Apple iBook G4?

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darthjones

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Anyone know where I can get a good deal on an iBook? I'm interested in getting the 12-inch one. The last time I owned an Apple product was back in the Apple ][ Plus days so I have no idea where I should be getting them. Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks
 
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depends I got my ibook g4 (which I am typing this with) from apple.com for 1250 with the upgrades I added. unless you want an old , or refurbed and used they is really no deals most people like macmall.com only take from 50 to 100 dollars off it is hard to find a appe for cheap. since they have no competiton no other hardware runs OS X so they can charge what they want. so my question is do you want it new or not what would you like?
 
[quote name='Graystone']depends I got my ibook g4 (which I am typing this with) from apple.com for 1250 with the upgrades I added. unless you want an old , or refurbed and used they is really no deals most people like macmall.com only take from 50 to 100 dollars off it is hard to find a appe for cheap. since they have no competiton no other hardware runs OS X so they can charge what they want. so my question is do you want it new or not what would you like?[/quote]
whenever i get something with moving parts i like to get it new.

thank you all for your input. if you have anything else to add please do so. you've been really helpful.
 
oh yeah. another question - how upgradeable are ibooks? would i be able to add more ram, a bigger hard drive, and a bluetooth module by myself if i had to in the future or would i have to send it in or get a complete replacement if i wanted any of those upgrades?
 
ram and a network card
if you need bluetooth (and didnt have the module installed @ order) you can insert a bluetooh USB module

i think you'll probably have to disassemble the computer to upgrade the HD, unless you opt for an external one
 
Check out the Apple Certified Reconditioned Products at the online Apple store. They are significantly cheaper!

And if you are worried about having problems, just buy the AppleCare Protection Plan (APP). This will extend the warranty and support to 3 years. This makes the reconditioned Mac around the same price as an unopened Mac, but with a much longer and better warranty.

[edit] I now noticed that you prefer to not buy "used." But remember reconditioned is not always used. Many times it is just returned, working mechandise: they just can't sell it as new. Couple this with the APP and it is almost (if not) better than unopened. At least IMHO. :D
 
[quote name='BigNick']Im pretty sure that some mac and pc parts are the same. Like Ram and hard drives.[/quote]


mac and pcs are the same the only difference is a part called a logic board this is and the firmware on all the parts is what makes a mac a mac.
 
[quote name='darthjones']oh yeah. another question - how upgradeable are ibooks? would i be able to add more ram, a bigger hard drive, and a bluetooth module by myself if i had to in the future or would i have to send it in or get a complete replacement if i wanted any of those upgrades?[/quote]
One thing to remember about the iBooks is that they only hold one DIMM. That means if you want to upgrade the RAM, you basically just toss the existing DIMM.

This is not the case with the PowerBooks--they have two slots for memory. Plus they also have builtin Bluetooth and AirPort Extreme (802.11G WiFi). You might want to consider buying one of them instead...
 
[quote name='Graystone'][quote name='BigNick']Im pretty sure that some mac and pc parts are the same. Like Ram and hard drives.[/quote]


mac and pcs are the same the only difference is a part called a logic board this is and the firmware on all the parts is what makes a mac a mac.[/quote]

And the OS. Mac OSX doesnt work on a PC.
 
[quote name='darthjones']oh yeah. another question - how upgradeable are ibooks? would i be able to add more ram, a bigger hard drive, and a bluetooth module by myself if i had to in the future or would i have to send it in or get a complete replacement if i wanted any of those upgrades?[/quote]

unlike powerbooks and other notebooks you have to take it apart almost completely there is hex screws on the bottom. it is best to get the amount of ram you want installed and the hard drive installed when you are ordering it the is the best deal and the ibooks come with about 13 gigs of HD space used because of the OS and all the programs that is very important to factor I think any other ?'s please feel free to PM me.
 
Alright. I am just about ready to order one of these but I have a few more questions before I do so. Here I go –

Is the touchpad on these machines the type that registers a tap of the finger as a button press?

Since I have only paid attention to computers speeds of x86 based machines, I have no idea what speeds are decent for iBooks and Powerbooks. How would you rate 1, 1.2, 1.33, and 1.5 Ghz G4 speeds against Pentium 4s. For example, would a 1.5 Ghz G4 be equivalent to a 2.5 Ghz Pentium 4?

The things that I am going to work on are a PHP/Apache/PostgreSQL project and several Flash projects. I will probably do a few video, sound, and picture editing projects on the side. I’m mainly looking at the 12 inch iBook, the 14 inch iBook, or the 12 inch PowerBook which have speeds of 1.0, 1.2, and 1.33 Ghz respectively. I am on a budget but I do not want to get anything that is too slow. On the other had, I do not want to get a top-of-the-line system if it is not really necessary for what I am doing. What would you suggest?

Thanks
 
Take the Student Discount on Refurbished, with the ACP. The bluetooth internal must be bought from the store before you buy the laptop, as it is only installable before they pack it up. Afterwards, you have to get an external one. For the same price, get the internal (50). Airport can be added in later. Has 64 built in ram for most ibook g4's. While it doesn't register touchpad taps as clicks, there is freeware to change that, But why do you even use a touchpad when mice are 10^10 million times better? For the harddrive, get yourself an external usb&firewire disk, as it can be moved to a pc if you ever need and it being both usb&firewire incase you ever decide to use the firewire for a dv cam. 1ghz is minimum, get the 1.2 if you can. And a 1ghz is comparable to a 2.5 i'd say, from what I seen from my laptop compared to my two roommate's laptops.
 
PowerBook 64. Not sure why iBooks are so freakin' amazing. They're flimsy dentable plastic!! Unlike MY solid, cool looking silver metal case.
 
[quote name='karmapolice620']Im glad to finally see some apple fans on these boards...Im sick of all these PC freaks...Im on a Dual 2Ghz G5 right now... :)[/quote]


lucky ass. :D :arrow: :notworth:
 
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