Apple iMac 24″ (M3) vs Apple iMac G3 (Slot Loading, 1999)

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iMac 24″ (M3) compared with iMac G3 (Slot Loading, 1999)

	AppleiMac 24″ (M3)	AppleiMac G3 (Slot Loading, 1999)
Overview
Released
Released	November 2023	October 1999
Performance
Processor
Processor	Apple M3	PowerPC G3 350 MHz (iMac) or PowerPC G3 400 MHz (iMac)
CPU cores
CPU cores	8	1
Graphics
Graphics	8-core GPU or 10-core GPU	ATI RAGE 128 VR (8 MB)
Memory
Memory	8 GB or 24 GB (better)	64 MB, 128 MB or 512 MB
Storage
Storage	256 GB to 2 TB (better)	6 GB to 13 GB
CPU
CPU	8-core CPU with 4 performance cores and 4 efficiency cores	350 MHz or 400 MHz PowerPC G3 with 100 MHz system bus and 512 KB backside L2 cache. Apple developer history gives 140/160 MHz cache clocks while EveryMac gives 200 MHz for the DV Special Edition; optional cache-clock fields are omitted. Exact processor supplier is not established.
GPU
GPU	8-core GPU (two-port model) or 10-core GPU (four-port models); hardware-accelerated ray tracing	ATI RAGE 128 VR with 8 MB video memory and AGP support. Retained sheet says SGRAM while the developer note says SDRAM; memory technology is not silently selected.
Memory type
Memory type	–	PC100 SDRAM in two DIMM slots, up to 512 MB in the retained maker sheet. Base 350 MHz and DV models have 64 MB; DV Special Edition has 128 MB. Configurations retain each base and published maximum with its original processor and drive.
AI engine
AI engine	16-core Neural Engine	–
Memory bandwidth
Memory bandwidth	100GB/s	–
Storage type
Storage type	SSD	350 MHz: 6 GB ATA hard drive and slot-loading 24x CD-ROM, Blueberry. 400 MHz DV: 10 GB and 4x DVD-ROM, five fruit colours. 400 MHz DV Special Edition: 13 GB and 4x DVD-ROM, Graphite. These are configurations of one generation.
Media engine
Media engine	Hardware-accelerated H.264, HEVC, ProRes and ProRes RAW; video decode engine; video encode engine; ProRes encode and decode engine; AV1 decode	–
Display
Screen size
Screen size	24″	15″
Resolution
Resolution	4480 × 2520 (better)	1024 × 768
Panel
Panel	IPS LCD	–
Refresh rate
Refresh rate	60 Hz	75 Hz (better)
Brightness
Brightness	500 nits	–
Display type
Display type	4.5K Retina display; actual diagonal 23.5 inches	Nominal 15-inch CRT with 13.8-inch viewable diagonal; no fixed LCD native resolution.
Pixel density
Pixel density	218 ppi	–
Display features
Display features	1 billion colours; wide colour (P3); True Tone	Maximum mode 1024 × 768 at 75 Hz; 800 × 600 at 95 Hz and 640 × 480 at 117 Hz (EveryMac exact DV Special Edition specification).
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × USB4, headphone jack	2 × USB-A, Ethernet, 2 × headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	–	0.1 Gb/s
External displays
External displays	Up to 1	–
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi	Wi-Fi 6E	–
Bluetooth
Bluetooth	5.3	–
Camera
Camera	1080p FaceTime HD	–
Back ports
Back ports	Two-port model: 2 × Thunderbolt / USB 4 with DisplayPort, Thunderbolt 3 (up to 40Gb/s), USB 4 (up to 40Gb/s) and USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10Gb/s), Gigabit Ethernet optional; four-port models add 2 × USB 3 (up to 10Gb/s) and Gigabit Ethernet as standard; 3.5 mm headphone jack with advanced support for high-impedance headphones	Two 12 Mbps USB ports on the computer, 10/100BASE-T Ethernet, 56K V.90 modem, audio line-in/out and two front headphone jacks. Two FireWire 400 ports and VGA video mirroring are present only on DV and DV Special Edition. AirPort card is optional across this generation.
External displays
External displays	One at up to 6K 60Hz	DV and DV Special Edition mirror the internal display through VGA; the 350 MHz entry configuration has no external video connector.
Camera
Camera	1080p FaceTime HD camera; advanced image signal processor with computational video	–
Speakers
Speakers	High-fidelity six-speaker system with force-cancelling woofers; wide stereo sound; Spatial Audio with Dolby Atmos	Integrated Harman Kardon Odyssey stereo sound system and built-in microphone. Convection cooling uses no fan.
Microphones
Microphones	Studio-quality three-mic array with high signal-to-noise ratio and directional beamforming	–
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Magic Keyboard (two-port model) or Magic Keyboard with Touch ID (four-port models), and Magic Mouse; Magic Trackpad or Magic Keyboard with Touch ID and Numeric Keypad available instead	Apple USB Keyboard and round Apple USB Mouse.
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	4.43 kg	–
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	547 × 147 × 461 mm	–
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	–	Retained Apple sheet gives height 15.8, width 15.2 and depth 17.6 inches, weight 34.7 pounds. Exact developer note gives height 39.5, width 38 and depth 44 cm and weight 15.5 kg (34 pounds). Disagreeing main dimensions and weight are omitted.
Power supply
Power supply	143W external power adapter; power lead (2 m)	–
Colours
Colours	Two-port model: Blue, Green, Pink, Silver; four-port models also Yellow, Orange, Purple	–
In the box
In the box	iMac, Magic Keyboard (with Touch ID on four-port models), Magic Mouse, 143W power adapter, power lead (2 m), USB-C to Lightning Cable	Mac OS 8.6 at launch; TIME notes Mac OS 9 would begin shipping subsequently. Conservative October 1999 sale month follows the contemporary physical DV Special Edition reviews; the retained introduction day differs from the launch event date.