Apple iBook Laptop 12.1" M9164LL/A (800-MHz PowerPC G4, 256 MB RAM, 30 GB Hard Drive, DVD/CD-RW Drive)

Featuring a spry power section consisting of an 800 MHz PowerPC G4 processor and 256 MB RAM (expandable to 640 MB), the system packs enough raw muscle for most typical mobile computing tasks. However, the real surprise comes in its 3-D rendering capabilities. Unlike many comparably equipped notebooks, the iBook G4 12-inch features an ATI Mobility Radeon 9200 video chipset with 32 MB of dedicated DDR SDRAM memory. Thusly, it will efficiently handle demanding applications such as 3-D drawing and even some 3-D gaming.

At just 11.2 by 9.1 by 1.3 inches and a scant 4.9 pounds, the iBook G4 12-inch is downright tiny. Yet when you flip the lid you'll find such desirable perks as a full-size 77-key keyboard with 12 function keys and four arrow keys, a trackpad with double-tap and drag capabilities, a smallish but crystal clear 12.1-inch display capable of 1024x768 resolution, and a combination CD-RW/DVD-ROM drive through which you can burn audio CDs, archive files and play the latest Hollywood blockbusters. For storing your files, Apple has installed a serviceable 30 GB hard disk -- enough space for general use but too little for serious multimedia archiving.

Connectivity options include an integrated 56K modem for dial-up communications, a 10/100BASE-T Ethernet port for LAN and high-speed Internet and email, and two high-speed USB 2.0 ports and one FireWire 400 port for external high-tech toys such as scanners, digital cameras and digital camcorders. Users can also purchase an Apple AirPort Extreme Card for wireless communication and an internal Bluetooth module to interact with future cordless Bluetooth devices such as cell phones and PDAs.

Bundled software includes Apple's newest operating system, Mac OS X v.10.3 Panther, and a broad range of highly useable multimedia utilities. Under ideal conditions, battery life is estimated at a stunning six hours.

Keep looking and accept nothing less than a fast G5.


Mac OSX is nice, but the hardware is years out of date   July 18, 2004
 4 out of 12 found this review helpful

I had this notebook for a few months, having switched from the PC to the Mac platform. OSX is a contender... it has grown quite a bit over the past few years to be a true alternative to Windows. If you are the type who only needs a few core applications (as 90% of computer users are), you might seriously consider the Mac platform.

However, Apple needs to get their hardware out of the stone-age. The iBook is a toy, and a 800mhz processor *is indeed* slow. Mac Zealots will tell you otherwise, that the G4 platform is more efficient than x86, etc. This may have been true five years ago, when the G4 was first introduced and comparable to the then-current Pentium IV. But x86 has come a long way since then (Athlon64 anyone?), and the G4 is very, very slow in comparison. Think of the specs... 133mhz bus. 0.8GHZ processor, 256mb RAM, 30GB HD. The LCD is only capable of 1024x768, and is extremely dim and slow.

I could reccomend this notebook to students who need something simple to get their work done, home users that surf the internet wirelessly throughout the house... or a second computer in homes already with a powerful desktop (like a G5...!) who would like roaming wireless capabilities. This isn't a primary machine for a moderate user who demands even a little power for applications.

Pros: Looks nice, feels good, fun to use and look at. Runs OSX, which is great.

Cons: Wimpy little toy under the hood. Don't expect much. The Powerbooks are a better choice for power-users, but Apple needs to bring the G5 to their laptop line soon.


Good machine   July 14, 2004
 0 out of 2 found this review helpful

I've got friends with this (I personally have a 15" PowerBook) machine, and it's great. With OS X I recommend at least 512mb of ram, but for the casual user, 256 would work.

And a side note...multiple users posted reviews about how old and outdated an 800mhz processor is; one thing these people don't know is that it's not x86. Anything non-x86 (POWER, PowerPC, SPARC, MIPS, Alpha, etc) is much better than anything x86. One number I've heard is that in the days of 100mhz, anything non-x86 was 2 to 2.5 times the speed (100mhz Alpha = 200, 250mhz x86).