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Refurb Ibook for $369 Good deal???

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bob909bob

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 20, 2005
55
0
This is a used Ibook.

500MHz Processor
128MB Memory
10GB Hard Drive
CD-ROM Drive
56K Modem
10/100 Ethernet
USB port
FireWire port
Airport ready
AC adapter
Battery
12.1" Display
*Pre-Owned

I know it's not that good of an ibook. The reason I want is because right now all I have is an HP desktop. I need a laptop and right now any laptop would be great. Also I wanna switch to mac and this is a cheap laptop that will let me learn OS X and satisfy my portable needs (somewhat?).

Also I don't wanna get a new Ibook. Well I do but I don't since the new intel Ibooks will be out soon and mac software will begin to make the transission to intel.

Also does anyone have experience with this website???
 
crazydreaming

crazydreaming

macrumors 6502a
Apr 17, 2005
563
0
Salt Lake City, UT -Westminster College
I used to have the same system. Only I had a whopping 384 MB Ram. You're gonna need at least that to make it even useable I'd say.

I bought it October of '03 for $550. In September of '04 I sold it for $600! I actually made $50 for owning it for a year. Granted I did throw in iLife '04.

It was my first computer of my own, first mac, first laptop. I loved it. I had a lot of fun with it, and used it all the time for everything, including iPhoto and photoshop. The 10GB Hard drive did fill up quickly... When I bought an iBook G4 to replace it in September '04, I didn't know how I got by with the ol' 500mhz G3. When I bought a 15" Powerbook 1.5 GHZ this past August... I don't know how I ever got by with the iBook G4. Boy I've come a long way...
 
mkrishnan

mkrishnan

Moderator emeritus
Jan 9, 2004
29,776
15
Grand Rapids, MI, USA
Ditto on the RAM, and also you will have a lot of trouble with the more recent versions of OS X and 10 GB of HD space, even if you do increase the RAM. Especially Tiger. But don't go anywhere near Tiger on 128MB. :(

But as far as the price for the product, yes, I think it's pretty fair, although I have no experience with the site. A private party sale has its own risks, but might be slightly cheaper...it's rare to see Apple hardware of this vintage sell for less than $300 regardless of the configuration, though. Gotta love that resale value. ;)

If you do pursue this, make sure you find out what OS comes pre-installed...they say they re-install factory default, and they describe factory default as dual boot of 9.2.something and 10.1... You probably really don't want to run OS X 10.1... it will have very limited support with current software. Which introduces the problem that you will have to get your hands on install CDs for 10.2 or 10.3....

EDIT: Look at ipacmm's recommendation. That system also comes with either Jaguar or Panther... I think that's a much more solid idea. And Smalldog has a pretty good reputation, AFAIK.
 
WildCowboy

WildCowboy

Administrator/Editor
Staff member
Jan 20, 2005
18,395
2,832
I have this exact model, but with 384 MB of RAM. I'm running Panther on it. My battery only gives five minutes of juice, so the computer sits plugged in next to the couch for e-mail use, and casual web-surfing. I also installed an Airport card.

It's a serviceable machine, but certainly not snappy.

Things to look out for:

1. Battery. Check with them to see what the battery levels are...if it's as dead as mine, you'll be shelling out some bucks for a new one unless you want to leave it plugged in.

2. Operating system. From the info on their web site, they'll likely be shipping this with Cheetah, possibly Puma (though Puma was a free upgrade anyway). While serviceable, you'll be missing out on a lot of features and might again have to shell out cash to get a more feature-rich OS.

3. If you want wireless, Apple doesn't make Airport cards anymore, so you'll have to find one elsewhere. And they're kind of pricey.

So make sure you know what you're getting into with this purchase. You might have some luck searching the marketplace forums here, as people are more likely to have put in some of these add-ons, replaced an aging battery, and/or be willing to throw in a disc with Jaguar or Panther on it.
 
B

bob909bob

macrumors member
Original poster
Oct 20, 2005
55
0
Let me say what I want on this laptop. First of allo OS X (any version). I don't want or need wireless capablities. I'm not to worried about a small HD either. Basically this is to learn OS X and word processing, and satisfy some portable needs, so thanks for the tip about the battery.
 
California

California

macrumors 68040
Aug 21, 2004
3,885
90
I saw some guy on eBay with a whole bunch of ibook 600s for same price. Might as well get a speed bump?
 
ITASOR

ITASOR

macrumors 601
Mar 20, 2005
4,398
3
If it doesn't have airport, that's not that great of a price. Hang out on here, I sold my iBook G3 500Mhz 384MB RAM 10GB CD-ROM for $400 shipped like 4.5 months ago. You'll find a better deal probably. RAM+Airport card is expensive.
 
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