My first Mac purchase - I need your help!

Greetings all,

I could really use some expert advice regarding an iBook purchase. This will be the first Mac that I have ever owned or used. I have heard a number of great comments regarding Apple so I thought I would give them a try.

I am broke so I can only afford the 12 inch iBook and will upgrade to 60 gig hard-drive, add applecare, and purchase 512 RAM from Crucial (even though I am very nervous to install it myself).

My questions:

1) When is a good time to buy the iBook? I know that it was updated last Oct. I would really like to buy one as soon as possible but I read some stuff regarding an updated iBook coming out when Tiger is released (maybe Video card etc). I sort of get the impression that the iBook is currently a bit of an old dog hardware wise - is this the case? Also, should I wait until after Jan. 22 to get the new 05 software or will it ship with the new software if I order now?

2) Is the computer and uprades I've chosen going to keep me happy for the next 3 years that I will be using the computer? Aside from using it for email, webpage construction, and university work, I tend to use my computers for listening to all my music and intend to do some recording in the next few months (nothing too serious).

3) Did Apple ever fix the motherboard (?) and screen defect problems they were having with the iBook?

4) Is the ram really that easy to install?

Any other advice is welcome.

Thanks very much in advance!

Regards,

Jordan

from what ive gathered the ibook will run Tiger fine but will miss out on some of the graphics apps because of the card but the rest is fine. no one mentioned new i or power books so id buy one now with no worries

those upgrades should be fine for what you want to use your ibook for

never herd of that problem

RAM on a normal notebook is easy as pie so im going to presume that its just as easy on one of these

Jordan said:

Greetings all,

I could really use some expert advice regarding an iBook purchase. This will be the first Mac that I have ever owned or used. I have heard a number of great comments regarding Apple so I thought I would give them a try.

I am broke so I can only afford the 12 inch iBook and will upgrade to 60 gig hard-drive, add applecare, and purchase 512 RAM from Crucial (even though I am very nervous to install it myself).

My questions:

1) When is a good time to buy the iBook? I know that it was updated last Oct. I would really like to buy one as soon as possible but I read some stuff regarding an updated iBook coming out when Tiger is released (maybe Video card etc). I sort of get the impression that the iBook is currently a bit of an old dog hardware wise - is this the case? Also, should I wait until after Jan. 22 to get the new 05 software or will it ship with the new software if I order now?

2) Is the computer and uprades I've chosen going to keep me happy for the next 3 years that I will be using the computer? Aside from using it for email, webpage construction, and university work, I tend to use my computers for listening to all my music and intend to do some recording in the next few months (nothing too serious).

3) Did Apple ever fix the motherboard (?) and screen defect problems they were having with the iBook?

4) Is the ram really that easy to install?

Any other advice is welcome.

Thanks very much in advance!

Regards,

Jordan

Click to expand...

Hey Jordan

I've recently purchased the 12" iBook and can answer most your questions.

1. Depends on what you are intending to use the iBook for. Myself, I'm a diehard gamer, but chose the iBook in addition to my Alienware PC laptop so that when travelling abroad, I'd have something to watch DVD's, had great battery life for working outside (love to write) and just general portability (something severely lacking in the Alienware laptop I have). So if you intend to use the iBook for writing, general web surfing, email, IM conversations, and maybe some light businesss work like presentations and the like, I see no reason why this laptop would not last a good 3 years (at least - if not more).

2. for 3years, the price simply cannot be beat. Just don't wait for an iBook to become available that will satiate your every gaming need b/c it won't every happen with this line. Sure, Apple will likely release the next version sometime this spring with better features and/or hardware, but the iBook series is NOT MEANT as a gaming center - again it depends largely on what you will primarily use the laptop for.

3. I installed the same RAM chip, the 512 from Crucial and as long as you read the manual 3x before proceeding, you'll be fine. Make sure you have a very small Philips head screwdriver, the screws on the RAM casing are very small, and be sure to keep touching metal sides to discharge your body from static electricity. Static electricity = death to RAM modules!

Hope these answers help. I've poured through forums like these before realising I had already made my decision a long time ago. Took the pluge about a week and a half ago and just regret I waited so long in the first place!

-Peter

Buy it now. if you keep on waiting for newer versions you 'll never buy, as there is always a newer version around the corner!


iBook comes with iTunes , iBook doesn't have microphone input so for recording from external source (Tape, CD, LP etc.) use iMic that's all you need. iBook's built in speakers are so and so , you might consider adding external speakers.

