Give your Power Mac G5 a powerful performance boost with an OWC Solid State Drive. From $64.99 - Shop Now Install into the 3.5' Hard Drive bays by using the OWC Multi-Mount 3.5' to 2.5' bracket set.
Review summary Editors' note: Apple recently updated its Power Mac G5 line, which now has three dual-processor configurations with speeds up to 2.5GHz. We hope to bring you updated performance results for the new 2.5GHz dual-processor model and news about the other technology and features improvements. Check back here soon. (6/11/04) Although Mac and PC camps will probably never resolve their claims of having the 'fastest personal computer,' the Power Mac G5 is nonetheless an epochal leap for Apple, as it addresses G4 shortcomings such as lack of CPU speed, choked bus architecture, and tired case design. The 1.6GHz, single-processor base model starts at $1,999 and ramps up to $2,999 for a 2GHz dual-processor model with plenty of extras. We tested the dual-processor G5 with added memory totaling 2GB, upgraded graphics in the form of ATI's Radeon 9800 Pro card, and Apple's stunning 20-inch Cinema Display, which, among other extras, brings the total system price to a whopping $5,926.
For the quality, the included software, and the flexibility of a Unix-based desktop that can do much of what a $20,000 Sun workstation can do, however, the Power Mac G5 is worth every penny for power users and creative professionals. And iMac fans looking for a jolt will find lots to like in the single-processor G5 models. /sc/30586664-2-200-FTL.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' / The Power Mac G5 says good-bye to the G4's rounded, plastic styling.
As car design has moved from the jelly-bean Taurus to the sharp creases of the new Cadillacs, the Power Mac G5 changes from the molded plastic of the Power Mac G3 and G4 to the industrial and machined idioms of recent PowerBooks, with a squared-off, brushed-aluminum case. Some may not like its cold, serverlike appearance, but we appreciate its clean lines and functional design. The face of the G5 looks relatively nondescript, with only an optical-drive door, a power switch, and (finally), USB 2.0, and FireWire 400 jacks interrupting an expanse of perforated metal. Holes on the front and back maximize the cooling airflow, as the G5 processor (IBM's PowerPC 970) runs hotter than Motorola's G4. Inside, the OS monitors nine fans according to temperatures in four thermal zones, minimizing fan activity to keep the G5 one of the quietest Macs in recent memory. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT3.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / Above the G5's graphics card are PCI-X expansion slots, which offer faster speeds and better throughput than regular PCI slots. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT4.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / One drive does it all.
Though the G5 can accommodate only one optical drive, Apple's SuperDrive offers fast 4X DVD-R and 32X CD-R write speeds. A side panel pops off at the flip of a latch on the G5's back. Under a clear plastic panel, most of the G5's internals are easily accessible, making swapping RAM and the video card a snap. There's no place for a second optical drive, however, and there are limited options for a second hard drive, with only one open internal drive bay. The rear hosts the output for the AGP slot and three PCI-X slots, which offer faster speeds of 133MHz (one slot) and 100MHz (two slots) when compared with PCI's top speed of 66MHz. In addition, you'll find ports for FireWire 800, FireWire 400, USB 2.0 (two), Ethernet, RJ-11, analog audio in and out, optical digital audio in and out, as well as jacks for external Bluetooth and AirPort antennae.
This isn't your old Power Mac. In addition to its new processors, the Power Mac G5 sports an entirely new infrastructure that does almost as much to boost system performance as the processors themselves. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT5.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / Hidden behind the massive heat sinks are the system's two 2GHz G5 processors. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT6.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / Our test system had 2GB of memory, and with eight memory slots, the G5 can support up to 8GB.
The G5's processors aren't chopped liver, make no mistake. Each 64-bit chip supports fully and has two double-precision, although you won't see the benefits of 64-bit capability until software developers recompile applications. Even then, the major benefit will be the ability to address larger memory spaces, not speed. Like the AMD's Athlon 64 chip (and unlike Intel's 64-bit Itanium, which requires a 32-bit emulator mode), the G5 processor runs all existing 32-bit applications natively. As a result, the G5 is well suited for heavy scientific and database work, which can make real use of all 64 bits.
