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Titanium Powerbook Life Span
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JordanNZ said:
yeah i got mine right about the same time you did, which i believe was right before the Aluminum update. my powerbook had to be sent in 3 times for quite a variety of different problems. major problems (appleCare is a good idea). i'm not sure maybe they just got really lax in manufacturing the old ones when they were preparing to make the switch to the new ones. i had logicboard problems similar to the iBooks, those white blotches in the display like the early aluminums. works fine now. it'll probably be two more years till i get a new laptop. they won't be G4s anymore then. here's hoping, anyway.
I've had my TiBook for about 18 months also and have none of the problems mentioned here, except for the stock battery puts the computer to sleep at around 45% charge remaining. Just be careful with your computer and half the "problems" will not occur. Cases are the best thing you can do for your computer because they reduce the impacts that a laptop takes while in transit.
The hinges on my 2.5 year old TiBook are just fine. The paint job on the other hand needs much touchup.
The battery is on its last electrons. Maybe 10 minutes at a 100% charge.
The battery is on its last electrons. Maybe 10 minutes at a 100% charge.
mkrishnan said:It's either that or start a thread about the rumor that the PB will skip the G5 generation and go straight to G6.Oooh, maybe if they call it a G6, Oprah will give a bunch away on her show!!!
Rock on. Oprah can have some quad-Power6 Beryllium-cased PowerBooks with liquid nitrogen cooling and neural net interface as long as she doesn't hook Dr. Phil up.
while its not a powerbook, ive had my iBook for ~1yr6moz and have had all these things die.
Hard drive > died in the first 3 days of me owning it.
CD-Rom > tray broke and wouldnt close for me.
Trackpad > just stopped working inside of 6moz.
Logicboard x2 > Both times with the same logicboard faults. this isnt going to happen on a powerbook, but still its worthy of note. About two months between replacements.
and to top it off, a battery that is now acting wonky and the system sometimes wont detect it as being there. Dont know if i wanna buy another Apple notebook.
Hard drive > died in the first 3 days of me owning it.
CD-Rom > tray broke and wouldnt close for me.
Trackpad > just stopped working inside of 6moz.
Logicboard x2 > Both times with the same logicboard faults. this isnt going to happen on a powerbook, but still its worthy of note. About two months between replacements.
and to top it off, a battery that is now acting wonky and the system sometimes wont detect it as being there. Dont know if i wanna buy another Apple notebook.
Just had the logic board on my nearly 3 year old 667 replaced under applecare (see photo). Beside this issue, it has performed flawlessly and I'm thinking about adding a superdrive and keeping it for another year. If only it had dvi out, then I would buy a new 23" display and use it as a desktop.
welp, my 1 GHZ TiBook is nearly dead... aside from having to use an external monitor, it works, but I have replaced the inverter board & cable, and still am getting the infamous black screen.... funny, upon wake from sleep, the screen will flash "on" for a few seconds, then go black again.. i guess now its time to replace the whole damn Logic board.<br><br>my wife's iBook (2 years old) never had a problem, never crashes or bombs an app, never is shut down or rebooted, aside from misc security updates. I guess its a drop in the bucket with apple's laptops....
big said:
You've got that right my friend... Some have luck, others machine fail spectacularly... And there seems to be no happy medium. It either works and works well, or EVERYTHING goes. Or so is my experience.
My Ti400--ordered immediately following the 2001 keynote--is still going strong. I gave it to my brother, who uses it every day. I had to replace the battery once, as well as the power supply, and the airport card died, but otherwise it works like a charm. Okay, so that doesn't sound so great, but it *is* over 4 years old!
so what do I do? I can not go out and buy a new laptop (though I hear some new ones may be coming) spend $700 on a new logic board (the lapop as is is worth only $700) suggestions? I guess I keep working on this other monitor, and <gasp> save money!
Almost 4 years on original battery
My Ti PB 400 from 3/2001 is still on it's original battery, and haven't had any problem with my hinges. My capacity is still 1500.
