Apple Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2002) vs Apple Power Macintosh 9500/150
Better figure, where one is clearly better
| ApplePower Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2002) | ApplePower Macintosh 9500/150 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Released | August 2002 | 1996 |
| Performance | ||
| 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 604 150 MHz (Power Macintosh 8500/150) |
| CPU cores | 2 | 1 |
| Graphics | NVIDIA GeForce4 MX (32 MB) or ATI Radeon 9000 Pro (64 MB) | Apple Accelerated Graphics (2 MB VRAM) |
| Memory | 256 MB, 512 MB or 2 GB (better) | 16 MB or 32 MB |
| Storage | 60 GB to 120 GB (better) | 2 GB |
| 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. | One PowerPC 604 processor at 150 MHz on a removable processor card; 32 KB level-one cache, 50 MHz processor bus and 512 KB level-two cache on the logic board |
| 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. | Bundled Apple Accelerated Graphics PCI card with 2 MB VRAM, expandable to 4 MB. Exact maker tables give 24-bit colour through 832 × 624, 16-bit at 1024 × 768 and 1152 × 870, and 8-bit at 1280 × 1024 with standard memory; the 4 MB upgrade permits 24-bit through 1152 × 870 and 16-bit at 1280 × 1024. The catalogue appendix claims higher colour depths and is not transferred over the exact model tables |
| 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. | 16 or 32 MB listed in Apple's service manual and worldwide catalogue; the Japanese configuration has 32 MB. Twelve 168-pin 64-bit 70 ns-or-faster DIMM sockets; matching modules in corresponding sockets enable interleaving. Exact support pages and catalogue give a 768 MB maximum; later shared Service Source gives 1536 MB using 128 MB DIMMs, while English support says those DIMMs were not tested. English support lists 8 MB as the minimum RAM but does not associate it with a complete disk configuration; only the 16/32 MB configurations documented in the contemporary maker catalogue and service manual are included. This expansion discrepancy remains explicit. 4 MB ROM |
| 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. | 2 GB internal Fast SCSI hard disk, manual-inject Apple SuperDrive floppy and AppleCD 600i 4× CD-ROM. Maker catalogue lists space for two additional 3.5-inch storage devices; external SCSI up to seven devices at 5 MB/s and internal SCSI up to 10 MB/s |
| Expansion slots | Four open full-length 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots and dedicated AGP 4x graphics slot. | Six PCI 2.0 expansion slots, five free with the supplied graphics card; no NuBus slots. Processor is on a removable card |
| Display | ||
| Screen | None built in | None built in |
| Connections | ||
| Ports | 2 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack | Ethernet, headphone jack |
| Ethernet | 1 Gb/s (better) | 0.01 Gb/s |
| External displays | Up to 2 | – |
| Front ports | Headphone jack and built-in speaker. | – |
| 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. | One ADB connector, two GeoPort/LocalTalk-compatible serial connectors, external DB-25 SCSI, AAUI-15 and 10BASE-T Ethernet connectors, 16-bit stereo sound input and output. DB-15 display connector belongs to the supplied graphics card. Both Ethernet connectors share one interface; if both are connected the service manual says 10BASE-T takes priority |
| 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. | One external display through the supplied graphics card, up to 1280 × 1024 with compatible display and cables; colour depth depends on video memory |
| Speakers | Built-in speaker; optional Apple Pro Speakers. | Built-in speaker and 16-bit stereo sound input/output |
| Microphones | – | Supports an external Apple PlainTalk microphone; shared service manual lists it as standard but the exact Japanese package list omits it, so regional inclusion remains qualified |
| Keyboard and mouse | Apple Pro Keyboard, optical Apple Pro Mouse, DVI-to-VGA adapter and modem cable. | Japanese configuration includes ADB Mouse II, power cable, KanjiTalk 7.5.3 CD-ROM, manuals and warranty; keyboard and display sold separately. Shared service manual specifies system software 7.5.3 or later for the 150 MHz model |
| Design and power | ||
| Type | Tower | Tower |
| Weight | 19.1 kg | 12.7 kg (better) |
| Width × depth × height | 227 × 468 × 432 mm | 196 × 400 × 430 mm |
| Operating system | macOS | macOS |
| 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 Japanese specifications and Service Source give 430 mm high, 196 mm wide and 400 mm deep, approximately 12.7 kg depending on installed devices. Worldwide catalogue rounds these to 429 × 196 × 401 mm and 12.6 kg |
| 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. | 100–240 V AC automatically configured, single phase, 50–60 Hz. Service Source distinguishes 225 W maximum DC power-supply output from input consumption |
| Power use | – | 340 W maximum continuous AC input and 520 W peak input, excluding monitor; exact Japanese specifications and Service Source agree. English support's 225 W is the DC supply rating, not AC consumption |
| 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. | English support gives 22 April 1996 as introduction. Apple's May 1996 worldwide product catalogue lists this exact model as an offering, supporting release year 1996; actual first-sale month/day remains unconfirmed |
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