G4 Family:
The G4 line is perfect for a first Mac. Overall this is the direction I would push anyone wanting a first Mac in.
G4 PowerMac:
I am the proud owner of a G4 PowerMac, and I love it. They come in many flavors.
Yikes!: 
The yikes! is a B&W board, minus an ADB port, with a G4 PPC in a different case. I would avoid them, since they are a Frankenstein B&W.
350 or 400mhz
max RAM is 1GB.
Identical to a B&W, there was supposed to be a 500mhz model but it never saw the light of day with the introduction of the Sawtooth.
My take on Yikes!:
Best avoided, almost identical to B&W for more $$, way to go Apple.
Final Score: 1.5/10
Same thing as a B&W only a .5 increase for the better looking case.
Sawtooth: 
(note: the sawtooth case is graphite, and the yikes! has a more blue tone.)
The Sawtooth was major update to the PowerMac line, The old B&W motherboard was out and a new AGP graphics board was in. These are the first PowerMacs capable of using an airport card.
Available in 350/400/450/500mhz flavors
Max RAM 2GB.
They were still rocking a ATI Rage 128 video card, it was just now an AGP version. Updating your video card to play nicer with OS X animations and DVD playback is not hard or expensive. Many PC AGP cards are able to flash to Mac. Since you won’t be doing any modern gaming on this rig you don’t have too shoot to high with video card specs , a little dab will do ya, therefore you can get PC cards used for cheap.
These are a great platform to start with. Many companies market aftermarket processors that literally are plug and play.
One warning on upgrading to an aftermarket processor:
Most of these ZIF upgrades require the latest firmware for your Mac if you’re going to run OS X. The catch here is that FW updates can only be performed under OS 9, and a lot of the ZIFs require OS 9.2 to run. So always be sure to have an OS 9.2 install ready when upgrading your ZIF. It is possible to screw yourself and have to put the original PPC in to get it to boot so you can make the appropriate changes.
My take on the Sawtooth:
This is an excellent first Mac that can run tiger no problem with slight upgrades. If your not wanting to dish out $$ on a ZIF, definitely max your RAM and flash a better video card for your Sawtooth. I have to recommend spending around $100 or less on the Mac and around another $100 on a ZIF upgrade. Add some RAM and a flashed card and you are in business with a modern Mac. In that state with a 1.2ghz PPC you are Leopard ready.
Final Score: 7/10
Leopard ready for around $300-$350, a definite best buy. Apple is slowly brushing PPC Macs aside, but unofficial support for them is not going away anytime soon. Many Macintosh diehards refuse to make the jump to Intel Macs, which makes for a nice foundation for a third-party supportive community.
Gigabit Ethernet:
Identical looks to the Sawtooth, with the introduction of dual processor support and an accelerated Ethernet port. This was THE machine for graphic design when it released due to the dual PPC setup.
-Available in 400/dual 450/ and dual 500mhz flavors
-2GB Max RAM
- still using the RAGE 128
- still at a 100mhz BUS
- 2 AGP slots for dual AGP card support.
My take on the Gigabit:
Even though the Gigabit was the first G4 with dual PPC support, it pails in comparison to the later G4 PowerMacs. There are aftermarket dual processor upgrades available, although a dual 500mhz is enough Mac for general use.
Final Score: 5/10
Lower score than the Sawtooth since they will be more costly thus making them less of a deal for the minimal performance boost. Also the later G4 Models had more juice and better looks, essentially making the Gigabit an often looked over middle child.
Digital Audio:
Same looks as the sawtooth
Not to overlook the short-lived digital Audio, it is more of a beta to the later G4 PowerMacs than a major upgrade. It was the first PowerMac to leave the RAGE 128 behind and go with an Nvidia card. Another first for the PowerMac line was that the high-end version was the first to ship with a DVD-R. For whatever reason(s) the RAM slots were reduced from four to three.
