Powerlogix has raised (or lowered, depending on your viewpoint) the bar in the upgrade card wars. The company announced late yesterday afternoon that ut had lowered the price of the PowerForce G3 ZIF 466 upgrade card to US$699. This card will upgrade a beige G3 to 466 Mhz or a Blue & white G3 to either 450 MHz or 500 MHz (because of the bus speed). It also includes a full MB of backside cache set at a 2:1 ratio. According to Powerlogix:
PowerLogix today announced the lowest price ever, $699, on a 466 MHz G3 upgrade for PowerMac G3 owners.
The PowerForce G3 ZIF 466 includes 1 Mb of backside cache running at 233MHz and is compatible with all PowerMac G3s, including the new "Blue & White" G3s as well as the G3 "All-in-One. The PowerForce G3 ZIF 466 brings performance to existing computers unattainable from any Apple product.
The PowerForce G3 ZIF 466 operates with a variable bus ratio so it will work flawlessly in original ("beige") PowerMac G3s with 66 MHz, or in the new "Blue & White" G3s with 100 MHz bus. Because of the high speed of the backside cache, there is no appreciable performance difference between a 466 ZIF installed in a beige G3 or in a B&W G3 in spite of the bus speed difference (when set at equivalent clock speeds.) This makes the 466 a great value for owners of beige G3s.
The PowerForce G3 ZIF 466 will operate at 466 MHz in beige G3s. Due to the architecture of the B&W G3, it will operate at either 450 or 500 MHz in those machines.
For owners of beige G3s with investments in RAM and other peripherals, it is far more economical to upgrade with a PowerForce G3 processor than purchase a new G3. For example, an Apple PowerMac G3 350, available at the Apple Store, sells for $1999. Owners of beige G3s can upgrade for only $699, a savings of $1300, still keep their existing RAM, and have a computer with 33% more clock speed! Of course, owners of B&W G3s aren't left out either...the card will work in those machines, as well.
The Mac Observer Spin: Ain't competition grand? Pardon the bad grammar in that misused cliché, but the price wars amongst the upgrade manufacturers is intense, and the recipient of that competition is the consumer. Not too long ago, top end upgrade cards were as high as US$2000. Now we have a choice of cards from a choice of manufacturers with a high end of US$799 or so.
With the announcement from Powerlogix, we expect many, if not all, of their competitors to follow suit and lower their prices as well.
FYI, there is more to the price reductions than competition. The G3 has had a long product life-cycle now. Manufacturing costs have gotten much lower and much of the initial R&D costs were presumably paid long ago. Hopefully these price cuts will leave all the upgrade companies healthy.
Powerlogix
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