# "Old" Imac G5 vs "New" Imac G5



## mikeinmontreal (Oct 13, 2005)

Hey everyone, just looking for a little advice from those who are more in the know than I am. The now-old Imac G5 17-inch Superdrive has dropped down to $1299 and I am eligible for the education discount for the now-new Imac G5 17-inch Superdrive, at $1498, plus $60 more or less for the 56k modem USB addition. Is the new Imac G5 really worth the extra money? Thanks for all the input in advance.


----------



## iBrodie (Sep 11, 2004)

Hell yes! You get an iSight camera and Front Row plus its faster, faster ram, and photobooth. So I would say it is the best iMac for price.


----------



## Sander (Apr 4, 2002)

I really think the new iMac is worth the extra dough. 

Consider the remote and the iSight. You may not need them but you may want them down the line. Plus, the Front Row seems awesome along with Photo Booth app. The graphics card is supposed to be better too.

Finally, your resale value will be higher.

Definitely go with the new iMac. IMHO.

Sander


----------



## mikeinmontreal (Oct 13, 2005)

I forgot about the faster ram. And there's the Mighty Mouse too. Decisions! Decisions! I am going to wait to see if the older Imacs drop in price again, or maybe they will all sell out, rendering my decision much easier . There's not much of a difference between the old 20-inch and the new 20-inch (education price), so on that end, no brainer ($1,799 vs $1,848). Thanks a bunch!


----------



## elmer (Dec 19, 2002)

I think it's cool that they have an ambient light sensor that lowers the sleep light's intensity when it's dark in the room, so you can sleep. And the remote uses a little watch/CMOS battery


----------



## Strimkind (Mar 31, 2005)

oh how i wish that was on my iBook...I have to block the sleep icon with something so I can sleep


----------



## Elias26 (Apr 19, 2005)

Even though I own a Dual G5 PowerMac I gotta say the new higher end iMac has me drooling. A built-in iSight ($200 value there), and what seems to look like an iPod Shuffle (I know it's a remote), and like the others mentioned before hand, bigger and faster machine with other extra gimmicky things that you'll actually take advantage of. Man, I wished I held out. So much more options now. And better options. Newer revised G5 PowerMacs and iMacs with all the added bells and whistles. Oh why oh why did I buy my Mac when I did? hehe

Oh well, I still love my baby.


----------



## i stole this name (May 9, 2005)

Elias26 said:


> Oh why oh why did I buy my Mac when I did? hehe


Because if you didn't you'd probably be 85 before you got your next computer.


----------



## anil (Oct 28, 2003)

Sorry if this has been mentioned before, but did anyone else notice that if you opt for a 500gb hd in the new iMacs, the shipping wait is increased to 5-7 weeks? wtf!?


----------



## i stole this name (May 9, 2005)

anil said:


> Sorry if this has been mentioned before, but did anyone else notice that if you opt for a 500gb hd in the new iMacs, the shipping wait is increased to 5-7 weeks? wtf!?


That's because they have to be custom built.


----------



## anil (Oct 28, 2003)

i stole this name said:


> That's because they have to be custom built.


 No, Increasing the memory doesn't affect shipping time, and changing the 160gb hd on the 17" model to a 250gb doesn't affect shipping time either. I'm guessing it's a supply issue with the 500gb model.


----------



## CubaMark (Feb 16, 2001)

*New iMacs: Puny hard drives!?*

Am I the only one who's caught this?










You can catch it in Steve's presentation

 
M


----------



## dona83 (Jun 26, 2005)

Elias26 said:


> and what seems to look like an iPod Shuffle (I know it's a remote)


I have to send my iPod Shuffle in for repairs, so now I know what it's going to become in its second life.


----------



## dona83 (Jun 26, 2005)

What's so puny about 250 or even 160GB?


----------



## Brian Scully (Jan 23, 2001)

*Read it closely*



dona83 said:


> What's so puny about 250 or even 160GB?


Nothing but the chart says MB 
Steve is not going to be happy with somebody


----------



## macsackbut (Dec 15, 2004)

CubaMark said:


> Am I the only one who's caught this?


