Apple Power Mac G5 Desktop M9455LL/A (Dual 2.0-GHz Power PC G5, 512 MB RAM, 160 GB Hard Drive, SuperDrive)

Rating:
Summary: Blowing Away The PC
Review: As a PC user and builder for the last 10 years, I finally decided to migrate over to the Mac side and get away from most of the system hangs, crashes, and virus issues that MS Windows is so prominent for. I have always looked to the Mac innovations each year but could not justify the purchase. Now with a UNIX platform, the most stable of all computer land, it was a logical migration for me.

I am completely pleased with my purchase. I've had the dual 2.0 for over a month now with no issues what so ever in terms of performance or update installations. I will be using this powerhouse for a marketing and graphic design company at the first of the year.

I see a few negative reviews here and there, one on Amazon, and the only thing that I can say, is that these people either have never used computers or they are PC "plants" so to speak and issue negative reviews on the Mac whenever possible. Granted, Mac or PC, they are both machines and will not be perfect in every way. Sometimes you may even get a lemon as with anything you buy.

Overall, the Mac is a solid investment, does not depreciate as fast, and you will be amazed at the Mac culture, support forums, and everything else that comes along with the purchase.
If you are on the fence, check some reviews or go to an Apple store to solidify your purchase. It all comes down to preference, but when you finally work on a Mac, you will find out that PC land is more for the amatuer (i.e. games, etc.), while Mac is for the professional or high end user (i.e. Business and Graphic applications). It's the Mercedes versus the Hyundai. You have to figure out which one you are and then decide.

Rating:
Summary: Dual G5 Rocks (and rolls)
Review: Easy to use, rock solid and really, really fast! OS X is very reliable and easy to use. Microsoft Office 2004 integrates seamlessly and works great. Blazingly fast for games and activities like compiling Unix software. Built in digital audio with optical digital connection (and standard connections as well). I have digitally recorded my old Rock and Roll records using the built in 24 bit digital to analog converter and easily made CDs out of them. iTunes and iPod are great fun to use with it as well. I highly recommend this product over any Windows box I have ever tried!

Rating:
Summary: Disregard bad reviews, the future is now and this is it!!!
Review: first off I would like to say this to Dean Keller whom gave this computer 1 star. You sir are an idiot. Chances are that Mr. Keller doesn't know how to use his computer at all, is running tons of pirated software, doesn't have enough RAM to drive his Buggy!!! of course this computer is going to crash with only 256mb of RAM when you are trying to edit a photo or a video, of course the computer will freeze when you have 10 porn sites open at the same time, the fact is is that you need HorsePower to drive a Ferrari, othewise it is just a Fiat! Dean Keller, you spent at least $1500 for the computer it wouldn't hurt to spend $160 on 1GB of RAM, www.crucial.com !!!

With that said i would like to actually review this product. I use both windows and macs at work (EDITING)and our macs never have problems, oh, and no Blaster WORM that will kill your computer and steal all of your vital info. With a mac your identity is yours to keep if you are smart or just turn on the built in firewall.

I bought this computer a couple of weeks ago, but have used it for a while at different job sites. With minimally 1GB of RAM this thing will turn a PC into RoadKill. I have had a few issues in the first couple of days, being a PROFFESIONAL, I actually have an answer to some of the freezing problems. When you get your computer out of the box the Operating System is already installed, the directory is heavily fragmented, your permissions are damaged and so on. This is due to the fact that somewhere in Asia, where the PM is asembeled and tested, it is not optimized before being shipped off to the good ol US of A! My suggestion to resolve this issue out of the box is to run a couple of diagnostics utilities right away. 1) Diskwarrior forr the G5. 2) Tech Tools Pro 4. 3) DiskUtitlity. And by GOD whatever you do, do not install any products from NORTON, this will gaurantee the demise of your new thousand dollar baby and you will have to start from scratch, clean install to really get rid of it.

Some specs from my machine (dual 2GHZ G5, 1.5GB RAM)

burn full DVD, menus, languages, audio - 25 minutes

render 10 minutes of Hi-Resolution video with motion effects - 5 minutes

Import full CD to iTunes - 3.5 minutes

Life like gameplay at Hi-Resolution for all games

Great wireless conectivity, there is a way to install the bluetooth module after you have bought this, try smalldog.com, service parts, you need module, antenna and screws, all these are separate items.

Get an Airport Extreme card, well worth it!!! Instead of getting an Airport Extreme basestation, get an Airport Express or 2 for the same price.

Get a printer, any one from epson or canon with a good rating from amazon.com is fine. or HP makes a bluetooth printer which works well with the Sony Ericsson P910. This phone kicks buttocks... Yes I have all of this!!!!

And last, if you stuck with me and read this crappy review, it took 5 minutes to write and i was doing other stuff, really just a response to that idiot that gave this great machine 1 star, idiot!

The special treat is this, if you get a display, do not get the 23-inch apple display, it is bad, when i say it is bad, there are technical issues with the color where it has hotspots, this is a manufacturing defect. INSTEAD go with the 20-inch Cinema Display from APPLE, I got this with my computer and it is the greatest device or add-on that i have ever paid for. The colors are perfect, you can stare at it straight for hours and not get a headache, just make sure you drink lots of water. And I have note read or noticed one bad thing about it. Thank you Steve Jobs and the great employees of Apple Computers whom made this wonderful product. And you consumers out there, don't be cheap and pay less for a monitor, there is a reason why those monitor cost less out there, they are bad for you, in every sense of the phrase. Your eyes, headaches, cramps. Pay the extra buck, you wont regret it, EVER. Oh, LCDs last longer than Plasma displays and give off less radiation than CRTs!!!!!!

