There comes a time in every computer’s life when it seems to struggle with some of the tasks that were once a breeze. We all know that it’s the constant creep of software updates that makes your once kick-ass computer into a lame-ass computer. Computer guys like me are not immune to this. I have two computers at home that I are not performing like they once did. I have a Compaq PC and a Mac G4 Quicksilver.
The PC needs more memory. It has been plugging along since we bought it with 512 MB of RAM. I did an online check on memory prices. I can upgrade it to 2 GB, maximum; so, I bought two memory sticks from Memory.com, which is one town over, for $26 each. That’s a great bargain and will give the computer a new lease on life. I’ll also save on shipping by stopping by their store on a lunch break. Overall, it’s still a decent PC, except that it takes longer to do things. I know the memory upgrade will improve the performance.
The Mac is another issue. I bought the Mac Quicksilver G4 for $300 or so. Given that it is my first Mac, I had no basis for comparison on its performance. When I got it, it definitely beat the old PC laptop I was using. In general, I still like using the Mac. The downside is that there is a HUGE price gap between what I paid for this computer and getting a new one, or so I thought. I found out that I can get a Mac Mini for $599. That sets a ceiling for my upgrade. The lowest-priced Mini runs at 1.83 GHz. To gain similar performance from my Mac G4, I found the Sonnet Encore/ST G4 1.8 GHz Processor upgrade. This will set me back $267. This is almost half the price of getting a new one. It’s a good deal, in my opinion. In addition, after reading the specs, I have learned that it auto configures without the need to mess with jumpers. Earlier, I was looking at maybe just doubling the performance from 733 MHz to 1.5 GHz. But given the $8 difference I’ll go with the 1.8 GHz.
I’m new to the whole Mac thing, so I don’t know what adding a dual 1.6 GHz processor card would do for the performance of my computer. I do know that there is a $100+ dollar difference, which takes the upgrade near the point where I should just get a new Mac Mini. I’m satisfied doubling the processor speed. I’ll look around for articles comparing the difference between single processors and dual processors on a Mac. I’d appreciate feedback from other geeks who know about these things.
3 Comments
I’ve installed the memory on the PC. I maxed out the memory, which makes a difference in performance.
I’ve decided to put off the Mac CPU upgrade until next month. Price is an issue. For now, I decided to increase the Mac’s memory, which is less costly and will take me from 768 MB to over 1 GB of RAM. I have one more 512 MB jump before the Mac is maxed out at 1.5 GB. At that point, the only performance increase available will be the CPU upgrade.
Shaine,
I understand your dilemma. Now your choice may depend on a couple of things. If you are running native PowerPC software it makes sense to get the Processor upgrade. This type of upgrade (ie 1.8) will boost your processing speed alot faster. Not to mention you will still have the advantage to upgrade more to your system.
Upgrades for the tower vs MacMini.
On the other hand the MacMini is a very good machine, better if it is an Intel, but is limited on upgrades such as PCI and video cards. There are a handful of PCI upgrades you may do for the desktop tower. Example are ATI 9800Pro video card, Buses, FireWire 800, SATA Cards, and of course RAM.
You can even use blue tooth on the desktop.
If need to know more just call.
Regards,
John D. Navarrete
Thanks for the suggestions. I didn’t know you could do all that on a Mac. I thought the CPU would be the last upgrade, but now I see that there are other possibilities. I know a video card would be a good upgrade. It would definitely help when working with video. I’ll call you when I’m ready to take that next step.
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