Power Mac G4

The Power Mac G4 is a series of personal computers designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Computer, Inc. from 1999 to 2004 as part of the Power Macintosh line. Built around the PowerPC G4 series of microprocessors, the Power Mac G4 was marketed by Apple as the first "personal supercomputers",[1] reaching speeds of 4 to 20 gigaFLOPS. This was the first existing Macintosh product to be officially shortened as "Mac", and is the last Mac able to boot into classic Mac OS.

Power Mac G4
The "Graphite" Power Mac G4
DeveloperApple Computer, Inc.
TypeMini Tower
Release dateAugust 31, 1999
DiscontinuedJune 20, 2004
CPUsingle or dual PowerPC G4,
350 MHz – 1.42 GHz (Up to 2 GHz processors through 3rd-party upgrades.)
PredecessorPower Macintosh G3
SuccessorPower Mac G5

The enclosure style introduced with the Power Macintosh G3 (Blue and White) was retained through the entire five-year production run of the Power Mac G4, albeit with significant changes to match Apple's evolving industrial design and to accommodate increasing cooling needs. The G4 and its enclosure were retired with the introduction of the Power Mac G5.

PCI Graphics/AGP Graphics/Gigabit Ethernet

"Graphite" Power Mac G4
Rear view of a "Graphite" Power Mac G4, showing the available ports

The original Power Mac G4 was introduced at the Seybold conference in San Francisco on August 31, 1999.[2] There were two variants, officially titled Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics) with 400 MHz, 450 MHz and 500 MHz configurations available, and Power Mac G4 (PCI Graphics), with 350 MHz and 400 MHz configurations. Colloquially, this generation of Power Mac is referred to as "Graphite", owing to the colors of the case being similar to the iMac G3 Graphite.

Apple originally planned to ship the 500 MHz configuration in October 1999, but they were forced to postpone this because of poor yield of the CPUs. In response, Apple reduced the clock speed of the processor in each configuration by 50 MHz (making the options 350 MHz, 400 MHz and 450 MHz), which caused some controversy because they did not lower the original prices accordingly.[3]

The early 400 MHz (later 350 MHz) PCI-based version used a motherboard identical to the one used in Power Macintosh G3 (Blue and White) computers including the use of Zero Insertion Force (ZIF) processors sockets[4] (minus the ADB port), in a "graphite" colored case and with the new Motorola PowerPC 7400 (G4) CPU. The higher-speed models, code name "Sawtooth", used a greatly modified motherboard design with AGP 2x graphics (replacing the 66 MHz PCI slot).

The PCI variant was discontinued at the end of 1999.[5]

The machines featured DVD-ROM drives as standard. The 400 MHz and 450 MHz versions had 100 MB Zip drives as standard equipment, and as an option on the 350 MHz Sawtooth. This series had a 100 MHz system bus and four PC100 SDRAM slots for up to 2 GB of RAM (1.5 GB under Mac OS 9). The AGP Power Macs were the first to include an AirPort slot and DVI video port. The computers could house a total of three hard drives, two 128 GB ATA hard drives and up to a single 20GB SCSI hard drive, with the installation of a SCSI card.

The 500 MHz version was reintroduced on February 16, 2000, accompanied by 400 MHz and 450 MHz models. DVD-RAM and Zip drives featured on these later 450 MHz and 500 MHz versions and were an option on the 400 MHz.

The Power Mac G4 (Gigabit Ethernet) model was introduced at Macworld Expo New York on July 19, 2000; the new revision included dual-processor 450 MHz and 500 MHz versions, and a low-end single CPU 400 MHz model. It was also the first personal computer to include gigabit Ethernet as standard. Most people saw this revision as a stopgap release, because higher clocked G4s were not available; the G4’s Motorola XPC107 “Grackle” PCI/Memory controller prevented the G4 from hitting speeds higher than 500 MHz. The dual 500 MHz models featured DVD-RAM optical drives. Zip drives were optional on all models. These models also introduced Apple's proprietary Apple Display Connector video port.

