Apple iMac G5 (17-inch, 2004) vs Apple Power Mac G5 (Late 2004)

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iMac G5 (17-inch, 2004) compared with Power Mac G5 (Late 2004)

	AppleiMac G5 (17-inch, 2004)	ApplePower Mac G5 (Late 2004)
Overview
Released
Released	September 2004	October 2004
Performance
Processor
Processor	IBM PowerPC G5 1.6 GHz (iMac 2004) or IBM PowerPC G5 1.8 GHz (iMac 2004)	PowerPC G5 1800 MHz (Power Mac Late 2004)
CPU cores
CPU cores	1	1
Graphics
Graphics	NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra (64 MB)	NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra (64 MB)
Memory
Memory	256 MB or 2 GB	256 MB or 4 GB (better)
Storage
Storage	80 GB to 160 GB (better)	80 GB
CPU
CPU	1.6 GHz PowerPC G5 with 533 MHz frontside bus and Combo drive, or 1.8 GHz with 600 MHz bus and SuperDrive; both have 512 KB on-chip L2 cache. Generic maker-clock chip records retain the single-core identity cross-checked with exact EveryMac sources; a silicon revision is not inferred.	One 1.8 GHz PowerPC G5 with 512 KB L2 cache and a 600 MHz front-side bus. This is the new single-processor model; the dual-processor models also listed on the retained sheet are June 2004 carryovers.
GPU
GPU	NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra with 64 MB dedicated DDR video memory and AGP 8x support.	Stock NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra with 64 MB DDR in AGP 8x Pro. Optional ATI Radeon 9600 XT 128 MB, Radeon 9800 XT 256 MB, NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT DDL 256 MB or 6800 Ultra DDL 256 MB. The 9800 XT and 6800 cards also occupy the adjacent PCI slot.
Memory type
Memory type	256 MB PC3200 (400 MHz) DDR SDRAM standard, expandable to 2 GB in two slots. Configurations conservatively list the published base and maker maximum.	Stock 256 MB PC3200 DDR400 in matched pairs; four DIMM slots support up to 4 GB. Configuration rows keep the stock graphics and drive at base and maximum supported memory.
Storage type
Storage type	80 GB 7200 rpm Serial ATA hard drive; The maker launch lists a 160 GB build-to-order option. The 1.6 GHz model uses a slot-loading Combo DVD-ROM/CD-RW; the 1.8 GHz model uses SuperDrive DVD-R/CD-RW with 4x DVD-R writing. The launch press's generic 250 GB option is not paired with the 17-inch model without exact support.	Stock 80 GB 7200 rpm Serial ATA drive. Two 3.5-inch bays, each with a 150 MB/s interface. Optional 160 or 250 GB drives, including two 250 GB drives. One optical bay with 8x DVD-R SuperDrive; Combo drive is optional.
Expansion slots
Expansion slots	–	Three open full-length 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots and occupied AGP 8x Pro graphics slot; no PCI-X on this single-processor model.
Display
Screen size
Screen size	17″	None built in
Resolution
Resolution	1440 × 900	–
Brightness
Brightness	200 nits	–
Display type
Display type	Widescreen TFT active-matrix LCD with millions of colours and typical 350:1 contrast. Panel technology and refresh rate are not published in the exact maker sheet.	–
Display features
Display features	Typical viewing angles: 120° horizontal and 90° vertical.	–
Connections
Ports
Ports	3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack	3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	0.1 Gb/s	1 Gb/s (better)
External displays
External displays	–	Up to 2
Front ports
Front ports	–	USB 2.0, FireWire 400 and headphone minijack.
Back ports
Back ports	Three USB 2.0 ports on the computer, up to 480 Mbps, plus two USB 1.1 ports on the keyboard; two FireWire 400 ports with 8 W shared power, Mini-VGA, 10/100BASE-T Ethernet, 56K V.92 modem, headphone/optical digital audio output and audio line-in. AirPort Extreme 802.11g card and internal Bluetooth module are optional, rather than standard.	Two USB 2.0, FireWire 800, FireWire 400, Gigabit Ethernet, V.92 modem, optical Toslink input/output and analogue audio line-in/out. Three chassis USB ports in total, plus two keyboard USB 1.1 ports. AirPort Extreme 54 Mbps and Bluetooth 1.1 are optional.
External displays
External displays	Mini-VGA provides video mirroring on a VGA display or S-video/composite television through optional adapters. Output resolutions: 640 × 480 at 60 Hz, 800 × 600 at 75 Hz or 1024 × 768 at 75 Hz.	Stock ADC and DVI with included DVI-to-VGA adapter, supporting two displays. Optional 6800 GT/Ultra DDL cards have two dual-link DVI connectors and support two 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Displays; a second ADC display on the stock card needs an adapter.
Speakers
Speakers	Built-in stereo speakers, internal 12 W digital amplifier and built-in microphone.	Built-in speaker; optical and analogue connections for external audio.
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Apple Keyboard, Apple Mouse and modem cable.	Apple Keyboard, Apple Mouse, USB extension cable, DVI-to-VGA adapter, modem cable and AirPort antenna.
Design and power
Type
Type	All-in-one	Tower
Weight
Weight	8.4 kg (better)	16.4 kg
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	426 × 173 × 430 mm	206 × 475 × 511 mm
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Published metric size and reference weight; weight varies by configuration and manufacturing process.	Maker height 51.1 cm, width 20.6 cm, depth 47.5 cm. Published reference weight for the single 1.8 GHz model is 16.4 kg, distinct from the carryover dual-processor models; weight varies with configuration.
Materials
Materials	–	Aluminium enclosure.
Power supply
Power supply	100–120 V AC or 100–240 V AC depending on country of purchase, 47–63 Hz, single phase; maximum continuous power 180 W.	–
In the box
In the box	Launch Mac OS X 10.3 Panther, iLife ’04 and bundled productivity software, with Classic environment support. The retained specification lists the later iLife ’05 bundle. Apple announced the model on 31 August 2004 and stated worldwide shipping would begin in mid-September; the release field therefore retains September month precision.	The October 2004 release includes Mac OS X Panther and iLife ’04. Apple’s retained specification sheet later lists iLife ’05; that later software listing does not change the hardware’s October 2004 first sale.