  | Apple iBook Notebook M8597LL/A (500-MHz PowerPC G3, 128 MB RAM, 15 GB hard drive)
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Average user rating:  | |
 The perfect compromise | |
| You can't have everything. At least, not at 1,199 bucks. The bottom-of-the-line iBook is exactly what it should be: Extremely portable and extremely friendly. Extremely fast? Not. This is a compromise machine -- the screen is small and the processor is the slowest available on a Mac. At 12.1 inches, the screen is among the smallest you will find on a laptop nowadays, but it is super-sharp. And the fairly pokey processor is still more than adequate for word processing and iTunes and some basic graphics applications, and for surfing the web. Also, 128 MB of RAM is downright puny in today's computing world. You'll definitely want to upgrade to at least 256 MB. Now, for the good part. By making those compromises, the iBook is not only cheap, it is light -- under 5 pounds. Check out a similarly equipped laptop from your weekly Bestbuy ad, and you will see behemoths weighing in at 6, 7, 8 or even 9 pounds! And you will rarely find one this thin, and never one this cool. Battery power on the iBook also far outshines its PC competition, helped in part by that small screen and slow processor. This is basically the perfect machine for someone on the go -- including reporters like me -- or for a K-12 student. If these compromises are simply too much for you, Apple has an alternative for you -- the no-compromises, 5.4 pound, 1-inch thick, super-fast Titanium Powerbook G4. It's your choice. You get what you pay for. | |
| A great laptop! ***** | |
| Apple has reinvented the iBook as one of the best laptops. Not just Mac, but in all of the PC world. The second generation of this version has a faster processor, a larger hard drive, and still looks great. People are drawn to look at this machine from the time you pull it from it's case. I would certainly recommend a RAM upgrade. 128 is okay, but it is just barely getting by. I'd suggest at least doubling that. Since the iBook only has one RAM slot, you may want to do that on ordering. However, you can get quality chips for less from other sources, and since it's a fairly simple install you can do it yourself in a few minutes. I use my iBook as a webmaster with Macromedia Dreamweaver and Fireworks, Adobe Photoshop, and iMovie 2. My digital camera mounts as an external hard drive. My digital video camera links through the Firewire port with no fuss at all. Overall, I would highly recommend the iBook. | |
 Too slow | |
| If you want to buy an iBook, buy a faster one. This one just can't run any modern software. Heck, it isn't much good for old software. Go for the 700MHZ G3 or don't bother! If you need to run any graphics software then buy a G4. My G3 can't hack Adobe anything! If I could go back I would buy a G4 based Powerbook (I use one at work). |
