Imac G3 graphics card

[Quintendb]

I recently bought anindigo imac g3/500 from 2001. I want to upgrade the RAM and hard drive and clock the cpu to play some retro games and watch a movie/ read mails. i thought this model came with a 16mb ATI rage pro ultra card because of how it was stated on everymac.com but on the backside of the mac it says that a 128 pro is included. Other websites confirm this. Some games i want to play need at least 16 mb Vram. The question i have is can someone confirm if this is the cheaper graphics card (pro) or the better one? I also have the possibility to buy a 600 mhz graphite one, is it better to buy that one instead of the one i have right now considering the cpu and graphics card? Some of the games i’d like to play on the mac are diablo 2, age of empires 2 and simcity 4. The last one needs a graphics card with 32mb vram and direct x 7 compability. I’m really in doubt because the graphics card is impossible to replace and i don’t want to start spending money on upgrading the imac if the graphics card is not good enough to play early 2000’s games.

 

[velocityg4]

Everything I can find says it is the Summer 2001 model (manufactured in August 2001), based on the serial number. Which as far as I can find came with the 16MB ATI Rage 128 Ultra.

Unless there was some cheaper build to order option. It should have a 16MB video card.

Did you check System Profiler?

 

[MysticCow]

direct x 7

If you're trying to play Windows games on an iMac G3, you're going to have a bad time...

That being said, iHope either of those iMacs come with their software restore CD's. There were a few nice little games tucked away in those.

 

[MysticCow]

Unless there was some cheaper build to order option. It should have a 16MB video card.

There was not. All iMacs from that time came with Ye Olde Rage card at 16 MB.

 

[Quintendb]

Everything I can find says it is the Summer 2001 model (manufactured in August 2001), based on the serial number. Which as far as I can find came with the 16MB ATI Rage 128 Ultra.

Unless there was some cheaper build to order option. It should have a 16MB video card.

Did you check System Profiler?

Thank you for checking the serial, i will check the system profiler as soon as i get home. I checked the about this mac page and clicked on more info before but could only find the cpu (powerpc 750) at 500 mhz.
There is a possibilty that my imac was a cheaper european version with 64 mb ram and that’s why i’m not so sure at all. The previous owner put in an extra 256 mb ram so i cant go off on that but maybe the hard drive can confirm this.
I can also open the case to check the gpu myself but don’t know what to look for.

 

[Quintendb]

There was not. All iMacs from that time came with Ye Olde Rage card at 16 MB.

Thanks for the confirmation! If the 600mhz and 500 mhz have the same videocard i’ll just keep this one and upgrade it.

 

[Quintendb]

If you're trying to play Windows games on an iMac G3, you're going to have a bad time...

That being said, iHope either of those iMacs come with their software restore CD's. There were a few nice little games tucked away in those.

Sadly the guy i bought this from only had the imac without any software CD’s. I accidently listed the system requirements for windows, it should be able to run on macos but i think it was only made for the 4th generation imacs as it needs a 3D accelerator card with 32MB of memory a DVD-ROM drive and a powerpc g4 processor at 700 mhz. But There are enough older games that are still worth it Imo ?

 

[Project Alice]

In all honesty any of the Rage series cards are horrible for “early 2000s” gaming. The Rage 128s were nearly obsolete when Apple was using them. Stick to 90s to late 90s games on this thing. Even Unreal Tournament ‘99 plays rather choppy on this card unless you turn the graphics down and play at like 640x480.

 

[TheShortTimer]

There are enough older games that are still worth it Imo ?

Have a look through this PPC gaming thread if you'd like some suggestions. Many of the titles were tested on G3 machines to ensure low end compatibility.