As should be expected from a machine packing two 1-GHz processors, this machine is fast. Furthermore, since the Macintosh is an OS optimized for its own hardware, the new G4 practically leaves skid marks on your desk (OK, how about a burn mark on the wall?). In our TechTV Labs tests, the dual 1-GHz completed tasks in almost half the time it took the 867-MHz G4. It managed to chew its way through an entire CD and spit out MP3s in just over three minutes, and encoded our iMovie (with three transitions, two titles, and one effect, with a run time of 50 seconds) to QuickTime in just 58 seconds.
The user experience is also fast: Windows fly around the screen, applications launch quickly, and the machine starts up faster than you can get up from your desk and even think of grabbing a cup of coffee. We weren't thrilled, however, to see an Nvidia GeForce4 MX in a machine at this par. Our suggestion is to spend the extra on the Titanium card.
Speed thrills
With the benefit of full ownership on its side, Apple has an unfair leg up on the competitors, but the results are good for you. The new Mac OS X is built to take full advantage of not only the G4 chip -- that pretty interface is graphically intense -- but also dual processors. The outcome is speed, and a lot to go around. And, thanks to Mac OS X's superb multi-tasking, using the dual gives you enough performance to encode video files, create DVDs, rip your CDs to MP3, and even surf the Web and check email, without a single hiccup.
Video editors and anyone working with large files across a network of computers will appreciate Apple's continued inclusion of gigabit Ethernet. Granted, you'll need to do some network improvements to take full advantage of the speed (unless you already have or are using cross-over cables between two similarly equipped Macs), but it's one fewer thing you'll have to upgrade when you're ready to take your network to the next level. Should your network needs not exceed the speed offered by AirPort (Apple's implementation of 802.11b), adding the $99 card is as easy as opening up the door, and sliding the card in (unless you buy yours with AirPort pre-installed).
