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iBook Clamshell Question...

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LeanneStewart

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 14, 2007
15
0
Hi Everyone. I am new to these forums, and I am a new mac user. I currently have a macbook and it is the first mac I have ever owned. I am so enamoured with all the apple products I have (laptop, iphone, ipods, etc), and I have to admit that I am a little obsessed. But... I have always dreamed of owning an ibook clamshell. When these laptops were released I was too young to buy anything like that on my own and my family is strictly PC. I am the first to switch to Mac. SOOOO... I have been shopping around on e-bay, trying to decide if I should drop the $200 it would cost me to own a clamshell. I love these laptops very much, and I am aware that it would never hold a candle to my beloved Macbook. I just want one! I am looking at one that is Indigo blue, 366mhz, 320mb, 10gb, airport installed. My main question is, will this computer have iTunes? The OS that is listed says 10.3, but I have not been using Mac long enough to know what that means. If it has an airport already installed, will it work with my wireless here at home? I keep the Macbook in my office, and take it with me on the road. This ibook would just be a toy to keep in my bed room to listen to music and surf the web. Should I buy it? Is there a better place to buy vintage Mac products than ebay? Please advise! I trust the opinions on this forum, as I have been lurking for a while now. I just want to know what you guys think.

Thanks!
Leanne
 
P

pscoble

macrumors 6502
Sep 11, 2006
276
0
Petaluma
Well... first I will say that I like buying "vintage" Apple products as well. I started by buying an old iMac G3 and I love just how it looks. However from personal experience you might not end up using it as much as you think I know I don't "use" my old macs a whole lot like I thought I would. I honestly can say that I have that iMac just to have it and I would never want to give it away or sell it. The only reason I got it though is because I got it really cheap so I don't know if 200$ would be worth it and getting one with an original airport card might not be cheap I would look around a bit more on other sites too although over all eBay is a pretty good place to buy them however you can get easily screwer over shipping just make sure the seller has good feedback and isn't an idiot. To answer your other question as long as it has OS9.2 or over you can get some form of iTunes on it. Google the version of iTunes you wish to install (or look through the past iTunes updates on Apple.com) you should be able to find one (I would stick with version 4 or 5ish on that computer I probably wouldn't risk 6 or 7 but what do I know). Yes if it has an airport card that works you should be able to pick us any B or G networks within range. Soo uuhhh hope that helps a little bit good luck. P.S. sorry if that was long and doesn't make sense.
 
L

LeanneStewart

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 14, 2007
15
0
Wow, Thanks!

Your answer was perfect. It had never occured to me how much fun it would be to collect some vintage stuff until I ran across an old picture of the Ibook clamshell and I remembered how I longed for one when I was a teenager. The one I am looking at is going for about $120 and if I get one with an airport and an OS than can support some form of itunes then it will be more than enough. I really just want to hold it and have it... because I think the design is wonderful. Do you know where else I can look besides ebay?

Thanks again!
Leanne
 
P

pscoble

macrumors 6502
Sep 11, 2006
276
0
Petaluma
LeanneStewart said:
Your answer was perfect. It had never occured to me how much fun it would be to collect some vintage stuff until I ran across an old picture of the Ibook clamshell and I remembered how I longed for one when I was a teenager. The one I am looking at is going for about $120 and if I get one with an airport and an OS than can support some form of itunes then it will be more than enough. I really just want to hold it and have it... because I think the design is wonderful. Do you know where else I can look besides ebay?

Thanks again!
Leanne
Click to expand...
No problem I have absolutely loved the iMac g3 design since elementary school and I just had to get one at some point. Other places to buy them might be a local mac dealer or craigslist.
 
M

mBurns

macrumors 6502
Oct 3, 2006
357
0
USA
Hi. I can see where you're coming from... I actually own an iBook Clamshell. I have the 466 Mhz version. Unlike the previous poster, I use it for all my portable needs even though I have a MacBook Pro because of its durability and if I may say so, "coolness". If I were to buy a Clamshell, I'd only buy the 466 Mhz version. The other versions won't be nearly as useable. I'd try to find one with an upgraded hard drive and ram. The max ram Clamshells can hold is 576 Mb (512 Mb + 64 Mb). If you buy a machine with the original hard drive, it's going to be cramped (10-20 Gb doesn't do much anymore) and most likely noisy.

