iMac G3 Tray Loader Upgrades
imac tray front

This page covers all the upgrades we sell for iMac G3s with a tray-loading CD drive. Choose the type of upgrade you are looking for from the tabs below.(Not the right Mac? See here for more iMacs, or here for all Macs.)

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If you want specific upgrades for your exact model, choose it from the Model ID links below, or enter your serial number here:


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imac tray from the top

History

This is a real history making machine. Released in August 1998, it was a revolutionary product that helped turn Apple's fortunes around.

The iMac was an all in one computer with a 15" CRT, cased in bondi blue plastic. This computer, unlike earlier Apple all-in-ones, was curved and elegant.

Apple took a chance and installed USB connectivity instead of the older serial and SCSI ports, in fact it was one of the first machines to do so. The removal of a floppy drive was a daring move, but the included 56K modem meant small file movement could be done via email - x86 PCs are still using floppy drives today!

These iMacs were originally shipped with OS 8.1, and will take up to OSX 10.3.9. They cannot use 10.4 or later.

Later machines were announced with speed bumped processors, more VRAM and further choice in colour. It was the iMacs distinctive colouration that set it apart from the rest and is still being imitated today.

How to Identify these Machines

The iMac series can be distinguished by their optical drives. These early iMacs have a tray loading CD-ROM drive. The later machines have a slot loading CD optical drive and are dealt with on a separate page of this site.

The iMac G3 Tray loader is distinctive in its appearance. There were two major types of tray-loaders - the original (rev A) was a Bondi Blue coloured G3 233MHz machine. The later ones (revs B - D) were available in Bondi Blue, Blueberry, Strawberry, Tangerine, Grape and Green, with speeds from 233MHz to 333MHz.

To distinguish between the Rev A 233MHz iMac, and the Rev B 233MHz one, check the front of the machine. The Rev A has an IR port, which was dropped from the rest of the series.

If you are still unsure you can contact us on 01223 833 412 or by email for confirmation. If you want to upgrade but aren't happy to install your upgrades then we can help. Simply ask our engineers for further details.

Memory Upgrades

The iMac G3 Tray Loader has 2 memory socket available for upgrade. Depending on your machines processor speed it can accept up to 512Mb of RAM - the earlier (233MHz) machines could only accept 256MB of RAM in 2 x 128MB modules.

There are none available.

Difficulty 4 / 5 - Reasonably tricky.

WARNING: The iMac has a CRT tube which can store a build-up of electrostatic charge. These instructions assume you know and understand this danger.

Turn off the iMac and remove the power cable.

Turn your iMac so that the display is facing the surface (a soft cloth can reduce scratching).

The bottom case is secured with one screw which is located in the middle of the underside handle. Once this screw is removed the case can be moved upwards and placed to one side.

There are 3 sets of cables that need to be removed. The first set goes to the right and is the power supply cable. The next one down is the monitor connection, and can be undone with two screws. The third cable can be gently pulled upwards.

Once the cables have been disconnected you are ready to remove the inner tray - this is secured with two screws near where the first was removed. Once these are out the entire tray can be pulled upwards (assuming your iMac is face down) this tray has all the main elements of the system.

The memory is accessible under a metal protective grill. This reveals the user accessible slot. There is a second space hidden underneath the other - this is difficult to do and professional installation is highly recommended. Once the RAM stick has been inserted reassemble machine and your done.

Apple's own fitting guide is here.

If you are unsure of this procedures our engineers can do the work for you. Simply use this form to contact us.

CD/DVD/Blu-ray Drive Upgrades

The iMac G3 Tray loader came equipped with a CD-ROM drive loaded by a tray at the front of the unit. At present we don't stock internal CD writers which fit internally to the machine.

It is possible to use an external CD-RW via USB. However USB is a slow connection, which can only burn at around 4x speeds, no matter what speed the drive itself is rated at.

There are no optical drive upgrades available for these Macs

Difficulty 1/5 Easy.

Install any supplied software. Restart machine and connect the new device.

Internal Hard Drive & SSD Upgrades

This range of drives will work in your iMac G3 Tray loader - although user installation is difficult (see below). Due to the age of the IDE controller in these iMacs, internal drives must be of 80GB or lower capacity.

