Educational Discount makes 12" iBook a Steal!

Background
My last portable by Mac was a huge affair that I would check out for trips from my office. I can't even remember what the name of it was (this was 14 years ago), but it was immense. Probably weighed 10 to 15 lbs, with a black and white LCD screen.

We've come a long way, baby. My new 12.1" iBook G4 weighs in at about 4.5 lbs, is smaller than a 1" 3-ring binder, sports a full-sized keyboard, and runs Mac OS X Panther on an 800GHz G4, displaying all on a beautiful backlit color display.

Setup
I bought my iBook from the Apple Store with an Educational discount. The only change to the stock configuration ($999) was an upgrade from a 30MB to a 40MB hard drive ($22), a DVI to S-Video/RCA adaptor ($17), and a refurbished Airport Extreme wireless card ($72). With tax, the whole kaboodle cost me a bit under $1200. Shipping was free. What I got:

- G4 800MHz processor
- 40 MB Hard Drive
- Slot-loading DVD-R/CD-RW optical drive (DVD RW "Superdrive" is available)
- 256MB DDR RAM (upgradable to 640MB under apple approved configurations, or up to 1.3GB using the new stacked RAM units)
- OS X 10.3 Panther, with all the goodies of iLife that are included
- Airport Extreme Card
- Ports: 56K Modem, 10/100 LAN, Firewire 400, 2 x USB 2.0, DVI, audio
- DVI to RGB adaptor
- Apple Power Supply
- Battery
- Phone Cord
- Lots of paperwork and manuals

In addition, I purchased an iSkin ProTouch keyboard skin ($19), Kensington Skyrunner Contour Slim carrying case ($38), and Kensington Universal Auto/Air DC Power Supply ($58). Some people recommend buying a microfiber screen protector to keep dirt on the keys from marking on the screen when it's closed. I just kept the cheapo packing pad, and with the new nibs Apple has put on the corners of the screen, I don't think it will be a problem anyhow.

Finally, I bought another copy of OS X 10.3 Panther to upgrade my iMac G4 ($69 through the Educational Store).

Design
Obviously, on aesthetics, Apple will win every time. The iBooks and PowerBooks are, well, pretty. I'm not one to ogle over what looks cooler, but they do.

Beyond aesthetics, it's just obvious that Apple spends more time on the design things that matter more than looks. The power supply is probably one of the best examples. Most WIntel clones come with a huge multi-piece adaptor the size of a brick, that fits pretty much nowhere easily. The iBook power adaptor is a 3"x3"x1" smooth setup with prongs that fold flush and two snap-out devices that give you a place to wind up the power cord. Stowed, it's about 3"x4"x1". It fits in a pocket of your laptop case. The plug adaptor snaps out and can be replaced with a longer power cord (included) or international adaptors (optional).

Another thing I really like (though it took getting used to) is the touchpad. Unlike my Gateway monster (and most Wintel machines), tapping on the touchpad doesn't duplicate a mouse click. You've got to press the button below. This keeps me from indadvertently moving text, selecting other applications, etc, with my thumbs when typing.

One thing that doesn't fit this trend of superior engineering is the speaker set. The two tiny speakers are tin-sounding, and aren't quite up to Apple spec. I don't know if it's a space or money thing or both.

Operation
It's a Mac. If you're used to Windows (I've still got a PC at home, for the kids to play on and to keep me busy fixing, plus I use Windows machines at work. I'm sending the Windows laptop back to our computer guys, though), you can expect the following changes if you go to Mac.
- It won't crash nearly as often (In 2 years on my iMac, I have 2 crashes on record, I get that many a day sometimes on my Windows machine at home, and definitely more than that each month on my Xeon workstation/server at the office).
- You won't find the same variety of software available. But, you can get Microsoft Office, and be able to swap files between your office and home with no worries. TurboTax will cost you $35, AFTER rebate.
- You'll have to get used to different keyboard shortcuts and a slightly different (and friendlier) interface.

Specific to the iBook:
- Battery life - impressive. 5+ hours on a charge, with intermediate Hard Drive and USB port usage.
- Heat - not bad. I can use it for extended periods of time on my lap, wearing shorts. It gets a bit warm on the left side right under your palm (that's where the processor is), but not nearly as toasty as my Gateway Pentium III laptop.
- Noise - quiet as all getout. You have to put your ear right next to the exhaust port to hear the fan, and then you'll only hear it in a very quiet environment. The Hard Drive and optical drive are much, much quieter than my Gateway.
- Durability. The polycarb case should be pretty tough, but I'm not going to drop test it. If you're looking for a tougher notebook, the PowerBook has an aluminum case. I'll go with a nice padded carrying case.

An interesting note about the clear apple logo on the back of the screen cover. In very bright outdoor lighting, you'll see a very faint outline of that apple from the front of the screen - slightly distracting, but it has to be very sunny to notice it. Placing an index card over the apple makes it go away.

Overall
I'm very happy so far with the iBook. The design is, in my opinion (which this is), far above that of most Windows machines, the OS is bulletproof, and now even the prices are very competitive with similarly performing/equipped PC's. Highly recommended.