To put this in perspective: I have a 466 Mhz iBook Clamshell SE with: 576 mB RAM, 60 Gb HD, AirPort and DVD-ROM. I have the original box, manuals, and supplies for the machine aswell. I dual-boot into OS 9 and OS X with my Clamshell. I only run Tiger (10.4) on my Clamshell because although I feel the older versions of OS X are fine, I want to have the best! I want a version of OS X that will allow all software to be installed... some software coming out these days can't be installed on Panther. Overall, my experience with Tiger is fine. It's not ultra-slow and extremely useable. I play DVDs, surf the web, use mail, iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie and have even messed around with some very light Photoshop on my Clamshell. The biggest obstacle you're going to find with a Clamshell is the max 800x600 resolution. There are ways to bypass this (if you want to know, I can point you in the right direction) although I've never personally gone through with the hack. Another warning: when you use your Clamshell in public, be ready for the attention. I always get a lot of looks, smiles, and grins.. along with the few comments from people about how cool it looks! :D
 
L

LeanneStewart

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Sep 14, 2007
15
0
So, if I were unable to find the 466mhz, is it possible to upgrade that? That would be a complete processor upgrade, totally impossible right? Yours sounds like a dream. Of course it will not be able to replace the macbook, but looking at it will be fun. If I buy the one I am looking at (366mhz, 320mb, 10gb hd and airport card) will I at least be able to sync my ipod on it? If it will only hold 6gb of music or so, that will be ok, I will just consider it a large ipod... hehehe. But I would like to at least be able to surf the internet and listen to music on it. I have the macbook for all other things. I would also love to be able to run Tiger on it, but I don't think you can load Tiger without a dvd-rom and I have no idea how I would upgrade to a dvd-rom. If I were to try to upgrade to a dvd-rom, would I then in turn need to upgrade the ram? Could I just switch out the cd-rom for a dvd-rom and load Tiger on it? I am so clueless about this stuff, and any help would be great!

Thanks! :apple:
Leanne
 
P

pscoble

macrumors 6502
Sep 11, 2006
276
0
Petaluma
mBurns said:
Hi. I can see where you're coming from... I actually own an iBook Clamshell. I have the 466 Mhz version. Unlike the previous poster, I use it for all my portable needs even though I have a MacBook Pro because of its durability and if I may say so, "coolness". If I were to buy a Clamshell, I'd only buy the 466 Mhz version. The other versions won't be nearly as useable. I'd try to find one with an upgraded hard drive and ram. The max ram Clamshells can hold is 576 Mb (512 Mb + 64 Mb). If you buy a machine with the original hard drive, it's going to be cramped (10-20 Gb doesn't do much anymore) and most likely noisy.

To put this in perspective: I have a 466 Mhz iBook Clamshell SE with: 576 mB RAM, 60 Gb HD, AirPort and DVD-ROM. I have the original box, manuals, and supplies for the machine aswell. I dual-boot into OS 9 and OS X with my Clamshell. I only run Tiger (10.4) on my Clamshell because although I feel the older versions of OS X are fine, I want to have the best! I want a version of OS X that will allow all software to be installed... some software coming out these days can't be installed on Panther. Overall, my experience with Tiger is fine. It's not ultra-slow and extremely useable. I play DVDs, surf the web, use mail, iTunes, iPhoto, iMovie and have even messed around with some very light Photoshop on my Clamshell. The biggest obstacle you're going to find with a Clamshell is the max 800x600 resolution. There are ways to bypass this (if you want to know, I can point you in the right direction) although I've never personally gone through with the hack. Another warning: when you use your Clamshell in public, be ready for the attention. I always get a lot of looks, smiles, and grins.. along with the few comments from people about how cool it looks! :D
Click to expand...

I agree and I think portability probably is a big part of how much you will use it. Im surprised it's as useable as you say it is I think if this is the case with the one you buy you'll find great use for it. (and thanks for the unlike the "previous poster" part becuase I have no idea what I'm talking about I was talking about much earlier iBook like the 366 Mhz one I've had experience with still defiantly beautiful machines) Good luck with it!
 
S

sananda

macrumors 68030
May 24, 2007
2,807
962
i know where you're coming from leanne. someone broke into my place a couple of years ago and stole my ibook clamshell. there is a pic online of it in my place and everytime i see it i miss it: http://www.arcaid.captureweb.co.uk/zoom.asp?Barcode=10777-50-1

every now and then i think about trying to buy one. i'm in the uk and all the ones for sale here seem really expensive and not very well looked after.
 
M

mBurns

macrumors 6502
Oct 3, 2006
357
0
USA
pscoble said:
I agree and I think portability probably is a big part of how much you will use it. Im surprised it's as useable as you say it is I think if this is the case with the one you buy you'll find great use for it. (and thanks for the unlike the "previous poster" part becuase I have no idea what I'm talking about I was talking about much earlier iBook like the 366 Mhz one I've had experience with still defiantly beautiful machines) Good luck with it!
Click to expand...

Yes, they're incredible machines! Also, it is amazing what I can do with my Clamshell. You have to remember.. mine has been heavily upgraded from original specs and what I do with iMovie and iPhoto on my Clamshell is super-light tasks (I have a MacBook Pro aswell). At this point in time, I would say there is a HUGE difference between a 366 Mhz and 466 Mhz Clamshell -- usability wise. First off, the Graphite 366 Mhz Clamshells has NO FireWire. Also, they didn't come with a DVD drive so they're not readily-equipped to play DVDs. Along with the following, the 466 justs feels faster in all respects then the 366 (I used a Key Lime 366 for awhile). That's why, when anyone ever asks which Clamshell to buy, I always tell them to go with the 466 Mhz machine. It's a mistake to go with the 366 Mhz at this point in time.. it's just feels that "much" slower while in operation.
 
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