The 7500 is replaced by the 7600, which is up to 50% faster. |
You now have a wider choice of bigger and faster PowerMacs after the recent introduction of a new range where virtually no model is left unchanged. With something for most pockets, everything in the range is either brand-new or revamped. On top of this, every model now comes with a CD-ROM drive. The minimum PowerMac remains the 7200 with a 601 chip, but the clock speed that dictates the speed of the chip is now set at 90MHz. With 8Mb of RAM and a 500Mb hard drive, this starter PowerMac for small business now costs around £1,351. Next up is a new machine, the 8200. Starting from around £1,763, this tower-cased business computer can work up to 50% faster than the 7200, thanks to a disk cache in its 16Mb version. |
The 9500 now packs a mighty 150MHz processor. |
You might think the 8200 is a little confusingly-named as it's less powerful than the lower-numbered 7600, another new machine. This is now the lowest-priced `future-proof' PowerMac, with a daughterboard arrangement that means you'll easily be able to swap its main 604 processor for a faster one when it becomes available. At £2,820 it's 50% faster than the 601-based 7500 it replaces. Moving up to the graphics powerhouses, the £4,054 8500 and the £4,583 9500 now both come with a 604 chip running at the increased speed of 150MHz. The difference between the two is that the 9500 has 32Mb of RAM to the 8500's 16Mb, as well as a built-in video card for professional video editing work. |
Model/clock speed | Processor | RAM | Hard disk | Price |
7200/90 | 601 | 8Mb | 500Mb | £1,351 |
7200/90 | 601 | 16Mb | 1Gb | £1,663 |
7500/100 | 601 | 8Mb | 500Mb | £1,852 |
7600/120 (1) | 604 | 16Mb | 1.2Gb | £2,820 |
8200/100 | 601 | 8Mb | 1.2Gb | £1,763 |
8200/120 (1) | 601 | 16Mb | 2Gb | £2,203 |
8500/120 | 604 | 16Mb | 2Gb | £3,631 |
8500/150 (1) | 604 | 16Mb | 2Gb | £4,054 |
9500/132 | 604 | 16Mb | 2Gb | £3,798 |
9500/132 (2) | 604 | 16Mb | 2Gb | £4,004 |
9500/150 (3) | 604 | 32Mb | 2Gb | £4,583 |