PowerBook G4 (Aluminium)

Aluminium PowerBook G4 (15.2")
Developer	Apple Computer, Inc.
Type	Laptop
Discontinued	May 16, 2006
CPU	PowerPC G4, 400 MHz - 1.67 GHz

The PowerBook G4 is a series of notebook computers that was manufactured, marketed, and sold by Apple Computer, Inc. between 2001 and 2006 as part of its PowerBook line. It uses the PowerPC G4 processor, initially produced by Motorola and later by Freescale, after Motorola spun off its semiconductor business under that name in 2004. The PowerBook G4 had two different designs: one enclosed in a titanium body with a translucent black keyboard and a 15" screen; and another in an aluminium body with an aluminium-colored keyboard, in 12", 15" and 17" sizes.

Between 2001 and 2003, Apple produced the Titanium PowerBook G4; between 2003 and 2006, the Aluminium models were produced. Both models were hailed for their modern design, long battery life and processing power. When the Aluminium PowerBook G4s were first released in January 2003, however, only 12 and 17-inch models were available. The 15-inch retained the titanium body until September 2003 when a new aluminium 15-inch PowerBook was released. In addition to the change from titanium to aluminium, the new 15-inch model featured a FireWire 800 port, which had been included with the 17-inch model since its debut nine months earlier.

The PowerBook G4 line was the last generation of the PowerBook series, and was succeeded by the Intel-powered MacBook Pro line in the first half of 2006.

Contents 1 Titanium PowerBook G4 1.1 Industrial design 1.2 Quality issues 1.3 Display issues 1.4 Models 2 Aluminium PowerBook G4 2.1 Industrial design 2.2 Quality issues 2.3 Models 3 Discontinuation 4 Timeline of portable Macintoshes 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Titanium PowerBook G4

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PowerBook G4 (Titanium)

Titanium PowerBook G4 (nicknamed TiBook)
Developer	Apple Computer inc.
Type	Laptop
Release date	January 2001
Discontinued	September 2003
CPU	PowerPC G4, 400 MHz - 1 GHz

The first generations of the PowerBook G4 were announced at Steve Jobs' keynote at MacWorld Expo in January 2001. They featured a PowerPC G4 processor running at either 400 or 500 MHz. They were just 1 inch (25 mm) thick, 0.7 inches (18 mm) thinner than their predecessor, the PowerBook G3. The PowerBook G4 Titanium also featured a front-mounted slot-loading optical drive into which optical discs (initially DVDs or CDs) could be inserted. The notebook was given the nickname "TiBook", a portmanteau of titanium, the material used for the computer's case, and the brand name PowerBook, Apple's former professional-oriented line of laptop computers.

[edit] Industrial design

The initial design of the PowerBook G4s was developed by Apple hardware designers Jory Bell, Nick Merz and Danny Delulis. The ODM Quanta also helped in the design. The new machine was a sharp departure from the black plastic, curvilinear PowerBook G3 models that preceded it. Apple's industrial design team, headed by British designer Jonathan Ive, was to continue toward simple, elegant, and minimalistic designs—the Titanium G4 laid the groundwork for the Aluminium PowerBook G4, the Power Mac G5, the flat-screen iMac, the Xserve and the Mac mini.

[edit] Quality issues

The hinges on the Titanium PowerBook display are notorious for breaking under typical use. Usually the hinge (which is shaped like an 'L') will break just to the left of where it attaches to the lower case on the right hinge, and just to the right on the left hinge (where the right hinge is on the right side of the computer when the optical drive is facing you). At least one manufacturer began producing sturdier replacement hinges to address this problem, though actually performing the repair is difficult as the display bezel is glued together. In addition some discolouration, bubbling or peeling of paint on the outer bezel occurred, notably around the area where the palm would rest whilst using the trackpad. This appeared on early models but not on later Titanium PowerBooks.

[edit] Display issues

The video cable is routed around the left side hinge. With heavy use this will cause the cable to weaken. Many owners on the internet have reported display problems such as random lines or a jumbled screen. Few have replaced just the video cable to successfully resolve this problem. There is also a backlight cable that might fail. Tinkerers would try replacing either or both cables before buying expensive LCDs.

[edit] Models

Component	PowerPC G4
Model	Jan 7, 2001 (Mercury) [1][2]	Oct 16, 2001 (Onyx)	April 29, 2002 (Ivory)	Nov 6, 2002 (Antimony)
Display (widescreen)	15.2" TFT matte LCD display, 1152 x 768		15.2" TFT matte LCD display, 1280 x 854
Processor	400 MHz or 500 MHz PowerPC G4 with 1 MB backside L2 cache	550 MHz or 667 MHz PowerPC G4 with 256 KB backside L2 cache	667 MHz or 800 MHz PowerPC G4 with 256 KB backside L2 cache and 1 MB backside L3 cache	867 MHz or 1 GHz PowerPC G4 with 256 KB backside L2 cache and 1 MB backside L3 cache
Graphics	ATI Rage Mobility 128 with 8 MB of SDRAM, AGP 2x	ATI Mobility Radeon with 16 MB of SDRAM, AGP 4x	ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 with 32 MB of DDR SDRAM	ATI Mobility Radeon 9000 with 32 MB or 64 MB of DDR SDRAM
Hard drive1	10 GB or 20 GB Ultra ATA/66 Optional 30 GB	20 GB or 30 GB Ultra ATA/66 Optional 48 GB	30 GB or 40 GB Ultra ATA/66 at 4200-rpm Optional 60 GB at 5400-rpm	40 GB or 60 GB Ultra ATA/66 at 4200-rpm
Memory	128 MB (two 64 MB) or 256 MB (two 128 MB) of PC100 SDRAM	128 MB (two 64 MB) or 256 MB (two 128 MB) of PC133 SDRAM	256 MB (two 128 MB) or 512 MB (two 256 MB) of PC133 SDRAM
AirPort	Optional	Optional or Integrated 802.11b
Internal Slot-Loading Drive3	2x DVD-ROM	2x DVD-ROM Optional 24x CD-ROM read, 8x CD-R write, 8x CD-RW write	8x DVD read, 8x CD-R write, 24x CD-R read	8x DVD read, 8x CD-R write, 24x CD-R read or 1x DVD-R write, 6x DVD read, 8x CD-R write, 24x CD read
Connections	2 x USB 1.1
	VGA		DVI
	1 x FireWire 400
	1/8" audio output		1/8" audio output/input
	10/100 Fast Ethernet	Gigabit Ethernet