Component Power Mac G4 (PCI Graphics) Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics) Power Mac G4 (Gigabit Ethernet)
Codename "Yikes!" "Sawtooth, P5, Project E" "Mystic, Medusa2, SnakeBite"
Color  
Model identifier PowerMac1,2PowerMac3,1PowerMac3,3
Processor 350 or 400 MHz PowerPC G4 (7400) 350, 400, 450 or 500 MHz PowerPC G4 (7400) 400, Dual 450 or Dual 500 MHz PowerPC G4 (7400)
CPU cache 64 KB L1, 512 KB or 1 MB backside L2 Cache per CPU (1:2)
Front side bus 100 MHz
Memory 64, 128, 256, 512 MB, or 1GB PC100 SDRAM
Expandable to 1 GB
64, 128, 256, 512 MB, 1 or 2GB PC100 SDRAM
Expandable to 2 GB. Only 1.5 GB is seen in Mac OS 9
Graphics card ATI Rage 128 with 16 MB of VRAM
66 MHz PCI Slot
ATI Rage 128 or ATI Rage 128 Pro with 16 MB of VRAM
AGP 2x
ATI Rage 128 Pro with 16 MB VRAM or ATI Radeon with 32 MB of VRAM
AGP 2x w/ADC Monitor support
Hard drive 10 GB ATA
Up to 128 GB
10, 20, or 27 GB 7200-rpm ATA
18 or 36 GB 10K-rpm SCSI
Up to 128 GB (10.4.11 and newer support hard drives larger than 128 GB with special software)
20 GB 5400-rpm, 30 or 40 GB 7200-rpm ATA
36 or 72 GB 10K-rpm SCSI
Up to 128 GB (10.4.11 and newer support Hard Drives larger than 128 GB with special software)
Ultra ATA/33Ultra ATA/66 (Optional Ultra2 LVD SCSI)
Optical drive 32× CD-ROM or DVD-ROM 32× CD-ROM, DVD-ROM, or DVD-RAM DVD-ROM or DVD-RAM
Connectivity 10/100BASE-T Ethernet
56k modem
Optional AirPort 802.11b
10/100BASE-T Ethernet
56k modem
Optional AirPort 802.11b
Gigabit Ethernet
56k V.90 modem
Expansion Zip drive bay (optional Zip drive)
3x 64bit 33 MHz PCI slots
1× 66 MHz PCI slot (dedicated to video)
1× Zip drive bay (optional Zip drive)
3x 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots
1× 2× AGP slot (dedicated to video)
Peripherals USB 1.1
2× FireWire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
2× USB 1.1
2× FireWire 400
1× Internal FireWire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
2× USB 1.1
2× FireWire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
Maximum Operating System Mac OS X 10.4.11 "Tiger" and Mac OS 9.2.2 Mac OS X 10.4.11 "Tiger" and Mac OS 9.2.2
Unofficially can support 10.5 Leopard via 3rd party software
Weight 13 kg (28.7 pounds) 13.6 kg (30 pounds)13.6 kg (30 pounds)

Digital Audio/Quicksilver

Power Mac G4 (Quicksilver)

A new line with a revamped motherboard but retaining the familiar "Graphite" case debuted on January 9, 2001. Known officially as the Power Mac G4 (Digital Audio), it is in effect a Quicksilver design inside the Graphite enclosure. Motorola had added a seventh pipeline stage in the new PowerPC G4 design to achieve faster clock frequencies. New features included a fourth PCI slot, a 133 MHz system bus, an improved 4X AGP slot, and a new "digital audio" Tripath Class T amplifier sound system. The models were offered in 466 MHz, 533 MHz, dual 533 MHz, 667 MHz and 733 MHz configurations, the latter two using a newer PowerPC 7450 processor. The number of RAM slots was reduced to three, accommodating up to 1.5 Gigabytes of PC133 SDRAM.

