Refurb SmartDisk Sale, Same Day Pickup from MacResQ, TiBook 800 Benchmarked, and More

Compiled by Charles Moore and edited by Dan Knight

Except as noted, prices are in US dollars.

• Big Sale on Refurb SmartDisk Devices for G3 Series 'Books
• MacResQ Announces Same-Day Pickup for PowerBook Repairs
• Apple Offers Free SmartDisk FireFly 5 GB FireWire Hard Drive Promo with Professional Macs
• Sleep Fix for G4 BlueChip LS Boards
• Small Dog Electronics Garage Sale
• TiBook Paint Flaking Web Page
• TiBook 800 Performance Benchmarks Posted
• Bargain 'Books

Big Sale on Refurb SmartDisk Devices for G3 Series 'Books

SmartDisk/VST is discounting its entire range of Pismo, Lombard, and WallStreet expansion bay devices, as well as other products for these models, at fantastic prices.

6 GB hard drives for all G3 Series PowerBooks are $29.97, while 4 GB drives for Pismo/Lombard only are $23.97.

100 MB Zip drives for all G3 Series are $29.97, and SuperDisk drives (which read/write both floppy disks and 120 MB SuperDisks) are also $29.97. Expansion bay CD-RWs are $119.97), and DVD-ROM kits (PCMCIA card and drive) for 333 MHz Lombards are $119.97.

Laptop battery chargers for the PowerBook 1400, iBook, and PowerBook G3s are also on sale.

All items have undergone a stringent refurbishment process prior to sale and are covered by SmartDisk's 90-Day Limited Warranty. Refurbished SmartDisk products are preowned items that have been fully tested, refurbished with replacement parts for any defective modules identified in testing, put through a thorough cleaning process and inspection, and given a new refurbished part number. Each unit is also placed into a Final QA inspection prior to being added to sellable refurbished stock.

Quantities are limited and all refurbished product sales are final. No software CD or original packaging will accompany these products. Categories include:

• Floppy Disk Drives
• FireWire and USB Hard Drives
• CD-R/W Drives
• Flash Media Readers
• Zip Drives
• Expansion Bay Devices
• Laptop Battery Chargers and Batteries
• Miscellaneous Items

Lombard and Pismo (1999 & 2000 PowerBook G3) deals:

• 30 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $119.97
• 18 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $53.97
• 12 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $47.97
• 10 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $41.97
• 8 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $35.97
• 6 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $29.97
• 4 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $23.97
• 100 MB Expansion Bay Zip Drive, $29.97
• Expansion Bay CD-R/W, $119.97
• Expansion Bay SuperDisk Drive, $35.97
• Charger w/AC adapter, $107.97
• Charger, No AC adapter, $65.97
• 1999 PowerBook G3 (Lombard) Battery, $89.97

WallStreet (1998 PowerBook G3) deals:

• 8 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive, $35.97
• 6 GB Expansion Bay Hard Drive for 1998 PowerBook G3, $29.97
• 250 MB Expansion Bay Zip Drive for 1998 PowerBook G3, $41.97
• 100 MB Expansion Bay Zip Drive for 1998 PowerBook G3, $29.97
• Expansion Bay SuperDisk Drive for 1998 PowerBook G3, $29.97
• Charger w/AC adapter, $101.97
• Charger, No AC adapter, $59.97

For other 'Books

• PowerBook 1400 Charger w/AC adapter, $89.97
• PowerBook 1400 Charger, No AC adapter, $47.97
• PowerBook 1400 Battery, $59.97
• iBook (clamshell style) Charger w/AC adapter, $47.97
• iBook (clamshell style) Charger, No AC adapter, $29.97
• iBook (clamshell style) Battery, $83.97
• PowerBook G4 Charger w/AC adapter, $101.97
• PowerBook 3400 Charger, No AC adapter, $47.97
• PowerBook 3400 Battery, $59.97

MacResQ Announces Same-Day Pickup for PowerBook Repairs

MacResQ has announced a new nationwide same-day pickup service as part of their PowerBookResQ repair program. The new same-day pickup allows PowerBook or iBook users to get their computers repaired and back in their hands faster than ever, improving on PowerBookResQ's already fast, convenient and affordable service.

PowerBookResQ addresses the difficulty that most users face when they encounter a technical problem with their PowerBook. Users of older PowerBooks face a tough challenge trying to find a local source for older parts and service. If a local repair center is available, costs are usually high and turnaround time is unacceptable for users who rely on their PowerBooks on a daily basis. Users of newer, but out-of-warranty, PowerBooks often have no choice but to send their systems back to the manufacturer for an expensive repair due to parts limitations and service policies.

Rather than driving all over town and then waiting days or weeks to get your computer back, PowerBookResQ customers simply call 1-866-Mac-Repair.

Every Airborne Express delivery vehicle in the United States is stocked with our revolutionary PowerBox, ready for your PowerBook crisis the moment it happens. If you call before 2:00 pm local time (in most areas of the United States), PowerBookResQ will immediately dispatch a same-day courier who will pick up your PowerBook, secure it safely in our PowerBox, and have it back to our repair facility the next morning. Most repairs are completed within 24 hours of receipt, and your repaired PowerBook or iBook is returned to you via overnight courier.

"Based on the extremely positive response that the PowerBook community has had to PowerBookResQ, we realized the number one issue we all face is downtime when our PowerBooks have problems," said Mr. Shannon Jean, President of MacResQ. "With our new same-day pickup service, we've eliminated an entire day from the repair process."

PowerBookResQ's new same-day pickup service costs only $149 - just $50 more than our standard service. This includes same-day pickup, round-trip overnight shipping, the initial detailed diagnosis of your PowerBook's problem and the PowerBox that you get to keep for future use.

