Why The Apple Mac G4 is Better Than Any PC Wintel Machine... (Apple Power Mac G4)

Member Name: Spicoli

Product:	Apple Power Mac G4
Date:	31/01/01 (744 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great All-Rounder/ Few Problems / Easy To Fix / Easy To Learn To Use

Disadvantages: Not A Gaming Computer / LSlightly On The Pricey Side (But Worth Every Bit)

When you buy an Apple Macintosh, you are buying more than "a computer and after sales service".

I have been using Apple Macs for more than 10 years now and will always chose a Mac over a windows machine, although i am not averse to the idea of buying and using a Windows-Based machine. In fact in my office, i use a range of Apple Mac's, Windows-Based PC's and Linux-Based x86's (Apologies for the tech speak!!!)

At the end of the day, when a client asks me what is the best computer to buy, i won't simply tell them out straight that they should buy Apple Mac, but i will tell them in the context of what they will be using the computer for, what the best operating machine is for them.

In writing this opion on the newly released Apple "Power Macintosh Gigabit G4" (The Actual Model Name) I will attempt to highlight most of the differences between this model and other Windows-based PC's, and why to my mind it is a better buy for the average user.

As of January 2000, Steve Job's, Apple Co-Founder and current CEO, announced at Macworld San Francisco, the release of Apple's an upgrade desktop computer range.

This included four models:

1. G4 466mhz Model
2. G4 533mhz Model (Multi-Processor)
3. G4 667mhz Model
4. G4 733mhx Model


The Mhz Speed Gap.
------------------

Chances are that you will say: "Look why should i buy a 733mhz model, as top of the range, when i can buy a bottom of the range windows-based PC with 1.2ghz". Well, the answer is simple. Windows processor chips are made usually by Intel or AMD, Apple processor chips are made by Motorola. This means that the methods used in making and the make up of the chip are completely different. Therefore, by the same token, you can't compare the Intel Chip with the Motorola chip, because neither are the same - They arent made by the same company. Therefore, the Mhz Speed rating

from chip company to chip company will differ. A 500mhz motorola PowerPC chip might easily run faster than a 500Mhz Intel Pentium III chip.

In essence, what i am saying is that comparing Mhz to Mhz is a waste of time. So in terms of speed the Apple Computers, as on stage tests at Macworld showed, can be faster at lower Mhz than the intel based machines with higher Mhz.

Into the bargain, these computers have more than ample processing power to do wordprocessing, so whats in a mhz or ghz anyway.


The On-Board Performance.
-------------------------

Apple recently upgraded its motherboard. This is the chip board that holds and connects all the elements within your computer together. Without going into specific details and making direct comparisons - to save you from being here all night - the performance of the Apple Mac has been enhanced massively by this, so that in comparing the Apple Mac G4 with the Apple Mac G3, even there there is a massive speed differential.


The Little Extras.
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Recent configurations have includebetween 128mb and 256mb of RAM, whilst the amount of Hard Drive space ranges from 30GB to 60GB (on an ATA BUS).

Included with your Mac, unlike any PC's, is a Gigabit Network Card. Apple, has for years been shipping its computers with network cards. This is now only catching on in the windows-based PC industry, as a network card is essential for both networking and high speed internet access (ADSL, Cable etc.). But still the fact is they dont install network cards capable of running as fast as those provided with your Mac. Apple also includes a built-in 56k modem for those of us who havent bridged the speed gap yet.

All G4 macs now comes with CDRW drive, which means you have an in-built cd making/copying machine. However, more impressively is the top of the range G4 that comes with what Apple dub the SUPERDRIVE. This is not only a CDRW, but
it a
lso have the ability of a DVD-R. This means that youi can write DVD discs that will pla on your home entertainment system. Hardware like this used to cost upto £5,000.00. But now you get it thrown in with your Mac G4. AMAZING!!!!


Expansion-Wise.
---------------

The Apple Mac offers a wide range of expandability, internally and externally. Internal there are three hard drive slots, one front loading bay for additional cd drive or whatever. It includes space for 1.5GB of RAM which is better than most PC's, it also includes 1 AGP slot for graphics card and 5 PCI slots for whatever takes your fancy, inline with all other PC vendors.

Externally it includes, Firewire and USB connectors (2 each), which is great for external drives and digital equipment such as camcorders. SONY now provide onboard connection methods with all their professional and consumer level digital camcorders.

For those of you wishing to incorporate wireless networking for network/internet access all around your house with ease, then there is expansion capability for AIRPORT, apple answer to wireless networking, which is very simple and easy to setup.

The built-in speaker isn't great, so for those of us who love good quality sound you can buy some superb looking speakers, with Karmon Harmon speaker technology, which add the extra pizzazz to your study/den.


Overall Impressions.
--------------------

It is true that overall the professional models are more expensive than general windows-based PC's, but then you are getting more for your money than in most general PC's. True you have to buy a new monitor, but for those of use upgrading i would rather keep my Formac Pro Nitron 21" monitor than to get some lump of chunk i will throw away in an instant. That is a monitor which i will take from computer to computer as I upgrade. So at the end of the day, Apple is doing me a favour.

Apple isn
t a platfo
rm for serious gamers, true, but things are changing, and chances are if you were a real gamer, you wouldnt simply buy a computer off the shelf but you would buld it yourself, and if you did that chances are your computer would cost as much, if not more than the prices quoted for any Apple Mac.

The Operating Sytem in the Apple has its disadvantages i would be the first to admit, but at the end of March 2001 apple is introducing a new Operating System that is so good that PC users are stumbling over themselves to get their hands on a copy, but unfortunately for them t will only work on an Apple Mac, though things may change.

Overall Apple is a company with a long standing tradition and reputation. It is testament to Apple that they have lasted so long - since the mid/late 1970's - and that even during the darkest years of the mid 1990's it didnt dissapear off the face of the planet.

Apple offers great customer services through its wide range of certified Apple Centres, and in so many years of using a Mac anyways i have never had to send one off to an Apple Centre.

The fact is that because you have one company producing the entire computer, with so few in its range, that when new software and hardware comes out it is very easy to pretest it on the newest appe's in existence. And anyway, should you encounter any problems, there are a whole raft of resources on the internet to solve your problems (www.apple.com/support/, www.macfixit.com, www.versiontracker.com etc etc), This is something the PC based audience are in the process of catching up on.

Hopefully thisd opinion has been of some use and if you have any questions after reading it dont hesitate to contact me.

BUT DONT FLAME ME.

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