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What's up with the iBook?

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xxbeatlesxxgirl

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 3, 2008
2
0
usa
so heres the deal, i recently got employed and i was browsing amazon and ebay looking at cheap mac computers -because i only have a dell, and quite frankly, i hate it- and something caught my attention. iBooks for 100 and 200 hundred dollars, much cheaper than even the refurbished macbooks.

so my question is, whats the difference? i know ibook is older, but would it be as good a value as macbook for someone with not a lot of money?
 
Well, they are cheaper because they are pretty old now.

I would stay away from an iBook G3 of any type... an iBook G4 is a viable choice, they come in 12" screen and 14" screen versions.

The thing to know right away is that they are PowerPC processors, not intel, so they will not run Windows, and probably will not run the next release of OSX.

Like any used machine, they will perform adequately IF you equip them with the software that was designed for them. You get into big trouble as soon as you want to update software to new versions. What this means is that you may have to do some digging to come up with age-appropriate software like Office and the Adobe suite, if you want those.

Modern games are right out of the question, things like the Sims2 will not run at all.

Make sure if you are looking at a used one that you get the OSX install disk that shipped with the machine - it will have the iApps (iMovie, iPhoto etc) on it, and you'll need that disk to reinstall. A used machine without original CDs is worth somewhat less.
 
iBooks use an older, much much slower processor. They have smaller drives and have less RAM. They're good little machines if you can get them cheap but the MacBooks blow them away in terms of performance.

The iBook will not be able to run 10.6 when it's released and in my experience even with 1.25GB they have a bit of trouble running 10.5.
 
My ibook G4 had the Logic board replaced 3 times before apple replaced it with a macbook.

An ibook is a very huge difference and is not any value. The first gen macbooks (with a core Duo [1st one]) are 2-3 times faster than the ibooks. Imagine the difference now!

It is not a great value. The oldest macbook you can find sticking out of a dumpster is considered a better value than that ****@!!!. Even if the logic board doesnt go out, you still have a 1 gig ram limit, and its still very slow. Your Mac experience will be ruined, your expectations will not be met. It will choke on the higher file sizes, bit rates, and bandwith necessities of today's computing world.

You can get it because it's a hundred bucks, but dont consider it as a modern laptop. It is nothing compared to the macbook.
 
i have the last iteration of the ibook
late 2005 1.33ghz 12" 60gb & 1.5gb ram running tiger

it's adequate. approaching 3 years old. as my only computer it was limited so i went with a mini in late 2007.
as a second computer it's great though and more than adequate. an early macbook would be a nice upgrade but as long as you don't get carried away with having a hundred browser tabs and 7 apps open it is great.
 
That iBook would likely complement your Dell, but not replace it. Without knowing the specs it's hard to say.

If you're really considering a switch away from Dell products (and Windows at the same time), save some more money and consider a refurbished MacBook direct from Apple. Or, for a little less, you could find a previous generation MacBook on eBay or Craigslist.
 
My iBook G4 is a sturdy machine. It feels like its on its last legs though and I really want to upgade to a MacBook. Working on getting my finances in order first. Downside, it really isn't that expandable, slow, etc. Good things: sturdy, reliable and the display.
 
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