Would an iBook Work?

What about Craigslist New Jersey?

LordOfTheMacs said:

See also- Clamshell iBook

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Actually, one thread will be plenty.

It will work fine as long as you... are not looking for a lot of speed, do not wish to use flash-intensive websites or streaming video much, and do not mind using older versions of software.

I looked at that website, and I'm pretty sure those prices are what they would pay you for your old computer.

LordOfTheMacs said:

Thanks mkrishnan,
Do I need an airport card to connect to the net? Also, will 64 megs of ram and a 3 gb hard drive be okay, if it's a revision A clammie? Check out the recycler's site at http://WWW.g3apples.com

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I'm not really sure, but I think if you use OS8/9, an older version of Opera or the like, and an old suite like Appleworks, it should be fine. You'd need the airport card unless you want to plug an ethernet cable in to connect to the net.

I really wouldn't pay much at all for this... like <$150, definitely. I don't know what going prices are at all, but a late G3 class iBook (the ones that look like the iBook G4, with 700-900MHz G3's) that can run Panther at least, goes for about $250-300, and an early G4 class iBook that can run Tiger can be had for $400 or less, so I would use those as bounding boxes with respect to getting a clamshell...

In addition to the slower speed, there's one more thing you should consider.

For a laptops this old, be prepared to get one with a completely dead battery (hold charge for less than a few minutes). While you definitely won't want to travel with it, it may even be a problem to use it around the house.

LordOfTheMacs said:

Would it be worth the $15-$25 to just buy it? Also, what should I expect to be included?


BTW- at the bootom of the page it says '' Click here for even more deals on macs '' or something like that

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those are NOT the prices to purchase. They're the price you get for selling your old computer to them. i navigated around a bit and found this

http://WWW.g3apples.com/store.html

that takes you here:

http://www.custommacs.com/

and THAT is their store.

LordOfTheMacs said:

Would it be worth the $15-$25 to just buy it? Also, what should I expect to be included?


BTW- at the bootom of the page it says '' Click here for even more deals on macs '' or something like that

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Just make sure its turns on I guess. I mean $25 is worth the risk I guess, but honestly, why? Those machines are pretty pointless these days and if you aren't familiar with OS 9 (Classic) then you might find yourself slightly confused at what is going on.

I don't think its worth your time really. You should expect the computer only, probably no guarantee it will even have an OS loaded and 64 megs and 3Gbs brings home my point more that this machine is kind of pointless to own. Just my thoughts though

If you can put the max ram in and a bigger and faster hard drive and find a battery somewhere, they might be worth it. I have friends on G3 Pismos still. But try to find the 366 and up CPU'ed model.

Panther or even Tiger with Dashboard disabled would work fine.

wow those things are old...

LordOfTheMacs said:

Would it be worth the $15-$25 to just buy it? Also, what should I expect to be included?


BTW- at the bootom of the page it says '' Click here for even more deals on macs '' or something like that

Click to expand...

Those are definitely prices to sell your mac.

Save your dollars and cents if you want one and get something a little newer of off ebay or craigslist. The toilet seat iBooks are very cool in a retro sort of way... but realistically, something newer (even just a little) will work as a better intro to the Mac world. If were you, I would look into something along the lines of a white iBook or if you're willing to go desktop, an iMac or MacMini.

I hope you find something in your price range.

LordOfTheMacs said:

Hey, listen. I use an G5 iMac as my main machine, so a clamshell would be there for me to surf, use email and word,and to just enjoy the design. I am
aware that my G5 can run circles around it and that it is no MacPro, but eventually, I may put in more memory and a slightly bigger HD, as I will do for my G5 when it is too slow for my needs. It will probably take some serious discounting for me to buy a 300mhz model, for the 366-466 models are faster, have more memory and a bigger hard drive, and won't be too big of an investment. Now that you know my expectations more, please post.

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I have an old iBookG3 500 (the white iBook) and it's faster all-around than any of the clamshell iBooks. It's loaded with a 5400RPM drive and 640MB of RAM, so it's as fast as it can be.

I can say that with 10.4, it's OK for Word and e-mail, but surfing the web is excruciating. Pages with lots of stuff going on (like ESPN.com) take forever to load, not to mention that most web-video doesn't even play.

Honestly, if you can get a loaded iBook for $50, then it might be worth a flyer, but if you need an Airport card (which are quite expensive) and/or max RAM, then it could get kinda pricey.

Might be better off with a new iPod touch for surfing/email/etc. The only downside is the lack of Flash ... but it's coming.

ft

Have you tried posting a WTB ad on craigslist?

LordOfTheMacs said:

How can the flash issue be resolved?

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Regarding Flash on the iPod touch, there have been rumors/discussions about Adobe developing a "mobile" version of Flash that will be more optimized for mobile devices. If/when this comes out, I would expect that the iPod touch/iPhone would get that functionality.

I don't know about installing the max RAM, but I will upgrade it for Christmas and my birthday. I eventually would get an airport card, though. Will I at least be able to post on this machine with out upgrades? Also, what are ram prices like? Define a adequately spec'd iBook for my needs.

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I don't really know about the clamshell iBooks, but the white iBooks are extremely easy for upgrading the RAM and Airport card. Just pop off the keyboard and turn a couple of screws.

White G3 iBooks max out at 640MB (512MB +128MB soldered). Not sure what RAM costs these days, but the older chips tend to go up in price since they're not as widely available. Check RAMSEEKER.com and put in the systems that you're interested in. I think the clamshell iBooks are limited to 320MB of RAM, and in my opinion, you can't really run 10.4 with 320MB. Better to go Panther with 320MB on a G3 as it should speed things up a bit.

For your needs, I would stay away from the G3, unless you're looking at the 900mhz one. At the very least, get a 600 mhz G3 iBook. The 600 has the 100mhz system bus and that was good for a nice speed bump. Ultimately, I would go with a G4 iBook for what you're doing. Just note that my idea of acceptable may be different than your idea.

The problem with the G3 iBooks is that the video card in them are very poor. Forget watching any sort of video, unless they are 320x240 MPEG-1. Forget anything using h264 ... even MPEG-4 at 640x480 has issues.

iPhoto runs dog slow on my G3, and I'm on iPhoto4.

Word works fine, as long as you turn off "Live Word Count". E-mail using yahoo mail is OK.

An iPod touch will run circles around a G3 iBook, in my opinion.

of course, going to a G4 might be outta your discretionary budget.

they're ALL out of his discretionary budget. they're asking $280 for a G3 ibook with OSX 10.2, 128 Mb of RAM... plus $30 shipping.

a 256mb stick of RAM alone is going to cost you more than $50

LordOfTheMacs said:

Thanks ftaok,
How can the flash issue be resolved? I don't know about installing the max RAM, but I will upgrade it for Christmas and my birthday. I evetually would get an airport card, though. Will I at least be able to post on this machine with out upgrades? Also, what are ram prices like? Define a adequatley spec'd iBook for my needs.

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Flash won't be resolved until Apple and Adobe stop fighting.
Lord, you are kinda looking for an impossible deal of less than $50. Getting RAM, and AP card and HDD upgrades will really not be worth this machine. You sound excited to have one of these old Macs, but they are just not worth it. Your money is better spent elsewhere like saving for a Touch or buying a few tanks of gas.

And as for the design, these machines are heavy.