And where narrow memory and system buses hampered the G4, the Power Mac G5 features a dedicated frontside bus for each chip, running up to 1GHz, and a 400MHz, 128-bit memory bus. Apple also chose to use to connect the input and output subsystems to the system controller. What this adds up to is a more efficient system with, Apple claims, a maximum bandwidth of 8GB per second. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT7.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / Monitor fit for a king, or a G5 owner: Apple's 20-inch Cinema Display. /sc/30586664-2-200-DT8.gif' width='200' height='150' border='0' alt=' / Creature comforts: JBL's stylish 2.1 Creature speaker set. Our test system came equipped with 2GB of DDR400 128-bit SDRAM (up from the standard 512MB allotment), a roomy 160GB Serial ATA hard drive, and ATI's 128MB Radeon 9800 Pro graphics card.
With only one 5.25-inch drive bay, Apple chose wisely by including its SuperDrive-Apple's designation for a combination DVD-R/CD-RW drive. Both the slimline Apple Pro Keyboard and the one-button Pro Mouse that came bundled with our test system worked well and had a solid and sure feel, though touch typists may not like the function keys' close proximity to the rest of the keyboard. Our system also came with Apple's 20-inch Cinema Display, which is one of the best on the market and is priced accordingly. Thankfully, our G5 test system's nearly $6,000 price includes a speaker set.
Although we expected to see a 5.1 set, the bundled 2.1 JBL Creature speakers offer surprisingly full sound for such a small set. It's worth noting that the G5's internal speaker, while no match for an external set, is an improvement over past models in terms of volume and sound quality. Lastly, our G5 test system came equipped with added-cost wireless options: the 802.11g AirPort Extreme card and a Bluetooth module for any and all devices you may have based on that wireless standard. Though the Power Mac line doesn't ship with the same productivity software that comes with the consumer iMac (AppleWorks and others), it does include full versions of Apple's own iApps, including iTunes, iCal, iMovie, iDVD, iChat, and iPhoto. You'll also get a number of powerful, Unix-based tools for network administration and programming. Our test model came with Mac OS X 10.2.7; Apple couldn't point to a specific date but did tell us that the Power Mac G5 will ship with very soon.
If you bought a G5 prior to Panther's launch, you can upgrade to Panther for $19.95. Application performance Like AMD with its Athlon 64, Apple has introduced a 64-bit processor into its next-generation desktops. In fact, Apple was first on the scene with the PowerPC G5 that it jointly developed with IBM. We tested the high-end Power Mac G5, which boasts dual 2GHz G5 processors, a 1GHz frontside bus, and onboard Serial ATA. As with the Athlon 64, the Power Mac G5 will not reach its full potential until Apple releases a 64-bit OS. With native support for today's 32-bit apps, however, and the new frontside bus architecture, plus support for 400MHz DDR SDRAM, the Power Mac G5 turned in excellent benchmark scores, offering the dramatic boost in performance that audio, video, and graphics professionals have been craving.
The G5 In every way, the Power Mac G5 was more than the G4 it replaced. It was bigger, more expandable and faster. Jobs spoke about the chip, the system, then the product, building a story of power and capability unrivaled in the PC world. At the heart of this new Mac was the PowerPC G5 processor.
Created in partnership with IBM, it was the first 64-bit processor to be put in a personal computer. Clocked up at 2 GHz, it was the fastest 64-bit processor ever shipped, and with a 1 GHz front-side bus and support for up to 8 GB of memory out of the box, it blew away the system built around the G4. The G5 processor was designed was to be put into multi-processor machines, which Apple sold at the upper end of its product range. In practice, these numbers meant that the Power Mac G5 ran circles around the G4, but Apple took the opportunity to improve more than just CPU performance.
