Macs to the Max

Is the G3 Still a Practical Choice?

- 2006.08.10

With the Intel Core processors available today, does buying a used G3 still make economic sense?

Sure, it's now even farther back on the processor food chain, but it's still a very popular processor - just look at all the posts about G3 iMacs on the LEM iMac forum.

But how much longer can the G3 stay in the arena before it gets knocked out by newer faster processors?

Technologically speaking, the G3 is still a pretty good performer. It has lots of power, and there are many applications that will run on most G3s, so it's not totally obsolete. (Then again, there's no such thing as obsolete at Low End Mac.)

For the average person who needs to run a few new and not-too-demanding applications, the G3 is a wonderful and economical choice. Whereas the G4 and G5 are becoming "obsolete" nearly as fast as the G3 (now that most of all Macs have moved to Intel).

The Legend Lives

In Apple's line, the oldest processor supported by OS X is the G3. That also means that it's now t the heart of the cheapest Macs that can run OS X. With a G3, you're able to run most of the average user's software.

The G3 isn't the workhorse that it used to be, but it can hold its own in today's computing arena.

Although the G3 is off the screen in today's new computer market, it holds its own on the used market and will always live at Low End Mac.

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Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: Power Mac 7500, introduced 1995.08.08. This workhorse introduced a new desktop case and CPU daughter cards.
June 19 in LEM history: 00: Mac software not 'as pathetic as it could be' - 01: Hate Windows? Get a Mac - Little payments, big business - 02: Undoing years of Mac evangelism? - 03: Back on the low-end TiBook - 06: Pimping my PowerBook G4 - 07: Safari for Windows not a slam dunk success - 08: What about the iPod touch? - Falling for the Sony Alpha α200
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Macs to the Max articles copyright ©2006 by Matthew Jay. Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Opinions expressed are those of their authors and may not reflect the opinion of Cobweb Publishing. Advice is presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all.
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