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Apple Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower vs Apple Power Mac G5 (Late 2004)

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ApplePower Macintosh G3 Mini TowerApplePower Mac G5 (Late 2004)
Overview
ReleasedNovember 1997October 2004
Performance
ProcessorPowerPC G3 233 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower), PowerPC G3 266 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower), PowerPC G3 300 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower) or PowerPC G3 333 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower)PowerPC G5 1800 MHz (Power Mac Late 2004)
CPU cores11
GraphicsATI 3D RAGE II+ (2 MB), ATI 3D RAGE II+ (6 MB) and IX Micro 2D/3D PCI card (8 MB), Built-in graphics (6 MB SGRAM; factory revision varies), Built-in graphics (6 MB SGRAM) and IX Micro 2D/3D PCI card (8 MB) or ATI RAGE Pro Turbo (6 MB)NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 Ultra (64 MB)
Memory32 MB, 64 MB or 128 MB256 MB or 4 GB
Storage4 GB to 9 GB80 GB
CPU233 and 266 MHz PowerPC G 3 with 512 KB backside L 2 cache; later 300 and 333 MHz with 1 MB. Apple’s exact Mini Tower Service Source confirms all four clocks and the 66 MHz system architecture. The factory processor supplier is not identified per machine.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.
GPUBuilt-in 2D/3D accelerator with 2 MB SGRAM, expandable to 6 MB. Original maker sheet specifies ATI RAGE II+; later logic boards changed the accelerator. Optional IX Micro 128-bit PCI graphics card has 8 MB EDO VRAM. EveryMac identifies RAGE Pro Turbo in the later 333 MHz configuration.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 typeThree 168-pin 64-bit JEDEC-standard 3.3 V unbuffered SDRAM DIMM slots; maker-supported maximum 384 MB. Stock memory of 32, 64 or 128 MB is tied to the factory ordering table. Unofficial 768 MB upgrades are excluded.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 typeMay 1998 Apple factory pairs: 233 MHz/32 MB/4 GB IDE (M6431LL/A); 266 MHz/32 MB/6 GB IDE/Zip/audio-video (M6142LL/A); 266 MHz/128 MB/4 GB Ultra Wide SCSI/additional 8 MB PCI graphics (M6459LL/A); 300 MHz/64 MB/4 GB Ultra Wide SCSI (M6572LL/A); 300 MHz/128 MB/two 4 GB Ultra Wide SCSI drives/additional 8 MB PCI graphics (M6494LL/A). All have 24x CD-ROM. Later 333 MHz/128 MB/9 GB/Zip is from EveryMac’s exact record. Optional drive/RAM cross-products are omitted. Internal 1.44 MB floppy and optional 2x DVD-ROM.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 slotsThree PCI slots accept three 12-inch cards; PERCH I/O card connector and modem slot. Optional SCSI, Ethernet and graphics cards consume PCI slots. Free internal storage bays vary by configuration.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
ScreenNone built inNone built in
Connections
PortsEthernet, headphone jack3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack
Ethernet0.01 Gb/s1 Gb/s
External displays–Up to 2
Front ports–USB 2.0, FireWire 400 and headphone minijack.
Back portsOne ADB, one DB-15 monitor, one DB-25 SCSI, two GeoPort-compatible serial ports, 10BASE-T Ethernet and stereo audio input/output. Optional 10/100BASE-T and FireWire cards are excluded from the standard count.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 displaysBuilt-in video supports up to 1600 × 1200, with colour depth depending on SGRAM. Optional PCI graphics card connects a second monitor.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–Built-in speaker; optical and analogue connections for external audio.
Keyboard and mouse–Apple Keyboard, Apple Mouse, USB extension cable, DVI-to-VGA adapter, modem cable and AirPort antenna.
Design and power
TypeTowerTower
Weight15.015 kg16.4 kg
Width × depth × height243.84 × 452.12 × 386.08 mm206 × 475 × 511 mm
Operating systemmacOSmacOS
Size and weight detailMaker gives 33.1 lb and 15.2 × 9.6 × 17.8 inches height × width × depth. Main fields are direct conversions using 25.4 mm/inch and 0.45359237 kg/lb; actual weight depends on fitted devices.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–Aluminium enclosure.
Power supply240 W maximum; 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz (current Apple Mini Tower support table).–
In the boxMac OS 8.0 originally; revised stock includes Mac OS 8.1. November 1997 month is supported by Apple’s opened Store selling the new Desktop/Mini Tower, with stock deliveries in two working days and BTO about two weeks; no exact first delivery day is proven. Server G3 shares the chassis but its bundled server configurations are excluded.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.

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