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RIP G4 PowerMac
squiggleslash writes "An a not entirely surprising move, Apple has taken the PowerMac G4 out of production (see the last few paragraphs of this interesting article in Mac Central about the new G5s.) The PowerMac G4 had continued to be in production largely for users of Mac OS 9, and it had been speculated it might be kept as a lower-end headless entry-level Mac. You can still buy them from the Apple Store, while stocks last. On a seperate note, it looks like the 3GHz G5 is a while away, and G5 PowerBooks are no nearer production."
Good riddance I say! Bring on the G5 18 GhZ machines that Apple has up their sleeves. Seriously though, when are we gonna see a G5 powerbook?
Cemil.
An a not entirely surprising move
That this post is on Apple doesn't mean that 'I' should be kicked out and replaced with an 'A'.
"RIP G4 PowerMac"
Apple is taking an obsolete machine out of the market, that means they're dying!!!!
It still lives on Slashdot- actually it's the Quicksilver G4 that still exists as the Apple Desktops topic icon.
Now that we're into the second generation of G5's I think an icon update is in order.
When I first got my 17" Powerbook, I was dreading my inability to boot into OS 9. After the first couple of months, I stopped missing my OS 9 apps, having found better OS X replacements. Every once in a while, I'd accidentally launch a Classic app, but that was rarely an issue. The only problems I see with OS X now is that it's slightly less secure (though much more stable and powerful), and power users such as myself may run into a lack of available applications for specific tasks. (Rasterizing NOAA vector maps, for example.)
I imagine we'll hear a few people here and there complain about needing to migrate to OS X, but I think the pros for dropping G4s from the line outweigh the cons. Besides, I have a feeling that, unless they require very specific compatibiliy with a legacy app that's no longer available, they're going to be fine. Now we're going to see price drops increase on these suckers dramatically, and suddenly a bunch of students and other low-income folks be able to afford a machine that they didn't think possible for their budget. I'll bet DealMac will be listing some price slashing within a couple of days.
"The PowerMac G4 had continued to be in production largely for users of Mac OS 9"
I believe that statement is mostly speculation. There are people, like myself, who need a low cost Mac that doesn't saddle them with a built in monitor. I have a single processor 1.25ghz G4 with 2 gigabytes of RAM and I am totally happy with it.
Hopefully, Apple will one day offer something like the eMac without a built in monitor.
This is only the low-end of 3 configurations, leaving both dual-processor G4s still in production.
I know a lot of people that were hoping dual G4s would come down in price when the G5s came out. I think it would be nice to have a low-end *upgradeable* (not iMac or eMac) tower offering from Apple. Perhaps the G4 could have filled that niche. Dual G4s in a mini tower maybe, plus the G5 powermac. Kind of like the iBook Vs. Powerbook. (Oh yeah there isn't much difference between them now.)
I know, I know. Apple needs to sell G5s in order for IBM to make faster ones, cheaper ones etc. Still an only dual processor offering from Apple would be neat.
I boycott signatures
Apple has always been certain not to offer any "new world" Macs in a tower case for less than $2000. It seems like a bad move, discouraging people from switiching into Apples, but at least they are consistent. I would have bought an Apple by now if they kept selling a Power Mac a generation or two behind in the $1000 range, but I will never buy the eMac/iMac style computers they offer for that price segment.
For great justice.
The G5 heatsink is too big to put in a laptop
The G5 heatsink is too big to put in an iMac
Putting the big G5 heatsink anwhere but inside a Power Mac is a "heck of a challenge," according to an Apple marketing director
But we have also heard, in the past week, that the G4 iMac is no longer being shipped to Apple stores. So, is Apple just being coy here? Or is the iMac line going into hibernation?
"Hopefully, Apple will one day offer something like the eMac without a built in monitor" I agree - an LC style (physically) machine with a 1.5GHz G4, etc would be great. Make a great headless home server and could be very low cost. --Graham
we should say OS 9 is dead. The death of an entire OS is more notable than the change from 32 to 64 bit.
I guess he means when the "motherboard fries". Still, if your Mac's still under warrenty, of course Apple would replace it. If it's not, that's your problem. It wouldn't be any different with a PC.
You might want to look at the Basilisk II port for OS X. It will emulate an old machine, and you can run up to System 8 I believe (never ran System 8 myself - I ducked out of Macs at 7.5.5 and came back in at Jaguar).
Cheers,
Ian
By discontinuing the G4 before Microsoft has released VirtualPC for the G5, isn't Apple telling a lot of people that it doesn't want their business?
Anyone who relies on a Windows-only product, and who could previously accommodate that need on a G4 running Virtual PC, will in the future need to buy a Windows PC.
Unless Apple is about to announce at WWDC its own G4-friendly Windows emulation, this could be a MAJOR step backwards for Apple among cross-platform users who prefer Apple but NEED access to Windows applications from time to time.
Best quote I've ever heard about the state of Classic Mac OS security, from a friend who really knows his shit:
"Sure, you're right, I can't break into OS 9. But I can't telnet into a fucking rock now, either, can I?"
True story.
If Jesus wants me it knows where to find me.
The MDD is noisy, badly designed and too small to fit everything in. I 'upgraded' from an Upgraded Sawtooth (running a Dual 500MHz) to a Dual 867MHz MDD - and don't like it at all.
Much more noisy, inexplicable airflow design. Much more crowded too.
I'm selling it too and sticking to my PowerBook. Bring on the Rev C or D G5s - I am buying one as soon as PCI Express filters down to the low end model.
doc
Got an AWESOME deal on two iMacs from the previous generation that they were basically giving away at the Apple Store. They wouldn't be priced that low unless they were seriously trying to move the product.
I'd expect another G4 rev to the iMac, but who knows.
a G4 case for cheap... would be great box to mod.
They just need to be willing to clock it down. If you run the new 2.5 GHz boxes at 2.5GHz, you get 20W of power disappation as heat. If you clock them down at 1.5, this drops to about 2 watts.
The moral of this story is that sped freaks die young.
Note for the slow: check the current clock rates of the G4 powerbooks.
- HUD
Well it's totally about time. The G4 is totally outclassed in todays world. The Pentium Ms are more powerful/mhz than the G4s are, it's rediculous. Apple can't SMP them well either, so the dual systems hardly gain anything. That's why I always laugh when I see Apples comparisons showing the dual G5s faster than a dual G4, and a Single G5 being slower even in some things (others show this too).
99% of the time even a single G5 will be faster than any dual G4 ever made. Period. They were out of date and never scaled effectively. I'm still disappointed they're in the powerbooks (although those have other issues as well).