With this new feature and our standard 24-hour turnaround time for most repairs, you'll have your PowerBook back in action as fast as humanly possible!

"We couldn't operate MacResQ without our PowerBooks. With our exclusive 24-hour turnaround, PowerBookResQ offers the fastest and most reliable service in the country for PowerBook users who just can't afford to wait for the typical delays found at other repair centers," said Mr. Jean.

The standard overnight PowerBookResQ service is still just $99, and includes 3-way overnight shipping, the initial diagnostic service, and the PowerBox, which the customer may keep for future use.

For computer resellers and repair centers, PowerBookResQ offers discounted rates on products and services. Computer dealers can send overflow service work or seamlessly outsource their entire PowerBook repair operation. Volume discounts are available for schools, corporations and government agencies.

Apple Offers Free SmartDisk FireFly 5 GB FireWire Hard Drive Promo with Professional Macs

Only half an inch thick and weighing in at less than 4 ounces, the SmartDisk FireFly 5 GB FireWire Hard Drive is yours free when you buy any Power Mac G4 or PowerBook G4 online from the Apple Store, and upgrade the memory, hard drive, optical drive, graphics card, removable storage, SCSI support or AirPort card. While supplies last.

To participate in this promotion, configure and order a Power Mac G4 or PowerBook G4 online from the Apple Store and upgrade any of the following options:

• Memory
• Hard drive
• Optical drive
• Graphics card
• Removable storage
• SCSI support
• AirPort card

Sleep Fix for G4 BlueChip LS Boards

This Download Package from PowerLogix includes a beta version of the Sleep Patch for the BlueChip G4 LS (PowerBook G3 "Lombard") customers. This fix is for those who prefer to use Mac OS 9 and need sleep functionality. The Patch is not required if using Mac OS X with the BlueChip G4 LS. Full compatibility with sleep already exists when using OS X.

Note: This fix requires OS 9.2.1. It does not currently work with 9.2.2.

This utility will simply disable Sleep if installed on a BlueChip (PowerBook G3 "Wall Street"). PowerLogix is currently working on full Sleep functionality with the BlueChip WS card.

To Install the Sleep Patch:

a) Download Extension.

b) Copy into your Extension Folder.

c) Reboot the machine to enable the Extension.

To go to Sleep, set the Energy Saver Control Panel to 1 minute. After 1 minute, the machine will go to sleep, and you can close the case.

Note: You should not force Sleep by closing the case.

This is beta software. Always make sure that you save your work before putting the PowerBook to sleep.

Small Dog Electronics Garage Sale

'Book related items include:

• Apple PB G3 Keyboard (3400 Style), Lot 83, As Is, $5
• iBook Lithium Ion Battery (for colored iBooks), $79
• PB G3 (3400 Style) Keyboard, Lot 10, As Is, $10 
• RoadTools iCool Pad, raises PowerBook & swivels, Black, $16
• RoadTools iCool Pad, raises PowerBook & swivels, White, $17 
• RoadTools Podium Cool Pad, black, raises and tilts PowerBook & swivels, $25

Lots more of general interest.

TiBook Paint Flaking Web Page

E.W. White is a disgruntled PowerBook user:

"My five month-old PowerBook G4 667/DVD ($3000) has a serious problem with its paint finish. These photos illustrate the poor paint quality on the outer bezel of the unit. Many users have noted similar (although less-severe) issues with their units; enough to prompt http://www.tipaint.com to supply touchup paint kits for the Titanium PowerBook. Unfortunately, my machine's damage is beyond touchup paint. This is my *THIRD* defective PowerBook in 5 years. I was a victim of the "loose hinge" issue with the WallStreet G3 PowerBooks:

< http://ems.music.uiuc.edu/p/photo?dir=WallStreet_Hinges>

Email me at ewwhite@mac.com or visit my site at < http://homepage.mac.com/ewwhite> if you have any questions/comments about either PowerBook.

Here are links to other people's photos of their defective TiBook paint:

http://homepage.mac.com/jbondo/PhotoAlbum1.html
http://bayoudog.com/powerbook/

Here is a link to a thread on the Apple discussion board dealing with this topic.
http://makeashorterlink.com/?D201212F (you may need an AppleID to access the forum)

For more information, visit <http://ems.music.uiuc.edu/p/photo.php?dir=Defective_Powerbook>

TiBook 800 Performance Benchmarks Posted

Rob Art Morgan of Bare Feats has posted some PowerBook G4/800 and new PowerBook G4/667 performance benchmarks. That G4 TiBook is one quick machine!

Bargain 'Books

There are two different versions of WallStreet running at 233 MHz, the cacheless MainStreet version and the later Series II with a level 2 cache. It's not always possible to determine from the vendor's listing which is being offered, so we've included links within this paragraph to the two models.

Baucom Computers

• iBook 500, 64/10 GB/CD/56K/USB/FireWire/12", $909 (like new, 11 month. warranty)
• PowerBook Lombard G3/400, 192/6 GB/DVD/56K/USB/14.1", $797 (add Zip module for $33)
• PowerBook Lombard G3/333, 128/4 GB/CD/56K/USB/14.1", $635 (add Zip module for $33)

Small Dog Electronics

• iBook 500, 128/15 GB/CD-ROM, refurbished, $949
• iBook 600, 128/15 GB/DVD, refurbished, $1,099

MacSolutions

• iBook 600, 12.1" TFT/128/20 GB/Combo/56K, new, $1,299

PowerMax

• PowerBook G4/500, 256/20 GB/DVD-ROM/56k/FireWire, refurbished, $1,888
• PowerBook Pismo G3/500, 256/12 GB/DVD/56k/14.1", used, $1,388