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Mac Daniel's Advice
Picking a PCI Video Card
Korin Hasegawa-John - 2001.08.20
A graphics (or video) card is a very important part of your Mac. It controls the screen, updating and changing the information constantly. If you have a lousy graphics card, images will load slowly, and scrolling documents or viewing multimedia won't be as pleasant. All of these cards are PCI, allowing them to be used in anything from a Power Mac 7200 to the newest Quicksilver G4s. None of these cards are new, with the exception of the ATI Radeon and the ProFormance3 (both of which you can get used). I would check eBay and local university surplus auctions.
Ratings go from • to •••••, with one being worst and five being best.
Gaming Cards
These cards are for gamers. They support GLIDE or OpenGL, two 3D standards, or both. Generally, they have 16 MB to 32 MB of VRAM (Except the Voodoo5 5000, 64 MB).
Cards with GLIDE support
Glide is a graphics protocol used to display 3D images, developed by 3dfx Interactive. It's mostly used in games. No longer supported by new cards, since 3dfx got bought out. Basically, any card in the Voodoo series supports Glide. These cards are pretty cheap, ranging from the under-$50 Voodoo3 3000 to the $100-150 Voodoo5 5500. They run games such as Unreal, Quake III et al pretty well.
Pros
- 3dfx cards support OpenGL as well, a newer 3D standard.
- They're really good for games.
- They're also pretty inexpensive.
Cons
- No RAVE support. RAVE is QuickDraw3D's graphics protocol. These cards won't accelerate your QuickDraw3D based games or 3D scenes.
- No Mac OS X support. Possibly, 3rd party drivers will come out, but to the best of my knowledge there's no planned OS X support.
- Voodoo5 5500 (12" PCI) won't work with Performas.
- Voodoo3 has to be Mac-Rom flashed. (a pain)
Ratings
- Voodoo3 3000: •••• - It's an OK card at a great price, but ROM is a pain.
- Voodoo5 4500: •••• - A good card, and a decent price. Hard to find.
- Voodoo5 5500: ••••• - Very good, and loads of VRAM.
Cards with OpenGL
Any ATI 128 card supports OpenGL. These cards range from the $100 Rage 128 Orion (16 MB) to the Radeon Mac PCI ($160). They have support from Apple and ATI, and are good for OpenGL games and RAVE acceleration.
Pros
- OS X support.
- RAVE support, so will accelerate QuickDraw3D.
- Good OpenGL support
Cons
- Radeon 2D acceleration sub-par
- No GLIDE support.
- ATI's Mac support is lousy.
Ratings
- Rage 128 Orion: ••• - It works, but performance isn't great for the money.
- Radeon PCI: ••••• - Can't be beat for OpenGL or RAVE, but pricey.
Formac ProFormance3
I've never actually used this card, but have heard good things about it. It costs $100 and up on the used market, but can be hard to find. I am unsure about OS X support.
Pros
- OpenGL support
- 3D glasses, supposedly work very well
- RAVE support
- Good 2D acceleration for when you aren't playing games.
Cons
- No GLIDE support
- Relatively hard to find
- Somewhat pricey for what the card is.
Rating
- Never used it, but from what I've heard: •••• - 3D glasses nice touch, decent performance.
Non-Gaming Cards
If you don't use 3D intensive games, or use non-RAVE 3D, the following cards might be for you. They are much cheaper.
ATI XClaim 3D PLUS
This card is based on the Rage Pro chip from ATI. It has 8 MB VRAM and supports RAVE. That's it. No OpenGL or Glide. However, it's good for scrolling those Excel spreadsheets or that Word doc. Has OS X support. $50 or thereabouts.
Pros
- Supports RAVE
- OS X support
- Cheap
Cons
- Lousy 3D performance, but will accelerate RAVE games.
- No GLIDE support
- No OpenGL support
Rating: •••• - It supports some games, and it's cheap.
ixMicro Pro Rez 3D
This card was made by ixMicro, based on their TwinTurbo 128 chip. It has 8 MB of VRAM, and accelerates RAVE very well. It doesn't support GLIDE or OpenGL, but does have good 2D performance. OS X support. $40.
Pros
- Supports RAVE, good performance
- OS X support
- Cheap
- Good 2D performance
Cons
- No RAVE gaming support
- No GLIDE support
- No OpenGL support
- 12" PCI, won't work with Performas
Rating: ••• - Hey, it's cheap, but no games support.
There are many other cheap older graphics cards which I won't get into now, like the Radius Thunder series. However, this is a guide to some of the better cards that are currently available for PCI Macs. If you are considering a second video card or a replacement, this is a helpful starter's guide.
Not sure if you should upgrade your old Mac or replace it? Check the Mac Daniel index to see if we've already addressed your problem.
Recent Mac Daniel columns
- WiFi Hardware Compatible with Desktop Macs Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. USB, ethernet, PCI, and other wireless hardware compatible with Mac OS X.
- WiFi CardBus Adapters Compatible with PowerBooks, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. CardBus hardware and drivers compatible with PowerBooks running Mac OS X.
