Is it an Apple, or is it a Lemon?
Written: Apr 05 '00 (Updated Sep 06 '00)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: nice expandable case, works well when it does
Cons: Unreliable, horrible mouse, crash and hang prone
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| kfgecko's Full Review: Apple Power Macintosh G3 (M7104LL/A) Mac Desktop |
I recommended the G3 to my father in law because the family was familiar with Macs and we wanted a no-hassles computer. We got burned.
Did we just get a lemon? I don't know, but here are the facts. We bought the unit new and brought it home to setup. Setup was of course, easy, but I'm also very familiar with computers. On boot up, I proceeded to install all software and peripherals we had purchased to go along with the computer.
The 56k modem and AOL out of the box seemed to be the devil incarnate. The software kept crashing; emphasizing Mac OS's arrogance that it doesn't allow you to kill stuck processes. Does Apple think their system is so stable and crash proof that there's no good mechanism for killing processes? Apparently so. And the need is real for it appears that this feature will finally be included in Apple's newest OS in the *future*. Not soon enough. We were able to connect at 56k for awhile. But after regular crashes (every 15 minutes of use) I resorted to reformatting the hard drive and reinstalling the OS to fix irrecoverable disk errors; after which, the 56k modem refused to connect at anything faster than 28.8.
The machine has a very nice case that makes expansion extremely easy. The flip down side is a blessing for adding expansion cards. It comes with an ATI Rage128 video card which makes the G3 a game worthy machine. USB ports are annoyingly in the back just like most PC's (people still don't get USB). Apple has totally eliminated legacy serial ports which renders the Mac laser printer and other legacy peripherals owned by this family with a history of macs all useless; forcing purchase of new peripherals. Oh, but "just for $60" (if you can track it down) we can buy something that will make the new G3 compatible with the old stuff again. Thanks for making Mac loyalty a painful experience, Apple.
Like all blueberry Macs, it comes with the ergonomic nightmare of a mouse. I found that this repetitive stress injury accelerating design was uncomfortable to hold and often spun around in less experienced hands. No wonder there are so many mouse replacements, add ons, and modifications flooding the market now.
The CDROM is hidden behind another layer of blue-plastic door to make the facade continuous, but it seemed to make the CDROM drive tray mechanism struggle unnecessarily so my brother in law resorted to just removing the door.
I really wanted to like this machine. I really wanted it to be a good choice. But its unreliability has made it an absolutely frustrating (and time wasting) experience. We bought it with the intent of ease of use and trouble free computing; the G3 proved to be exactly opposite of that.
Update: After a second drive reformat, OS reinstall, latest drivers of all peripherals, and my inlaws PAYING a PROFESSIONAL CONSULTANT to tune up the computer; the G3 seems to finally have calmed down to a workable machine although it continues to randomly lock up. I'm just going to have to wait for the memory of the nightmare to fade; but a year later, my father in-law still does not trust the machine because of it's random unreliability and continues to do some of his work on his old Macs. (Which totally defeats the purpose of buying the G3.) Maybe the new G4 series will be better.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
kfgecko
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Location: San Jose, California
Reviews written: 165
Trusted by: 10 members
About Me:
30-something male, born/raised in Northern-California.
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