; perhaps you more experienced users can spot something I?m overlooking.

For the iMac: ?$250 cheaper. ?LCD screen. I see from the boards here that so many of you like LCD screens. To be honest, I guess I don?t appreciate why. Maybe if I had it, Id really like it. I do like that it?s adjustable, however. ?More compact. ?Quieter. ?Better graphics card.

For the 733 Tower: ?Faster(a little maybe?) ?Expandability(I?m not sure if I ever would need to, though). ?Easy access to internals. The CD drive on my current iMac went out and I think it?s going to be a bitch to get inside to replace it. ?No LCD monitor. I dont have to worry about bad pixels. Plus I believe at 16? viewable its a little bigger than the LCDs. ?Resale value. I?m not sure of this, but when I check for used G4s, I swear they charge an arm and a leg. The old 400 MHz models are going for $900!

I just can?t seem to find one thing that sways me either way. But if there is no tangible benefit of the tower, why not get the iMac and save the expense of a monitor? Will I like the LCD screen better? But will the Tower work any better with DSL or cable? If there turns out to be not clear cut winner here, then the good news is that there is no loser either!

Thanks for your time.

torifile · March 3, 2002 10:30PM

I think that the biggest difference between the two is the $250. For that price you can get 2 airport cards and have a wireless network. You could even through a game in the mix and you'd still come out ~$3 ahead

Also, you get an LCD instead of a CRT. OS X looks so much better an on LCD screen (my opinion) and they take up alot less space. My 2¢.

idave · March 4, 2002 12:03AM

Two pluses for the iMac...LCD display...Much Quieter.

If you're like me, after you've used a LCD you'll hate CRTs.

I'm growing very tired of my G4 tower's noisy fan after having used an iBook for awhile.

bauman · March 4, 2002 8:53AM

Just one correction: The ATI Radeon 7500 in the tower is better than the GeForce2 in the iMac - not the other way around.

torifile · March 4, 2002 10:40AM

Just to reiterate my point, you'd have to price out a 733 with a 15" LCD to do an accurate comparison. In that respect, the iMac wins hands down. We're talking ~$1800 for the 733 when you could get a superdrive iMac for that price. So, the question you have to ask yourself is this: do I want a CRT bad enough to sacrifice getting a superdrive?

gordy · March 4, 2002 12:22PM

Well, I did a similar analysis a few months ago and the original 733 G4 with 4 Velocity Engines and the DVD-R/CDRW won hands-down.

The iMac is nice, but not for me.

serrano · March 4, 2002 1:42PM

PowerMac.

i think you'll appreciate the speed. also, how are you going to edit video from your video camera in photoshop... I'm sure you mean imovie... or a still camera...

with a little more thought... obviously you could use the digital stills the video takes and edit those in phostoshop... i guess the wording was just funny to my ears

[ 03-04-2002: Message edited by: janitor ]</p>

cdhostage · March 4, 2002 2:07PM

The iMac trakes up a whole lot less space than the PowerMac. Fewer cables too. If your workspace is cramped, the iMac is better for you.

Also, anything requiring large screens means you need the Powqer Mac. For me, the 15" CRT on my iMac is stifling. My next purchase will be a Power Mac with a 17" display. Others, including <sigh> the new iMac are just \\too small.

steve666 · March 4, 2002 5:56PM

Many people mention noise in the PowerMac G4s. I have a PM G4 400 mhz and the fan is barely audible. Are the 733 Quicksilvers much louder?...........

stimuli · March 4, 2002 6:12PM

Unless you are actually going to use the PCI slots, I see no reason to get a PM over an iMac.

The internal fans will be churning away audibly, it runs at comparable speed, etc.

The reason everyone is big on LCDs is the lack of flicker, the lack of extreme doses of Ultra Magnetic radiation you expose yourself to, and the sh*tloads of desk space you save. Cathode ray monitors are as deep as they are wide, which is a bad thing if space is at all precious.They are much harder on your eyes, which can be a big deal when you have no life and post on Mac rumor boards for like 12 hours per day.

Unless you need the 1.5GB ram capacity instead of 1 GB (you don't), or extra drive bays and PCI slots, I'd go with the compact, quiet, elegant solution: the iMac.

jeremiah rich · March 4, 2002 7:16PM

Based on what you said, I think I would go for the new iMac... The Tower DOES have the better graphics card, though. But, for what you seem to want it for, and if resolution is not an issue, I would choose the iMac.

reynard · March 4, 2002 9:32PM

You know, I read these boards frequently but rarely reply and perhaps once every two years do I actually post a topic. I am a novice and, among other things, I worry about making mistakes and emabarrassing myself. Perhaps I should worry less; though I made at least two mistakes in my post, you have been very patient with me. For one, I have STILL camera; I had said video camera. And Ive learned the Power Mac has the better video card.

Thank you one and all for sharing your knowledge, experience and humor with me. You've helped me to decide. And the winner is...the beautiful, talented, and elegant iMac!

Which one: iMac or 733MHz G4?

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