The 733 MHz model was the first Macintosh to include a built-in DVD-R or Apple-branded SuperDrive, the rest of the line became the first Macs to ship with CD-RW drives. This was also the first series of Macs to include an Nvidia graphics card, the GeForce 2MX.

At Macworld Expo New York on July 18, 2001, a new line debuted featuring a cosmetically redesigned case known as Quicksilver, and various upgrades to the specifications. It was available in 733 MHz, 867 MHz and dual 800 MHz configurations. The 733 MHz model was notable for not having a level three cache. The SuperDrive was offered on the mid-range 867 MHz model, and UltraATA/100 hard drives were offered on all models. The internal speaker received an upgrade, using a Harman/Kardon speaker.

The Quicksilver line received criticism in MacWorld's review for removing the "eject" button and the manual eject pinhole, as well as the pass-through monitor power plug, and for the base specification of 128 MB RAM as being insufficient for running Mac OS X.[6]

Updated Quicksilver machines, officially named Power Mac G4 (QuickSilver 2002), were introduced on January 28, 2002, with 800 MHz, 933 MHz and dual 1 GHz configurations. This was the first Mac to reach 1 GHz. Again, the low-end 800 MHz model did not include any level three cache. The graphics in this series were provided by an Nvidia GeForce4 MX400 card. Some of these models have ATA controllers with 48-bit LBA to accommodate hard drives larger than 128 GB.

Component Power Mac G4 (Digital Audio) Power Mac G4 (Quicksilver) Power Mac G4 (Quicksilver 2002) Power Mac G4 (Quicksilver 2002ED)
Codename "Tangent, Clockwork" "Titan, Nichrome" N/A N/A
Model identifier PowerMac3,4PowerMac3,5
Processor 466, 533, Dual 533, 667, or 733 MHz PowerPC G4 (7400/7410/7450)733, 867, or Dual 800 MHz PowerPC G4 (7450)733 (education only), 800, 933 MHz, or Dual 1 GHz PowerPC G4 (7450/7455)867 MHz PowerPC G4 (7455)
CPU cache 64 KB L1, 256 KB (1:1) or 1 MB (1:2) L2, 1 MB L3 (733 MHz) 64 KB L1, 256 KB (1:1) L2, 2 MB L3 (867/Dual 800 MHz) 64 KB L1, 256 KB (1:1) L2, 2 MB DDR L3 (933/Dual 1 GHz) 64 KB L1, 256 KB (1:1) L2
Front side bus 133 MHz
Memory 128, 256, or 512 MB PC133 SDRAM
Expandable to 1.5 GB
Graphics ATI Rage 128 Pro with 16 MB VRAM, ATI Radeon or Nvidia GeForce2 MX with 32 MB VRAM, GeForce3 with 64 MB VRAMNvidia GeForce2 MX with 32 MB VRAM, Geforce2 MX with TwinView or Geforce3 with 64 MB VRAMATI Radeon 7500 with 32 MB VRAM, Nvidia GeForce4 MX with 64 MB VRAM or GeForce4 Ti with 128 MB VRAMNvidia GeForce4 MX with 32 MB VRAM
Hard drive 30 GB 5400-rpm, 40 or 60 GB 7200-rpm ATA
36 or 72 GB SCSI
Up to 128 GB
40 GB 5400-rpm, 60 or 80 GB 7200-rpm ATA
36 or 72 GB SCSI
Up to 128 GB
40, 60, or 80 GB 7200-rpm ATA
36 or 72 GB SCSI
Supports Hard Drives larger than 128 GB
40 GB 7200-rpm
Supports Hard Drives larger than 128 GB
Ultra ATA/66 (Optional Ultra SCSI or Ultra 160 SCSI)
Optical drive CD-RW or DVD-ROM or DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive (on 733 MHz model only)CD-RW
or CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Drive
or DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive (867 and dual-800 models only)
CD-RW
Connectivity Optional AirPort 802.11b
Gigabit Ethernet
56k V.90 modem
Expansion 1x Zip Drive bay (Optional 250 MB Zip Drive)
4x 64-bit 33 MHz PCI slots
1x 4x AGP slot (dedicated to video)
Peripherals 2x USB 1.1
2x Firewire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio output mini-jack
Apple Pro Speakers mini-jack
Maximum Operating System Mac OS X 10.4.11 "Tiger" and Mac OS 9.2.2Mac OS X 10.4.11 “Tiger” and Mac OS 9.2.2 (733 and Dual 800 MHz)Mac OS X 10.4.11 “Tiger” and Mac OS 9.2.2 (733 and 800 MHz)Mac OS X 10.5.8 "Leopard"
Mac OS X 10.5.8 “Leopard” (867 MHz)Mac OS X 10.5.8 “Leopard” (933 MHz and Dual 1 GHz)
Weight 13.6 kg (30 Pounds)

