Inside Detail Comparison of the Power Macintosh G4s

Thanks to information passed on from reliable Apple sources, we're able to paint a clearer picture of the Sawtooth logicboard and how it compares to both the Yikes! and Yosemite boards. Below is a labeled version of the Sawtooth logicboard obtained from sources earlier this week. Directly following the image is a detailed table comparison of the Yikes! and Sawtooth boards.

Click here for a full sized image.

Power Mac G4 Version Differences
Â	Power Mac G4 (PCI Graphics)	Power Mac G4 (AGP Graphics)
Processor	G4 w/ jumper (400)	G4 w/o jumper (450, 500)
Logic Board	Similar to Blue & White, but no ADB connector Diagnostic LEDs on board	New, Core99 chipset No diagnostic LEDs on board
Bus	100 MHz, 60x bus	100 MHz, Max bus
Memory	PC 100 SDRAM, up to 1 GB	PC 100 SDRAM, up to 2 GB (HW)
Video	Rage 128 PCI	Rage 128 AGP
AirPort	Not compatible	Optional
USB	Same as Blue & White	Dual independent (2 controllers)
FireWire	Similar to Blue & White	Built into logic board
Ethernet	Same as Blue & White	New (DEC 21143 Enet controller)
Modem	Same as Blue & White	New (requires modem filter)
PCI Slots	Same as Blue & White	One AGP slot and three PCI slots
Hard Drives	Ultra ATA/33	Ultra ATA/66 CTO option: Ultra2 LVD SCSI
CD/DVD Drives	32x CD (new short carrier) Audio cable	DVD configs only (new short carrier) No audio cable
DVD Video	Hardware decoder	Software decoder
Power Mgmt	Same as Blue & White	New (lower power sleep)
Chassis	New, p/n 922-3983	New, p/n 922-4045
Power Supply	New, p/n 661-2256	New, p/n 661-2256
Frnt Panel Brd	Similar to Blue & White	New (no power/FireWire connectors)
I/O Panel	Sound ports horizontal	Sound ports vertical

Upon review of the information above, a few things become apparent. As soon as the Yikes! configuration is phased out, Apple's Power Macintosh offerings will all contain a standard DVD-ROM drive, as the Sawtooth logicboard supports only DVD. Additionally, it should be noted that Sawtooth units now feature a software-based MPEG2 (DVD Video) Decoder. 2GB of SDRAM is also supported by the hardware with the Sawtooth boards, though the systems will only recognize the advertised 1.5GBs. Additional information will be published when it becomes available.