- WiFi PC Cards Compatible with PowerBooks Running OS X, MetaPhyzx, 03.11. PCMCIA/PC Card hardware and drivers compatible with PowerBooks running Mac OS X.
- WiFi PC Cards for PowerBooks Running Mac OS 9, MetaPhyzx, 03.10. PCMCIA cards and drivers reported to be compatible with PowerBook running the Classic Mac OS.
- More in the Mac Daniel index.
Links for the Day
- Mac of the Day: iMac Core Duo, Jan. 2006 - The first Intel-based iMacs ran at 1.83-2.0 GHz, came with 17" and 20" displays.
- Group of the Day: Mac Pro List is for those using a Mac Pro.
- November 23 in LEM history: 99: Should I buy a USB card? - 01: Can a low-end Mac be an only Mac? - Palm Desktop without a PDA - CyberDog saves the day - 05: How Consumer Reports could compare Macs fairly - Speakers for your Mac - Living with the hi-res 15" PowerBook - Birth of the PowerBook - Daystar 1.9 GHz iMac G4 upgrade - 1.92 GHz PowerBook upgrade
- Support Low End Mac
Recent Content on Low End Mac
- Apple's Tablet an End Run Beyond Netbooks, Frank Fox, Stop the Noiz, 11.20. Whatever Apple has planned will leverage existing technologies while going beyond what its competitors can offer.
- i5 iMac Benchmarked, Mac mini 'Shouldn't Be Overlooked', Twitter Client for Classic Mac OS, and More, Mac News Review, 11.20. Also why Apple leaves the low end to others, 10.6.2 fixes video playback problem in 27" iMac, 3D Leopard and Snow Leopard performance, and more.
- Apple #4 in Reliability, Apple Tablet a Gadget for All?, HP's i7 Notebook Outdoes Mac Rivals, and More, The 'Book Review, 11.20. Also Flash 10.1 improves video on Hackintosh netbooks, thin-and-light notebooks impress, Windows XP finally on the way out, and more.
- NASA Chemical Sensor for iPhone, Smartphone Death Match, iPhone Earrings, and More, Ian R Campbell, 11.20. Also mobile phone dangers, new apps, GPS solution for iPod touch, new iPod and iPhone cases, and more.
- Replacing the Hard Drive in a Clamshell iBook, John Hatchett, Recycled Computing, 11.19. Yes, it is one of the most difficult Apple notebooks to disassemble and reassemble, but a 10 GB hard drive just will not do.
- IBM Model F: A Great Old Keyboard with an Outdated Layout, Tommy Thomas, Welcome to Macintosh, 11.19. Although it used a different technology than the revered IBM Model M keyboard, the Model F was a great keyboard in its own right.
- Soft Touch Keyboards, Wireless Mouse Options, Loving SeaMonkey 2, and More, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 11.18. Also the future of browsing with PowerPC Macs and the multiple mouse input bug introduced with OS X 10.5.8.
- More links in our archive.
Recent Deals
- Best eMac Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz Combo, $100; SuperDrive, $269; 1.25 GHz Combo, $119; SD, $319; 1.42 GHz Combo, $289; SD, $498.
- Best Mac OS X 10.6 and Mac Box Set Deals, 11.18. "Snow Leopard", single user, $25; 5 users, $45; Mac Box Set, single user, $139; 5 users, $180; Server, $414. Shipping included.
- Best Xserve Deals, 11.18. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $649; 2.3 dual G5, $795; 3.0 4-core Xeon, $1,899; refurb 2.26 4-core, $2,499; new, $2,888; refurb 8-core, $2,999; new, $3,449; more.
- Best 15" MacBook Pro Deals, 11.17. Used 1.83 GHz, $750; 2.16, $800; 2.33, $900; refurb 2.4, $1,299; 2.53, $1,449; 2.66, $1,699; 2.8, $1,899; new 2.53, $1,579; 2.66, $1,799; more.
- Best Power Mac G4 and AGP Video Card Deals, 11.17. Used 400 MHz, $50; 933 MHz, $80; 500 dual, $60; 867 dual, $90; 1 GHz dual, $150; 1.25 GHz dual, $225; 1.42 GHz, $499.
- Best Mac OS X 10.5 Deals, 11.17. "Leopard" upgrade, $80; single user license, $135; 5 users, $173; Mac Box Set, 5 users, $230; Server, 10 users, $340; unlimited, $850. Shipping included.
- Best Mac mini Deals, 11.16. Used 1.42 GHz G4 mini, $379; 1.66 GHz Core Solo, $419; 2.0 Core 2, $450; new 2.26 GHz nVidia, $580; 2.53 GHz, $769; Server, $990.
- Best iBook G4 Deals, 11.16. Used 12" 1.07 GHz Combo, $210; 1.33 GHz, $298; 14" 1.33 GHz, $398; 1.42 GHz, $479; SuperDrive, $498.
- Best iPod shuffle Deals, 11.16. Used 1 GB, $35; 4 GB, $65; refurb 1 GB, $39; 2 GB, $59; new 2 GB, $55, 4 GB, $75. New and refurb prices include shipping.
- More deals in our archive.
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