[gunnar]

Now that the G5s have arrived as the obvious desktop tower choice is it time for a low-cost, scaled down G4 tower? My wish list is:

Single G4 around 1.2 GHz
No PCI (just a mid-range graphics card)
DVD/CD-RW
256MB RAM
60 GB HD
Small form factor
NO FAN!
$699

[aaanorton]

Originally posted by gunnar:
Now that the G5s have arrived as the obvious desktop tower choice is it time for a low-cost, scaled down G4 tower? My wish list is:

Single G4 around 1.2 GHz
No PCI (just a mid-range graphics card)
DVD/CD-RW
256MB RAM
60 GB HD
Small form factor
NO FAN!
$699

How is this not an iMac?

[AngryAngel]

It's not an iMac because:

-No fan
-Expandable graphics
-No built in monitor

[businezguy]

There is no way they would be able to supply something that cheap. Not with a G4 processor. They just pay too much for them.

[terrancew_hod]

Originally posted by businezguy:
There is no way they would be able to supply something that cheap. Not with a G4 processor. They just pay too much for them.

They very well could. The specs are similar to the eMac with the 1GHz G4 processor and the combo drive. It just doesn't have the built-in monitor...and that's $999. Take off the built-in monitor and you'll be close to that price range. This model would just sacrifice the option of replacing the video and the processor.

Terrance

[jonasmac]

Originally posted by gunnar:
Now that the G5s have arrived as the obvious desktop tower choice is it time for a low-cost, scaled down G4 tower? My wish list is:

Single G4 around 1.2 GHz
No PCI (just a mid-range graphics card)
DVD/CD-RW
256MB RAM
60 GB HD
Small form factor
NO FAN!
$699

Return....of the cube!!!!

--jonas

[ChadC]

i would rather include the PCI with the ability to upgrade graphics card for a final price of less then $1000. Being a switcher, one of the original things that scared me was the inability to upgrade the iMac, which was what I could afford at the time. I think many more PC users who are on the brink of switching would spend this kind of money knowing that if they wanted to they could upgrade to a dual 1.4 ghz logic board/g4 combo from an aftermarket company in a year or so.

-Chad

[Short Circuit]

You just HAD a low cost G4 tower.

anyway, I think that the products and prices are laid out well.

W

[Judge_Fire]

For some views on this, check out the Small Form Factor G5 thread from not too far ago.

J

[rezzi]

Originally posted by jonasmac:
Return....of the cube!!!!

--jonas

Exactly! You beat me to it.

[kupan787]

Originally posted by terrancew_hod:
They very well could. The specs are similar to the eMac with the 1GHz G4 processor and the combo drive. It just doesn't have the built-in monitor...and that's $999. Take off the built-in monitor and you'll be close to that price range. This model would just sacrifice the option of replacing the video and the processor.

Terrance

How much do you pay for monitors? You can get a 17" CRT for $60 or less, so $939 is not really that close to $699 (a difference of $240). The monitor is not what is holding the eMac back from being a $699 wonder machine, it is the processor cost.

All prices below refelct an estimate for buying in bulk. The number in parenthesis is the actual price listed. When multiple prices were found for a product, I took the lower value. The G4 price is what is listed on MOTs site from their distributors.

Single G4 1.25 GHz - $457 ($507)
No PCI - $0 ($0)
1 AGP slot (filled with GeForce 4Mx 64MB DDR) - $63 ($70)
DVD/CD-RW - $60 ($70)
256MB PC133 - $41 ($49)
60 GB HD - $60 ($67)
Small form factor - $30 for the case (?)
NO FAN! - $0 ($0)

Total - $711

So this is pretty close to $699. Note this doesn't include the cost of the mobo, but I have no idea on that cost ($30?). This gives you a machine with an upgradable AGP card, and normal PC133 RAM.

On a side note, the price difference between a 1.25 GHz part and a 1.0 GHz part is nearly $170! So if your "dream" machine had a 1GHz G4, we are looking at a $551 machine (marked up to probably $599)

[Loopydude]

Here's an idea: Screw the Motorola G4 and put in a fast G3/Gobi processor. Or better still, build it with the "Mojave" processor, which, if I understand correctly, will be a vectorized G3 (in other words, IBM's answer to the G4...it might even be called a G4). Mojave could be ready by the middle of next year, or earlier, and will have speeds of 1.4GHz and up.

To hell with Motorola and its slow, expensive processors, I say.

