Home > Consumer Reviews > Apple iBook Laptop 12" M9426LL/A (1.0-GHz PowerPC G4, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive, DVD/CD-RW Drive)

I BOUGHT THIS LAPTOP IN JUNE AND SO FAR, NO PROBLEMS AT ALL. i LOVE GARAGEBAND!! THIS LAPTOP IS IDEAL FOR A STUDENT. ONLY THINGS I DON'T LIKE ARE THE SMALL HARD DRIVE AND THE SCRATCHES THAT APPEAR ON IT DAILY. OTHERWISE, IT IS GREAT, THANKS APPLE!!!!

After my computer crashed, for about the third time, I resolved never to purchase another PC or Microsoft product. For years I put up with substandard programs from that company, all the while thinking that I had little choice in the matter. Sure there was Apple, but aren't they the Betamax (I've really aged myself with that reference...) of the computer world? It wasn''t until I used a friends Power book that I realized how wrong I had been.

Over the course of several months I had many conversations with diehards, and recent converts alike, who all echoed the same message; Mac's don't crash. It seemed too good to be true, but then again, Microsoft seems too bad to be true, and yet...

So, through my school I found an awesome deal on an iBook G4 (which I am using to write this review). I upgraded the RAM, the HD, and installed the Airport Extreme card, + the applecare warranty extension, all for less than $1200!!! Ofcourse, this was through my university, so non-students may not be able to find such a good deal. However, the internet is full of great deals.

At any rate, I love my iBook G4. It's light and sturdy, it looks great, and the battery lasts forever (I get 4 hours of use even with the performance set at high). My previous laptop was a Sony VAIO that gave me three years of outstanding performance, but like an old dog with a busted hip, it was time to retire the old girl. I expect to get great use out of my iBook, and with the Applecare protection plan, despite some other reviews, I will.

So, if you too are completely fed up with the Microsoft juggernaught/monopoly, it's probably time for a regime change... step up to a mac, and you will wonder why you didn't make the switch sooner.

I just got this delivered two days ago, along with an Airport Extreme card, and it is fantastic. The installation of the wireless card was very easy (took a couple of minutes), and the elegant operating system found it and configured it instantly. A couple of screens later, it connected to the wireless router (made by Compaq), connected to a DSL modem, with better speeds and reliability than my Compaq laptop ever was able to. It also found my desktop mac (which has a DVD burner) very quickly and networked to it easily. The screen is bright and surprisingly very readable for its smallish 12.1" size. But the screen size tradeoff is an extremely portable package, which has a fit and finish second to none.
The program suite (iLife, Safari, etc.) is excellent--Safari is an Apple-only browser, which works much faster than Explorer did in a previous Mac and is at least as fast as Explorer is on my Compaq laptop.
Also, don't let the chip speed fool you. This 1GHz G4 (which has the exact same specs as the Powerbook 12" model Apple sold just a few months ago) is faster than my 1.6GHz P4 laptop, and is at least equal to (I'm not kidding) to the 2.8GHz HP desktop I have at work. That desktop has "integrated Intel graphics" and the iBook has 32mb of dedicated graphics memory, so maybe that has something to do with it, but the desktop also has 512mb memory, while the iBook has 256mb. I will be upgrading the memory by adding a 512mb chip shortly, which will make the speed of this thing increase that much more.
As far as compatability, if you qualify for it, get the academic version of Office for Mac (just released 2004 version) for less than $150.00, and you'll have all the MS office programs you need, which create files completely compatible with the Windows versions.
When work is done, however, the iLife programs (which has photo management, movie editing, the iTunes music jukebox (and iTunes store), DVD creation, and music creation programs) are a joy to use--your creative side really comes out, and the end products are very polished.
In summary, you can't go wrong. Amazon's price is competitive with what the other online places charge, plus with the free shipping and no tax, and if you use the Amazon.com credit card, the 3% credit (which adds up to over $30), Amazon may just well be the best place to buy it.
Understand that I have nothing against Windows computers, and use them happily... It's just that these macs with the OSX operating system are much more polished, and a pure joy to use.

This unit is fantastic. It is light, quick and very pretty. Apple computers do not tend to get viruses. They don't crash or freeze. It is a superior product.

I find the iBook totally awesome, but there is just one thing I would like to know... Is there any webcam that works for the iBook that is not the iSight? I think 150 bucks are too much for a webcam, no matter how good it is. Thanks!