PowerMac G5 Review

Okay, I've had my PowerMac for about 2 weeks now, and I thought I'd go ahead and write my opinion.

First, let me give you a rundown on the product I own:

PowerMac PPC Dual 2.0 G5 Processors (64 bit processors)
512 MB of RAM
9650 AGP ATI Video Card
Sony DVD RW (Writes DVD's and CD's)
Dual Firewire, Triple USB 2.0
Max OS X 10.4.1 Tiger


So, it's a pretty high speed machine.

First things first.. This thing is fast. This is easily the fastest computer I have ever used. When I click on something, it appears. The only thing that takes a bit of a minute to start is "America's Army" (The Game).. but.. it's a 3-D Game!!

Okay..

MOUSE:
I ditched the Apple single button mouse. That thing stinks. It's touch sensitive, you can't rest your hand on it, it will click. Kinda stinks. So I had a spare USB logitech mouse sitting around here, plugged it into the back of the Apple Keyboard and it worked immediately.

KEYBOARD:
It's the typical Mac keyboard that comes with every Tower Mac. It's a bit wierd to type on, as they keys are soft. It's rather uncomfortable as well, but then again, I'm about full-blown carpal tunnel too. So I really need to think about getting one of those high speed Ergonomic keyboards.

MONITOR:
I had an 18" MAG Innovision display. It's VGA, and the Mac by nature is DVI. But Apple gives you a nice converter. Doesn't matter, I still want the Apple Display, it's HD, and DVI. That's so nice.

Video Card:
I opted for the 9650 with 256 MB of RAM. It's a fast card... But mainly bought it because it has two DVI outs. (This is the card you have to have to run the 30 inch display)... But I'll never get the 30 in display unless they come down off their price a bit. Otherwise I'm quite happy with the 20 monitor I want to get.

Networking:
I plugged it in, it immediately had an IP, and I could go to "Network" and view all the other Windows and Mac machines I have on my network. It was nice.

iPhoto: Works great. I continue to add my photos in there.
iTunes: I just copied my Tunes from my iBook on over, work great.
Dashboard: Pretty cool!
Spotlight: This WILL revolutionize how we use our computers. Smart Folders too. That's nice.

I used my .mac account to sync everything between the iBook and the PowerMac, works great.

Installs:
I installed my Tools for managing my UPS (came with the UPS), works.
Adium (Multi-IM'ing Program)
Bittorrent (So I could download America's Army)
Fink & Fink Commander
MacTheRipper (DVD Ripper)
X-Chat Aqua (IRC program)
Windows Media Player
Transparent Dock