Thing is, if IBM can ship 1.4GHz+ Mojaves, and put them in a budget tower with dual processors, and Apple could sell them for under $1000, I'm not sure if Apple WOULD sell them. The reson for my doubt is simple: Apple often shies away from low-cost alternatives to pro models that emulate the pro models because they are too attractive; they would cut into pro model sales, so Apple would rather force consumers to buy the more expensive machines. They've taken this approach time and again.

[schalliol]

It won't sell, it'll be a cube deal, bleh.

I would only recommend if they make a new iMac that has a removable monitor that is optional. They don't see the market for more than 2 desktop machines.

[DrBoar]

I rather see a price drop in the G5 towers.

A cheap G4 like small tower incarnation of the 4400 will have a very short life span. I took a look Roxio CD and DVD tool for the PC

"Intel® Pentium 200-MHz or faster processor for audio; Intel Pentium III 500-MHz or faster for video authoring; Intel Pentium III 800MHz or faster required for analog MPEG capture and 1.6 GHz for real-time capture from DV " with games 733 MHz G4 is the minimum requirement but in reality twise that speed is needed and the more the better....

My point is that the G4 as a desktop CPU is on its deathbed. Sure some speed bumps to around one and a half GHz is welcome in i&eMacs one last round before the IBM 970 moves in. And the G4 will live on for a while in the portable but it is time to move on.

I can imagine Apple selling old G4 towers for OS 9 users and the like but why spend time on developing a headless version of the current iMac?

Within 6 months they need to get the IBM 970 in the iMac and the Xservers and hopefully the highend powerbook. This is the bread and butter of the Macintoshes while a headless iMac or a resurected Cube would be a small product.

[Angus_D]

Isn't there already a low-cost G4 tower? Like those 1.25GHz ones Apple's selling...

[businezguy]

Yeah, but just not as low cost as some folks are wanting.

[Loopydude]

That's exactly it: A 1.25GHz G4 at $1200 is too expensive for what you get. It should be at most $999 and have a 1.4GHz processor.

Again, IBM is still developing the G3 (Gobi and Mojave). The Mojave is supposed to START at about 1.4GHz. I'd be happy with a desktop equivalent of a 2GHz G4 with a few slots. At least, I would be now. Maybe in a year, I wouldn't, though.

[NYCFarmboy]

I think a 900 mhz g3 tower/cube stripped to the bone for under 399 bucks would sell like hotcakes.
- 900mhz G3
- 20 gig drive
- 2 usb ports 1 firewire 400
- 56k modem
- ethernet
- OS X only
- CD-RW option for another 100 bucks
- 256MB RAM

- no keyboard
- no mouse
- no moniter

Would be an nice setup for those who don't care about doing movies/photoshop filters.

[ChadC]

there's no designing, engineering, or anything to be involved. There's many ways it "can" be done. They can use refurbed Quicksilver and/or MDD cases and just put in what they have to keep the cost reasonable and then send 'em out to stores. Sort of like the unheralded end of the original iMac. There was basically no marketing, no engineering, and no substance behind it at that point. They had just been stickin in faster processors, bigger HD's, etc. for the last few revisions. To do this with their old towers would not be hard or cause any problems with the sales of their pro machines. But, I must agree with the naysers in the fact that this will not happen, at least not anytime soon.

But, there could be that third party company that strikes the tune and is able to do this. I mean, if sonnet and all those upgrade companies are able to purchase processors and motherboards, would it be so hard for one of them to get a hold of left over or refurb cases and then throw in all the components (albeit w/o an OS) and then sell them as a barebones machine? There may be a markup from what Apple would sell it for. But does this seem more possible/probable?

-Chad

[schalliol]

Originally posted by NYCFarmboy:
I think a 900 mhz g3 tower/cube stripped to the bone for under 399 bucks would sell like hotcakes.
- 900mhz G3
- 20 gig drive
- 2 usb ports 1 firewire 400
- 56k modem
- ethernet
- OS X only
- CD-RW option for another 100 bucks
- 256MB RAM

- no keyboard
- no mouse
- no moniter

Would be an nice setup for those who don't care about doing movies/photoshop filters.

They're not going to ship a brand new computer that can't even run SimCity 4 or Tony Hawk 4 or won't be able to run later OSes well.

[NYCFarmboy]

Originally posted by schalliol:
They're not going to ship a brand new computer that can't even run SimCity 4 or Tony Hawk 4 or won't be able to run later OSes well.

Uh...today's ibooks have 900mhz processors...and for some reason they are shipping them.



Not everyone is into computer games..thats the reason there are G5's coming.

We are talking a LOW end tower for web/word processing/email for Grandma or whomever.....whom I doubts even knows what SimCity4 or TonyHawk is? who are they? (laughing.


If you want more...buy a G4 or a G5.