Have a good one!~



Rating:
Summary: APPLE, WHERE IS YOUR CUSTOMER SERVICE???
Review: I recently purchased 7 Powermac G5's to replace our G4's. 4 of these had serious issues. One still is not running!

These were purchased in April of 2004, and all were purchased with the 'Applecare' Warrantee extension program. Apple has given us slow support, even the service 'depots' that they have me take the machines to complain about slow parts replacement, etc.(Slow as in weeks to months for parts that sometimes have to be re-ordered Problems range from OS to Hardware issues.

The machine that still is not running has had the logic board, hard drive, memory, SuperDrive, and CPU's replaced over the last six months with no change in the original problem. I called Apple to beg for a new machine, get put on hold, passed to new techs, and still no resolution.

I have grown very tired of this issue, and would like to take advantage of our six month old 3000.00 purchase. I HIGHLY DO NOT recommend the G5 or APPLECARE SUPPORT. Go spend your 3k on a PC...if that is even possible anymore. (applecare case # 42430940)

Rating:
Summary: Good enough for now on
Review: I was speaking with another editor about our new G5's. We both lamented the end to our break time; it wasn't long ago that you could hit "Render" and get a half-hour break out of the deal.

If you have non-stop work at your door and you value a little free time, buy a slower machine. This thing will make sure you don't have an excuse not to work.

Rating:
Summary: a marvel, but elitist
Review: if you know computers pretty well, you know this is an amazing machine, PC or Mac. Its performance is top notch but it's the design that really shines.
a water cooling mechanism inside
beautiful exterior
mesh grill and fans and wind tunnels, omg.
as quiet as any possible mod you can do yourself.

all said, if you have the money $$$, and you want the Rolls Royce of computers, then go ahead.

~bought with referral from WhoSave.com, great deal.

Rating:
Summary: Zoom zoom zoom!
Review: Okay so it may not be the fastest (2.5Ghz) but given the urgency I had then to get a new computer, I settled for the 2GHZ and not the 2.5 which I have to wait about 3 weeks more for it. After spending 4 years with a 500Mhz G4, upgrading to a dual 2.0GHZ is a MAJOR step forward for me. You start to notice the subtle differences in performance immediately. iTunes rip way faster, iMovie is simply a joy to use now versus the snail crawl I lived with previously... Photoshop filters zzpped through... and all of this amazing Herculean tasks are done with a barely audible whisper from the fans cooling the processors within.

I had mine customed configured by Apple- internal bluetooth, 128MB graphics card, 2.00 GB RAM... and a 23" cinema display. The only thing I got different was the Phillipe S+arck mouse from MS. i think it looks cooler than the white button mouse and more in sync with the whole aluminium silver look. Now I wish they would make the keyboards ala the PowerBooks- glow in the dark.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent performances ...
Review: Tha Mac G5 2.0 GHZ have excellent performances in Audio productions, video editing and rendering. Also, has great performances in games, dvd's, pictures and etc. The resolution is good enough.( with the 23" display) Its amazing how fast this computer goes. The OS X and his inside design; " ***** " . Its a good choice to buy...

Rating:
Summary: Slick
Review: This is a great box with flexibility for upgrades through the years. My last Mac, a Powermac G4 was built in 1999 (I've since upgraded the video card and processor), and is still running well, but I wanted the extra speed for Photoshop. I'll pass the other one down to my kids. They've been salivating over it for some time now.

This Mac will hold it's value for a long time. Unlike getting a PC, you won't throw it away in 2 years, nor will you want to. They really become more like a friend than a computer. The operating system is wonderfully friendly, stable, and quite customizable. I've never had a virus. My former Mac crashed once in the entire time I used it, due to bad software. Mac OS X plays well with Windows XP. My husband uses a Windows box, and we've had no issues with networking and file sharing.

Although this computer is not for the faint of pocketbook, think of it as an investment. It will last and work well for many years. The PCI-X slots definitely improve your upgrade options. In addition, I expect several 3rd party companies will offer processor upgrades within the next 1-2 years.

By the way, I'm enjoying it's blazing fast speed, and it's quietness. General operation is much snappier, and applying a filter in a large Photoshop file takes 2 seconds instead of 10. Response and video quality in iMovie is markedly improved. Pretty slick!

Rating:
Summary: Solid, steady, impressive
Review: This is my first Mac in ages, having used Windows machines for most of my adult life. While the price was a bit touchy for me, several things through me over the edge to make the switch.

First, I wanted to begin a new digital video hobby. There are cheaper solutions elsewhere but none offer the same ease of use and stability. I would say that one should realize that even Final Cut Express costs around $300 whereas a dozen (roughly) functionally comparable packages for Windows are available for about $100 or less. I had planned on buying Final Cut Express but sticker shock slowed that. Second, I was fed up with the myriad of malware threatening my Windows 2k box. Even with Symantec's Norton anti-virus and personal firewall, my machine got infected, and not due to me opening some dumb ass email attachment (I've always been very careful about that). Next, I want to learn Unix without the hassels of Linux. I'm not as much as a geek as I'd like to be. I do have a Linux box but its never worked well because the video card was old and I failed to figure out how to correct the problem (very jerky, bleeding imagery)(that's just one of many hardware related problems, btw). And yes, this will sound silly. But I wanted a better iTunes experience.

I'm investing more in my machine this week. Tripling RAM, more than doubling storage, and adding a Tivo-like card (for VCR-like capability).

BTW, before buying, I swore I'd get a two-button mouse. Its been over two months and I still haven't got one installed yet. Its not that I'm okay with a one button. But, I'm getting by.

Eirik