The Apple Power Macintosh 8600/200 is a brute–big and good looking. Too bad the 200-MHz RISC-based 604e processor didn’t pull its weight. Although the performance was far from sluggish, it wasn’t impressive, either. When buying a high-end Power Mac, you expect the best. After all, it’ll set you back about $3,200.
The good news is the Power Mac 8600/200 has easy system access—upgrading this Mac is simple. Its three PCI expansion slots allow users many options for additional capabilities, including a wide array of flexibility in system configurations. A built-in Iomega Zip drive is a plus (for Zip fans) and makes for quick system backup. Zip disks allow you to manage memory munching image, sound and video files; transfer information to other Zip drives; back up your hard disk; and store confidential or sensitive information in a safe place, other than your hard drive.
The first thing I noticed on the Power Mac 8600’s tower was a conspicuous green light power button which indicates that the computer is on. The system runs very quietly, although the stereo sound didn’t seem to rock me –probably because there’s no stereo surround capabilities. Despite its innovative design, this system is simply adequate. For the price tag, I’d expect something more awesome and less average.
The Power Mac 8600/200 lacks zip and speed, considering it is a 604e. Surprisingly, it didn’t seem much faster than the Performa 6400 (with a 603) I previously tested. Aimed at in-house publishing, media authoring and technical applications, this system simply delivers but doesn’t go above the call of duty. Kinda ho-hum.
That’s not to say the Power Mac 8600/200 isn’t a good system for media authoring, video, audio or graphics. It will get the job done….eventually. It didn’t wow me over nor did I fall madly in love with it. However, I was happy with its performance when installing Painter 5 on the 8600..a fairly memory hungry app which installed in about a minute. But, the Power Mac 8600 had a fair number of system freezes, too. The system I tested had 64 MB of RAM, an internal 2 GB hard drive, and a built-in 1.4MB floppy disk drive. What happens if you buy this unit with 32 MB of RAM? Of course, you can expand up to 512 MB (with 8 DIMM sockets)–but in an ideal world, you don’t want to do this immediately after buying an entire system.
So, it wasn’t love at first sight, despite its tough-looking appearance. There’s more to love than physical appearances, so let’s delve a little deeper.
I tested an AppleVision 1710 AV monitor with the Power Mac 8600. I was surprised when I didn’t hear the familiar Apple chime upon start-up. It turns out that the 8600 delays the start-up of the AppleVision monitor so that the speakers aren’t powered up in time to play the chime. It’s always fun to hear the chime…it screams out “Hey, I don’t do Windows!” The 17″ monitor lends well to desktop publishing, multimedia and Web work. I loved the built-in stereo speakers and directional microphone. The screen wasn’t as sharp as I expected Trinitron technology to deliver, but I found it easy to work with and a convenient size which nicely blended with the Power Mac 8600/200 hulk.
Also missing is an internal modem, although if you’re an America Online user, you’ll find it fairly simple to go online with an external modem (not included) and Apple’s Internet Connectivity Kit (included with the 8600). Although it seems that Apple is promoting AOL by making it simple for AOL users to get online, it was pretty tough getting to the right components to set up an Internet connection (trial and error eventually won) with our Internet Service Provider. It would have been nice to include an internal modem with the Power Mac 8600 and a more intuitive interface for those users who do not prefer AOL!
Included with the Power Mac 8600/200 is bare-bones software–System 7.5.5. came with the review unit (although newer systems should include System 8), and the Internet Connectivity disk. Although most Power Macs do not come with bundles of software these days, it would have been cool to see a professional drawing program or two included with this system. Again, for the price, you expect to be pampered.
Built-in video in and out capabilities; three Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) expansion slots; and the ability to connect to an Ethernet network are some of the nicer features of the Power Mac 8600. Although I didn’t test a PC compatibility card with the Power Mac 8600, the option is there to run MS-DOS and Windows apps and software.
Despite its misleading appearance, the Power Mac 8600/200 performed adequately. If you’re not looking for a speed demon, but a solidly-built road warrior, you won’t be disappointed with the Power Mac 8600. On the other hand, if you expect punchier performances and clock world-breaking speeds on this 604e, you won’t be a happy camper. If you aren’t in a hurry to get a computer, you might want to pass on this one or wait until Apple cuts its prices on it. On the other hand, since the 8600 is easy to upgrade, you might eventually want to swap the CPU and get a faster processor.