It was on probably 14 hours a day, 7 days a week for almost the first 3 years - my strategy on laptops is to always unplug them whenever they are off/not being used. (And I unplug the power blocks from their power cables as well). Used it heavily in both 110 and 220 volt countries.
As for my screen, I do a lot of traveling (logged over 80,000 miles in the air for at least 2 of those years). So while things take a beating, I travel with my laptops (travel with one Mac and another PC, plus external devices) in a small sleeve, which in turn is put into a large (and HEAVY) laptop case.
Being a photographer, I understand the difference between my equipment taking a beating from wear and tear and me giving it a beating through carelessness. I've seen kids fall down a flight of stairs and come out laughing, but that doesn't mean one's supposed to toss the kids down for the heck of it!
My Ti PB 400 from 3/2001 is still on it's original battery, and haven't had any problem with my hinges. My capacity is still 1500.
It was on probably 14 hours a day, 7 days a week for almost the first 3 years - my strategy on laptops is to always unplug them whenever they are off/not being used. (And I unplug the power blocks from their power cables as well). Used it heavily in both 110 and 220 volt countries.
As for my screen, I do a lot of traveling (logged over 80,000 miles in the air for at least 2 of those years). So while things take a beating, I travel with my laptops (travel with one Mac and another PC, plus external devices) in a small sleeve, which in turn is put into a large (and HEAVY) laptop case.
Being a photographer, I understand the difference between my equipment taking a beating from wear and tear and me giving it a beating through carelessness. I've seen kids fall down a flight of stairs and come out laughing, but that doesn't mean one's supposed to toss the kids down for the heck of it!
rhpenguin said:
Yeah, I hear you. For a few years in the late 90's I had a hard time recommending Apple to people. My B&W G3 NEVER worked - and replaced all sorts of stuff (including motherboard). It's sitting under my desk as we speak - I wanted to use it as a dedicated slide scanner, but I haven't been able to get it to restart for the last 6 months!
I did read an interesting article about 6 years ago in a trade journal talking about the percentage of "lemon computers" in the entire computer industry (which they defined as 3 or more MAJOR component failures!!!). I couldn't believe the number, as it was well into double digits. (I seem to remember about 15%).
What it goes to show is how AWFUL many people's computer experiences are. Anyone on these boards is in the top 5% of user based on skill/knowledge, and look at all the crap we have to put up with!
So if we leave Apple, where does one go for a problem free experience?
Back to the abacus!
See, my B&W G3 was a powerhouse.. never should have sold it. It took upgraded cards, 4 internal HD's everything.... dropped, kicked etc.
This Powerbook I have: here's the laundry list thus far:
Power Brick, got funky connectore $19
Power Brick, funky cable, bought a different brand power supply
new PowerBook Battey (not Apple brand)
Left Hinge Broke ($120)
Software crashes left and right (misc time spent reinstalling or rebooting)
Inverter board/cable/backlight/backlight supply cable ($180)
Logic Board (haven't replaced this yet) but it needs it....
typing on a secondary monitor as of from now on I guess
This Powerbook I have: here's the laundry list thus far:
Power Brick, got funky connectore $19
Power Brick, funky cable, bought a different brand power supply
new PowerBook Battey (not Apple brand)
Left Hinge Broke ($120)
Software crashes left and right (misc time spent reinstalling or rebooting)
Inverter board/cable/backlight/backlight supply cable ($180)
Logic Board (haven't replaced this yet) but it needs it....
typing on a secondary monitor as of from now on I guess
Bad RAM?
Have you ever checked for bad RAM? I had a similar experience with the iBook G4 I bought to replace my PB Ti. (had a new PB on order before a long trip in Nov 03, but that was during the screw up with white spots.)
Anyway, even though the RAM passed the CD's Apple Hardware tests, when I finally pulled it the daily crashing stopped. Swapped it out under warranty, and haven't crashed since.
big said:
Have you ever checked for bad RAM? I had a similar experience with the iBook G4 I bought to replace my PB Ti. (had a new PB on order before a long trip in Nov 03, but that was during the screw up with white spots.)
Anyway, even though the RAM passed the CD's Apple Hardware tests, when I finally pulled it the daily crashing stopped. Swapped it out under warranty, and haven't crashed since.
