Q about Apple Refurbished Models

Hello everyone!

I am contemplating switching from WinXP Pro to Apple, though I'm sure you see that a lot around here (and has not much to do with my question).

On to that -- as far as Apple Refurbished models go, has anyone noticed any trends as far as reliability compared to "new" models? And, are student discounts available on refurbished models?

Specifically, I'm looking at the iBook 14" G4 1.33 through Apple's Refurbished Site, which has it for $899.00. Another question: This particular unit comes with 256MB of RAM. If I were to purchase enough RAM to get it to 1GB, how easy is installation, and if complicated, how much does installation usually run?

Okay, so that was a lot more questions than I thought. Hopefully you all can help someone from back in the Apple IIse days return to the light.

Thanks!

in order:
No, Im not sure, and its as easy as putting it in in 5 - 15 minutes.

heres what i know...

first...they work just as well since apple never skimps on quality.
second...im pretty sure student discounts are only for new products.
third....very very easy, i put 2 sticks into my imac g5 and it took 10 minutes tops. it was my first time ever adding a part.

finally...welcome to the forums and feel free to ask ANYTHING you need to know

whats a link to the apple refurb store?

Linkage

And thanks for the replies. Right now it seems that I'm doing a balancing act between wanting to get a iBook for $699, and wanting a SuperDrive, which bumps it to $999 (14" iBook). I'm going to wait and see what prices do, as I don't really need one until January.

The iBooks have one stick of ram onboard, which you can't remove, so if it has 256mb onboard then you can't actually have 1GB. You'll have to go to 1.25gb.

<nods> That is what the Apple salesperson I spoke with yesterday indicated. One stick of RAM is always hardwired. And while I really can't see the reason behind this, I can work with it.