If you don't want to fit a new hard drive yourself, you can take advantage of the MacUpgrades Installation Service. Add the installation service from the list below to your cart along with your chosen hard drive. We can also clone your existing hard drive onto the new one, simply add the Clone Original Hard Drive service below to your cart.

Once you have booked the service, send your machine to us, we will carry out the work and return it to you. Alternatively, we do offer a Collection Service with our courier, please see here for details.

There are none available.

Difficulty 4 / 5 - Reasonably tricky

WARNING: The iMac has a CRT tube which can store a build-up of electrostatic charge. These instructions assume you know and understand this danger.

Turn off the machine and remove the power cable.

Turn your iMac so that the Display is facing the surface (a soft cloth can reduce scratching).

The bottom case is secured with one screw which is located in the middle of the underside handle. Once this screw is removed the case can be moved upwards and placed to one side.

There are 3 sets of cables that need to be removed. The first set goes to the right and is the power supply cable. The next one down is the monitor connection, and can be undone with two screws. The third cable can be gently pulled upwards.

Once the cables have been disconnected you are ready to remove the inner tray - this is secured with two screws near where the first was removed. Once these are out the entire tray can be pulled upwards (assuming you iMac is face down) this tray has all the main elements of the system.

The hard drive is attached beneath the CD-ROM drive to the front of the chassis. The CD-ROM can be removed with the two screws to the left and right of the unit. This reveals the hard drive.

The hard drive is itself mounted in another caddie. This is tricky to remove as the caddie has catches at the rear which hold it in place. A bit of patience and wiggling is required.

Once the caddie is out the drive is held in place with 4 screws. Remove these, replace the drive then reassemble.

Start computer from CD (hold down the C key) and initialise the drive.

If you are unsure on how to carry out this procedure our engineers can help. Call on 01223 833412 or email.

Graphics Cards and Displays

The graphics card in your iMac Tray Loader is part of the main logic board. Unfortunately therefore it is not possible to increase or change the graphics card. It may be worth expanding your memory to its maximum to try and compensate, but this will have at best a limited effect on your iMac's 3D capabilities.

There are no graphics card upgrades available for these Macs

Expansion Card Upgrades

Your iMac G3 Tray Loader has no available PCMCIA or PCI sockets for connectivity expansion.

There are no expansion cards available for these Macs

Keyboards & Mice

The following keyboards and mice are compatible with this Mac.

Trust 3 button USB Optical MouseStock: Available£6.75 + vat (£8.10)
Cherry Strait 3.0 USB Keyboard - UK Mac LayoutStock: Available£32.00 + vat (£38.40)

Power Supplies & Batteries

Listed below are power supplies, batteries and related products we supply for this Mac.

3.6V (half AA type) Lithium PRAM/Clock Battery for MacStock: Available£9.00 + vat (£10.80)

Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.

Cables & Tools

Listed below are power cables, tools and related products we supply for this Mac.

Precision Screwdriver Set, 31 Piece - Phillips/Torx/TR6Stock: Available£12.50 + vat (£15.00)
Anti Static Wrist StrapStock: Available£8.50 + vat (£10.20)

External Drives & Enclosures

Due to the old connectivity, and lack of expandability of these Macs, no external hard drives are available for them.

There are no external hard drive upgrades available for these Macs.

Complete Machines - Refurbished

Any complete machines of this type or similar that we have for sale are listed here. Please note that these are refurbished models with a 3 month warranty, and that delivery is likely to take 3 - 5 working days. These can be purchased online with the standard website courier delivery charge for the mainland UK only. Please contact us for a quote on shipping to other areas.

Repair Services for this Mac

Here are the various repair services we offer for this Mac. You can have us take the machine in for evaluation, or book a fixed-price repair if you already know what the fault is and the service is listed below (for services without parts, please see the relevant tab on this page for compatible parts that we sell). If you know what the fault is, but we don't have a fixed-price repair listed below, please contact us for a quote.

Evaluation Services

Mac Repair - Evaluation ServiceStock: Available£39.00 + vat (£46.80)

Installation Services (parts not included)

Collection ServiceStock: Available£24.68 + vat (£29.62)