powerbook advice

[acrahm]

i am revamping my computer set up and could use some advice,

right now i have a 15'MBP w/4gb ram and 320 HD,

the plan is to sell the MBP, pick up a refurbed aluminum imac, and then pick up a solid 12' powerbook G4 for grad school,

my question is what should i be looking for with regards to the powerbook? i want to spend no more then $500 on it, and would like to upgrade the ram and HD to its limits (what would those limits be?)

thanks!

 

[Bfat567]

The max ram part i can answer and that answer would be 1.5 gigs.

 

[acrahm]

cool. thanks for that info, another question to add on, can osX 10.5 work on a g4?

 

[natebookpro]

What made you want to change your setup? Would a larger screen and bluetooth keyboard and mouse be a better use of the $500? Just curious, not trying to be smart or anything. I would just be worried about the no warranty part of the PB.

 

[natebookpro]

cool. thanks for that info, another question to add on, can osX 10.5 work on a g4?

Yup

 

[acrahm]

What made you want to change your setup? Would a larger screen and bluetooth keyboard and mouse be a better use of the $500? Just curious, not trying to be smart or anything. I would just be worried about the no warranty part of the PB.

very good question, my reason for the switch is that i want something more portable then the MBP for school but something simple that will basically just be for email, documents, web etc. While the imac will be more powerful then the MBP so i will be able to do more with FCP/imovie etc....

FYI i have a 22 lcd hooked up to the MBP right now..

 

[Phrasikleia]

It's inevitable that someone will ask you why you're getting two smaller laptops instead of just keeping the one you have. So there...I just got that out of the way! Seriously, why?!

 

[natebookpro]

very good question, my reason for the switch is that i want something more portable then the MBP for school but something simple that will basically just be for email, documents, web etc. While the imac will be more powerful then the MBP so i will be able to do more with FCP/imovie etc....

FYI i have a 22 lcd hooked up to the MBP right now..

Well the PB should be perfect then. The imacs definitely beat the pants off my mbp, and I do love how small my ibook is. As long as the PB is 867mhz or faster I believe leopard is officially supported, although if you search the forums you can see that it can be done with much less with a bit of tinkering. Good luck with the PB!

 

[acrahm]

the G4 will be for basic grad school usage, i.e. document, email, web

the imac will be more powerful then the MBP and can be used as a stay at home computer that i can do FCP/imovie projects on

 

[acrahm]

awesome, thanks! is ebay my best bet for a PB or is there a better solution?

 

[natebookpro]

awesome, thanks! is ebay my best bet for a PB or is there a better solution?

I just googled used mac and found a couple places. I have never used any of them so I cant really vouch. There seemed to be a few right around your price range with a 30 or 60 day warranty. You could also check craigslist and at least that way you can meet them and see the computer before you buy it. Im always a little nervous about a big purchase on ebay, but if you go that route just remember to make sure they have good feedback and you use paypal or a credit card you can chargeback if need be.

 

[Phrasikleia]

If you want a stay-at-home machine, why not use the MBP with the bigger screen that you already have? It has a larger and far superior screen to the Aluminum MB--that screen will be much better for FCP. (Not to mention that the MBP has Firewire and an expresscard slot, which are crucial for adding fast drives for video.)

 

[TDM21]

I would recommend the PowerBooks that are 1.33 GHz or higher. These systems came with USB2, 256MB RAM, Airport & Bluetooth standard, and 64MB VRAM. The 256MB stick of RAM is soldered onto the logic board of the system and can't be replaced, but the open slot can accept a 1GB stick of DDR PC2700. The hard drive can be upgraded with almost any laptop ATA drive (not SATA).

If you want to hook the PowerBook up to your 22" monitor then you will need at Mini-DVI to DVI adapter. Depending on where you buy the system from it may come with it. The PowerBooks shipped from Apple with the adapters in the box. If not then this link will help: http://store.apple.com/us/product/M9321G/B

I've been using a 12" PowerBook for 4.5 years now and it was my main computer through undergrad. I still prefer to use it then set at a desk in front of my PowerMac or PC.

 

[allmIne]

I miss my 12in Powerbook. Such a great machine. I had the 1ghz version with, I believe, 256mb RAM and a 40gig hard drive.

Incredible computer! You'll love it.