looking at an imac g4, emac etc for my 4 yo

any of these can run internet no problem right. he's mostly just playing with word games etc. but soon will be on disney and family channel websites.

Steve Adams said:

any of these can run internet no problem right. he's mostly just playing with word games etc. but soon will be on disney and family channel websites.

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These are both still fairly decent Mac's for most of what you mentioned...but depending on the processor speed...they are not always good for internet video content...like Disney may have a lot of.

Also...the processor speeds vary pretty widely on these (700mhz-1.42ghz eMac, 700mhz-1.25ghz iMac G4)...so faster is better. So what I'm saying is...you probably need at least a 1ghz processor for internet video playback to be acceptable (not necessarily good). For good/great internet video playback...you're going to have spend more money.

I'm not just saying watching videos on the internet...I'm also taking about all of the "bells & whistles" that make internet sites look interesting...called "Eye Candy"...which many children related sites have a lot of.

Other then the internet video issue...these are fine computers for what you're thinking of using it for.

HTH,

- Nick

yeah,

I was going to pick one up off ebay with the max processor for the machine...i think its 1.42. I want him to grow up using macs. I grew up on pc's and the headaches are horrible. Still the same old problems that were there 20 years ago. Mac does not have those problems as steve keeps a tight ship on OS-hardware. makes for a smooth system integration.

Steve Adams said:

yeah,

I was going to pick one up off ebay with the max processor for the machine...i think its 1.42. I want him to grow up using macs. I grew up on pc's and the headaches are horrible. Still the same old problems that were there 20 years ago. Mac does not have those problems as steve keeps a tight ship on OS-hardware. makes for a smooth system integration.

Click to expand...

If you're aiming for a 1.42ghz eMac...then you should be in pretty good shape from an internet surfing perspective. One word of warning since you were sort of considering both an eMac & a G4 iMac.

The eMac has a CRT monitor...and due to it's age you never know what sort of shape it may be in. It could "crap-out" on you the day after you buy it...and it could have screen burn-in if the previous user/users weren't careful with it. Of course if you aren't paying much for it...it may be worth the gamble. If you were able to locate a "low mileage" eMac then you would be fine...but with e-Bay...you probably won't get to see & use it before buying.

One other bit of info. eMac's were originally designed to be used in education environments...where in many cases...they would see lots & lots of use. So many of them will have lots & lots of hours on them. So the display issues I mentioned really do have a high possibility of occurring.

The iMac G4 has an LCD monitor...and typically LCD monitors have less issues.

Just something to consider,

- Nick

Thanks nick. I will def keep that in mind. They (emac) are going for 80 on eBay and the IMac is going for approximate 100. Not bad for a complete system.

Grab that eMac, the 1.42 especially! No capacitor problems, and although the CRT may be worn, you can always use an external monitor (there's a post about that very thing in this forum). eMacs are incredibly robust machines. I'm loath to part with mine, I'd rather keep it going somehow.