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What should I do to my powerbook g4 first?

LordeOurMother

LordeOurMother

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jul 10, 2014
397
122
I just got a 12inch 1ghz in the mail. and i have a checklist of things to do:
I need to order ram
I need to change the hard drive it sounds like nails on a chalkboard and it goes ridiculously slow.
And the battery can't hold a charge ii need to change it.

What do you think I should do first?
 
Intell said:
What kind of budget do you have for your new Powerbook?
Click to expand...

hmm.. I dont really have an exact quote but im looking to put at least $50 into it, which would cover a standard ide hard drive from amazon, and a few other things.

my main issue is i wont be able to afford it all at once it will be a step by step process.
 
The ram will be the cheapest. The hard drive may be the most, depending on the quality of the battery you want.
 
Intell said:
The ram will be the cheapest. The hard drive may be the most, depending on the quality of the battery you want.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah. I forgot this thing can only take like 1.25 gb or 2 of ram. not sure which model it is yet. ill figure that out when i upgrade it.
i just think in the back of my mind the hard drive will be the least because i remember seeing 60 gb ide drives on amazon for like $16 so the batteries must be expensive.

Anyway, as of right now I have about $20 for it.
 
It takes 1GB sticks of ram for a maximum of 1.25GB. It can be gotten for less than $20, sometimes less than $10. Try not to get a used hard drive. They can be hit or miss and already have hours on them with an unknown history. Good batteries start at about $30 and very good, almost OEM, go for $50+.
 
My 1.33 GHz PBG4 12" came with 1.25 GB RAM installed, and I put around $65 into it to get a aftermarket battery, and a 32 GB IDE SSD. Good luck with yours, they're a great notebook for day to day usage!
 
Intell said:
It takes 1GB sticks of ram for a maximum of 1.25GB. It can be gotten for less than $20, sometimes less than $10. Try not to get a used hard drive. They can be hit or miss and already have hours on them with an unknown history. Good batteries start at about $30 and very good, almost OEM, go for $50+.
Click to expand...

do you know what kind of ram it takes? thats the one thing I couldnt find.

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jrsx said:
My 1.33 GHz PBG4 12" came with 1.25 GB RAM installed, and I put around $65 into it to get a aftermarket battery, and a 32 GB IDE SSD. Good luck with yours, they're a great notebook for day to day usage!
Click to expand...

yeah. i just want something new for school.. word processing basic browsing type stuff. :)


EDIT: I Think imma go...
Battery
Hard Drive
then Ram
 
L Oquence said:
hmm.. I dont really have an exact quote but im looking to put at least $50 into it, which would cover a standard ide hard drive from amazon, and a few other things.

my main issue is i wont be able to afford it all at once it will be a step by step process.
Click to expand...

There are some brand new hard drives on eBay at a decent price right now...
 
L Oquence said:
Thanks. I'm comfortable putting in and out hard drives but ram is something I've never really understood beyond putting the sticks in.
Click to expand...

Have you operated inside the 12" PB before? If not, I would definately offer a word of caution. The power wires and whatnot are connected very firmly to the logic board, be careful when disconnecting the palmrest, that you don't break the connectors!
 
jrsx said:
Have you operated inside the 12" PB before? If not, I would definately offer a word of caution. The power wires and whatnot are connected very firmly to the logic board, be careful when disconnecting the palmrest, that you don't break the connectors!
Click to expand...

im comfortable with a screwdriver. its just determining the type of ram i need that was always a bit complicated to me. but ill watch out :)
 
L Oquence said:
hmm.. I dont really have an exact quote but im looking to put at least $50 into it, which would cover a standard ide hard drive from amazon, and a few other things.

my main issue is i wont be able to afford it all at once it will be a step by step process.
Click to expand...

All that stuff will cost you over $50. It's hard to find a cheap hard drive for one of these, but I managed to do so on eBay, and I may purchase this myself for my PowerBook G4: http://www.ebay.com/itm/80GB-Hard-D...Internal_Hard_Disk_Drives&hash=item588eda0b39

RAM is harder to find for these computers, so that will be pricey. It depends on how much you want to put in, but I am sure it will be over $30 for a good amount of RAM. As for a battery, third party ones can be around $15-20 but are not the best. The main thing is that they are really cheap and have grey plastic rather than aluminum. Maybe you can find one out there on eBay that still works nicely, but that isn't gonna be super cheap. I always see them for around $30-40 or so. It is realistic that you may spend around 85, assuming you get a good amount of RAM and the cheap batteries. I know, it sucks...
 
I destroyed an ibook's motherboard once because I was not careful of the power connector! :D so I always have to let everyone know to be more careful than I was :D
 
Uhm…yeah. Once you get the keyboard off you got to get the top case off, but see there's these three connectors and almost no space to work in.

