[frompc2mac]

hey...i know i've been asking like 10 million questions on this board but thanks for answering them!

you people are so helpful! anyways...my question THIS time is would an "old" ibook G3 @ 900mhz run faster than the new G4 ibook @ 800 mhz? I'm not sure what the G3 and G4 difference is.

 

[Sander]

Boy. If you are new to G3 and G4, it would take quite a bit to explain the differences.

Among the two options, the G4 will be faster, not only because the chip is better, but also due to the fact that the G4 machines usually also have better system bus speed, better graphic card, better ram, etc.

Also, there are a lot of software out there that takes specific advantage of G4's strengths such as Photoshop.

My suggestion to you is to get a new iBook G4 or the PowerBook. You will be happier in the long run. If you are low on cash, go for the G3 iBook as it is still very functional and practical. I am sure you can find a good deal for G3 iBooks, new or used.

Cheers.

 

[Chealion]

The G4 will be faster, but not all the time.

In most applications which don't take advantage of the G4's AltiVec engine, or other performance perks of the G4, the G3 will win, since the process is Mhz to Mhz.

We then stem into the "Megahertz myth" where Mhz isn't everything. Its best shown in Photoshop, where by taking advantage of other features, you don't need a heck of a lot of Mhz to do things faster. (This applied quite a bit when you compared G4s to P4s.)

 

[MacDoc]

Chealion is correct. G4 on it's own is not a ticket to speed tho it has advantages in X.
The G3 with a 512 cache is no slouch over the G4 with a 512 cache as instruction completionis important and the cache helps bunch.

Look at the iBook 800 and the Powerbook 800

Many apps do NOT use the Altivec engine.
The iBook G3s are bargains right now.
The new ones are ...well a new model and may have some issues.

 

[Macaholic]

MacDoc, does not OS X utilize Altivec? So, would OS X itself run better on that point, alone?

BTW, I came across this post of xBench tests between a G3 and G4 iBook:

http://macreviewzone.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?p=3336

 

[Chealion]

Macaholic - Mac OS X will utilize the AltiVec engine if it is there, and the same is happening with Panther in that if you have a G5 Mac OS X will utilize the 64 bit capabilities when it can.

 

[Viivis]

Well I can shed some real-world light on this. I have a 12" PB and we just picked up a 12" 900Mhz iBook the other day. Both are running 512mb Ram. Both running 10.2.6.

Under OS X there is a noticable difference between the two. I'm going to put a lot of that on the video chipset. The 9200 is far better than the 7500. Even though they are both 32mb. Other than that the iBook really seems to hold it's own on most things, the big exception would be Corel Draw, it's a beast. The 12" PB cleary manages better, but still sputters.

It's to bad the iBook will only take 640mb Ram, as far as I know that's the max unless there is some cool hardware voodoo out there.

There is one thing that the iBook has over the PB it runs a whole lot cooler. Man the PB gets toasty.

All in all it was worth the money I think. I was at the store where we bought this and they have a 12" G4 iBook and it runs pretty hot. I've heard some people voicing concerns because the iBook is 'plastic' that there may be 'warping' and stuff. Not sure how valid that is.

I will be loading Panther on at some point, when there is a bit more in on the whole firewire situation. I'm really curious to see how the iBook works with that.