Which iBook?

K

Killer_VCS

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Okay, so I can get my hands on a 12" G3 iBook, 700mhz, 128mb ram, 20gig hdd, combo drive (cd-rw/dvd), and 56k modem for $800CDN.. I want to use it for internet access, watching/burning dvds/cds, and doing some mild gaming (addicted to roms). Should I go for this or should I save up and get the G4?
 
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I

iDVFH.

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For $200 more you can get a brand new G4 with alot better specs..save up man!
 
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K

Killer_VCS

Guest
See, I'm from Canada, so yeah, you have to watch the prices :p but anyways, that G3 I mentioned is used... I went to Apple's site and layed out a G4 iBook with these specs:

• 512MB DDR266 SDRAM (256MB built-in & 256MB SO-DIMM)
• 30GB Ultra ATA drive
• Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)
• AirPort Extreme Card
• Keyboard & Mac OS X - U.S. English
• 12-inch TFT XGA display
• 1.2GHz PowerPC G4
• ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 w/ 32MB DDR video memory


Estimated Ship:
3-5 business days

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Subtotal
$1,346.00

So yeah.. I'm looking at close to $2000 for the G4.. I figured I'd put in the extra 256mb of ram for the dvd playback.. I have a tendency to take my windows box to friend's places to watch movies, games, tv shows, and all that jazz.. So I figured getting an iBook would be perfect, except I'd lose my good video games, but I don't care anymore.. I need away from windows... So as soon as I get the cash for selling my box, I'm going for an iBook.
 
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I

iDVFH.

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I forgot you were from Cananda )= sry..why do they charge you so much more? i think i read somewhere you have like double tax? province and country?
 
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K

Killer_VCS

Guest
Yeah, our dollar is worth crap, I hate it.. But oh well.. I pay 7% PST (provincial sales tax), and 8% GST (government sales tax, flippin' government *mad*).. Or is it the other way around? I don't remember, either way, in total, I pay 0.15 to the dollar whenever I buy something in Ontario.. But yeah, so after tax I'm looking at just under $1600 for the iBook I mentioned above... Which isn't TOO bad, considering what I put into my windows box...
 
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Well if you put in the ram afterwards yourself you can save it bit as apple charges quite a bit more for ram than other companies.

I'd also get the G4 though if you can afford it. Do you qualify for the educational discount?
 
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K

Killer_VCS

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Okay, quick question... do the G4 iBooks take standard laptop ram? or is it Mac specific?

Secondly, I have no idea about the discount, I'm going to college this september.. So I might? I have no idea, I've never even heard of that before..
 
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meltbanana314

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Killer_VCS said:
Okay, quick question... do the G4 iBooks take standard laptop ram? or is it Mac specific?

The new iBooks take plain old PC2100 (266MHz) RAM. Nothing Mac specific about it.
 
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K

Killer_VCS

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Alright, that's a good thing.. I might just buy a stick of 512mb after I get the actual iBook... So yeah, its' $1250 new from apple... So that's not too bad..

I'm pretty new to laptop hardware.. Do they take the 144-pin sticks? I'm assuming they do since they're smaller.. Also, I noticed on the site that 256mb that's on the mobo is DDR266, for the new stick of ram going in, I'm taking that it has to be the same bus speed, and anything over would be a waste of money? I'm thinking of putting at LEAST another stick of 256mb, but if I can, I'm going to go 512mb..

Also, where can I find out about that student discount?
 
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J

JSchultz

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800 CDN = 654.04 USD. That would be a ripoff. Im typing on the SAME iBook you mentioned, and I got it for $549 USD.

If you can hold off until you hit college, I would go for the education discount. If this current iBook of mine dies, I'm using my education discount to get a a 12" powerbook for 1399. the education discount helps a bit.
 
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Killer_VCS

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Well, I'm just waiting for that magical letter in the mail saying I'm accepted, so once I get enrolled and stuff, I'm going to use the education discount, that'd be a big help. I applied for a computer technician/technology program.. It's pretty sweet.. however, the college I applied to has what is called the "mobile learning program," where they give you (you have to pay a fee I think) a laptop in your 2nd year. The only thing is, I think the course I applied to gets a windows-based IBM laptop, and all the graphical people get the Mac's, which kinda sucks, but oh well. I guess I'll have 2 laptops then :p
 
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Exactly!

Check Crucial.com to find out what type of RAM you need.
They aren't bad price-wise either.

I'd make sure the RAM is of reasonable quality though (i.e. from a reputable maker) as apple computers tend to be a bit more picky about bad RAM than wintel machines.
Or maybe you just don't notice bad ram on wintel boxes because they're always crashing anway ;)
 
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Well, beyond the educational discount is the Sale/Refurb section of the Apple Store. I got the iBook I am typing on now for $900 (U.S.).

1Ghz G4
40 GB HD
512 MB DDR RAM
AirPort Extreme Card
Combo Drive
14" LCD

Plus, you still get the same standard warranty as you would for a brand new machine from Apple, and you can still get AppleCare if you so desire.

Just go to the AppleStore and click on the Red Tag...there are always some great deals there.
 
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Killer_VCS

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I searched on apple.ca for this red tag section you mentioned, but I couldn't find anything.. It's no big deal, it's not like I'll have to pay a lot after I sell my wintel box... That is.. IF I do sell it..
 
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Killer_VCS said:
I searched on apple.ca for this red tag section you mentioned, but I couldn't find anything.. It's no big deal, it's not like I'll have to pay a lot after I sell my wintel box... That is.. IF I do sell it..
It's not surprising you didn't find the red tag. I'm an Australian and there is no such feature on our apple.com.au website. However, I have had the pleasure of browsing the section on the American site.
 

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