How much RAM for iBook?

[paulman]

I have (finally) decided to get a 1.33 14" iBook. However how much RAM do I need?

I saw on the crucial website that an extra 256MB would cost £32 and an extra 512Mb would cost £87. Which one would be better value (ie do I need 768) for:

- Internet/email
- iTunes, iPhoto, maybe some iMovie, garageband (i might buy a usb keyboard later)
- Maybe office next year
- Games like Europa universalis II

Also: Should I get .mac for the £50 special deal? Is it worth it? Any .mac people around?

 

[paulman]

Also bluetooth

Also is it worth paying £35 for bluetooth. I don't have any bluetooth stuff and I have no plans to upgrade my non bluetooth old phone until the battery is well and truly dead. Hoever, there are other uses....

 

[stevep]

For what it's worth...
Just ordered (and still waiting for) a 1.33 14" iBook.
Its standard apart from Bluetooth, because you can't add an Apple internal module (without at least some difficulty) afterwards, and an external 3rd party module would stick out. Haven't got any other bluetooth stuff, but the Logitech 1000 mouse looks quite good for the future sometime.
Didn't bother ordering any more ram because its easy to buy and fit yourself from Crucial. Will probably get a 512mB module, unless I win the lottery. My iMac G3 450 has 768mB and runs p/shop etc quite reasonably provided you're not doing anything massive.
Similarly didn't bother with bigger hard drive or a superdrive, as both these can be added as external firewire devices later.

I would think that iMovie and Garageband would be the most demanding apps (but I'm not a gamer so I can't comment on Europa universalis II).

Good luck.

 

[edesignuk]

Unless money is really tight, get the 512MB, it's well worth it.

 

[Vlade]

I personally would go with the 512 MB stick because my iBook 1GHZ machine is very slow when I run out of memory (which is all the time because I always have at least 4 development tools + lots of other apps going), but your needs seam like an additional 256 should be enough.

 

[asif786]

from what I recall, the iBook only has one free slot. You'll be kicking yourself later on if you want to upgrade and you have to scrap the 256 you bought not so long ago.

Like edesignuk said, unless money is really tight, get the 512. You'll save yourself some bother later.

/asif

 

[vtprinz]

If you'll be doing any sort of audio/visual (garage band, iPhoto, Photoshop, etc), I highly recommend getting as much RAM as you can afford. I have 640MB in a 800MHz G3 iBook and things still get pretty bogged down (though, iPhoto is always slow). RAM isn't all that expensive anyway, and you'd be better off buying more than you need, to spare you having to throw a way a perfectly good chip later on if you find you do need the extra boost.

 

[stevep]

This link:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=60839

...will help you justify paying a little over the odds for a recognised brand of memory. Its a 2001 document but would explain the large number of posts that say Apples are fussy about their ram.
I don't suppose its easy to find out the exact spec of 3rd party memory to the degree of detail that Apple are referring to here - even Crucial don't give that much detail on their web site, but then they do say that its tested and guaranteed for its intended purpose.

 

[yoak]

I got the extra 512 from Crucial, and my 12" runs Garageband really well. Only saying so because people say this app. is heavy on the RAM.
I got bluetooth so I can sync my phone with my ibook and it works like a dream.
So I say get the 512and the bluetooth, but that´s just me

 

[cluthz]

This link:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=60839

...will help you justify paying a little over the odds for a recognised brand of memory. Its a 2001 document but would explain the large number of posts that say Apples are fussy about their ram.
I don't suppose its easy to find out the exact spec of 3rd party memory to the degree of detail that Apple are referring to here - even Crucial don't give that much detail on their web site, but then they do say that its tested and guaranteed for its intended purpose.

I've got crucial in my pb, and i have also installed crucial in a friends pb too.
You can't install BT later, so get it now.
When you pay about £1000 for a machine , don't save the last couple of pounds to get the second best performance..