Speed Tests of G3 & G4

ScottW

Founder
Staff member
Does anyone know where there are some good "speed" ratings of G4's and G3's? I am really curious, especially with rumors of faster G3's coming. It's like comparing Pentium 3's and 4's... sometimes a Pentium 3 could be faster than a Pentium 4 at various mhz levels.

I am also gearing up for some "real world" testing myself... I am going to take some things that I do on my system that I think take longer than it should, and then take that into a CompUSA and perform the same tests on PowerMacs and Ti powerbooks. To see if there is a significant difference in performance even between "same labeled" processors. (ie, G4, 1ghz).

I realize there are more factors at play than just the mhz rating... and that is why I am wanting to perform those tests to help me down my path of decision on buying a new system sometime in 2003, Lord willing.

Scott
 
all i can say is that my 800mhz ibook and my 800mhz g4 have just about no noticable speed differences even in altivec enhanced programs o_O
 
As everybody knows, the main difference often lies in the graphic card.
 
Well... If you plan to buy a new system sometime in 2003, and if that's going to be an Apple system, the choice will be between models rather than processors, I guess... What are your 'real world' needs? If it's browsing the net then everything from a 1 GHz PowerPC 750FX iBook (March 2003) to a 1.8 GHz PowerPC 7457 PowerMac (September 2003) will do about the same. More or less. Portable, desktop machine? The dual processors work better with optimised software. If you're not running heaviliy optimised software (for dual processors), it won't do you THAT much good. You'll have to choose the DISPLAY that fits you most. If an eMac's tube is alright, why not get that machine. If you want a TFT, the iMac's a great machine. If you want choice later on and upgradability, the PowerMac's the only way to go.

The biggest choice however is between portable and desktop. If you're somewhere inbetween ("I'd _like_ to be mobile, but I don't _have_ to be...") then you're not the mobile type. Save the money and get more power. I personally get much more power out of portability, though and rather use my 500 MHz TiBook than an 8 GHz PowerMac G7. :p
 
Well, I have been looking at just upgrading my G4500mhz system. For around $650 you can get a 1ghz processor, and for what $250 or so I can get a new video card, and wow, I might see a huge difference at a fraction of the cost of a new system. It might just satisfy my need for a faster system w/o spending extra pocket change. (ha)

I know the whole Desktop vs Portable debate. But, the thing is, is the 10% that I might use it portable, reason enough? Is the fact I have access to a laptop (PC) good enough for 10% of the time. What about wanting to rove around the house and work from anywhere... that is cool as well. Does that make me mobile 100% of the time?
 
might, just might. :)

it depends on what you value and how. i value portability at a higher ... value than speed. i value multitasking higher than speed. i think the ability to use ONE computer as the center of my digital life higher than having something for on the way and something for home.

so you'll get, for around 900$, an upgraded G4 system. it'll have one processor only, it'll use a slower bus, have a smaller and slower harddrive... is it worth it? 900$ almost buys you an additional iBook nowadays... if you can SELL your g4 for 200 or 300 bucks, you'll buy a dual 867 machine with the money. and if you spend some more, it'll also have RAM.
 
But you see, I don't want an iBook, it's a Tibook or no book, at least in my view point. I am not going to a G3 processor nor a 12" screen (or 14" at 800x600).

So, my machine on ebay is gonig for around $750. So, $750, plus the $900 I could be spending on upgrades would give me $1650.

Hmmm... I don't know. Maybe if I sold my cat, she should be worth some $$$, you'd think.

Well, anyhow... guess I will just keep saving a wait. :)
 
if you have a monitor you can hook up your ibook to your monitor and speakers etc and have a normal desktop basically (which is what i do when i go somewhere else that has those available) and in reality the 12 inch screen isnt half bad, and the speed is good enough for most tasks... dont discount the ibook IMHO
 
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