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iBook G4: if I get one cheap, are they worth it?

O

osxoverwin

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Hello all,
firstly I'd just like to say that this is my first post, so I'm sorry if I'm in the wrong place etc. Anyways, I have a Dell Inspiron M5010, which is a 15.6" WIndows thing, not the best to carry around with me, especially due to the totally non-existant battery life (WHAT?! IT'S ALMOST BRAND NEW! Oh wells 🙂) I was wondering if it's a good idea to get a cheap, second-hand iBook G4 from eBay to travel with, they're small, battery life should be good (a new battery can always be bought pretty cheap), and they're really cool! I may be a Windows user, but I totally LOVE MACS!!! And the new MacBook Airs and Pros are all far too expensive. Basically, I need a machine which is cheap, portable, durable, can do Skype and internet, and some basic office work. iBook G4? Maybe, I'm asking you 🙂. Also, I was wondering if anyone actually has one, what are your thoughts on them, especially compatibility-wise, can at least Skype run on the G4 fine? Again, I'm just looking at a travel buddy for a few days for web, Skype and some typing work. Nothing more, and I think the iBook G4 might be it. Thank you all very much in advance! 🙂 :apple:
 
Flash compatibility...

Hi again,
I just wanted to say that idk about Adobe Flash compatibility (the plugin, NOT the program 🙂). I want to make sure i can do YT on it just fine as well 🙂 thx!
 
osxoverwin said:
Hi again,
I just wanted to say that idk about Adobe Flash compatibility (the plugin, NOT the program 🙂). I want to make sure i can do YT on it just fine as well 🙂 thx!
Click to expand...

YT will run horrible on those old G4 iBooks, especially the current 360p, 480p, 720p and 1080p resolutions. 240p might be okay.

You could also look into buying some netbook and install Mac OS X onto them, some run very good with it. That procedure is called Hackintoshing:

 
simsaladimbamba said:
YT will run horrible on those old G4 iBooks, especially the current 360p, 480p, 720p and 1080p resolutions. 240p might be okay.

You could also look into buying some netbook and install Mac OS X onto them, some run very good with it.
Click to expand...

Mmm, thx. Although I don't like those YT stats. I guess YT won't be that huge anyway, especially since I'm looking for something to use in a car or on a plane. Anyway, I have tried hackintoshing my Dell and my old HP ProBook, but all to no avail. The closest I've come is a Mac virtual machine. Basically I'm afraid of buying a netbook only to find it won't do what I want. ...and since I know that someone will want to say something about Windows netbooks: no, no and no. Windows' resource management isn't very good, and I find that even some Windows 13 inchers are slow machines. I hate slow machines 🙂

About YT:
I mostly listen to music I don;t have on my HDD from YT. Of course, I can easily download and format as .mp3. And I don't do HD video anyway because it crashes my WiFi more often than not, so I think I'm fine there. Thx 🙂
 
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osxoverwin said:
Hello all,
firstly I'd just like to say that this is my first post, so I'm sorry if I'm in the wrong place etc. Anyways, I have a Dell Inspiron M5010, which is a 15.6" WIndows thing, not the best to carry around with me, especially due to the totally non-existant battery life (WHAT?! IT'S ALMOST BRAND NEW! Oh wells 🙂) I was wondering if it's a good idea to get a cheap, second-hand iBook G4 from eBay to travel with, they're small, battery life should be good (a new battery can always be bought pretty cheap), and they're really cool! I may be a Windows user, but I totally LOVE MACS!!! And the new MacBook Airs and Pros are all far too expensive. Basically, I need a machine which is cheap, portable, durable, can do Skype and internet, and some basic office work. iBook G4? Maybe, I'm asking you 🙂. Also, I was wondering if anyone actually has one, what are your thoughts on them, especially compatibility-wise, can at least Skype run on the G4 fine? Again, I'm just looking at a travel buddy for a few days for web, Skype and some typing work. Nothing more, and I think the iBook G4 might be it. Thank you all very much in advance! 🙂 :apple:
Click to expand...

Honestly get a netbook with a 6 cell battery. They have some deals for 210 at best buy and they are still faster than that old g4 especially for flash content and the web. I have an asus eee pc that I use more than any of my machines beleive it or not. When i bought it about a year ago I did not think I would use it this much. Look at my sig, my other machines are pretty powerful yet I still use this thing so much. Gets like 6-10 hours of battery too.
 
