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The 'Book Review

Compiled by and edited by - July 6, 2001

Except as noted, prices are in U.S. dollars, bold links are to outside sites, and regular links lead to 'Book profiles on Low End Mac.

• Apple Reauthorizes Apple Specialist Servicing of PowerBooks
• PowerBook G3 Hinge Repair Page Posted
• Kensington TripleTreks FlapOver PowerBook Case at Small Dog
• SK 2.5 FireWire/USB Combo Enclosure for $99.99
• VST 3 GB FireWire Drive for $100
• Cool, Homemade TiCase
• Bargain 'Books

Apple Reauthorizes Apple Specialist Servicing of PowerBooks

A report on Go2Mac.com notes that Apple, apparently without fanfare, has "changed service status of the PowerBook G4 Titanium and iBook Dual USB from 'Return to Depot,' to FIP or Field Installable Parts."

One of the most frustrating aspects of PowerBook/iBook ownership for too many people has been Apple's insistence that 'Books be shipped to its central service depot in Texas for even trivial repairs.

According to Go2Mac, "Under the new plan, authorized Apple Specialists that have completed training courses on the two new 'Books and that stock a requisite amount of parts can fix the machines at their locations."

Hooray! It's long past time that this common sense policy was restored.

PowerBook G3 Hinge Repair Page Posted

Robert Westbrook, who lives not far from me here in Nova Scotia, recently had one of the screen lid hinges fail on his Wallstreet 233/512k 14.1" which he purchased in September of 1999

The good news is that Robert was able to fix his PowerBook himself, rather than having to schlep it off to Texas and pay in the neighborhood of $400 plus freight to have the hinge repaired.

Robert's DIY repair cost around $60 Canadian, and he has posted a Website tutorial showing others how to do it!

"Fixing it was not terribly hard," says Robert. "One simply has to be very careful and contemplative of his next move. It also doesn't hurt that I was an airplane mechanic in a past life and have experience working with expensive, delicate parts."

Kensington TripleTreks FlapOver PowerBook Case at Small Dog

Kensington has a full line of computer carrying cases featuring EasyGrip foam covered handles and padded straps, self-repairing zippers, extra-padded computer compartments and more.

The Kensington TripleTreks FlapOver Case is a traditional briefcase-style bag with large outside flap

Features

• Removable computer compartment protects computer in and out of your bag
• Hideaway water bottle grip and outer sleeve pocket for quick access
• Heavy-duty engineering with shock-absorbing honeycomb frame

For more information, visit Small Dog Electronics (click the PowerBook page button link).

SK 2.5 FireWire/USB Combo Enclosure for $99.99

The SK 25 (external 2.5 HDD) gives you the freedom to work anywhere - at home, in the office, even on a plane. This tiny portable drive provides maximum flexibility and portability with various interfaces. Once your computer's drive has been copied to the FLEX HDD, you can travel and connect it to any PC system and gain access to your programs and data files. Just plug the cable into any notebook, desktop, or Macintosh with a USB and 1394 port you have instant connectivity. With built-in hot swap technology, you can connect and disconnect the drive any time. Simple installation. Just plug it in and load the driver one time.

You can check it out at FireWire Depot.

VST 3 GB FireWire Drive for $100

MacZone has marked down the VST FW9530 3 GB FireWire Pocket Drive external hard drive to $99.99 - half off the list price. Shipping is under $6. This price is typical for empty FireWire drive cases. The FW9530 is a slim-line, bus-powered, red-and-white case containing a 4200 rpm hard drive. It comes with a one-year warranty.

VST's ultra slim FireWire Hard Drives are the smallest, lightest, high-performance FireWire Hard Drives available. Ideal for those looking for a portable solution for their high storage needs, these IEEE 1394 compliant drives are bus powered, so no external power supply is needed. Plus, they have plug & play ease of use with no device IDs or termination and are hot-plug and unplug supported. These drives are compatible with both Macintosh and Windows 98SE FireWire enabled computers and have dual 6-pin FireWire ports, so up to 63 devices can be daisy chained together. These drives are ideal for those looking for a portable solution for their high storage needs.

Specifications

• Dimensions (WxDxH): 4.7 in x 8.4 in x 2.2 in
• Weight: 2.4 lbs
• Formatted Capacity: 3 GB
• Interface Type: IEEE 1394 FireWire
• Data Transfer Rate: 50 MBps
• Average Seek Time: 12 ms
• Spindle Speed: 4200 rpm
• Cache / Buffer Size: None
• Warranty: 1 year warranty

Cool, Homemade TiCase

NuBaggage proudly displays the PowerBook case he made for his TiBook.

• So, no need to make this too complicated.
• I wanted a good computer bag for my Titanium.
• I didn't like what I found.
• I decided to make my own.
• Apparently a lot of people feel the same way.
• Now I have this web site for people to see the bag.

MEI-Micro Center

• iBook 466 MHz DVD/FireWire/Graphite, $997

electricdeal.com

• PowerBook G4/500 256MB/20 GB/DVD, $3,099

MacWarehouse

• Refurbished 500 MHz TiBooks 256MB/20 GB/DVD, $2,999. Product is reconditioned. Reconditioned computers may not include original application software. 90 day parts and labor warranty.