The original G5 used 400 MHz RAM, which sported twice the bandwidth of the memory in the outgoing G4. On the board, Apple supported PCI-X for its slots, and used SATA for connecting spinning hard drives and the SuperDrive.
This gave users faster access to their files and media, making all of OS X feel smoother. The Enclosure The new case would be dubbed the 'Cheese Grater' due to the large number of holes in the front and back. With the capacity for dual processors, 8 GB of RAM and multiple PCI cards, the system could generate massive amounts of heat. Those openings were key to keeping air moving through the case. The cooling system was far more complex than a bunch of little holes, though. The Power Mac G5 was home to nine fans.
'You might think, 'Oh my God! Nine fans means its going to be nine times louder!'
It turns out, the opposite is true. By putting the fans right precisely where they're needed and independently controlling them all, we can make it a lot quieter. The enclosure was divided into four separate thermal zones, and those fans did their job. The G5 was twice as quiet as the 'Wind Tunnel' Mirror Drive Doors G4 it replaced.
The G5 split its I/O between the front and back panel, with a USB and FireWire port joining a headphone jack on the front of the tower and everything else out the back. Like the Power Macs from the previous several years, the side of the G5 opened to reveal its internal components. The side didn't swing down like before, but simply lifted off the case when unlocked. It was paired with a clear plastic air router that also lifted out of place with minimal effort, granting a user access to their machine's internals. Evolution of a Workhorse Over the next two years, Apple kept the Power Mac G5 updated on a regular basis. In June 2004, Apple gave the G5 a speed bump, with a dual 2.5 GHz at the top of the line. As clever as Apple's computer-controlled fan system was, it was no match for this machine, and Apple rolled out its first liquid-cooled Mac.
Even now, 14 years later, this still blows my mind. Apple did all it could to hide the intricacies of the radiator and hose system behind nicely-designed metal panels. Note that not all G5s were liquid cooled after it was introduced. Apple only used this technology when it was needed, and only three SKUs came with a radiator:.
Power Macintosh G5/2.5 DP (PCI-X) (June 2004). Power Macintosh G5/2.7 DP (PCI-X) (Early 2005). Power Macintosh G5 'Quad Core' (2.5) (Late 2005) Unfortunately, the first two liquid-cooled models were prone to leaks, which could lead to power supply, CPU and motherboard damage. Apple never issued a specific repair bulletin about these issues, but by the time I was a Mac Genius in 2007 or so, leaky G5s were taken very seriously. Bringing them into the repair system included a lengthy safety interview with the owner, and repairs were more or less always just 'taken care of,' regardless of warranty status. That antifreeze-colored hiccup aside, the PowerMac G5 saw modest improvements during its lifetime, but the last one is worth mentioning.
Announced in October 2005, the last generation of Power Mac G5s included PCI Express and, at the top end, a 'quad-core' configuration, made up of two dual-core G5 CPUs. This was a beast of a machine, and was noticeably faster at multi-threaded tasks than its siblings. It's easy to spot a 'G5 Quad' by looking at the power cable it used. These machines sported massive power supplies and the oddball IEC320 C19 power connector instead of the standard one still found on things like the iMac today. The Last of Its Kind The PowerPC G5 chip was, in hindsight, doomed to failure.
Signs of trouble started in 2004, when Apple was unable to keep a promise made at the G5's original introduction: that within 12 months, there would be a 3 GHz Power Mac G5 for sale. On stage at WWDC 2004, saying that moving to anything smaller than 90 nanometer fabs had proved difficult for IBM.
However, he was quick to point out that their partner had faired better in this regard than Intel. Apple would never ship a 3 GHz G5, topping out with a dual 2.7 GHz system in early 2005. As time went on, another problem became apparent: the lack of a PowerBook G5. At the heart of the problem was the power required by the G5 chip and the heat it generated. This was widely poked fun of by Apple fans.
Forum posts were often accompanied by this image.