G4 iBook worth it?

C

CrimandEvil

Dick with a heart of gold
Joined
Oct 22, 2003
Messages
19,670
I found an old G4 iBook for $300; 21.1" LCD, 1.33GHz G4, 1 gig memory 40gig HDD, OS X 10.5. I have been thinking of getting another netbook to replace my laptop (bought a Dell Mini 9 for my little sis, my GF currently has my Dell laptop) and then I saw this. Is the G4 iBook too old? Is $300 a good price for one with those specs? Will it be too hot to comfortably use in a relaxed condition (like laying down, iBook resting on stomach, etc)? How well does Leopard run on such old hardware?

I was looking at a netbook so that's where my expectations where at. I am hoping to buy it later today if it's still available.
 
My sister has a Mac Mini G4 (1.2Gig, I think), 1GB RAM. Fine for surfing the web, but still slow at that.
 
As much as I have love for the old G4 iBooks, I would have to say stay away; unless the only thing you really want to do with it is browse and do basic office stuff or legacy/carbon stuff. Honestly you can start picking up used white/black Macbooks with CD's for that or just a bit more and those would be a much better deal usability wise. Basically they run from $300-$600.

Personally I would rather pay a little more for significantly more usability and life than what a G4 can offer.
 
You should stay away now from the PowerPC models as there is no longer any upgrade life to them (Snow Leopard is only on Intel processors). If you want to play any HD media on them it'll choke them so do as suggested and look for an Intel MacBook.
 
I wouldn't bother with an older G4 like that at this point.

Too long in tooth.
 
Yeah you are probably best skipping on it for that price. That said, a G4 would be fine for most netbookish things (if that is what you are wanting, seems to be) just not at that price. If you check around craigslist et al you might be able to find one cheaper. I am not sure how the iBooks do, but I have a dual processor 1Ghz PowerMac G4 that moves great for all that I use it for. Has 1.5GB ram, Radeon 9800.


But yeah, at that price you made the smart call. Better off just saving a bit more money and getting something newer.
 
I'd get a Dell Mini 10V and...yeah...

But, I'd skip the G4 for $300.
 
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