What do you think about this PB G4 laptop?

[ISMPlus]

Hi Mac Freaks out there!

I need your input, please. My boss is planning on buying me a new laptop and her 'Mac' guy (who repairs and sells older models) is pushing for her to buy this:

Hardware Overview:

Machine Name: PowerBook G4 12"
Machine Model: PowerBook6,8
CPU Type: PowerPC G4 (1.2)
Number Of CPUs: 1
CPU Speed: 1.5 GHz
L2 Cache (per CPU): 512 KB
Memory: 1.25 GB
Serial Number: 4H52516ARJ5
Sudden Motion Sensor:
State: Enabled
Version: 1.0


MATSHITA DVD-R UJ-835E:

Firmware Revision: GAND
Interconnect: ATAPI
Burn Support: Yes (Apple Shipped/Supported)
Cache: 2048 KB
Reads DVD: Yes
CD-Write: -R, -RW
DVD-Write: -R, -RW, +R, +RW
Burn Underrun Protection CD: Yes
Burn Underrun Protection DVD: Yes
Write Strategies: CD-TAO, CD-SAO, DVD-DAO
Media: No

This is Rev. D (about mid 2005), according to the MR guide. Mac guy says is "essentially unused".

I do PR work, therefore I work with tons of high-res images (a lot 25MB or more, per image) - my April 2006 Intel iMac (which I use for all my work) sometimes performs very slow when I'm handling this kind of stuff. I use Skype everyday and a web app to print a lot of shipping labels very frequently. Besides that, it's 150+ emails a day, tons MS office stuff and internet research - which I'm sure any Mac can do.

I like the laptop a lot. But would this machine do the job for 'years to come' as my boss' Mac guy says or am I right in being nervous about possible dropping of support in 2009? This comp would 4+ years old by then... That's usually how I keep my mac stuff before I switch to a new one.

Thanks in advance!

 

[LizKat]

Scarf it up before someone else does.

 

[heatmiser]

*Do not*, I repeat, *do not* buy a pre-Intel mac for more than $600. They are *not* worth it. Save up and get a computer that will last, not one that's already been out for years and is toddling along on single cores. Nearly every G4 book being sold on the internet these days is overpriced because people don't understand how much faster the slowest MB is than the fastest PB, and because people are too impatient to save up a little more for modern gear. One last time, I'll say it. Don't spend a lot of money on a PB. It's a waste of cash.

 

[Blue Velvet]

Question is: how much for?

I wouldn't touch a G4 these days unless it was for basic work. Besides, who said OS 10.6 is even going to support G4s? I'd steer clear of it, especially given the probability of ultra-light laptops coming in the new year which will make this look like a relic.

 

[ISMPlus]

Wow, you guys are quick! Thanks so much.

I don't know how much it is for. I didn't ask since she's paying for it. But I will let her know for sure about pricing... she has a tendency to get ripped off many times for not researching enough.

Keep it coming!

 

[LizKat]

Question is: how much for?

I wouldn't touch a G4 these days unless it was for basic work. Besides, who said OS 10.6 is even going to support G4s? I'd steer clear of it, especially given the probability of ultra-light laptops coming in the new year which will make this look like a relic.

I agree with you about the 10.6 issue: it's not good to get too far behind trying to run newer OS (and apps!) on older hardware. Surely Leopard is the last thing will run on the PPCs.

But, I'd take a G4 (refurb or light use) any day over the MacBooks so far. The G4 12" powerbooks are reliable, stable critters that run great with Tiger; the only time I reboot them is when software updates make it mandatory. I can't think that ordinary word processing requires the horsepower of the dual core intel machines anyway. G4 books are the machines I'm sticking with until Apple cleans up its MacBook quality issues or comes out with an ultralight portable that I just won't be able to resist even though it will be overpriced.

And who will need a 10.6 immediately? Most of us don't actually NEED even Leopard. We want it, and that's fine. What we need, half of us could still be running on ibooks with a Panther OS.

If no ultralight comes to market by time of the 2008 winter holidays, then i will get a refurb MacBook so I could run a 10.6 OS whenever it is released. The nice thing about the refurbs is they're sorta like a Combo update... you get the benefit of everything learned since inception.

LOL by end 2008 my old Palm T3 will maybe have croaked and I can retire my last G3 ibook. I refused to try to move the Palm sync stuff into G4/Tiger mode. So far neither the T3 nor the G3 shows any signs of giving up, except that the plastic ring around the batt lock in the bottom of the ibook has fractured so the screw is secured with, what else, duct tape...

 

[Blue Velvet]

...I work with tons of high-res images (a lot 25MB or more, per image) - my April 2006 Intel iMac (which I use for all my work) sometimes performs very slow when I'm handling this kind of stuff.

I can't think that ordinary word processing requires the horsepower of the dual core intel machines anyway.

I was thinking of the first part of the OP's requirements. The fact that some Mac guy is pushing his boss to buy it from him strikes me as a reason to avoid it at all costs. Apart from its size and portability, it really has nothing else to recommend it and within 18 months will be old for a computer.

OP, I would also look at making sure you have enough RAM in that iMac of yours.

 

[ISMPlus]

I agree with you about the 10.6 issue: it's not good to get too far behind trying to run newer OS (and apps!) on older hardware. Surely Leopard is the last thing will run on the PPCs.

But, I'd take a G4 (refurb or light use) any day over the MacBooks so far. The G4 12" powerbooks are reliable, stable critters that run great with Tiger; the only time I reboot them is when software updates make it mandatory. I can't think that ordinary word processing requires the horsepower of the dual core intel machines anyway. G4 books are the machines I'm sticking with until Apple cleans up its MacBook quality issues or comes out with an ultralight portable that I just won't be able to resist even though it will be overpriced.

And who will need a 10.6 immediately? Most of us don't actually NEED even Leopard. We want it, and that's fine. What we need, half of us could still be running on ibooks with a Panther OS.

If no ultralight comes to market by time of the 2008 winter holidays, then i will get a refurb MacBook so I could run a 10.6 OS whenever it is released. The nice thing about the refurbs is they're sorta like a Combo update... you get the benefit of everything learned since inception.

LOL by end 2008 my old Palm T3 will maybe have croaked and I can retire my last G3 ibook. I refused to try to move the Palm sync stuff into G4/Tiger mode. So far neither the T3 nor the G3 shows any signs of giving up, except that the plastic ring around the batt lock in the bottom of the ibook has fractured so the screw is secured with, what else, duct tape...

Good point...

BTW, I LOL about the duct tape on your G3!

I was thinking of the first part of the OP's requirements. The fact that some Mac guy is pushing his boss to buy it from him strikes me as a reason to avoid it at all costs. Apart from its size and portability, it really has nothing else to recommend it and within 18 months will be old for a computer.

OP, I would also look at making sure you have enough RAM in that iMac of yours.

Thanks. That mac guy's pushing strikes odd to me as well... my first thought was that he needs $$$

My main concern is, will it run well for two or more years?? It's 2 and half years old already! (I hate to think that I have to switch in two years! )

About my iMac, I'm not sure I have enough... it's running on 512MB of RAM.