FAO Canaria_Mediocris; Re: laptops

I have a year & half old G4 PowerBook - great machines with best quality components, fast and just about everything built in (USD, FireWire, Wireless, ethernet, modem, DVD-R, etc.) - hence the cost (and Apple's usual mark up ...).

Whether Windows or Mac, make sure you have dedicated memory for graphics - the higher end should have this - 128MB is pretty much a minimum these days. No less than 512MB internally - otherwise as much as you can afford. If Apple, they charge outrageous amounts for RAM, but to be fair it rarely fails. But you can get very similar quality for a lot less from, say, Crucial (obviously make sure it is compatible first). It's always best to buy best quality RAM whether Windows or Mac - it's generally very fragile and will cause instability if poor quality.

The thing with laptops in general is that the components are more liable to failure partly because of the abuse they get just from being ported around (so get a good quality bag too) and partly from the necessary compromises made when packing all those components into a tight space. And the cost of repairs can be high for similar reasons. The hard drive on mine failed recently, which I had replaced for free under AppleCare (3 year warranty all parts & labour & support) for about 130 quid (I think), which has just paid for itself.

Posted By: BerlinCanary, Mar 29, 16:47:37