-Available in 466/533/dual 533/667/733mhz flavors
- Three slots made for 1.5GB max RAM
-64MB Nvidia card on high-end version only
My take on the Digital Audio:
Pretty much in the same boat as the Gigabit.
Final score: 5.5/10
Slight increase for better stock PPC options. Not giving it a full point increase due to the asinine logic of reducing Max RAM. The Video card and DVD-R don’t play that much of a factor to me since they are easily and cheaply implicated on previous G4 models.
Quicksilver: 
The first of the new G4 PowerMacs, it made some improvements in a new stylish case. With processor speeds ranging from 733 to 867 MHz, the G4 had the power to outperform any Pentium 4 machine made at the time. The top of the line was a dual 800 MHz machine.
733/867/dual 800 MHz
1.5 Gb Max Ram
133mhz BUS
nVidia GeForce2 MX
This machine originally shipped with both OS 9 and OS X installed.
My take on the Quicksilver:
The Quicksilver was a leap of progress for Apple. This is not a bad Mac, especially the dual PPC machine. Any PPC configuration offered will run Tiger without a hitch, as long as you have at least 896mb RAM. I think the case has a much cleaner look than the previous models.
Final Score: 6/10
It gets a slight increase in score over the Digital Audio. If possible, it’s better to hold out for the second edition Quicksilver in my opinion.
Quicksilver (2nd edition):
Same case as the original Quicksilver
With this Quicksilver re-release Apple broke the 1ghz barrier, and then doubled it. This edition is the first Mac adhering to the standards they are held to in modern day. Although the Max RAM is still 1.5GB, the Quicksilver is an excellent choice.
800/933/ and dual 1ghz flavors
1.5GB Max RAM
133mhz BUS
First to offer the Radeon 7000 Video card
My take on the 2nd edition Quicksilver:
Most definitely a nice first Mac, the dual 1ghz is the only way to go once you are in this price range. If you opt for the dual 1ghz you have a Mac ready to tackle leopard. If you buy this and decide you don’t like Macs, the resell value on these is great. You will be able to sell at the same price you bought for on EBay. This version is the better of the two Quicksilver models.
Final Score: 7.5/10
A historic model and still a contender.
Mirror Door Drive (MDD): 
The last of the Mighty G4 PowerMacs, they are known to give G5 PowerMacs a run for their money. These were also released at some “budget” prices for Macs. Further case revisions made for a beautiful end to the G4 PowerMacs. New features for these were built in support for airport extreme, Bluetooth compatibility, and the addition of the ATI Radeon 9000 pro Graphics card as an option.
Original Release:
Dual 867/ dual 1ghz/ dual 1.25ghz flavors
2.0 Gb Max RAM
133mhz BUS
FW800 Model:
Apple released a MDD with a single Firewire 800 port added on.
Dual 1ghz/ dual 1.25ghz/ dual 1.42ghz
2GB Max RAM
133mhz BUS
Final release (2003)
With the pending release of the G5 PowerMac line, that would not support OS 9, Apple decided to make one final OS 9 capable machine available for the diehards. This is the last PowerMac ever made that can boot into OS 9.
1.25ghz/ dual 1.25 ghz
133mhz BUS
2GB max RAM
My take on the MDD:
All MDD models are still supported by Apple, I don’t know for how long. This is a favorite choice of cheap Mac people who are unwilling to fork over the high price to upgrade to a G5 PowerMac or Intel machine. This includes me, I have a MDD that was originally a dual 867 and is now a dual 1.5ghz, using an aftermarket PPC. MDDs of any PPC configuration are more than tiger ready. With leopard’s release right around the corner, I would say the MDD line is a great choice. As with the Quicksilver line the re-sell value on these is still quite good, so you have the option to duck out of your investment with little to no damage.
Final score: 9/10
Ready to dominate leopard for under $500, enough said. Shoot for a dual PPC Machine.
:::::Ulitmate Mac model guide:::::
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