Memory expansion is hardly a few minutes' job. If you can read and handle a screw driver , you can do it.

You can purchase Apple Care plan which gives 2 more years of peace of mind.


Come, join us.


Regards

SUhas

"My questions:

1) When is a good time to buy the iBook? I know that it was updated last Oct. I would really like to buy one as soon as possible but I read some stuff regarding an updated iBook coming out when Tiger is released (maybe Video card etc). I sort of get the impression that the iBook is currently a bit of an old dog hardware wise - is this the case? Also, should I wait until after Jan. 22 to get the new 05 software or will it ship with the new software if I order now?

2) Is the computer and uprades I've chosen going to keep me happy for the next 3 years that I will be using the computer? Aside from using it for email, webpage construction, and university work, I tend to use my computers for listening to all my music and intend to do some recording in the next few months (nothing too serious).

3) Did Apple ever fix the motherboard (?) and screen defect problems they were having with the iBook?"


1. If you don't need the iBook straight away, you could consider waiting for the April/may revision - they'll probably update the graphics card then as well... but again they might not and you can play the upgrade game forever...

3. The motherboard problems were a problem they hard in the iBook G3, the iBook G4 hasn't suffered from similar widespread problems...

Screen problems? Not really sure what you mean there, but I haven't seen or heard anything except one single case.

What about the warrenty?

Thanks so much for the feedback. I am nearly ready to pick up the 12 inch iBook now.

By the way, will installing my own ram void the warranty at all?

How about bluetooth? I am not sold just yet on whether I should bother with this, but I figure that it might free up the USB slots (which is usefull since there are only 2).

As for recording, I understand that there is a USB-MIDI interface available. That should do the trick.

Thanks again! I'm sure I'll be back with more questions. In fact, it could get worse once I start using it!

Jordan

p.s. there really is a tight Mac community out there isn't there!

If you install well-recognised RAM such as Crucial and Kingston, then it shouldn't affect your warranty, unlike less well-known generic brands.

Installing ANY brand of ram yourself won't void your warranty.

If the generic RAM breakes your iBook, then you can complain to apple about it.

Bluetooth is a build-to-order option only and can't be added later. I got it as I can use my mobile phone as an emergency modem and sync all my stuff to it + I just got a bluetooth keyboard for use at home.

There is virtually no way for generic ram to harm your comp. All ram is is a place for the comp to store temporary files being used. If apple had a policy that using certain generic ram would void your warranty, could you imaine the lawsuits that would be brought against them? I have a 1gb kingmax stick in my ibook. Got it for less than 200 at newegg, I know others who have the same ram and I know a few people who have crucial ram. There are no noticable differences at all. theirs may last a little longer, maybe not, Who knows. By the time my rams wears out it will be time foor a new ibook anyway.

Just to clarify: I wasn't saying that generic ram can in any way harm your iBook, but lets say for example that you buy the wrong type of ram with different connectors and force it in, thus breaking the ram slot - then apple won't cover you.

However: It should be said that generic ram can influence the system's overall stability. There are plenty of accounts here where people have gone for cheap ram and have experienced problems with kernel panics, crashes etc...

Hmmmmm......

I think the best time to get an ibook is now b/c iLife has been updated and in my opinion, if you can use an ibook now, there is really no point to wait. However, www.macrumors.com reports that there MAY be ibook and powerbook g5's coming out in the 2nd quarter of 2005 to be released with OS X Tiger. However, it may be a rumor and it may not be worth the risk to wait. I don't know if those rumors are true b/c apple updated their ibooks in Oct. 2004 and to me it would be a surprise to throw g5 processors in ibooks and powerbooks instead of powerbooks only. this way there would be a clear difference in choosing and ibook or powerbook. nevertheless, i am happy with the performance of my ibook and i think it would be more than sufficient for what most people use it for.

Computer.Geek said:

I think the best time to get an ibook is now b/c iLife has been updated and in my opinion, if you can use an ibook now, there is really no point to wait. However, www.macrumors.com reports that there MAY be ibook and powerbook g5's coming out in the 2nd quarter of 2005 to be released with OS X Tiger.

Click to expand...

That's absolute bull. The iBooks won't get a G5, at least not the same time as the PowerBooks will. Macrumors is off this time.

If a G5 iBook and PowerBook come out anywhere near each other (6 months), I'll proceed to eat my shoe.