G4 Cube upgrades in store?

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Upgrading Apple's G4 Cube poses difficulties due to design differences, but it can reportedly be accomplished

by David Read and Peter Cohen

(IDG) -- One of the knocks against Apple's G4 Cube is its lack of upgrade potential. However, though Apple won't discuss it, the Cube, like any Mac, can be upgraded, and Mac vendors said they could offer CPU and video-card add-ons for the G4 Cube if there proved to be sufficient market demand. The hurdles have more to do with economics than technology. At least for now, vendors would have to make special versions of their upgrade products that fit inside the Cube, and would thus have to justify the extra expense of supporting an Apple model that accounts for a tiny percentage of the overall Mac market.

The Cube includes most of the same standard off-the-shelf components found in current desktop G4s. However, these parts have been deftly adapted to the Cube's smaller space, and in doing so, Apple has deviated from the design standards defined for these components. For example, the Cube has a standard ATA connector for the hard drive, but only one hard drive can be connected because of the Cube's space considerations.

CPU upgrades

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The Cube's CPU sits on a daughtercard that plugs into the motherboard through the same connector used in current desktop G4s. Because it's an industry-standard connector that first saw use in PC laptops, it's readily available to upgrade vendors. And, like other recent Mac models, the Cube's CPU daughtercard doesn't use proprietary Apple ROMs, making it easier still for vendors to design compatible CPU upgrades.

"We don't see any technical barriers to upgrading the Cube," said Karl Seppala, director of marketing at Sonnet Technologies. "The most likely 'gotcha' is going to be the physical size."

However, he noted that there's currently no reason to offer CPU upgrades for the Cube because it sports the fastest G4 processors now available. Sonnet generally offers an upgrade when it can double a Mac's performance for less than $500, he said. Another barrier is the relatively small number of Cubes that have been sold.

Working in the Cube's favor is its technical similarity to the desktop G4, which makes it theoretically possible to develop a single upgrade that works in desktop G4 and Cube models. This would widen the market and make a Cube upgrade more feasible, said Jack Kolk, general manager of XLR8.

Seppala agreed that it may be possible to offer upgrades that support both Cube and desktop--even with multiple processors. "We will be looking at the Cube in one to two years based upon the state of the technology then," he said. However, he warned that heat or power-consumption issues could be barriers to such a universal design. "It is too early to tell now," he said.

One obstacle to such a "universal upgrade" would be the different heat sinks used in the Cube and desktop G4 systems. "Given the special thermal requirements in the G4 Cube, it is probably best to have a form factor that uses (the built-in) heat sink," said Chris Cooksey, director of engineering at XLR8.

Video upgrades

The Cube shipped with a special version of ATI's Rage 128 graphics controller that plugs into its AGP slot. Buyers now have the option of substituting ATI's more-powerful Radeon as a $100 build-to-order (BTO) option from Apple. "All of our Cube Radeons are sold exclusively to Apple," said Deanna Perkins, public relations specialist for ATI. Apple, at least for now, won't offer the Radeon as an aftermarket option for customers who already bought the Cube.

The retail version of the Radeon card includes a TV-out (composite and S-Video) port and DVI connector; the BTO version lacks TV-out and replaces DVI with the Apple Desktop Connector (ADC), which combines video, USB and power in one plug. The BTO version for the Cube is about a quarter-inch shorter than the standard version, and has a different metal bracket to fit the Cube's form factor.

Like other new Macs, the Cube employs a variation of the standard AGP connector, using a small black pin block at the front of the connector to provide extra power for the ADC. However, standard AGP cards can still plug into the modified connector, though they would still need to be adapted to fit in a smaller space.

As with CPU upgrades, the issues boil down to economics more than any technical challenges. A manufacturer could easily offer a video card for the Cube, but may not see much profit potential because of the limited market. However, the situation could change if vendors build cards that work in desktop G4s and the Cube. "Certainly, when we go to design a next-generation graphics card, we will design a form factor that accommodates as many Mac models as possible," Perkins said.

Memory and storage

CPU and video-card upgrades may lie in the Cube's future, but even now, you can easily boost the petite Mac's memory and disk storage. By default, the Cube ships with 64MB to 256MB of pre-installed RAM. The Cube's three DIMM sockets can each accept PC100 SDRAM DIMMs up to 512MB, accommodating total memory of 1.5GB. These are the same DIMMs used in Apple's other recent Macs. Adding memory can often provide a bigger performance boost than a faster CPU.

Higher-capacity replacements for the Cube's internal 20GB ATA drive are readily available. Users can also opt for an external FireWire hard drive.

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(MacWorld)
Jobs announces OS X, iBooks
(IDG.net)
Apple warns of expected Q1 loss
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Jobs unveils Power Mac G4 Cube
(IDG.net)
Review: G3 Upgrades
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Apple launches rebate program on Cube, PowerBook
(IDG.net)

Apple Computer Inc.
XRL8
Sonnet Technologies Inc.

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