They noticed that over at TUAW too. I bet some copy editor got a serious tongue lashing


----------



## MACSPECTRUM (Oct 31, 2002)

macsackbut said:


> They noticed that over at TUAW too. I bet some copy editor got a serious tongue lashing


I guess that's what happens when non-technical people are editors.


----------



## flytnx (Oct 9, 2003)

*my old imac*

well, i love my old imac. to me, the isight is cool yet pointless at te same time - if it worked with apps such as msn messenger i would say it's worth it, but seriously if you don't need it - whats the point. front row is cool, but it will wear off about a month after having it, i mean really! i have a 20" imac and ppl wouldn't sit on my sofa squinting when they are trying to look at photos on the screen to see the details, they just walk up to it, and if you watch a movie on it just get up and press the spacebar when you need to goto the little boys room. i would save the dough bottom line and get an ipod or something you will use on a day-to-day basis versus something you MAY use sometimes... the performance thing is only an issue if you seriously require it.



mikeinmontreal said:


> Hey everyone, just looking for a little advice from those who are more in the know than I am. The now-old Imac G5 17-inch Superdrive has dropped down to $1299 and I am eligible for the education discount for the now-new Imac G5 17-inch Superdrive, at $1498, plus $60 more or less for the 56k modem USB addition. Is the new Imac G5 really worth the extra money? Thanks for all the input in advance.


----------



## satchmo (May 26, 2005)

flytnx said:


> well, i love my old imac. to me, the isight is cool yet pointless at te same time - if it worked with apps such as msn messenger i would say it's worth it, but seriously if you don't need it - whats the point. front row is cool, but it will wear off about a month after having it, i mean really! i have a 20" imac and ppl wouldn't sit on my sofa squinting when they are trying to look at photos on the screen to see the details, they just walk up to it, and if you watch a movie on it just get up and press the spacebar when you need to goto the little boys room. i would save the dough bottom line and get an ipod or something you will use on a day-to-day basis versus something you MAY use sometimes... the performance thing is only an issue if you seriously require it.


Okay you're in denial.  
Actually you're dead on with regards to the iSight. It's a nice addition, but it's not as flexible as a standalone... one that you can position up on a shelf or further away from you. 

I'm not sure FrontRow will wear off as you say. Rather I see it eventually trickling down to the rest of the Apple product line up. Probably not right away so they can sell more iMacs, but I'm sure it will within a year.
Either way, I think you've got a pretty good iMac regardless.


----------



## MacDoc (Nov 3, 2001)

Think about Front Row for presentation tho. I think it's a good step towards convergence as I do with the video iPod.
Distance learning for schools etc the built in iSight is excellent.


----------



## i stole this name (May 9, 2005)

flytnx said:


> well, i love my old imac. to me, the isight is cool yet pointless at te same time - if it worked with apps such as msn messenger i would say it's worth it, but seriously if you don't need it - whats the point. front row is cool, but it will wear off about a month after having it, i mean really! i have a 20" imac and ppl wouldn't sit on my sofa squinting when they are trying to look at photos on the screen to see the details, they just walk up to it, and if you watch a movie on it just get up and press the spacebar when you need to goto the little boys room. i would save the dough bottom line and get an ipod or something you will use on a day-to-day basis versus something you MAY use sometimes... the performance thing is only an issue if you seriously require it.


Just sounds like someone pissed off because he/she wants the new features.


----------



## flytnx (Oct 9, 2003)

hah nope.. i just think it's pretty weak considering the price drops on the 17" and 20" models i would rather take that route that's all. like everyone else has been saying, IR sucks - bluetooth would have made more sense.. and i would rather wait for the bluetooth version of the mighty mouse (any day now apple!) 



i stole this name said:


> Just sounds like someone pissed off because he/she wants the new features.


----------



## flytnx (Oct 9, 2003)

just a quick note, for anyone who has not opened the new imac it is SO easy. don't bother spending the extra $$ on an hdd upgrade you can easily do it yourself.


----------



## BlueMax (Aug 8, 2005)

CubaMark said:


> Am I the only one who's caught this?
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Umm..... is something wrong? Missing?? I don't get it.


----------



## Macified (Sep 18, 2003)

BlueMax, the chart indicates the HDs are only 160MB and 250MB. I haven't seen a drive that small since...


