iBook or Powerbook?

[onebloodonelife]

I'm basically looking for a laptop to throw in my bag and take notes on during class, so my Macbook can stay at home. (I know, I know, it defeats the purpose of having a laptop, but the Macbook needs to stay alive for at least 3, if not 4 years.)

So, my question is: What kind of specs should I be looking for to run Word processing well? (MHz and RAM especially, HD space doesn't matter so much and neither does Airport card).

 

[jat543]

HA! i just did the same thing because i didnt want to lug around my mbp so it could survive longer. I went on ebay and found an old 12 inch powerbook. its got 1.5 ghz and 1.25 ram, runs leopard, does everything i need it to, small form factor as well

 

[heatmiser]

I'm basically looking for a laptop to throw in my bag and take notes on during class, so my Macbook can stay at home. (I know, I know, it defeats the purpose of having a laptop, but the Macbook needs to stay alive for at least 3, if not 4 years.)

So, my question is: What kind of specs should I be looking for to run Word processing well? (MHz and RAM especially, HD space doesn't matter so much and neither does Airport card).

You can do everything you're looking for with a G3 iBook. I used an 800mhz G3 12" as my *sole* computer for a few weeks in college before I got my Macbook, and it was great. Took it to class every day. 5 hour battery life. Portable, zippy, great for Word, surfing, etc. You can find them for under $300 online. Even now, with my Macbook, I think of it fondly. It was a great "take anywhere, do anything"-computer. Mine was maxed out with 640mb of ram and Tiger, but if you don't mind running Panther, you can get by with less.

 

[noodle654]

Umm...if you go G3 make sure it has atleast 900MHz for the iBook and full RAM which I think is 1GB.

I would aim for a nice PowerBook G4. Great machines and about the same price as a G4 iBook.

 

[SoLibertyDies]

My 500MHz iBook G3 runs Pages and Word just fine in Tiger. And I got it on ebay for 150 bucks, which is always nice.

 

[Designer1]

I just bought an old 12" Powerbook off of EBay for similar reasons. I wanted something I could safely travel with (think airport security) that would also be fast enough to do some basic web design on the fly. I LOVE my MBP but I do worry about something happening to it.

The 12" Powerbooks and iBooks are wonderfully portable without costing an arm and a leg. Some of the older models are also pretty cheap. My PB is an 867mhz G4 with 1GB of RAM and cost me $400. Similar iBooks go for cheaper than that. If you just want it for word processing then I wouldn't worry overly much about speed.