See for yourself. On the left side of the pic. You got to get those connectors pried up and disconnected and you only have those three holes to work in!
LBAOcDRNBIVXXF5I.large
 
L Oquence said:
im comfortable with a screwdriver. its just determining the type of ram i need that was always a bit complicated to me. but ill watch out :)
Click to expand...

OWC Mac Sales has a YouTube channel with very nice and professional instructions on how to work on Macs. Try looking for a 12-inch PowerBook G4 HD replacement video on that channel. Make sure you watch a video for your specific model; things will be a little different to work with whether you have a 12-inch PowerBook, a 15-inch model, or a 17-inch. I am sure they have a 12-inch PowerBook HD replacement video on their channel. They are clear and easy to follow. Of course, working in these things is a little intimidating, but be brave and go strong! It's at least not as bad as working with an iBook/iBook G4 *shudder*.
 
PowerMac G4 MDD said:
All that stuff will cost you over $50. It's hard to find a cheap hard drive for one of these, but I managed to do so on eBay, and I may purchase this myself for my PowerBook G4: http://www.ebay.com/itm/80GB-Hard-D...Internal_Hard_Disk_Drives&hash=item588eda0b39

RAM is harder to find for these computers, so that will be pricey. It depends on how much you want to put in, but I am sure it will be over $30 for a good amount of RAM. As for a battery, third party ones can be around $15-20 but are not the best. The main thing is that they are really cheap and have grey plastic rather than aluminum. Maybe you can find one out there on eBay that still works nicely, but that isn't gonna be super cheap. I always see them for around $30-40 or so. It is realistic that you may spend around 85, assuming you get a good amount of RAM and the cheap batteries. I know, it sucks...
Click to expand...


gotta cheap battery for 20.. 99% of the time the computer will be plugged into a wall. so it isnt a big deal as long as the battery last at least an hour at a time

there are ide hard drives for 20 brand new 80/60 gb on ebay.

i only need one ram stick... a 1gb.. i found on ebay one that cost $15

so it does cost a little bit more than i hoped.. around 60-65 with shipping.. and im going to have buy it in pieces..

----------
eyoungren said:
Uhm…yeah. Once you get the keyboard off you got to get the top case off, but see there's these three connectors and almost no space to work in.

See for yourself. On the left side of the pic. You got to get those connectors pried up and disconnected and you only have those three holes to work in!
Image
Click to expand...

i see what youre saying now. ill take my time and be careful :)

Once again, thanks for the help everyone, i cannot reiterate enough how helpful this community has been the past few weeks!
 
eyoungren said:
Uhm…yeah. Once you get the keyboard off you got to get the top case off, but see there's these three connectors and almost no space to work in.

See for yourself. On the left side of the pic. You got to get those connectors pried up and disconnected and you only have those three holes to work in!
Image
Click to expand...

I only disconnect the trackpad connector at this point. Then I proceed to lift up on the trackpad, and disconnect the power wires under the palmrest, it's a bit easier for me. :)
 
jrsx said:
I only disconnect the trackpad connector at this point. Then I proceed to lift up on the trackpad, and disconnect the power wires under the palmrest, it's a bit easier for me. :)
Click to expand...
Yeah, that's an option. The first time I followed iFixit's guide I didn't realize I could do that. By the second (or third) time I thought about that, but two things stopped me. For me the gap isn't wide enough to get my hand in there and because I had pulled the connectors up a few times the other way they were easier to do that that point.

I opened that GD case four times from Friday night to Saturday evening and a fifth time when the replacement for the part I broke inside came a few days later!

Just glad my wife's PB has been rock solid since then.
 
Yeah, the smaller laptops are really a pain in the rear to get into. I've taken my PowerBook apart so many times, now though, that it's really become quite easy anymore. Originally, I will not lie, it was frustrating! I did swap the hard drive, replace thermal paste (twice!!) and pads, and whatnot. But its been rock solid as well since then.
 
Intell said:
It's at least not as bad as working with an iBook/iBook G4 *shudder*.
Click to expand...

Amen. I was just beaten to the punch on an iBook with a HD removed. I looked on iFixit for the guide to replacing one and was sort of glad I lost out on it. Ridiculous design.

Up to now, the worst has been removing the two thermal sensors on a white non-Unibody Macbook. Very easy to rip the sensor sockets from the logicboard and the plugs clip in very snugly so do not come out very easily.

With regard to the HD, new IDE ones are hard to find outside of China and are pricey compared to SATA equivalents. The OP might want to consider buying an mSATA SSD with an IDE adapter. Before the HD crapped out in my Powerbook it was getting on my nerves with the noise of the platters spinning amplified by the Alu shell of my Powerbook. I went the mSATA route and have had no regrets since.
 
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