Apple Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2002) vs Apple Power Macintosh 5500/275

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Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2002) compared with Power Macintosh 5500/275

	ApplePower Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2002)	ApplePower Macintosh 5500/275
Overview
Released
Released	August 2002	1997
Performance
Processor
Processor	2 × PowerPC G4 867 MHz (Power Mac Mirrored Drive Doors 2002), 2 × PowerPC G4 1000 MHz (Power Mac Mirrored Drive Doors 2002) or 2 × PowerPC G4 1250 MHz (Power Mac Mirrored Drive Doors 2002)	PowerPC 603e (275 MHz, Power Macintosh 5500)
CPU cores
CPU cores	2	1
Graphics
Graphics	NVIDIA GeForce4 MX (32 MB) or ATI Radeon 9000 Pro (64 MB)	–
Memory
Memory	256 MB, 512 MB or 2 GB (better)	16 MB or 32 MB
Storage
Storage	60 GB to 120 GB (better)	2 GB to 4 GB
CPU
CPU	Dual 867 MHz, dual 1 GHz or dual 1.25 GHz PowerPC G4 processors; each physical processor has 256 KB on-chip L2 cache. 867 MHz and 1 GHz have 1 MB DDR SRAM L3 per processor; 1.25 GHz has 2 MB. System bus 133 MHz on dual 867, 167 MHz on dual 1/1.25 GHz. CPU count describes physical processors; supplier is not inferred.	275 MHz PowerPC 603e with integrated floating-point unit, 32 KB internal cache and 64-bit PowerPC bus. UK and Dutch exact graphite specifications give 512 KB L2 cache. Shared service describes another 275 MHz configuration with the same features as the basic 5500/225 apart from clock speed; optional 256 KB family cache does not replace the documented graphite 512 KB value.
GPU
GPU	Dual 867 MHz: NVIDIA GeForce4 MX 32 MB DDR. Dual 1/1.25 GHz: ATI Radeon 9000 Pro 64 MB DDR. Optional NVIDIA GeForce4 Ti 128 MB; independent CTO options are not expanded into unsupported stock combinations.	2 MB SGRAM and built-in hardware acceleration for 2D QuickDraw and 3D QuickDraw 3D/RAVE. Exact archived Dutch family specifications identify ATI 3D Rage II and support 24-bit colour through 800 × 600 on the built-in CRT. Headline resolution is this explicitly documented built-in colour mode, not a fixed pixel matrix or established maximum for every colour depth. Shared service lists 640 × 480, 800 × 600 and 832 × 624 at 32 bits per pixel, 1024 × 768 and 1152 × 870 at 16 bits, and 1280 × 1024 at 8 bits; it does not establish all of these as exact regional built-in display limits.
Memory type
Memory type	Dual 867 MHz: 256 MB PC2100 DDR SDRAM at 266 MHz. Dual 1 GHz: 256 MB PC2700 DDR at 333 MHz; dual 1.25 GHz: 512 MB PC2700. Four DIMM slots support up to 2 GB. Configurations preserve stock processor/drive/graphics ties at base and maximum memory.	Graphite UK and Dutch family configurations have 32 MB EDO RAM, expandable to 128 MB in two 168-pin DIMM sockets. No system RAM is soldered on the logic board. Archived exact Dutch page specifies noncomposite 5 V, 60 ns or faster EDO DIMMs with 1K or 2K refresh. Shared service also permits 5 V fast-page DIMMs and warns that mixing types can use fast-page timings. Basic service configuration has 16 MB. 4 MB ROM.
Storage type
Storage type	60/80/120 GB 7200 rpm Ultra ATA/100 stock drives respectively. Dual 867 MHz has Combo DVD-ROM/CD-RW (CD-R 16x); faster models SuperDrive (DVD-R 2x, CD-R 8x). Four hard-drive bays support two ATA/100 and two ATA/66 drives, or up to four SCSI drives with a separately sold PCI card. Two optical bays, one occupied; optional second Combo drive. Maker optional storage choices remain in details rather than assumed CPU cross-pairs.	Exact graphite family configuration has a 4 GB IDE hard drive, internal 24× CD-ROM and Apple SuperDrive floppy. Shared service also documents a basic 275 MHz configuration inheriting 16 MB RAM, a 2 GB or larger drive and 12× CD-ROM from the basic 225 MHz model; the 2 GB configuration is the documented minimum, not a claimed universal shipped capacity. Optical drives and software differ between these configurations. Shared service describes the floppy as 1.4 MB; the archived Dutch page uses the same maker wording.
Expansion slots
Expansion slots	Four open full-length 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots and dedicated AGP 4x graphics slot.	One 32-bit PCI 2.0 slot for a 7-inch card with Macintosh drivers; communications slot occupied by the supplied graphite modem or optional Ethernet; video-input slot and TV/FM tuner bay. Graphite family specification includes TV/FM tuner and video-input card. Avid Cinema video-editing hardware is optional and requires Apple Video System. NuBus cards are not compatible with the PCI slot.
Display
Screen
Screen	None built in	12.8″
Resolution
Resolution	–	800 × 600
Panel
Panel	–	CRT
Display type
Display type	–	Built-in 15-inch nominal colour CRT with 12.8-inch visible diagonal. Shared service specifies 0.28 mm dot pitch and shadow-mask tube. Archived exact family page states up to 85 Hz without tying this figure to a resolution; headline refresh remains omitted. Display brightness controls are on the front, and the housing uses a swivel base.
