refrub iBook advice

[Spud1]

Ok being a relative mac n00b (having only owned a 300mhz clamshell last year before i sold it making a profit) I could do with a tiny bit of info

I'm looking to replace my laptop (currently FS) with a mac alternative. I only really use my lappy for web browsing/msn/putty, DVDs and a bit of word processing, so I dont need anything too powerful

My problem is that while PC wise I know what hardware will do what, I havnt got a clue with macs

budget is tiny - £300-£400 so i'm not expecting much..but I wouldnt of thought i need a really powerful one for basic use will I?

Would a 900mhz ibook do me or would that just be horribly slow? There are always a few on ebay for that sort of price, all ranging from 500mhz to 900mhz. Is there anywhere better to get refurb/2nd hand iBooks than ebay? seems the cheapest place I can find..any advice would be appreciated

[tj53]

900MHz should be just fine for your needs. It'll run tiger just fine, and word processing web, etc. will have plenty of speed. eBay is probably your best bet unless you can find a deal locally.

[Red10]

900MHz should be just fine for your needs. It'll run tiger just fine, and word processing web, etc. will have plenty of speed. eBay is probably your best bet unless you can find a deal locally.

Yeah it should be Ok, i wouldn't say it would have PLENTY of speed, but it will be satisfactory...

[menthel]

I have to agree, it won't be stellar but it will do the job nicely.

[Red10]

Note, if you're going to run Panther or Tiger (especially) max the RAM, or you will struggle even with Word etc.

[Spud1]

thanks for the advice guys bought one now :S

Ended up with an iBook G4 1.07 Ghz with 768MB of ram also includes an airport card.

bought off ebay for £395 inc pnp..bargin i think - assuming it arrives in one piece (not here yet, probly wont have it till next week) Gotta love the sellers who are rubbish at making listings that sell well, drives the price right down.

[headbrace]

Sounds like a great bargain there. With that amount of Ram Tiger will really fly, so you should get a great experience.

Let us know how you get on.

[Red10]

thanks for the advice guys bought one now :S

Ended up with an iBook G4 1.07 Ghz with 768MB of ram also includes an airport card.

bought off ebay for £395 inc pnp..bargin i think - assuming it arrives in one piece (not here yet, probly wont have it till next week) Gotta love the sellers who are rubbish at making listings that sell well, drives the price right down.

That's a steal, good purchase... enjoy!

[J4MES]

should have bought mine!!

[Spud1]

well i offered

[bsodmike]

Hope you enjoy it spud Curious question tho, would the fancier effects in the dashboard work on an iBook? (limited by choice of onboard GPU iirc)... on my 17" I get fluid motion with that and the RSS screensaver but that's what 128megs o' ram'll get ya...just wondering?

[Spud1]

Well i have it now, arrived in the post today ,


Gotta say i'm loving it, looks amazing, and its very fast. I can see what people mean about the build quality compared to the powerbooks, but its still nicely built - the most annoying thing build quality wise is the mouse button, but then i prefer to tap the touchpad to click anyway so thats a none issue really.

Gonna be spending the rest of the afternoon playing with it i think and trying to remember how to use a mac