Mirrored Drive Doors/FW800

Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors)
Power Mac G4 MDD with open case

Another generation of Apple Power Mac G4s, officially named "Mirrored Drive Doors" (MDD), was introduced on August 13, 2002, featuring both a new Xserve-derived DDR motherboard architecture and a new case design. All models were available in dual processor configurations running at 867 MHz, 1 GHz or 1.25 GHz. As with the Xserves, the PowerPC 7455 CPU used does not have a DDR frontside bus, meaning the CPU of the 133MHz frontside bus models could use at most only 50% of the new system's theoretical memory bandwidth, providing no improvement over previous models. The rest was available to the graphics card and I/O systems. A single processor 1.25 GHz model would be the last Power Mac G4 the company offered to the public after the announcement of the new Power Mac G5, introduced in June 2003.

The last real update to the Power Mac G4 line came on January 28, 2003, offering dual 1.42 GHz PowerPC 7455 processors, with features not seen in previous DDR models: a built-in FireWire 800 connector, optional integrated Bluetooth, and optional integrated AirPort Extreme. These were also the first Power Macs that could not boot into Mac OS 9.

With the launch of the Power Mac G5 on June 23, 2003, Apple re-introduced the August 2002 Power Mac G4 because of perceived demand for Mac OS 9 machines. Between that, its low price-tag, and the delayed availability of Power Mac G5s, it proved a strong seller, albeit for a relatively short time. Production stopped on June 27, 2004, and the remaining inventory was liquidated, its discontinuation ending the 20-year legacy of Classic Mac OS support.


Component Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors) Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors FW800) Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors 2003)
Codename "P57" "P58" ”P59”
Model identifier PowerMac3,6
Model Number (Order Number) M8570 (M8787LL/A, M8689LL/A, M8573LL/A) M8570 (M8839LL/A, M8840LL/A, M8841LL/A) M8570 (M9145LL/A), M9309

(M9145LL/A) is a re-released version of (M8573LL/A)