Small Dog Electronics

• Original iBook Blueberry G3/300 64/6 GB/CD/56k for $899

The PowerBook Guy

• PowerBook G3/233 WallStreet 32/2 GB/CD/56k/14.1", $949.95
• PowerBook 540c 12/160/19.2 kbps modem, $259.95

MacSelect

• PowerBook Lombard G3 400 MHz 64 MB/6 GB/DVD/56K, 90 Day Apple Warranty, Refurb, $1,549
• PowerBook G3 WallStreet 292 MHz/128 MB/8 GB/20xCD/100 MB Zip/floppy/56K/14.4", Refurbished, $1,329
• PowerBook G3 WallStreet 266 MHz 192 MB/4 GB/20xCD/100MB Zip/56K/14.1", Refurbished, $1,249

Recent 'Book Reviews

• MacBook Slowdown without Battery, DisplayLink and DRM, 256 GB SSD, MagSafe Solutions, and More, 11.26. Also Mac netbook prospects, laptop cooling table with 2 fans, solar notebook bag, hard shell cases for unibody 'Books, bargain 'Books from $500 to $2,299, and more.
• DisplayPort Copy Protection, Trackpad Update, Netbooks Not to Be Taken Lightly, and More, 11.21. Also Apple set for record sales, 4-finger gestures on original MacBook Air, MacBook Apple's best consumer notebook to date, Cricket laptop stand, bargain 'Books from $490 to $2,299, and more.
• OS X Netbook Not from Apple, One-Third of Notebook Buyers Leaning to Apple, Spaces Made for 'Books, and More, 11.14. Also Apple's 'special deals', good-bye to a faithful TiBook, bent Unibody MacBook Pro, 10 hour battery for MacBook Pro, 6 GB RAM benchmarks, bargain 'Books from $480 to $2,399, and more.
• Recent MacBooks Support 6 GB of RAM, USB 2.0 Faster in Unibody 'Books, Graphics Shootouts, and More, 11.07. Also FireWire-to-USB, workaround for glossy screens, 3G MacBooks planned, checkpoint-friendly bags for new MacBooks, bargain 'Books from $480 to $2,399, and more.
• More in the .

Links for the Day

• Mac of the Day: 17" iMac G4/800 MHz, July 2002 - The iMac 'grows up' with a 17" 1440 x 900 display.
• Group of the Day: MichiMac is our list for Mac users in Michigan.
  
• December 3 in LEM history: 01: The future of low-end Macs - Internet charges and Low End Mac - 02: A smooth switch with Move2Mac - 04: Upgrading from Mac OS 9 to 10.3 - PC malware: The best reasons to use a Mac - No sympathy for bashing Macs in schools - 'Book fragility - 07: Switching to Mac tripled my productivity - Leopard on a G3 iMac (with a G4 upgrade)

Recent Content on Low End Mac

• OS X More Efficient than Linux, Snow Leopard and PowerPC Macs, and Eudora Woes, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 12.03. A user reports both Panther and Leopard run more smoothly and use memory more efficiently than Linux. Also thoughts on PowerPC abandonment in Snow Leopard and replacing Eudora in Leopard.
• The Leopard Experience at 867 MHz, Simon Royal, Mac Spectrum, 12.02. Mac OS X 10.5 requires an 867 MHz G4 with 512 MB of memory, but is performance really acceptable on a minimum spec system?
• A Used 17" PowerBook as a Budget Notebook Alternative, Charles W. Moore, 'Book Value, 12.02. Sure, you can buy a refurbished 13.3" MacBook for under $900, but you could also have an expansive, feature laden 17" PowerBook in the same price range.
• The Very Best Macs: Sometimes Apple Just Nails It, Andrew J Fishkin, Best Tools for the Job, 12.01. Apple has produced lots of good Macs, a few dogs, and some 'best of breed' models that stand apart from the pack.
• Apple Could Buy Dell, and Linux Is No Threat to Mac OS X, Charles W. Moore, Miscellaneous Ramblings, 12.01. Apple has the cash to buy Dell outright, and the idea has some merit. Also, why Linux still isn't ready to displace the Mac OS.
• More links in our archive.

Recent Deals

• Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 12.03. Used 14" WallStreet G3/266 MHz, $90; Lombard G3/400 MHz, $150; Pismo G3/400 MHz, $300; 500 MHz, $350.
• Best 17" PowerBook G4 Deals, 12.03. Used 1.5 GHz, $685; 1.67 GHz, $699.
• Best Intel iMac Deals, 12.03. Used 17" 1.83 GHz, $550; 20" 2.0, $650; refurb 20" 2.4, $999; 2.66, $1,299; 24" 2.8, $1,549; 3.06, $1,899; rebates and free shipping on new.
• Best Mac OS X 10.4 'Tiger' Deals, 12.02. DVD upgrade from 10.3, $75; full version, $129; family pack, $200; 10-user Server, $350; unlimited users, $400.
• Best iMac G5 Deals, 12.02. Used 17" 1.6 GHz Combo, $400; 1.8 SuperDrive, $450; 1.9 iSight, $599; 20" 1.8 GHz, $500; 2.0, $600; 2.1 iSight, $700. Shipping additional.
• Best 17" MacBook Pro Deals, 12.02. Used 2.16 GHz Core Duo, $1,330; 2.33 Core 2, $1,499; close-out, 2.4, $1,800 after rebate; new 2.5, $2,000 a/r; new hi-res, $2,499 a/r; refurb 2.6, $2,399.
• Best iPod nano Deals, 12.01. Refurb 3G/4 GB, $79; new, $105; refurb 8 GB, $99; new, $115; 3G/8 GB, $134; 16 GB, $174. Prices include ground shipping.
• Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 12.01. Used 1.5 GHz SuperDrive, $481/C$599 plus shipping.
• Best Mac Pro Deals, 12.01. Used 3.0 GHz 4-core, $2,102; new 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,949 after rebate; 2.8 4-core, $2,099 a/r; 8-core, $2,515 a/r; 3.0 $3,320 a/r; 3.2, $4,099 a/r.
• More deals in our archive.

Go to the 'Book Page.

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