[TheIceMan]

I've been a PowerBook 667Mhz owner for 1 year. But I'm thinking of switching to the iBook when the new updated versions rumored to come out later this year or early 2004. There are a few questions I have for the owners of the iBooks.

1) Does the iBook have heat issues? Does it get hot or really warm on the wristpad area?
2) Does the fan come on often? And how loud does it get?
3) With similar specs (except for the G3 vs. G4), how does the iBook compare to the PowerBook in terms of speed (apps launching, etc.)?
4) What other issues have been typical of iBooks? (for example, the paint flaking on the Ti PowerBooks are fairly widespread)

Thanks. I didn't think I would fall "in love" with the iBook, but after using my friend's iBook this past weekend, I LOVE it!

[SupahCoolX]

I've had my 600mhz iBook for about 2 years now. It's been a great Mac. In reply to your questions:
1) It gets a little warm over the left wrist rest (the hard drive sits beneath) when doing disk-intensive things (ripping MP3's, for example). This is only minor, however. Heat isn't a big issue.
2) I don't think mine has ever even come on. As a matter of fact, I didn't even think it had a fan until someone recently corrected me! I would bet that it's more of an issue with newer 800-900mhz models, though.
3) iBook will compare pretty well with a PB for most daily tasks. If you do things that are optimized for the G4's altivec, though, you'll see a big difference. I wouldn't use the iBook for heavy duty gaming, pro video editing, etc, but it's certainly good enough for web, email, iApps, light Photoshop, etc.
4) The iBook's outer case is pretty durable plastic. The biggest issue is with fingerprints and tiny scratches. It's really not that bad though. They're pretty reliable, though some people have had problems with the video cables getting damaged, causing the screen to freak out. Apple's been using this design for a few years now, so most of the little kinks are worked out.
Hope this helps!

[TheIceMan]

Originally posted by SupahCoolX:
2) I don't think mine has ever even come on. As a matter of fact, I didn't even think it had a fan until someone recently corrected me! I would bet that it's more of an issue with newer 800-900mhz models, though.
... some people have had problems with the video cables getting damaged, causing the screen to freak out. Apple's been using this design for a few years now, so most of the little kinks are worked out.
Hope this helps!

Thanks. WOW, you've had yours for 2 yrs. and the fan has never or hardly ever come on? That is incredible! Can you tell me more about the "video cables...causing the screen to freak out"?

[radionails]

1) It does get warm on the left side, but not burning. I usually notice it after an hour of work with it on my lap, I take it off and feel the heat on my left leg...
2) The fan comes on depending on teh use you do. If you use your ibook for 20 min of web surfing, it won't turn on. But if you watch a movie, or do photoshop (HD) work for 15-20 min, it will eventually start. There are (I think) 2 degrees of power on the fan, the first you almost can't hear, the second (playing 20 min of Quake 3) is noticable. The seconde level is not enough to bother you in a room with friends, but too much noice (for me) to sleep with besides my bed.
3) Sorry, can't really help about that one. But I have one advice, buy as much RAM as you can, I only bought a 256 additional with mine and I regret it (only one exp. slot). My machine is kind of slow on some tasks and I think it would be much faster with more RAM (and soon Panther).
4) There is only one issue that makes me a bit mad. The screen and the keyboard touch when the lid is closed. This means that I now have the outline of some keyboard keys on my screen. I can't see those outlines in normal use, but when the brightness of the screen is low and the light is in a good angle, you can see them very clearly. This is not so bad, but I'm still mad that I have tried to clean it and it won't go away... Aside from that, the iBook is a great machine.

[Luca Rescigno]

Only replace your G4/667 if the iBook gets a G4. Otherwise, keep the PowerBook! I had an 800 MHz iBook and while it wasn't unbearably slow in OS X, it was still frustrating to use.

To answer your questions:

1) The left wristpad gets warmer and warmer as you use it. It would eventually make my hand sweat a lot. Having just-washed hands helps a lot, they don't sweat as much and they're not as uncomfortable when exposed to heat.

2) The fan didn't come on unless I was doing lots of multitasking, like more than half a dozen apps, or if I played a game. Basically any game more demanding than Solitaire would turn the fan on. The fan sounds kind of like a blow dryer. It's loud and high pitched, and when it comes on you will want to do everything in your power to turn it off!

3) I think my iBook 800 w/ 640 MB of RAM was about equivalent to my dad's TiBook 550 w/ 512 MB of RAM. Just by using the two, they seem to be about the same. The iBook was slightly better for games though, because it has a better graphics card and double the VRAM. Neither one is really a good gaming machine though.

4) My machine really didn't have any major problems. Other than being kind of slow, it was a great computer. Extremely durable, and really the only cosmetic problems were the tiny scratches on the outside of the case.

I wouldn't say you should think about switching from a PowerBook to an iBook... you should think about trading up to a better computer, and if an iBook comes out that fulfills that need, you can go with that. Otherwise, I'd say you should stick with the TiBook and if you want something better, get another PowerBook.

[janmc]

The fan on my iBook has only ever come on once, and that was when I was watching a 3 hour dvd with the book on the quilt/duvet (in hindsight it wasn't the best heat dispersal method!). I got such a fright at the noise that I turned it off and watched it like a baby until it stopped. My boyfriend (a pc user) was trying to reassure me that it was just the fan and was perfectly normal, but you know mac owners and their macs!

So yes, I'd say that the iBook is a great laptop and that heat isn't a huge issue

[pat++]

Originally posted by TheIceMan:
Thanks. WOW, you've had yours for 2 yrs. and the fan has never or hardly ever come on? That is incredible! Can you tell me more about the "video cables...causing the screen to freak out"?

I've been using my 500mhz iBook for 2 years and a half. I NEVER heard the fan, even for 1 second . But unfortunately this is only true for 500mhz and 600mhz models. My brother's 700mhz come on quite often, and it's loud. So much that I prefer my slower iBook than his...

[SupahCoolX]

Originally posted by TheIceMan:
Can you tell me more about the "video cables...causing the screen to freak out"?

Well, the video cable that links the screen to the motherboard runs through the screen hinge. some people (generally with older iBooks) have had problems where that cable gets damaged or disconnected, causing various lines to appear across the screen. For some, the screen has stopped working completely. If you search around, you can probably find at least 35 threads about the issue. I don't think it was too widespread, though, and the issue should be pretty much corrected by now.

[TheIceMan]

SupahCoolX: Thanks.

For longtime users of the iBook, what do you think would be a "reasonable" expectation for the upcoming iBook upgrade? Is this list reasonable?

1) New form-factor/new enclosure
2) New color
3) Airport Extreme
4) RAM boost
5) New & faster processor
6) Brighter displays & revised graphics chip
7) Bluetooth
8) Improved keyboard

"Apple plans to announce the revamped line of iBooks sometime in the next two months, sources said. All configurations will ship with Mac OS X Panther 10.3 pre-installed." AppleInsider (I know it's a rumor, but we can speculate, right?)