Processor Dual 867 MHz, Dual 1 GHz, or Dual 1.25 GHz PowerPC G4 (7455) 1 GHz, Dual 1.25 GHz or Dual 1.42 GHz PowerPC G4 (7455) 1.25 GHz or Dual 1.25 GHz PowerPC G4 (7455)
CPU cache 64 KB L1, 256 KB L2, 1 MB or 2 MB DDR L3
Front side bus 133 MHz (867 MHz DP)133 MHz (1 GHz)167 MHz
167 MHz (1 GHz DP+)167 MHz (1.25 GHz DP+)
Memory 256, 512 MB PC-2100 (Dual 867 MHz), or PC-2700 (Dual 1+ GHz) DDR SDRAM
Expandable to 2 GB (4 x 512 MB PC-3200 DDR SDRAM)
256, 512 MB PC-2100 (1 GHz), or PC-2700 (Dual 1.25+ GHz) DDR SDRAM
Expandable to 2 GB (4 x 512 MB PC-3200 DDR SDRAM)
256, 512 MB PC-2700 DDR SDRAM
Expandable to 2 GB (4 x 512 MB PC-3200 DDR SDRAM)
Graphics Card Nvidia GeForce4 MX with 32 MB VRAM, ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 64 MB VRAM, or GeForce4 Ti with 128 MB VRAM
Upgradeable to Nvidia GeForce 7800 GS with 256 MB VRAM (last GPU supported)
Nvidia GeForce4 MX or ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 64 MB VRAM, GeForce4 Ti or Radeon 9700 Pro with 128 MB VRAM
Upgradeable to Nvidia GeForce 7800 GS with 256 MB VRAM (last GPU supported)
ATI Radeon 9000 Pro with 64 MB VRAM or Nvidia GeForce4 Ti 128 MB
Upgradeable to Nvidia GeForce 7800 GS with 256 MB VRAM (last GPU supported)
Hard drive 60, 80, or 120 GB 7200-rpm ATA
36 or 72 GB Ultra 160 SCSI
Supports Hard Drives larger than 128 GB
60, 80, or 120 GB 7200-rpm ATA
Supports Hard Drives larger than 128 GB
80 or 160 GB 7200-rpm ATA
Supports Hard Drives larger than 128 GB
Ultra ATA/133 (2) and Ultra ATA/66 (2) (Optional Ultra SCSI or Ultra 160 SCSI)Ultra ATA/133 (2) and Ultra ATA/66 (2) (Optional Ultra SCSI)Ultra ATA/133 (2) and Ultra ATA/66 (2)
Optical drive CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo Drive
or DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive
(Optional additional Combo Drive)
Connectivity Optional AirPort 802.11b
Gigabit Ethernet
56k V.92 modem
Optional AirPort Extreme 802.11b/g
Gigabit Ethernet
56k V.92 modem
Optional Bluetooth 1.1
Optional Airport 802.11b
Gigabit Ethernet
56k V.92 modem
Peripherals 2x USB 1.1
2x Firewire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
Apple Pro Speakers mini-jack
2x USB 1.1
2x Firewire 400
1x Firewire 800
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
Apple Pro Speakers mini-jack
2x USB 1.1
2x Firewire 400
Built-in mono speaker
Audio input mini-jack
Audio output mini-jack
Apple Pro Speakers mini-jack
Expansion 4x 64-bit 66 MHz PCI slots (5V only)
1x 4x 133 MHz AGP slot (dedicated to video)
Maximum Operating System Mac OS X 10.5.8 "Leopard"
Mac OS 9.2.2 supported natively and Mac OS 9.1 or higher in the Classic EnvironmentMac OS 9.1 or higher supported solely in the Classic EnvironmentMac OS 9.2.2 supported natively and Mac OS 9.1 or higher in the Classic Environment (final model to support Classic Mac OS natively)
Weight 19.1 kg (42 lbs)

Timeline of Power Macintosh models

Power Macintosh G5Power Macintosh G5Power Macintosh G5Power Macintosh G4Power Macintosh G4Power Macintosh G4 CubePower Macintosh G4Power Macintosh G3Power Macintosh G3Power Macintosh 8600Power Macintosh 7300Power Macintosh 9600Power Macintosh 8500Power Macintosh 7600Power Macintosh 7200Power Macintosh 9500Power Macintosh 8100Power Macintosh 7500Power Macintosh 7100Power Macintosh 6400Power Macintosh G3Power Macintosh 5500Power Macintosh 5400Power Macintosh 6500Power Macintosh 6200Power Macintosh 6100Power Macintosh 5260Power Macintosh 5200Power Macintosh 4400

See also

Notes

  1. "Apple Unveils 'Personal Supercomputer'". SFGate.
  2. "Apple steps up to G4 Macs". ZDNet.
  3. "The 400 MHz PowerMac Reviewed". The Mac Observer. February 21, 2000. Retrieved October 19, 2008.
  4. "The Apple Power Macintosh G4 400MHz PCI". Forevermac.com. Retrieved November 30, 2011.
  5. "Power Mac G4 (PCI Graphics) - Technical Specifications".
  6. "Hands on with the Power Mac G4/867". MacWorld. August 25, 2001.
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