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New MBP... what to do with the old Powerbook G4?

M

MrMan112

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 4, 2005
70
0
I just got a new MBP. I picked up a 2.2 $1999 version at the Apple store and I love it! I was comiung from a 3 year old Powerbook G4 (with only 512 RAM :eek: ) which was becoming one of the most frustrating things to use. If I see that beach ball again.....

Anyway, my new MBP runs amazingly better than the G4. Programs open instantly. No beach balls. I can have multiple programs (and not just Safari, Mail and iPhoto) open without feeling the system drag. My Powerpoint presentations run the way they were meant to. I can finally use Aperture. Dashboard widgets no longer take 30 seconds to 1 minute to load. Even little things like Coverflow in iTunes run the way that Apple intended them to. ANd of course, I love having the built in camera and Frontrow.

Anyway, the question is what the heck do I do with the Powerbook G4. I transferred everything over, so it doesn't really serve any useful purpose. Besides that, it's in appalling condition. THe hinge is broken, so I was using rubberbands to hold it closed. The case has alot of dents and scrapes. On the corner, part of the plastic trim has broken off, so you can see a hole into the machine. The powercord is in similar condition.

I was just curious to see what you guys did with your Powerbook G4s. I appreciate any advice. THanks!
 
I

Illicit

macrumors 6502
May 14, 2007
267
0
Waterloo, ON
i'm in the same situation with you, but I have an even older PB G4 :|
It still works great for everyday use, so I'm donating it.
 
Squonk

Squonk

macrumors 65816
Mar 15, 2005
1,370
14
MrMan112 said:
I just got a new MBP. I picked up a 2.2 $1999 version at the Apple store and I love it! I was comiung from a 3 year old Powerbook G4 (with only 512 RAM :eek: ) which was becoming one of the most frustrating things to use. If I see that beach ball again.....

Anyway, my new MBP runs amazingly better than the G4. Programs open instantly. No beach balls. I can have multiple programs (and not just Safari, Mail and iPhoto) open without feeling the system drag. My Powerpoint presentations run the way they were meant to. I can finally use Aperture. Dashboard widgets no longer take 30 seconds to 1 minute to load. Even little things like Coverflow in iTunes run the way that Apple intended them to. ANd of course, I love having the built in camera and Frontrow.

Anyway, the question is what the heck do I do with the Powerbook G4. I transferred everything over, so it doesn't really serve any useful purpose. Besides that, it's in appalling condition. THe hinge is broken, so I was using rubberbands to hold it closed. The case has alot of dents and scrapes. On the corner, part of the plastic trim has broken off, so you can see a hole into the machine. The powercord is in similar condition.

I was just curious to see what you guys did with your Powerbook G4s. I appreciate any advice. THanks!
Click to expand...

Congrats on the new MBP!

What are the specs on your old PowerBook? 15"? Speed of the CPU. I might be interested in buying it for parts...
 
sarge

sarge

macrumors 6502a
Jul 20, 2003
597
136
Brooklyn
Hand me down

I left mine at my parents house. Now my mom, dad, and sister all have logins and each use the machine. Of course I did max out the RAM for them (like any good son would...)
 
C

CoachKrzyzewski

macrumors member
Jun 13, 2007
38
0
sarge said:
I left mine at my parents house. Now my mom, dad, and sister all have logins and each use the machine. Of course I did max out the RAM for them (like any good son would...)
Click to expand...

upgrade the ram and make a family member (or members) very happy!
 
aixporter

aixporter

macrumors member
Feb 21, 2009
88
2
Same boat here as I just upgraded myself to a 15" macbook pro unibody 2.53ghz 4gig.
i've pretty much waited on this for around 5 years now and finally couldn't stand it any longer. i am left speechless with this new machine.

Now i'm just deciding what to do with my ancient 512MB 15" powerbook g4. It doesn't even have USB2.0!
 
Pika

Pika

macrumors 68000
Oct 5, 2008
1,759
0
Japan
Because Powerbooks are so old and they still use PPC processors, i only use them to seed & leech torrent files 24h/7.
 
T

thirty6chambers

macrumors newbie
May 14, 2008
12
0
I was about to sell mine then all of a sudden the logic board broke. I sold it for parts on craigslist for $250. It was a 1.5ghz g4
 
D

dmmcintyre3

macrumors 68020
Mar 4, 2007
2,131
3
I used my iBook as a file server when I got my PowerBook that I have now. But then the iBook died. The broken hinge means it is most likely a Titanium which means it is even slower than my iBook. My iBook when it worked made a nice file server/ time machine server
 
drewsof07

drewsof07

macrumors 68020
Oct 30, 2006
2,016
428
Ohio
Give it to your parents/grandparents/brother/sister and set it up in clamshell mode if possible with their monitor, kb, mouse, speakers.
If it's >450mhz it should work fine as an internet/word processing machine.
 
Dale Cooper

Dale Cooper

macrumors regular
Sep 20, 2005
218
0
Yes, I know this thread is old - but I have a similar question. I'm considering buying an old, cheap laptop, mainly for iTunes use (music mainly, I guess movies won't work very well). I want something that can be an iTunes player permanently connected to my stereo, but preferably also be used for web browsing and word processing if needed. I have pictures, movies etc on my MBP, so no heavy stuff - just iTunes, and as an emergency word processor/web browser if both my girlfriend and I need to work on something at the same time.

So, will a iBook G3 suffice? Powerbook G4? What's the absolute minimum RAM and processor speed? I used to have a 1,3 Ghz G4 with 756Mb, which worked fine for these kinds of tasks, but can I be even cheaper;)?
 
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