very soon i intend to buy an older ibook, i was going to get the dual usb/500 model as i remembered that being the one you could strip and paint(it was on AF1) what faster models could this be done to, possibly the 600 or even faster? i want the 12in screen model and i know the first "icebooks" had 12" screens but how far up the line did that size go?
Each revision has a 12" model, that isn't a problem. As for paintable I think the newer 700MHz 'books and everything faster than that used the solid white plastics. They're also a better deal, I can get a new iBook G4 from Apple for about $100 more (with Educational discount and current rebate promotion, about $300 without) than a similarly speced 700 MHz G3 version. Considering that price difference, it would be stupid to buy a used 'book just so you can hack it a little easier.
The last paintable model is the 600Mhz with 8 megs of VRAM. The 600Mhz one with 16 megs of VRAM was the first opaque one.
Everything up to the FIRST rev 800 G3 is paintable. The 2nd rev 800 is opaque. I have a first rev 800 right here, and its most definately not opaque.
I wasn't aware of a 600 opaque.
BTW, just to be persnickity, any iBook is paintable. As is any endtable or automobile or doorknob or blender or . . . you get the idea.
dan k
I'm posting from an iBook 600 (16VRAM) right now. It's got clear plastics w/ paint. At the edge of the screen the outer plastics over lap the silver bezel, and it is clear. IIRC the opaque iBooks also have white palmrests. Mine and others of the paintable variety should have silver.
I feel stupid!
I am getting a mid-2001 600MHz iBook soon (Finally! WHOO!!!) and came in here about to ask the same exact question. Glad to know I will be able to eventually remove the white paint inside and do a little artistic thing to it. Not sure what yet, but I'm glad I'll be able to.
all the covers are swappable. I have a 900 in a clear shell that I use every day. You can just buy a 500-800 clear shell and put it on any of the G3 iBooks.
You have the coolest laptops.
well not quite ... the older ones will not fit on the iBook G4s because of the slot loading CD drive on the G4s
TOM
Thus she did write "and put it on any of the G3 iBooks."
YUP... I made sure to say all G3 iBooks for that very reason
lol ... missed that bit
TOM
Wasn't the clamshell a G3?
This has me wondering - I've been digging around trying to find out if a tray-load drive could be installed in an ibook g4 with an ibook g3 bottom shell. Based on the appearance of the drive bezels in photos I've seen, it looks like it *could* work:
http://www.hardmac.com/article.php?id=19&page=2
http://homepage.mac.com/terkwong/mac/
Anyone out there with access to a g3 and g4 ibook wanna give this a whirl? I'd gladly give up a slot-load drive for paintable crystal plastics on an ibook g4!
-vga4life
i dont se why you could nor do it ... both drives are standard in size and shape ... so with G3 plastics then they should fit right in!
TOM
ha ha.... Obviously that isn't an issue...