Power Mac G5 Dual 2-GHz--How Fast Is It?

Our long-awaited Dual 2-GHz Power Mac G5 (D-2 G5) in standard configuration finally arrived. The supply of this model is apparently still constrained. A CTO D-2 G5 (with ATI Radeon 9800 Pro graphics and built-in Bluetooth) ordered from Apple's on line store at the end of September, showing 7-10 days, was listed as shipping on or before October 15. But late on the 15th the shipping date was revised to October 27th. Anyway, we are pleased that we now have a G5 that replaced our Dual 1.42-GHz Power Mac G4 (D-1.42 G4).

Apple touts the Power Mac G5 as the world's fastest personal computer. This claim has been challenged in a few articles which pitted the D-2 G5 against some PCs, including a much more expensive Dell workstation with dual 3.06 Xeon Intel CPUs and a slightly cheaper Alienware Aurora, a specialized game machine with a 64-bit AMD CPU. For the most part the D-2 G5 held its own in speed comparisons, winning some and losing others. This is good enough for us, especially since the operating system and application software are not yet optimized for the G5.

LOOK AND FEEL

Out of the box, the D-2 G5 is a very impressive machine when compared with our D-1.42 G4, even more so than when we first saw the pre-production G5 model at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference in June. As we noted back then, the G5 is 3 inches taller than a G4 but narrower by 3/4" and lighter by 3 lbs in standard configuration. Still, the G5 looks far more imposing than the G4 because its sides are flat rather than curved so it's overall volume is much greater. The G5 clearly belongs on the floor rather than on a desk.

The G5's all-aluminum design with its perforated grill, front and back, looks very professional to us. We like it despite reading lightly disparaging references to a cheese grater. Besides, the G5's design is highly functional in allowing for easy cooling and a quieter machine. We appreciate the placement of the optical drive near the top of the machine which makes for a much easier reach. Finally, the placement of USB and FireWire jacks on the front with the headphone jack and start button is also much appreciated.