I know exactly which model she should get.
Look for the 12” iBook 1.33ghz G4 model. DO NOT GET an iBook G3 model.
This has almost all of the features that the “Intel” macs have...
2.0 bluetooh. Sudden Motion Sensor. Airport extreme built in. It has 512mb of ram built in and you can upgrade it to a total of 1.5gigs of ram. This is the best, last revision iBook ever made.
It is a great computer. You should be able to find one for under 400 dollars.
ALso you can upgrade the hard drive and even the cd/dvd drive to a dual cd and dvd burner. I’ve done this many times. Makes a great machine even greater.
Who are these people who keep advising to get a machine with the previous generation processors.
DO NOT GET A G4 CPU. Get an INTEL CORE DUO as your minimum in any machine. And 2GB of RAM should be your goal as well.
Why someone would even bring up a G3 is equally baffling.
Gee why don’t we suggest a Ford Pinto over an AMC Pacer.
For heaven’s sake!!!
Thanks from me as well.
One problem - the G4 variants will be left out of 10.6, and there’s going to be a lot of under-the-hood improvements in 10.6 that make it faster.
Just curious — why would you recommend an iBook over a Powerbook? I see 15” 1.67GHz Powerbooks on eBay pretty regularly for around $500. In fact, I’m getting ready to buy one — it’ll be my first Mac. And I agree with your logic on the G4. The fact that the G4/Intel switchover is a well-known evolutionary divide is what’s making the G4 Macs a good bargain right now for people who aren’t super sensitive to evolutionary divides. I don’t really care about having the latest wiz bang stuff and I could care less if 10.6 won’t support my G4. A G4 Mac for $500 or less is a sweet computer that will be totally adequate for 90% of people for several years. And if you really wanted to go cheap, how about a 1GHz titanium Powerbook for $350?