Yeah... took out Ram, booted, same deal, it has to be the Logic Board, unless I missed another cable somewhere...
of note: I called Apple and complained to their tech Dept, then sat on hold for even longer (speaker phones rock!) and spoke with a customer Rep. I basically filed an official complaint to Apple, and ask that they at least address this issue in some way shape or form.
There is nothing in their knowledge base on this problem, nor on their web site (note iBook Logic board issues are prominatly displayed) in any instance, I did all I can do, now if more people would like to call as well... I suggest using Apple Customer Relations (800) 767-2775
of note: I called Apple and complained to their tech Dept, then sat on hold for even longer (speaker phones rock!) and spoke with a customer Rep. I basically filed an official complaint to Apple, and ask that they at least address this issue in some way shape or form.
There is nothing in their knowledge base on this problem, nor on their web site (note iBook Logic board issues are prominatly displayed) in any instance, I did all I can do, now if more people would like to call as well... I suggest using Apple Customer Relations (800) 767-2775
Ouch. I feel for you... reminds me of my B&W.big said:
I'd waste hours trying to get it running smoothly, then get frustrated, push it aside and just use another Mac. After a month, I'd forget the hassles and say "I spent so much on that POS and I'm a power Mac user, of course I can get it up and running ..." Then the cycle would start all over again. LOL
Well, these lemons always slip through - though they are a bit sour for the person that gets them.
That's the irony. You loved your B&W and are cursed with an "evil" PB, but to me it was the exact opposite!
big said:
The hinges are a huge issue with the Tibook. Make sure that once you get it fixed you only close/open/adjust screen by holding it with two hands on the sides or one hand in the middle. The torque causing my grabbing the screen on only one side is very damaging to the hinges.
yeah.... I've heard of the use both hands to open the lid thingy. But today I opened the lid with ONE HAND.. as I was still frustrated that the logic board (I assume) is on its way out the door.... say, now that it does not allow the back light to ligt up, when does it totally give up? Has ANYONE had any experience with this?
JordanNZ said:
26 month old TiBook 1GHz. Power adaptor died last summer - got real hot and reeked of acid. Some battery woes. I'll be anywhere between 20-40% and it will sleep and when plugging it in, will read 0% and charging. Have tried re-calibrating with some success. Current capacity is around 2600. No hinge problems but from the posts above, I may need to tread more lightly. I've gotten real nonchalant about it and borderline cocky. I'll one-hand-it from the bedroom to the kitchen with a cat underfoot, etc.
I actually bought my 1Ghz TiBook on 1/1/03. It's been goign strong, although the battery isn't what it used to be, but that is to be expected. I did have it back to Applecare because of a warp in the case that wouldn't allow it to latch and lock shut, and they replaced teh whole case in a day! I love mine, I know it may be getting "long in the tooth" but I want it to hopefully hold out another 2 years.
I have an original TiBook 400mhz ordered a few days after the announcement of them back in the day. Everything on this beauty still works perfectly, the battery probably gets 2 hours as opposed to the original 4 or so... but enough for me.
My friend even spilled a can of coke in the keyboard, and besides some crunchy keys (which I'm going to have to replace the keyboard soon) the 'book still works just as well as when I bought it. Guess I'm lucky. My next portable will definitely be a PB G5... thats for sure! My TiBook has (and still is) served me well.
My friend even spilled a can of coke in the keyboard, and besides some crunchy keys (which I'm going to have to replace the keyboard soon) the 'book still works just as well as when I bought it. Guess I'm lucky. My next portable will definitely be a PB G5... thats for sure! My TiBook has (and still is) served me well.
so after all the hub-bub... and fuss and dismantling my Ti, I have sold it for $700, went out and bought a brand new Aluminum (for $1500) got a good deal, as the Mac store was getting rid of their stock, for the now poerbooks.
Now I couldn't be happier! except I need more Ram, and my Superdrive back (man do I miss burning DVD's!)
Now I couldn't be happier! except I need more Ram, and my Superdrive back (man do I miss burning DVD's!)