Anyone Here Apple/Mac Savvy?

[laxplayer39]

Hye whats up? Im gonna be going to college next year and I sorta wanna get a mac. They are real easy to use, they can edit movies and a lot of other cool shutff . I have had a pc for a long time now and they can sometiems be a pain in the arse and since i really need to study and macs are easy to use and not many games i think i have a winner.

now some peopl ehave been telling me that its pretty easy/cheap to buy an old mac and drop a g3/g4 processor and about like 256 ram for less than $300 and you can get that computer fro like $150. Thats a pretty good deal.

Now anyone here know of the way to do that and the model you need to use? Also if its possible to upgrade the video card?

thanks!!
SUnil

now would it bepossible to upgrade a apple lappy? im really wanting to get a laptop but they expensive

 

[BDawg]

Originally posted by: laxplayer39
Hye whats up? Im gonna be going to college next year and I sorta wanna get a mac. They are real easy to use, they can edit movies and a lot of other cool shutff . I have had a pc for a long time now and they can sometiems be a pain in the arse and since i really need to study and macs are easy to use and not many games i think i have a winner.

now some peopl ehave been telling me that its pretty easy/cheap to buy an old mac and drop a g3/g4 processor and about like 256 ram for less than $300 and you can get that computer fro like $150. Thats a pretty good deal.

Now anyone here know of the way to do that and the model you need to use? Also if its possible to upgrade the video card?

thanks!!
SUnil

now would it bepossible to upgrade a apple lappy? im really wanting to get a laptop but they expensive

In terms of performance and OS X usability, you're better off buying a true G4 (used or new) or a spiffy new iMac.

At work, I have a 300MHz G3. It runs OS X, but not very quickly. You can upgrade the processors, but currently, only G4s up to 500MHz are available for upgrade.

 

[Dim]

You can upgrade several of the old Power PC models to a G3 or G4 processor. Specific Mac models inlcude the 8500 and 9500, possibly others. The Umax S-100 clone is alos upgradable. I question the value of this, since, as pointed out already, the processor speed of the available upgrades is limited. You are also stuck with a slower bus and slower memory, as well as obsolete ports like ADB. You can add USB with an expansion card (don't know about firewire, which you would probably want for video editing). Using OS X is also iffy on an upgraded machine since Apple doesn't support it, but there's no compelling reason to go to OS X at this time. Video card upgrades are possible, if you can find a PCI video card for Mac.

If you want to go used, I think you would be better off getting a more recent model, a G4 with AGP video, and not bothering with a processor upgrade. Then you would have USB and firewire built-in, and better support for OS X as it matures. There are some video card upgrades, including Radeon for an AGP Mac.

However, the new imacs and emac are not too much more expensive and you would then have a faster processor than you can get through an upgrade.

 

[laxplayer39]

hmm yah ... i hate the e-mac tho ..they are gay as hell

im thinking about an ibook or a powerbook - i wanna get one used or smeothing cuz they real expensive

yah good ideas thanks guys!

 

[Go3iverson]

Yeah, don't get an upgrade card. They're very pricey! Also, some do have compatability issues with OS X, at times.

Like it or not, the cheapest way to get a G4, and you will want a G4, is the eMac. For about $1000 you have a nice machine with speakers, G4 processor and 17" flat display.

Want more style/less space? Grab up a G4 iMac.

No matter what you do, wait until July. MacExpo NY is coming and there should be a considerable G4 boost....leaving current models cheaper. Also, check Apple's website for education. They've got a 733MHz G4 tower with CDRW and ATi Radeon 7500 card for $1252. Mind you, that machine only has a 256k L2 Cache. My 867MHz machine has 2MB L3 along with it. Something to keep in mind.

Lemme know if you need any more help/confusion!