It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously.
It's just good. Buy it please. You'll like it, I promise. Seriously. iBook G3.

Awesome design. The PowerPC G3 handles almost as much as the G4s, AltiVec and Core Animation excluded.

Nice keyboard. Decent screen. AirPort (WLAN).
Great battery life!

Decent graphics card. However, lid gets scratched easily.
Easily develops the Logic Board Failure of Death that also manages to burn a huge hole in your wallet.

12 inch model has low resolution - only 1024x768.

Not supported by Leopard - even the 1 GHz model is unsupported. Great value, a good budget notebook.

The Apple iBook G3 is a great Mac. I've had mine from secondhand for over 2 years without a problem. We sell secondhand versions of these like hotcakes. People love them, especially the old clamshell versions, because they're bomb-proof. The 500mHz version has some issues, but the latest version have had these problems ironed out. Apple are now producing G4 versions which are even faster. Screens are vivid and crisp, good feel to the keyboard, and responsive track-pad. Need to run OS 10.3 or later on them to get the battery life. Love being able to use it anywhere in the house with the airport network we have wired in.

The Apple iBook G3 laptop is a perfect machine to work on! It has smooth edges, and has no protruding bits to snag/catch/break (apart from the CD tray, but this comes out about a centimetre from the actual laptop itself so you can pull it out yourself).

The software is excellent, except if you are a PC user like me, you might want to buy Microsoft Office for Mac which has MSN, Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Entourage. I got this for £12 including P+P on eBay!! The one button near the touchpad is good (and for the left button click, equivalent to the PC, you can use Ctrl and button).

The lit up Apple logo on the lid is a nice touch, and the screen LCD display is crystal clear and a very bright colour! And because I am a student, Apple discounts everything I buy from the store!

It never crashes, but one bad point is that (I am sure this is only on my laptop though) it never lets the battery percentage get past 80% which is 20 minutes?? I just leave the power supply from the mains on all the time that I am at home though, so it's not a problem, although I am getting it fixed.

Overall, I would give this machine 9.5 stars, and yes, I have been changed from liking Windows to Macintosh because it is so easy!

In general, this is a very productive business and home computer. While I had some initial hardware problems, the iBook is relatively crash-free, and the software is beautifully written. I have never cracked a manual to learn about any of the programs written for OS-X. However, the actual shell of the computer, hinges, CD drive and other aspects are frighteningly frail, and I can see cracks radiating from the fasteners in the screen area. Apple charges an extraordinary amount for serivce, so get the extended warranty plan if you buy one of these computers.

All,

We've been Apple iBook G3 users for years and have several laptops networked in our office, with a few lonely PCs. They all work fine, but the Mac, overall, is far better than the PCs.

We are a print shop so graphics, and handling large files are important and the Mac does it fine. However, the PC is not horribly behind and have a PC server for a few applications, too. We also use PCs for a few business (non graphic) apps, and they're hanging in there.

Bottom line, however, we'ed prefer the Mac, for ALL applications, and especially graphics. We'ed keep out accounting on Mac exept for the fact that all the outside accounting firms, and the one we deal with, are on PC. So be it, and we down load the data to them using (ugh) a PC. But it works.

Herman

Was persuaded to try mac after years of PC using - thanks to the Apple iBook G3I am now completely converted. Absolutely delighted by iBook and mac OSX - am about to upgrade to G4 model!!!

The design of the Apple iBook is smart. There are no notches, switches (apart from the lid release switch) or catches which could potentially break or get snagged on anything. The battery is released by means of inserting a coin into a rotating switch, which seems sensible. However, it is disappointing that the battery door on mine does not perfectly line up with the chassis, which seems rather clumsy.

All iBooks are manufactured in the colour 'snow', which is unordodox, but doesn't appear unprofessional. There is a translucent layer on the outside of the chassis which, apparently, is made of polycarbonate. I am told that this is the same material used to produce bullet-proof glass. However, I still get the feeling that it would still be very easy to scratch this material.

Setup is very easy - you simply plug it in and you're virtually ready to go. It is unfortunate that it took me so long to figure out how to open the lid. When you press the lid release button, you must also apply pressure to the lid. This procedure is quite straightforward, but those who are unaware of it may struggle to figure it out. It doesn't help that the documentation contains no instructions regarding this.

The quality of the LCD display is superb. I had planned on buying the 12" model, but ended up getting the 14" because the 12" was out of stock and not expected for some time. I am glad that I ended up with the 14", because the difference is definately noticable (plus the 14" model has an extra 128Mb of RAM which generates a significant performance boost). I would recommend buying the 12" model only if you already have a desktop PC, and intend to use the iBook as a secondary computer. The built-in speakers are average at best, but I usually use headphones anyway.

It is a pity that the 3 year extended warranty option on this model is prohibitively expensive. Fortunately, New Zealand law requires that all goods function properly for a "reasonable" period of time. I know of cases where laptops have failed within the space of three years, and vendors have been forced to repair them free of charge despite them being out of warranty. Hopefully people in other countries can also enjoy similar statutory protection.

The iBook is a bit more expensive than other notebooks with equivalent specifications, but the thoughtful and pleasing design, along with the fantastic OS X, make it worthwhile.