Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

Poker Mac Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Apple Archive

Picking a Portable Mac

- 2000.12.29

Looking for a new portable Mac? If you are, you may be unsure of which portable to get. There are two Mac portables available right now: the PowerBook, and the iBook. The decision can be hard - unless you buy both (not too many people can afford both, though).

The iBook is marketed to the student or teacher who wants something to take notes on, type up papers, Indigo iBookand access the Internet. The current iBook has a FireWire port and a video out port, so you can give presentations and make your own desktop movies.

The PowerBook G3 is for business users who want a powerful machine that they can bring with them wherever they may need it. It is also for those who want a bigger screen and more expandability than the iBook has to offer.

Both machines are fast, Internet ready, and come with a long lasting battery.

The iBook

At 366 MHz, the iBook works well for almost anything you might want to do. The iBook has built in ethernet, so you can connect to a network or transfer files between your Mac and someone else's. The iBook still has a 56K modem and a USB port, but it now includes a FireWire port and video out ports as well. FireWire allows you to attach external devices such as CD-RW drives, video cameras, and hard drives. The video out port allows you to connect your iBook to a TV or projector to make presentations, which you couldn't do with the original iBook. It also comes in new colours - Indigo and Key Lime. The iBook special edition comes in Key Lime or Graphite with a larger hard drive and a G3 processor running at 466 MHz instead of 366.

The iBook has Internet in it's name (the "i" stands for Internet). When you first turn on your new iBook you see a screen asking if you want to sign up for Internet Access. If you click Yes, you will be asked to answer some questions. After that, the setup program configures your computer to use your account. From there you can log on and access the Internet.

The iBook comes with a 6 hour battery. Okay, it doesn't really last quite 6 hours (it usually lasts about 4.5-5 hours), but it certainly does better than the batteries in most other portables.

The PowerBook

The PowerBook is available in 400 MHz or 500 MHz. Both models include 2 FireWire and 2 USB ports, PowerBook G3as well as a 56K modem, a 10/100 Base-T Ethernet port, a VGA video port, and an S-video out port.

The PowerBook also features easy Internet Access with much the same setup as the iBook.

The PowerBook comes with a 4 hour battery (it lasts about 3 hours) and a DVD-ROM drive. You can install two batteries and get longer battery life than even the iBook!

Making the Choice

If you are planning to be doing general word processing, Internet, and some occasional games, the iBook might be the best way to go. Keep in mind that it has a 12.1" screen and can only display the 800 x 600 resolution.

If you are planning to do photo editing and/or want to have more expandability, the PowerBook, with it's 14.1" 1024 x 768 screen, would be the way to go. Keep in mind, though, that a new PowerBook model will almost certainly be introduced at Macworld Expo in January. You may want to wait for that model to appear before purchasing a new portable.

Whatever you choose, I recommend buying a good case for it, and, if you carry it around a lot, using Apple's password protection. A computer like this is an expensive investment, and you must take all measures possible to keep it safe. LEM

Recent Apple Archive articles

Links for the Day

Recent Content on Low End Mac

Recent Deals

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

[an error occurred while processing this directive] Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2010 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
  LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
  Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
  Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
  PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
  Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.

Custom Search

Amazon.com

Navigation

Used Mac Dealers
Apple History
Video Cards
Email Lists

Favorite Sites

MacSurfer
MacMinute
MacInTouch
MyAppleMenu
InfoMac
Macs Only!
The Mac Observer
Accelerate Your Mac
RetroMacCast
PB Central
MacWindows
The Vintage Mac
   Museum
DealMac
DealsOnTheWeb
Mac2Sell
ramseeker
Mac Driver Museum
JAG's House
System 6 Heaven
System 7 Today
the pickle's Low-End
   Mac FAQ
Abandonware
   Petition
Mac vs. PC Info

Affiliates

The Apple Store
Mac Connection
B&H
MacMall
TechRestore
ExperCom
Crucial Memory
batteries.com

Low End Mac's Amazon.com store

Advertise

All of our advertising is handled by BackBeat Media. For price quotes and advertising information, please contact at BackBeat Media (646-546-5194). This number is for advertising only.

Open Link

Problems viewing this page with Internet Explorer 5.5 or 6? It works fine in other browsers, including IE 7. We recommend Firefox for those using Windows, as it is standards based and more secure than IE 6 (and earlier). More LEM visitors use Firefox than any other browser.