[nemanirc]

Apple has a spotty record of late when providing serviceability with its Macs. I have had a PM G3 B&W for years, which was the ultimate in upgradeability, as well as as a series of PowerBooks which havenot. I have been able to upgrade my PM G3 to keep it somewhat current, which I have appreciated. My PB 1400 let me upgrade the processor (great) and hard drive with some surgery. My PB G3 Pismo was more work, but I was able to upgrade the top RAM slot and hard drive with some work (not unlike the pop-out-your-keyboard dance iBook owners have known). My PB G4 12 inch has only allowed me to pump up my RAM to 640 MB, but no more.

While I am excited about the possibility of getting a MacBook that will allow me to replace two RAM slots as well as the hard drive, I only have to look at the G5 iMac and how it briefly let users upgrade many of its components for one iteration before Apple took that away in the last G5 iMac and the Intel iMac. I want a new MacBook, but wonder if Apple will change their mind with the next MacBook and leave us to only having access to one RAM slot again?

Message to Apple: We like some flexibility in keeping our Macs current. Go the extra mile (or, in this case, inches) and let your customers have some ability to keep our investments a little more current. You have show flashes of meeting this need. Please be more consistent!

[imitchellg5]

You can put more RAM in your PowerBook. I have the same one as you do, and the local Mac store has one with 1.12 Gb of RAM on consignment. It works just fine, Apple just doesn't support that much.

[GSixZero]

I think it's a mixed bag for apple in terms of upgradablity.

Most people who buy computers aren't terribly interested in upgrading it. Computers have become somewhat disposable.

Designing upgradablity into notebooks and super compact computers like mini and iMac is very expensive, and usually means bigger products with more visible screws, doors and hatches. iPods could have had replaceable batteries, but then you would have had to have had a way to access the battery, which would have done away with the solid single piece design of the iPod.

Apple experimented with the G5 iMac and having a very user servicable machine. From talking to my friends who work for an reseller in the service department, it was a big mess. Customers were sent replacement parts and then they ended up screwing up on the install. The customers would then get frustrated and take the machine in for service, and Apple would end up paying for the repair twice. As far as I know, the do-it-yourself repair program didn't last very long.

In the end, I'm sure someone at Apple did some analisys as to the value of making macs more upgradable. I would guess it boils down to the fact that benefits gained by having computers that are more upgradable are less than the cost of making them that way.

[tooki]

And there were instructions with the Pismo on how to install RAM in the bottom slot, which is scarcely harder than putting it in the top.

Regardless, you don't buy a laptop for upgradeability, and even on desktops, it's of limited value. (Note that I exclude from "upgrades" RAM and hard disks, since those are really more like consumables.)

tooki