Apple Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2003) vs Apple Power Macintosh 4400/160
Better figure, where one is clearly better
| ApplePower Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2003) | ApplePower Macintosh 4400/160 | |
|---|---|---|
| Overview | ||
| Released | June 2003 | November 1996 |
| Performance | ||
| Processor | PowerPC G4 1250 MHz (Power Mac MDD 2003) or 2 × PowerPC G4 1250 MHz (Power Mac MDD 2003) | PowerPC 603e 160 MHz (Power Macintosh 4400/160) |
| CPU cores | 1 or 2 | 1 |
| Graphics | ATI Radeon 9000 Pro (64 MB) | – |
| Memory | 256 MB or 2 GB (better) | 16 MB |
| Storage | 80 GB (better) | 1.2 GB |
| CPU | Stock single 1.25 GHz PowerPC G4 with 256 KB L2 cache and 1 MB L3 cache. Contemporary Macworld reporting of Apple Store configurations also documents dual 1.25 GHz processors, each with 2 MB L3; this custom build is labelled in configuration details rather than presented as a second stock base. | 160 MHz PowerPC 603e with integrated floating-point unit, 40 MHz system bus and 32 KB level-one cache; optional 256 KB level-two cache on a 160-pin DIMM card |
| GPU | Stock ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 64 MB DDR in an AGP 4x slot. Macworld also documents a custom dual-processor build with NVIDIA GeForce4 Titanium; that build has other upgrades and is not treated as a freely interchangeable stock configuration. | Built-in video with 1 MB EDO video-memory DIMM, expandable to 2 MB EDO or up to 4 MB SGRAM. Exact support table gives 16-bit colour through 832 × 624 and 8-bit at 1024 × 768 or 1152 × 870 with standard 1 MB; 1280 × 1024 needs expanded video memory and permits 8-bit at 2 MB or 16-bit at 4 MB |
| Memory type | Stock 256 MB PC2700 DDR333; four DIMM slots, maximum 2 GB. The single-processor configurations retain the stock drive and graphics at base and maximum memory. The documented dual-processor custom base has 256 MB. | 16 MB standard; maximum 96 MB using three 168-pin 64-bit 3.3 V unbuffered EDO DIMMs, 60 ns or faster. Each socket supports up to 32 MB; slot one only supports single-bank DIMMs. No memory soldered to board; 4 MB ROM |
| Storage type | Stock 80 GB 7200 rpm Ultra ATA/100 hard drive; up to four internal drives. Tray-loading Combo drive reads DVD at 8x and CD at 32x, writes CD-R at 16x and CD-RW at 10x. Macworld documents a dual 1.25 GHz custom base with 80 GB, Combo drive and Radeon 9000 Pro, and a separate upgraded build with 2 GB RAM, two 160 GB drives, SuperDrive and GeForce4 Titanium. The two-drive build is described here without flattening its drives into a single capacity. | 1.2 GB internal IDE hard disk, manual-inject 1.44 MB Apple SuperDrive floppy and 8× ATAPI CD-ROM |
| Expansion slots | Four PCI slots and an occupied AGP 4x graphics slot. | Three PCI 2.0 expansion slots, 45 W combined allowance. Exact English support says one 7-inch and two 12-inch slots; shared Service Source instead specifies one full-size 12.28-inch slot and all three support 6.88-inch cards. Card-length conflict retained. No separate Comm Slot II on this original 160 model; later 200 model differs |
| Display | ||
| Screen | None built in | None built in |
| Connections | ||
| Ports | 2 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jack | Headphone jack |
| Ethernet | 1 Gb/s | – |
| Front ports | Headphone connection and built-in mono speaker. | – |
| Back ports | Two USB 1.1, two FireWire 400, Gigabit Ethernet with Auto-MDIX, ADC and DVI display connectors, audio line-in/out and Apple Pro Speakers connection. The maker lists a V.92 modem. Optional original AirPort; the contemporary Apple-spokesman report confirms no AirPort Extreme, internal Bluetooth or FireWire 800. | DB-15 monitor output, one ADB connector, external DB-25 SCSI, two GeoPort-compatible RS-232/RS-422 serial connectors, stereo sound input and 3.5 mm headphone/line-level sound output. No standard Ethernet; add a PCI network card. Built-in LocalTalk through serial port |
| External displays | ADC and DVI connectors with included DVI-to-VGA adapter. Digital resolution up to 1920 × 1200; analogue up to 1600 × 1200. The exact sheet does not publish a simultaneous display count. | One external monitor; supported resolution and colour depth depend on installed video-memory DIMM. No built-in display |
| Speakers | Built-in mono speaker and connection for Apple Pro Speakers; no built-in microphone. | Built-in speaker and 16-bit stereo sound input/output |
| Microphones | – | Supports an external Apple PlainTalk microphone; no built-in microphone figure is published |
| Keyboard and mouse | Black Apple Pro input devices and DVI-to-VGA adapter. | Original System 7.5.3 and System Enabler 827. Contemporary exact maker ordering description supplies keyboard, mouse, system software and reference documentation; external display and optional network/cache hardware are separate |
| Design and power | ||
| Type | Tower | Compact |
| Weight | 19.1 kg | 9.5 kg (better) |
| Width × depth × height | 226 × 467 × 432 mm | 385 × 442 × 139 mm |
| Operating system | macOS | macOS |
| Size and weight detail | Maker dimensions: height 43.2 cm, width 22.6 cm, depth 46.7 cm; weight 19.1 kg. These published metric values differ slightly from the FW800 sheet. | Shared Service Source gives 139 × 385 × 442 mm and 9.5 kg, but its corresponding 24 lb figure is inconsistent. Published metric weight retained without conversion; installed equipment changes weight |
| Power supply | – | Manually switched mains. Exact support specifies 110/220 V, 47–63 Hz and 150 W maximum; shared Service Source specifies 90–270 V switchable 110/220 V and 200 W maximum excluding monitor. These unresolved maximum-rating differences are retained without treating them as measured operating consumption |
| In the box | Mac OS X 10.2.4 and bootable Mac OS 9.2.2, install/restore DVD and Apple Hardware Test. First sale uses the 23 June 2003 Macworld report that these models were for sale at Apple’s online store; a 29 June report quotes an Apple spokesman confirming manufacture and sale. The first day is contemporary Apple Store reporting rather than a retained maker launch notice. | Exact Apple support lists 7 November 1996 as introduction. Apple Tech Info Library dated 18 November 1996 explicitly says the exact 4400/160 is currently available in Europe, supporting November 1996 sale precision without inventing a day. Contemporary German coverage planned availability there for December; regional delivery differed. This is the Europe-only 160 MHz version, not the later 200 MHz or renamed Far East 7220. |
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