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Apple Power Mac G5 (Early 2005) vs Apple Power Macintosh 8100/100

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Better figure, where one is clearly better

ApplePower Mac G5 (Early 2005)ApplePower Macintosh 8100/100
Overview
ReleasedApril 20051995
Performance
Processor2 × PowerPC G5 2000 MHz (Power Mac Early 2005), 2 × PowerPC G5 2300 MHz (Power Mac Early 2005) or 2 × PowerPC G5 2700 MHz (Power Mac Early 2005)PowerPC 601 100 MHz (Power Macintosh 8100/100)
CPU cores21
GraphicsATI Radeon 9600 (128 MB) or ATI Radeon 9650 (256 MB)–
Memory512 MB, 4 GB or 8 GB16 MB
Storage160 GB to 250 GB700 MB
CPUTwo physical PowerPC G5 processors at 2, 2.3 or 2.7 GHz, each with 512 KB L2 cache and no L3 cache. Front-side bus per processor is 1, 1.15 or 1.35 GHz. The dual 2.7 GHz model uses liquid cooling.100 MHz PowerPC 601 with integrated floating-point unit, 32 KB L1 cache, 256 KB L2 cache and 33.3 MHz system bus; 4 MB ROM
GPUDual 2 and 2.3 GHz: ATI Radeon 9600 with 128 MB DDR and two single-link DVI outputs. Dual 2.7 GHz: ATI Radeon 9650 with 256 MB GDDR3, one single-link and one dual-link DVI output. Optional NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra DDL with 256 MB has two dual-link DVI outputs and occupies the adjacent PCI slot.Power Macintosh video card with 2 MB VRAM, expandable to 4 MB using four 512 KB SIMMs; separate built-in DRAM video uses system memory. This is the non-AV model, without the AV card's S-video connections.
Memory typeStock 512 MB PC3200 DDR400, installed in matched pairs. Dual 2 GHz has four DIMM slots and a 4 GB maximum. Dual 2.3 and 2.7 GHz have eight slots and an 8 GB maximum. Configuration rows keep the stock drives and graphics at base and maximum memory.Apple's Japanese bundle has 16 MB including 8 MB soldered to the logic board; eight 72-pin noncomposite 80 ns SIMM sockets accept matched pairs, up to 264 MB total. Apple Service Source also lists an 8 MB configuration.
Storage typeStock 160 GB on dual 2 GHz and 250 GB on dual 2.3/2.7 GHz, all 7200 rpm Serial ATA. Two internal drive bays; optional 250 or 400 GB drives, including two 400 GB drives. One optical bay with 16x SuperDrive supporting DVD±R and up to 4x dual-layer DVD+R recording.Japanese bundle has a 700 MB internal SCSI hard drive, 1.44 MB floppy and internal 2× AppleCD 300i Plus CD-ROM. The exact-model service table also lists a 1 GB hard-drive option; CD-ROM inclusion varies by configuration.
Expansion slotsAGP 8x Pro graphics slot. Dual 2 GHz has three 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots. Dual 2.3 and 2.7 GHz have PCI-X: two 100 MHz slots and one 133 MHz slot.Three NuBus slots and one processor-direct slot occupied by the video card; fitting an optional AV card replaces that video card rather than adding another card alongside it
Display
ScreenNone built inNone built in
Connections
Ports3 × USB-A, Ethernet, headphone jackEthernet
Ethernet1 Gb/s–
External displaysUp to 2–
Front portsUSB 2.0, FireWire 400 and headphone minijack.–
Back portsTwo USB 2.0, FireWire 800, FireWire 400, Gigabit Ethernet, optical S/PDIF input/output and analogue audio line-in/out. Three chassis USB ports in total, plus keyboard USB 1.1 ports. AirPort Extreme, Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR and a V.92 modem are optional.ADB, external DB-25 SCSI, two LocalTalk/GeoPort serial ports, AAUI-15 Ethernet requiring a transceiver, HDI-45 and DB-15 monitor ports, and 16-bit stereo audio input and output
External displaysTwo displays in extended desktop or mirrored modes. Radeon 9600 supports two displays up to 1920 × 1200; Radeon 9650 supports one 30-inch Apple Cinema HD Display via dual-link DVI. Optional 6800 Ultra DDL supports two 30-inch displays. DVI-to-VGA adapter included.DRAM HDI-45 and VRAM DB-15 video outputs; 2 MB VRAM supports 24-bit colour at 640 × 480 and 832 × 624, or 16-bit colour at 1024 × 768 and 1152 × 870. Expanding VRAM to 4 MB supports 24-bit colour at the latter resolutions.
SpeakersBuilt-in speaker; analogue and optical audio connections.–
Keyboard and mouseApple Keyboard, Apple Mouse, USB extension cable and DVI-to-VGA adapter.Japanese bundle includes Apple Desktop Bus Mouse II; keyboard and monitor are separate. The catalogue photograph shows a shared 8100/100 and 8100/110 setup with external monitor, keyboard and mouse.
Design and power
TypeTowerTower
Weight20.2 kg11.3 kg
Width × depth × height–196 × 396 × 360 mm
Operating systemmacOSmacOS
Size and weight detailThe exact maker sheet labels height as 47.5 cm, width 20.6 cm and depth 51.1 cm. Earlier G5 sheets label height/depth in the opposite order; main dimensions are omitted because those published axes conflict. Maker reference weight is 20.2 kg and varies with configuration.Japanese exact-model page publishes 360 × 196 × 396 mm and 11.3 kg, with weight varying by installed drives. The English support sheet lists 14 × 7.7 × 15.75 inches and 25.3 lb; Service Source lists the same metric dimensions but 11.5 kg. The April 1995 catalogue lists 361 × 226 × 406 mm and 11.4 kg; those conflicting catalogue measurements are not used for the headline dimensions.
Power supply450 W on dual 2/2.3 GHz; 600 W on dual 2.7 GHz, as stated by the maker.Automatically configured 100–240 V AC, 50–60 Hz; Service Source distinguishes 298 W maximum continuous and 453 W peak input, excluding the monitor, from 200 W continuous DC output. Apple's support sheet labels 200 W as maximum watts.
MaterialsAluminium enclosure.–
In the boxMac OS X Tiger and iLife ’05. Apple’s 27 April 2005 launch says these models are available “this week”; first sale is kept at April precision rather than treating the announcement as a confirmed delivery day. The older single 1.8 GHz model retained in the launch range is represented separately as Late 2004.Japanese bundle includes power cable, KanjiTalk 7.5 CD-ROM and documentation. Apple lists introduction on 3 January 1995; the April 1995 maker catalogue establishes a current offering that year, without resolving the first-sale month.

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