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iMac for mac newbie/PC & Linux geek!
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steve69
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Join Date: Nov 2004
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Nov 30, 2004, 01:35 PM
 
hey everyone! how are ya all?
i am very courious about the OS X, but i don't have a mac yet. and i am cheap! i was thinking of getting a older iMac, G3 or G4 upgrading the hard drive and adding more ram, possibly a new graphics card as well, and installing OS X. but i am courious, can the CPU be upgraded as well? also, whats the max amount of ram you can put in a iMac? thanks for the input!
     
AlaskaBoy
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Nov 30, 2004, 09:37 PM
 
========
i am very courious about the OS X, but i don't have a mac yet. and i am cheap! i was thinking of getting a older iMac, G3 or G4 upgrading the hard drive and adding more ram, possibly a new graphics card as well, and installing OS X. but i am courious, can the CPU be upgraded as well? also, whats the max amount of ram you can put in a iMac? thanks for the input!
=====

From my experience by the time you buy an older iMac & update the Hard Drive, add more RAM, & but Panther (or more likely Jaguar) you're just about 3/4 of the way to a BRAND NEW one.

As for upgrading parts:
Yes to more RAM & new Hard Drive (though in some models getting to the hard drive is a chore for Apple Techs ONLY)

No, Graphics cards & chips cannot be swapped out in iMacs. they can be swapped, with limited cost-to-improvement success on G3 & G4 towers.

If you want an older computer, don;t bother with anything older than an iMac Flat panel (on-a stalk) or an 800mHz G4 or better. You wanna run OS X 10.2 (Jaguar) or 10.3 (Panther). Anything older is just gonna be slow, and it may be cheap at first, but even with upgrades youre losing out on bus speeds, processor speed & graphics card RAM.

My brother just got a 17" iMac for $22 a month (or somthing low like that). In my experience, the Macs i have had remain extrelemy usable for 4-7 years without upgrades. (I ditched my G3 tower in April this year, after 8 years heavy use & gave it to a kid inknow who uses it daily, still)

Just my 2�
John
---
I was up all night wondering where the sun went. Then it dawned on me.

1.6 G5, Gig-o-RAM, 80HD, DVD, 80 external FW, 15g iPod. (Old Beige G3(running 10.2.8 very nicely) w/tons of accessories)
     
Chimpmaster
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Location: AUSTRALIA
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Nov 30, 2004, 09:42 PM
 
There are some "unsupported" upgrades you can do to older imacs.

My advice to you however if you are looking for an upgradeable machine with replaceable parts, look for an older powermac tower. With an adaptor this can be used with any monitor, and most parts inside are replaceable and upgradeable, including the cpu and graphics card.

A G4 quicksilver 733mhz would be a good option. They have a good balance between baseline performance and upgradeability, and you should be able to get one at a good price via ebay.

Otherwise If you want an imac, they are great but only the ram can normally be upgraded without significant difficulty and technical expertise.
MacBook Alu, 13", 2.4Ghz, 4GB RAM, 256MB video
G5 Imac, 17", 1.9Ghz, 1.5GB RAM, 128MB video, built in isight, airport and bluetooth
Indigo iBook, 366mhz; 320MB RAM; CD; FW; Airport
     
macontish
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Join Date: Oct 2004
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Nov 30, 2004, 09:48 PM
 
Please post something informative next time.......

-Misc.
( Last edited by misc; Dec 3, 2004 at 11:54 PM. )
     
   
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