[Siefer]

Ok, I'll get right to the point.

I've pretty much decided to get the 800 mhz G4 iBook (size is important, will not get the 14 in.) this Wed. to replace my tried and true 500 G3 iBook. I have a couple of questions concerning the laptop itself, and then a few others concerncing other things:

-Although I'm pretty confident that the iBook will handle it comfortably, can it handle these "basic" tasks that I normally do? Surfing the net (using Safari or Mozilla), listening to mp3's, typing up a paper (in Word, or other WP) and chating on AIM? I know it sounds silly to ask that, but my current iBook can barely handle 3 simultaneously let alone 4.

-I know the iBooks generally haven't exactly been "gaming" machines, and I don't intend to use them for heavy gaming, but can it handle comfortably the following? Ghost Recon, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, Warcraft III. These games don't have to be at high settings, I just want to know if it's possible to play any of the following SMOOTHLY...WITH other people.

-Speaking of games, is it even possible to run UT2k3 on the iBook? I have heard that it won't run on a G4 based processor without lvl 3 cache (which the iBook obviously lacks). I'm not planning on playing this game, but I am curious.

-Will the iBook be able to mirror on a tv a Divx file (min. 640 x 480 res. 1200 KB/s) smoothly? My current machine can only do this in OS 9, an option obviously not available in the new laptop...but the new laptop has the more powerful video card, processor, and alti-vec help (which should help the multimedia).

-I have heard that earlier generation slot-drives can actually damage the cd/dvd you're inserting. Is that the case with the current drives? (I realize that just putting ANY cd/dvd into even an optical drive will eventually wear and tear away at the media, but that's not what I'm asking).

-How "durable" are these new iBooks? I'm not exactly planning on throwing my computer around like a rag doll, but it needs to be able to take the tossing and turning in my bag (which my current iBook can handle without any qualms).

Price is a HUGE factor to me, so getting a powerbook is completely out of the question. For the computer related tasks, also try to keep in mind something that will require maybe 1-1.5 times more power in the future, and how the iBook handles it then. I WILL be maxing the ram in the iBook. If the above questions aren't answered favorably...I may choose to wait for the next speed bump in the iBook before buying it. I will be buying this machine on late Wednesday evening or Thursday evening, so immediate feedback is important. Thank you for all your time and help.

~Siefer

[webcookie]

My iBook G4 12" can handle Safari, Mail, iTunes, iPhoto, iCal, Apple Works, & AIM at once.

[dbergstrom]

I recently replaced my G3/500 iBook with the G4/800 (640 MB RAM). It should handle all of your tasks easily. I am currently using mine for some heavy duty data analysis (using the R statistics package) and very large Excel spreadsheets. It runs quite nicely.

I haven't tried any of the games you mention, but SimCity 4 and Tony Hawk 4 both run decently.

I assume your video mirroring will be through the AV jack (the "headphone" jack). It seems the greatest limitation would be the speed at which the AV cable can transmit the signal to the TV.

It seems durability should be the same/better than the G3/500. I say better because there is no DVD tray to break. I ride my bike to work with mine in a saddle bag.

You cannot beat the price. Mine was about $400-500 less than a comparably equipped PowerBook. That means I can update the iBook again that much sooner than I could with a PowerBook.

I highly recommend purchasing now. The next speed bump will probably just be to a 933MHz, which will only be a modest speed improvement. The major change in architecture has already occurred.

[dracoleb]

The new iBook is great. I have played all the games that you mentioned and they all run well, in fact I have found that they run better at 1024x768 than they did at 800x600 or 640x480. I'm guessing because it takes some processing power to run at non-native resolution on an LCD. Feel free to prove me wrong, but I know my frame rates are higher at the native resolution.

[Lawrenzo]

I orderd my G4 iBook 800 12" last week and was stressing about the same stuff, will it play WarCraft3? Can I run multible apps at once smoothly. Youz guyz say so, that's a relief.

This my first Mac and I can't wait to for it to arrive! I'll post my verdict on my first iBook/Mac experience next week after my trip to Lonon if anybody is interested.

Cheers,

Lawrie

[galarneau]

Don't believe everything you hear. I installed UT2k3 on my Pismo (G3/400) and it loaded up and ran. I was only getting 2-3 frames per second, but it worked just fine.

As for the limiting factor on your TV out being "the speed at which the AV cable can transmit the signal to the TV".... I think the real problem is how fast the G4 can decode the DivX. If your old G3 500 could do it under OS 9, I bet a G4 800 can do it under 10.3. Just a guess though. I'm not sure if the DivX coded is optimized for AltiVec at this point, so a G4 might not be of any extra benefit.

Originally posted by Siefer:
Speaking of games, is it even possible to run UT2k3 on the iBook? I have heard that it won't run on a G4 based processor without lvl 3 cache (which the iBook obviously lacks). I'm not planning on playing this game, but I am curious.

[Peter]

Originally posted by webcookie:
My iBook G4 12" can handle Safari, Mail, iTunes, iPhoto, iCal, Apple Works, & AIM at once.

My 700 iBook does that very well thats my normal applications always open...

[Siefer]

Thank you all for your time and input. I have decided to go for the this revision of the iBook and it looks to satisify my needs until I have the money for a more powerful mobile solution.

~Siefer