Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Vintage Powerbook

T

tomu570

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 14, 2009
7
0
My 2003 Powerbook G4 (1GHZ) has recently been labeled by Apple as "vintage". Vintage is the polite way of saying they will no longer carry parts for and will no longer repair my long time friend. Figures since the Ethernet port, and various other ailments have since arisen. OK, time to hand it down to my seven year old so daddy can get a new laptop.

My concern is, if I layout over 4 grand for the new 17" Macbook Pro with the processor, RAM, and HD speed upgrades, what's going to happen in 5.5 years?

Will Apple deem that unit as vintage too and not replace the battery? At that price I may want to get more than 5 years out of it regardless of what new technology is around at that time.

Do you think Apple could actually stop installing the new batteries after 5 or 6 years?
 
tomu570 said:
My 2003 Powerbook G4 (1GHZ) has recently been labeled by Apple as "vintage". Vintage is the polite way of saying they will no longer carry parts for and will no longer repair my long time friend. Figures since the Ethernet port, and various other ailments have since arisen. OK, time to hand it down to my seven year old so daddy can get a new laptop.

My concern is, if I layout over 4 grand for the new 17" Macbook Pro with the processor, RAM, and HD speed upgrades, what's going to happen in 5.5 years?

Will Apple deem that unit as vintage too and not replace the battery? At that price I may want to get more than 5 years out of it regardless of what new technology is around at that time.

Do you think Apple could actually stop installing the new batteries after 5 or 6 years?
Click to expand...

Do you need the power? It might be cheaper to just get a smaller computer and upgrade when the time comes.

If you need the power, however, then buy it and don't worry about it until the time comes. You won't be the only one in that situation.
 
I run a lot of Photoshop and I'm looking to get into some video editing.
 
It's possible, but I doubt it. The impression I got from Schiller's keynote was that they were big on recycling those batteries. Chances are, those batteries are going to be around for a long while yet in their notebooks. You should be fine for another 10 years.

Don't forget that your PB is also PPC. Apple are probably just doing the logical thing from their perspective, what with introducing Snow Leopard (which won't support PPC, of course), and performing the final stages of phasing out the last of the PPC model Macs.

If your logic board dies in 5.5+ years time, though, you're probably screwed. ;)
 
tomu570 said:
My 2003 Powerbook G4 (1GHZ) has recently been labeled by Apple as "vintage". Vintage is the polite way of saying they will no longer carry parts for and will no longer repair my long time friend. Figures since the Ethernet port, and various other ailments have since arisen. OK, time to hand it down to my seven year old so daddy can get a new laptop.

My concern is, if I layout over 4 grand for the new 17" Macbook Pro with the processor, RAM, and HD speed upgrades, what's going to happen in 5.5 years?

Will Apple deem that unit as vintage too and not replace the battery? At that price I may want to get more than 5 years out of it regardless of what new technology is around at that time.

Do you think Apple could actually stop installing the new batteries after 5 or 6 years?
Click to expand...
Why are you concerned about this? 3rd parties still make batteries for the oldest G3 powerbooks out there, and you can always fine replacement parts for these machines...just not from Apple. Apple computers are outstanding investments. The more cash you put into them, the better off you'll be down the road. My buddy is still using his PowerBook G4 from 2001 without issue, I'd imagine it would be the same deal if you went ahead and bought a new one.
 
econoline06 said:
Why are you concerned about this? 3rd parties still make batteries for the oldest G3 powerbooks out there, and you can always fine replacement parts for these machines...just not from Apple. Apple computers are outstanding investments. The more cash you put into them, the better off you'll be down the road. My buddy is still using his PowerBook G4 from 2001 without issue, I'd imagine it would be the same deal if you went ahead and bought a new one.
Click to expand...

Your right. But it won't be as easy as driving 6 miles to my local Apple Store to drop it off if it's something I can't fix myself.
 
5-6 years is a long time in laptop years. Since you have a tendency to hang on to your hardware for so long, you should consider purchasing something else that has user serviceable parts. Go with the 15" MBP and call it done.
 
Speaking from my own experience, I've bought spares for a 170, 520/540, Wallstreet/PDQ, and I'm still using an iBook with a new(er) battery. But when these batteries finally go the laptops generally become portable desktops.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back