Connections
Ports
Ports	2 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack	2 × headphone jack
Ethernet
Ethernet	1 Gb/s	–
External displays
External displays	Up to 2	–
Front ports
Front ports	Headphone jack and built-in speaker.	Headphone output, sound-volume and display-brightness controls, and infrared receiver for the TV/FM remote. Front jack plus rear stereo output give the headline two output jacks; sound input is counted separately in details.
Back ports
Back ports	Two FireWire 400, two USB chassis ports (maker four-port total includes two keyboard ports), Gigabit Ethernet, 56K V.92 modem, ADC/DVI, stereo audio line-in/out and Apple Pro Speakers minijack. Optional 11 Mbps AirPort 802.11b card. Bluetooth is a separately listed adapter, not built-in. No FireWire 800 in this 2002 generation.	ADB; external DB-25 SCSI with support for six external devices in the original Dutch family page; two RS-232/RS-422 serial ports with LocalTalk and GeoPort support in shared service; PlainTalk-compatible stereo sound input and rear stereo output. Graphite family modem supports data up to 33.6 Kbit/s, fax up to 14.4 Kbit/s, voice, answering-machine and hands-free functions; data rate depends on connection and provider. Archived page lists MNP4, V.42, MNP5 and V.42bis. Ethernet is a communications-slot option, not universally fitted. No USB or FireWire.
External displays
External displays	Two displays in extended desktop or mirroring modes; ADC and DVI with included DVI-to-VGA adapter. Connecting two ADC displays requires a separately sold DVI-to-ADC adapter.	Computer-monitor video mirroring requires the optional external-video connector kit. Shared service supports mirroring at 640 × 480, 800 × 600 or 832 × 624; this does not establish an independent extended desktop. Avid Cinema provides optional PAL/NTSC video editing and output and requires the video-input system. Included TV/FM reception is not proof of included TV output.
Speakers
Speakers	Built-in speaker; optional Apple Pro Speakers.	Two built-in stereo speakers and 16-bit stereo sound input/output, with SRS surround-sound enhancement. Shared service supports recording at 11, 22 or 44 kHz. Front headphone and rear speaker outputs are separate.
Microphones
Microphones	–	Built-in microphone plus external sound-input port supporting PlainTalk microphones. Shared service explicitly excludes the earlier Omni microphone and attenuated RCA adapter.
Keyboard and mouse
Keyboard and mouse	Apple Pro Keyboard, optical Apple Pro Mouse, DVI-to-VGA adapter and modem cable.	Exact archived Dutch ordering page identifies graphite Family Macintosh M6183 with keyboard, mouse, cables and model-specific software. Original UK Christmas 1997 brochure shows the graphite computer with matching keyboard and mouse, with TV/FM tuner and video-in listed in its 275 MHz specification. The screen artwork is original maker photography; it is not a clean unlit-screen alternative.
Design and power
Type
Type	Tower	All-in-one
Weight
Weight	19.1 kg	–
Width × depth × height
Width × depth × height	227 × 468 × 432 mm	–
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Size and weight detail
Size and weight detail	Exact maker reference weight 19.1 kg varies with configuration and manufacturing process; height 43.2, width 22.7, depth 46.8 cm. These published dimensions differ slightly from earlier G4 sheets and are retained.	Exact archived Dutch family page gives 40.6 × 19.8 × 42.8 cm and 20.2 kg, values resembling the companion tower rather than the pictured all-in-one. Shared service gives 445 mm height but swaps the family width/depth compared with other original all-in-one brochures, and prints internally inconsistent 17/19 lb versus 21.15 kg weights. These unresolved exact-model measurement conflicts are not promoted into headline weight or dimensions, and sibling-model measurements are not substituted.
Power supply
Power supply	100–125 V AC or 200–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz. Maximum current 6.5 A at low voltage or 7.5 A at high voltage; maker publishes no maximum wattage here.	Archived exact Dutch family specifications give 220 W maximum continuous input, with regional 200–240 or 100–125 V AC at 47–63 Hz and energy-saving sleep. Shared service gives 100–240 V AC at 47–63 Hz, a separate 125 W entry and 220 W maximum for all line/load conditions. These qualified ratings are not measured operating consumption.
Noise
Noise	–	Shared service describes a variable-speed enclosure fan and separate processor cooling fan, without a measured acoustic figure.
In the box
In the box	Mac OS X 10.2 Jaguar as default startup system, plus bootable Mac OS 9.2.2; iMovie, iPhoto, iTunes and iDVD for SuperDrive. Maker August 13 release says dual 867/1 GHz available that week, so first sale uses August month precision. Actual dual-1.25 GHz shipping confirmed 18 September. January 2003 FireWire 800 models and June 2003 reissue are separate generations.	Shared service graphite configuration includes Mac OS 8.0. Original UK Christmas brochure describes purchase between 1 November and 31 December 1997 for a software offer; exact Dutch product ordering page is dated September 1997 and lists 275 MHz M6183. These establish sale in 1997; actual first-sale month or day remains unresolved. UK software includes Apple Magic Collection, Actua Soccer, Kai's Power Goo and multimedia reference titles; promotional software is not another hardware generation. Product resource is the original Dutch Apple family page covering exact 225/275 configurations; the support resource is the current official Earlier Power Mac family document index in English (Macau region), which has no exact 275 MHz entry. No exact surviving English maker support specification record or user guide was recovered.