Not to be outdone by its IBM-compatible PC competitors, Apple Computer has some dual-core systems of its own to choose from. The Power Mac G5 Dual, which starts at around $1999 for a 2-GHz model, comes not only with the latest in CPU technology, but also with other leading-edge tweaks, such as 1MB of Level 2 cache per core and 512MB of the latest 533-MHz DDR2 memory. Both are improvements over previous Power Macs that came with two CPUs rather than two cores.
According to Macworld, PC World's sibling publication, Power Mac G5 Dual systems (both the 2-GHz and $2499 2.3-GHz models) perform about as well as the Power Macs they replace, but the real draw is in their ability to hold more memory (up to 16GB), accommodate superfast PCI Express add-in cards, and support standard high-end graphics cards. The 2.3-GHz Power Mac G5 Dual has an NVidia GeForce 6600 with 256MB of video RAM.
The move to PCI Express is a good one, but aside from the various NVidia cards Apple offers, and a few others, there are not yet a lot of PCI Express options. And you can't just throw a PCI or PCI-X card into a PCI Express slot. The new Power Macs also mark a move to high-speed serial ATA hard drives (160GB on the 2-GHz model; 250GB on the 2.3-GHz version). Again, users should see nice improvements in disk-intensive applications, but forget putting your old drives into your new system.
What else should you know about the new Power Mac G5 Dual systems? How about the fact that they are not exactly dial-up Internet-friendly? It used to be you could get an optional internal 56K modem in your new Power Mac, just in case you couldn't get a broadband connection. But no more. If you need dial-up connectivity, you'll need to buy an external USB modem for around $50.
More Power on Deck
So what could be better than a dual-core Power Mac? How about a dual-dual-core Power Mac, which is to say a Power Mac G5 Quad, with two dual-core processors? Graphics pros will want to take a look at the powerful $3299 Quad, which comes standard with many of the same features as the 2.3-GHz Dual. But according to Apple, the Quad is roughly 50 percent faster, on average, than previous dual-processor Power Macs across a range of high-end workstation tasks, like 3D rendering.
Jonesing for as much Power Mac G5 Quad performance as you can get? Apple offers an industrial-strength NVidia Quadro FX 4500 video card with 512MB of video RAM for an additional $1650. It supports a pair of high-def displays and comes with a connector for hooking up 3D-visualization goggles.
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