----------



## Myradon (May 13, 2005)

Elias26 said:


> Oh why oh why did I buy my Mac when I did? hehe


BECAUSE YOU SMELL LIKE CHEESE AND EVERYBODY CAN SEE IT!

Haw Haw, no serrioussly dude, i fee lthe same way about the iBook. Missed the better ram y that much. By 2 months. 2 months!


----------



## maximusbibicus (Feb 25, 2002)

I bought a 20" iMac a coupleof months ago, and the new iMac does not stimulate any buyers remorse. Its still a fantastic machine. Just installed two 1GB RAM sticks, and this baby FLIES.


----------



## MacBro (May 14, 2005)

*533 mhz ram*

Do the previous 20" Imac g5 (rev B) support the higher speed ram introduced into the latest Imac's? Would one see any increase in speed?
Thx


----------



## maximusbibicus (Feb 25, 2002)

You woould not see a difference. The RAM would clock down to work in your system.


----------



## MacBro (May 14, 2005)

Thx: Can you explain that for me. The bus speed of my Imac G5 is 667. What determines or controls the speed of the ram and why would my machine clock the speed down?


----------



## mac_geek (May 14, 2005)

MacBro said:


> Thx: Can you explain that for me. The bus speed of my Imac G5 is 667. What determines or controls the speed of the ram and why would my machine clock the speed down?


MacBro,

I'm no RAM expert here, but I believe your machine (as is mine,) takes 400mhz RAM, not to be confused with your system bus speed. I believe what's being to referred to above is the old practise of buying better spec'd RAM (i.e. with a speed of 533mhz,) which will only be utilized at a speed of 400mhz by your system (i.e. "clocked down",) because of the bottleneck presented by your system.. not the RAM.

Clear as mud?


----------



## mac_geek (May 14, 2005)

On a separate note.. you gotta love the new iMac. There's not enough to make me want to get rid of my iMac G5 rev.B... BUT I do love that the fact that Apple is finally getting a little modern with its video cards.

The latest iMac is a GREAT system release to hold interest just prior to the release of the Intel Macs. Integrate everything you already sell (iSight, iMac, etc.,), address the major consumer bottleneck (video card,) make it prettier (slimmer,) and drop the price a bit.

Beautiful. And just before Christmas! If only they'd done this for the Back to School rush..


----------



## BlueMax (Aug 8, 2005)

By the way.... in case you all didn't know it, the Radeon X600 is based on 95% of the same core as the 9600. PCI express is the only real difference, 3D performance is almost identical.


----------



## macguy.nielsen (Sep 18, 2004)

This is true. The only real upgrades to the system is the iSight, Photoalbum, Frontrow, and slightly faster ram speed. Other then that, I don't like how they made it so there's only 1 ram slot. This makes ram A LOT more expensive to buy for the new iMac.

Still a great computer, just wish they kept 2 ram slots.


----------



## billwong (Jan 6, 2002)

The new iMac G5 looks great. Too bad the new form factor removes user installable options, other than the single RAM slot. You can only remove a panel to gain access to the RAM slot on the bottom of the computer. The back panel doesn't hinge open with ease as with the previous generations. Looks like there is 512 Mb on the logic board, plus a RAM slot for more memory.

http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iMacG5-iSight-Users_Guide.pdf


----------



## CubaMark (Feb 16, 2001)

I just took the time to read through the Users Guide, and found some interesting bits that I hadn't picked up from Steve's presentation:
<ul>
<li>the IR remote receiver is behind the Apple logo!
<li>the headphone-out jack is also an <b>optical</b> audio-out!
</ul>

Interesting!
M.


----------



## anil (Oct 28, 2003)

CubaMark said:


> I just took the time to read through the Users Guide, and found some interesting bits that I hadn't picked up from Steve's presentation:
> <ul>
> <li>the IR remote receiver is behind the Apple logo!
> <li>the headphone-out jack is also an <b>optical</b> audio-out!
> ...



It also has a Dual Layer Superdrive


----------



## iNeedhelp (Oct 23, 2005)

What's the difference between the "new" and "old" iMac G5??


----------

