The new breed of PowerMacintosh has arrived. Again, Apple is the driving force in the personal computing industry. I know, I know, Windows 95 is here! Rejoice! It’ll cure cancer, protect you from HIV, and cook breakfast for you. These are probably the only features that Microsoft has not associated with Windows 95. I hate to rain on the parade, but Windows 95 is just another pane of Windows. It will succeed not on technical merit, but marketing muscle. However, let’s save that for another discussion. Apple is leading the way with even faster personal computers. Everyday, we realize more and more the benefits of a RISC processor, associated with a mature operating system and a vast array of native applications.
On August 4, Apple released the PowerMacintosh 8500, 7500, and 7200. These new Macintoshes have several common features, most notably three PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) slots. PCI is here to stay, and offers the performance which other bus architectures dream of having. All three machines also use DIMMs, or Dual In-line Memory Modules, instead of SIMMs. All three machines use a new emulator, providing better performance when running 68K-based applications. Best of all, all three machines show up with a nice surprise: better prices. For once, Apple has the definite advantage in price/performance numbers over its Intel/DOS/Windows competitors.
The PowerMacintosh 8500
The PowerMacintosh 8500 is based on a 120 MHz PowerPC 604 processor, enclosed in an 8100-style case. And now, speeds and feeds: The base unit comes with 16 Mb of RAM, a quad-speed CD-ROM drive, and either a 1-Gb or 2-Gb hard drive. There are 3 PCI slots, 8 DIMM slots for RAM expansion, built-in ethernet (with both a 10Base-T standard socket and an AAUI), internal FAST SCSI bus providing 10 Mb/sec, and an external SCSI bus offering 5 Mb/sec throughput, a 256K cache for the RISC processor (upgradeable)...hang on, let me catch my breath and rest my typing fingers...2 Mb of VRAM, expandable to 4 Mb, on a 64-bit data path to the video system. 24-bit color of up to 1,280 x 1,024 pixels. Built-in RCA jacks for composite video in/out, and S-Video in/out. Also, an internal DAV (digital audio/video) connector for video compression/decompression cards. And those are just the high points!
However, enough of the technical specs. This machine is definitely ready for prime-time. Currently, the only configuration option available is whether you want a 1 Gb or 2 Gb hard drive. I am very happy with these types of choices, mainly because it simplifies the decision making process. My favorite features of this unit revolve around two sub-systems: processor and video.
The PowerPC 604 processor is the third model of PowerPC chips to be used in PowerMacintoshes. We see the 601 in the initial PowerMacs and the 603 in the all-in-one 5200 and in future Powerbooks. The 604 was first featured in the PowerMacintosh 9500. I’ll forego a venture into the intricacies of chips and mips and all that stuff. Bottom line: the 604 is the fastest PowerPC yet. It’s performance already surpasses that of P6, Intel’s upcoming CISC processor (when?, who knows?, who cares?).
On the 8500, the processor is actually mounted on a daughtercard. It is not soldered onto the motherboard. Why? Can you say upgrade path? New PowerPC comes out at a higher clock speed. Purchase the new daughtercard. Install. Start machine. Voil√°. More speed and an easy upgrade path. Best of all, a daughtercard will cost much less than a motherboard (the current upgrade method). This is a fantastic feature, and I hope it continues in future models.
The video sub-system in this machine is absolutely the best yet. Need AV capabilities? You don’t need S-Video connectors on your video equipment or the little S-Video-to-composite “gender-benders”. Plug them in via the composite (RCA) jacks and go to work. Also included in the package is QuickTime Conferencing, QuickTime-based software to allow you to video conference with others through a network. Yes, through the Internet also. Very cool.
I love the ascetics of the 8500’s enclosure. However, I do not like working on the internal components with this case. One of the few faults of the enclosure is the need to basically disassemble the internal components of the machine to get to the DIMM slots or to the motherboard. Yes, I know. Pick, pick. But when you work on machines quite a bit, you develop an attitude regarding these things.
The 8500 will set the pace for others in the field of video production, high-end graphics designers, publishing, and multimedia authoring systems. Not to mention, it is a must-have for those deranged individuals who must have the latest and greatest, or play Marathon death matches at extreme levels. The combination of these features, this level of performance, and this price point, is unmatched by anyone else in the industry.
The PowerMacintosh 7500 and 7200
The 7500 and the 7200 models round out the entry-level and midrange offerings. They also share a new enclosure. Another new enclosure? Well, this one’s worth it. This enclosure will set the stage for the industry to say “wow, why didn’t we think of that?” I am referring to the case design, which takes to heart the lessons learned on previous models, where form did not always follow functionality or practicality. Just open the case, without a screwdriver. Need to get to the motherboard? Just lift up on that hinged thing. What? Well, on these machines, all disk drives as well as the power supply are mounted on a hinged rack which swings out of the way and rests on its own “kickstand”. Sound pretty cool? Wait until you see it. If you have ever opened up a machine to work on it, you will appreciate this case design and beg for all computer manufacturers to take notice.
The case is only one of the strong points of these models. Both models use the PowerPC 601 processor, running at 75-, 90-, or 100 MHz. The PowerMacintosh 7500/100 uses the--you guessed it--100 MHz processor. The 7200/75 and 7200/90 systems us the 75- and 90 MHz processors, respectively. Finally, some logical reasoning in product nomenclature! Both models offer three PCI slots. PCI, as mentioned earlier, will allow you have better selection of expansion cards, with better performance, at better prices. Again, built-in ethernet with both the 10Base-T standard jack and an AAUI. Hard drive options range from 500 Mb to 1 Gb. And, yes, better video systems on board. CD-ROM drives are all quad-speed and a standard feature. (Remember when Apple said: “in the future, personal computers will come with CD-ROM drives as a standard feature?” At the time, the industry laughed about it. Industry, take heed and learn.)
Now, let’s discuss the differences. Basically, the 7500 gets you video-in via composite and S-Video connections and video-out via composite connections only (no S-Video-out here). Also important, the processor in the 7500 is mounted on a daughtercard, allowing a very easy, inexpensive upgrade path via daughtercards.
The 7200 models do not offer the video in/out or daughtercard- based processor as standard features. Hence, the lower price points.
Conclusion
I am very impressed with this latest collection of personal computers. For more specifics, you can check out the spec sheets at Apple’s web site (http://www.info.apple.com). Apple: Keep driving the industry. It’s working.