I recommend getting an iBook. Make sure you get the 1.33 or 1.42 GHz 2005 model, and a decent battery. My iBook came with a near new battery with only 65 cycles on it and I get a good 5 hour battery life.

Edit: also, forgot to add, you should max out the RAM to 1.5GB for the best performance.
 
Thanks, adcx64. I'm thinking of doing exactly that. I will be sure to e-mail the seller first to make sure I have all the nitty-gritty details on the iBook they're selling, and I'll try to get hold of the newest and beefiest one I can get my greasy paws on 🙂. I've taken my Dell and my old HP apart a few times for HDD replacements on my HP and adding RAM on my Dell ( and to see how to replace a friend's keyboard if needed, spilled juice on it), and I feel quite comfortbale with ordering DDR RAM (I think it's DDR, not DDR2 or anything else, can anyone confirm this?), and upgrade it myself, it's just under the kb after all! 🙂 Thx 🙂
 
Unless your receiving money with the iBook it would not be worth taking it.

It can't run Snow Leopard or Lion and will be around the minimum spec for Leopard....it would not be a wise investment at all.
 
I don't really think I need SL or Lion. I'm just looking for a small, low power machine which is very portable. Of course, I'm not going to buy one if it's just way too pricey for an old iBook.
 
osxoverwin said:
I don't really think I need SL or Lion. I'm just looking for a small, low power machine which is very portable. Of course, I'm not going to buy one if it's just way too pricey for an old iBook.
Click to expand...

A few years ago I would agree but none of the new browsers will run on it anymore which becomes a huge issue. I have to deal with this personally on my powermac G5 and the iBook will only be even more restrictive. I seriously would just get a netbook. They're faster (I have used my fair share of g4 iBooks) and get more than twice the battery on the 6 cell models. They can be found for around 200-220 with a six cell. If you spend a little more you can get a dual core atom or one of the amd brazos netbooks which run 1080p flash without even breaking a sweat.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834215067
This would run circles around any g4 ibook. It also has a wide view angle screen, much better than the ibooks and your average netbook. 1280x720. Has the same tn-film technology that the macbook pros have rather than the plain tn the macbooks and ibooks have.
 
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I also have ordered an iBook, I am going to keep Tiger on it. Run Camino or TenFourFox optimized for G4 as my web browser. I will be upgrading the memory to 1.5GB. It will be my another travel companion. Lion? Come on. I don't need the fastest and the greatest.

An iBook is a good pick for a travel companion, imho.
 
Nameci said:
I also have ordered an iBook, I am going to keep Tiger on it. Run Camino or TenFourFox optimized for G4 as my web browser. I will be upgrading the memory to 1.5GB. It will be my another travel companion. Lion? Come on. I don't need the fastest and the greatest.

An iBook is a good pick for a travel companion, imho.
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Its only good if you pick it up for a reasonable price, and by reasonable I mean like no more than $50. Unfortunately people selling them want much more for them. A netbook gets 3 times the battery life and can run flash properly.
 
Bottomline it all boils down to the needs of the individual. Each individual has its own preference over something. You cannot really force what you want on another person. What i like and I want may is not what you liked or wanted.

But overall, i would say an iBook is a perfect travel companion.
 
I agree with blackhand1001, anything more than $50 is just too much. I bought an early 2008 MacBook for $200 today, a computer that's three years newer and many orders of magnitude faster. It's also able to run the latest OS and software, unlike any iBook.

Funny thing is just two months back I traded in my 2006 MacBook to best buy for $581 just because it had a 500GB HD and 3GB of RAM.

This "new" MacBook is stock still.
 
Nameci said:
I also have ordered an iBook, I am going to keep Tiger on it. Run Camino or TenFourFox optimized for G4 as my web browser. I will be upgrading the memory to 1.5GB. It will be my another travel companion. Lion? Come on. I don't need the fastest and the greatest.

An iBook is a good pick for a travel companion, imho.
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Yea,
I'll ask around for performance on Leopard, but I'm still thinking of staying on the latest Tiger. SL and Lion are nice updates but they are necessities, and Tiger or Leopard is, I think fine. At least for me.
 
iBoko now more, PowerMac G5, OH YEAH! 😀

Alright guys,
thank you all very much for all your input, I've decided to go with a PowerMac G5 for my final decision. I know it's not portable at all but it gives me much more bang for my buck. Thank you all very, very much!

:apple:
 
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