[idykenano]

I have an iBook G4 with a failed hard drive (system folder sad face, etc).
Would this hard drive work as a replacement?
Newegg.com - Western Digital Scorpio WD1200BEVS 120GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 1.5Gb/s Notebook Hard Drive - Laptop Hard Drives

Thanks!

[Big Mac]

No, the iBook did not use SATA drives. You need the older PATA a.k.a. ATA 2.5" drive type. To look up your iBook's tech specs, go to apple-history.com.

[mduell]

The PATA version (which you need) is the same price: Newegg.com - Western Digital Scorpio WD1200BEVE 120GB 5400 RPM 8MB Cache ATA-6 Notebook Hard Drive - Laptop Hard Drives

[BLAZE_MkIV]

I'll just assume that he's booted of a another drive and run disk utility or disk warrior to confirm that it's a dead disk and not a corrupted install.

[OreoCookie]

First of all, check that the disk is really dead: does it make clicking noises? Does your computer stall every once in a while for 30-60 s and then continue? Have you checked the SMART status in Disk Utility?

If your harddrive is dead, you can replace it yourself if you feel comfortable with the screwdriver and innards of electronic devices. Although I've replaced harddrives numerous times, the most difficult one was replacing the drive of my iBook G3. I don't want to scare you, but that's something you should know before starting on this endeavor. There is a visual guide for the procedure, though.

[chris v]

I just did an iBook G4 drive replacement a couple weeks ago using the ifixit guide. The handy screw guide was very useful for laying things out. Took about 2 hours, not hurrying.

[Nodnarb]

Originally Posted by chris v 

I just did an iBook G4 drive replacement a couple weeks ago using the ifixit guide. The handy screw guide was very useful for laying things out. Took about 2 hours, not hurrying.

Same here. The screw guide was great, made putting it back together so simple.

It's funny how much easier the new macbooks are, though.

[idykenano]

For now it seems that the drive is just failing sector by sector, as a reinstall of the operating system seems to keep the machine going for 2-4 weeks.
This is just my little sister's laptop, so its no biggie.
Yes, the fixit guides are majorly helpful, but I can get around in the ibooks pretty easily, my last encounter involved a teenage boy who:
1) broke the power adaptor off inside of the laptop
2) tried to dig it out with tweezers
3) destroyed the inside of the dc inverter doing such
... so opening up an ibook g4 and changing parts out isn't a big deal.
we'll see how it goes, thanks guys.
and yes, the new macbooks are amazing.