[edit] Aluminium PowerBook G4

PowerBook G4 (Aluminium)

Aluminium PowerBook G4 (17")
Developer	Apple Computer
Type	Laptop
Release date	January 2003
Discontinued	28 February, 2006 (15") 24 April, 2006 (17") 16 May, 2006 (12")
CPU	PowerPC G4, 867 MHz – 1.67 GHz

In 2003 Apple introduced a new line of PowerBook G4s with 12, 15 and 17-inch screens and aluminium cases (prompting the new moniker "AlBook"). The new notebooks not only brought a different design to the PowerBook G4 line but also laid down the foundation for Apple’s notebook design for the next five years, replaced initially in January 2008 by the MacBook Air and the subsequent MacBook and MacBook Pro redesigns in October. The 15" titanium model was still available until September 16, 2003, when the Aluminium model replaced it. Notably, the 12" model brought a welcome return to the Apple subnotebook configuration, conspicuously lacking in their product line since the discontinuation of the PowerBook 2400 in 1998. While the titanium PowerBook G4s were capable of running Mac OS 9 or Mac OS X operating systems, the aluminium PowerBook G4s could only boot in Mac OS X from startup. Both series of machines could run Mac OS 9 in Classic mode from within Mac OS X.

[edit] Industrial design

The aluminium PowerBook G4 was designed by Apple's Vice President of Industrial Design, Jonathan Ive, and used a radically different design from the preceding titanium models. The most obvious change was the use of aluminium, not titanium, to manufacture the body. The keyboard, which was originally black, was changed to match the color of the body. Additionally, the aluminum keyboard was backlit on the 17" model and on one of the 15" models. The design was considered superior to most other notebooks when it debuted in 2003, and consequently, it made the PowerBook G4 one of the most desirable notebooks on the market. The external design of Apple's professional laptops continued to remain similar to the aluminium Powerbook G4 until the Spotlight on Notebooks event on October 14, 2008.

[edit] Quality issues

Some owners have experienced failure of the lower memory slot, with the typical repair being the replacement of the logic board. Apple had started a Repair Extension Program concerning the issue,^[3] but it has been noted that some models displaying the issue have not been included.

Apple previously had a Repair Extension Program to fix the "white spot" issue on its 15" PowerBook displays.^[4]

There has also been a rash of reports concerning sudden and pervasive sleeping of 1.5 and 1.67 GHz models known as Narcoleptic Aluminum Powerbook Syndrome.^[5][6] Symptoms include the PowerBook suddenly entering sleep mode, no matter what the battery level is or if it is plugged in. One cause is the ambient light sensing, and associated instruction set coding, with possible keyboard backlight and sleep light issues accompanying the so-called "narcolepsy". Another cause is the trackpad heat sensor monitoring the trackpad; system logs report "Power Management received emergency overtemp signal. Going to sleep.".^{[citation needed]}

To correct this, service groups will often replace the motherboard or power converter, but the actual fix (depending on the model) for the first cause is to replace or remove the left or right ambient light sensors; and for the second cause, disconnect, remove, or replace the heat sensor, or the entire top case which holds the trackpad heat sensor. Alternatively, there are reports which detail success in removing certain sensor kernel extensions or rebuilding the kernel using the Darwin Open Source project after commenting out the relevant sleepSystem() call; though permanent solution of the sleep issue in this manner is little documented.^[7]

The 1.67 GHz model may suffer from manufacturing or design defects in its display. Initial reports pointed to this only being a problem with type M9689 17" PowerBooks introduced in Q2 2005, but then this problem was also seen in displays replaced by Apple Service Providers in this period (e.g. because of the bright spots issue). The devices were the last 17" models shipped with the matte 1440 x 900 pixel low resolution display. After many months of usage, the displays may show permanently shining lines of various colors stretching vertically across the LCD. Often this will start with 1 pixel wide vertical lines being "stuck" in an "always-on" mode. Various sites have been set up documenting this issue.^[8][9] and a campaign seeks to get Apple to acknowledge that a defect exists. Posts regarding this in Apple forums have been heavily censored. No official word from Apple on the issue.

[edit] Models

Component	PowerPC G4
Model	Jan 7, 2003 (Rev A)	Sept 16, 2003 (Rev B)	April 19, 2004 (Rev C)	Jan 31, 2005 (Rev D)	Oct 19, 2005 (Rev E)
Model #s	M8760LL/A, M8793LL/A	M9007LL/A, M9008LL/A, M8980LL/A, M8981LL/A, M9110LL/A	M9183LL/A, M9184LL/A, M9421LL/A, M9422LL/A, M9462LL/A	M9690LL/A, M9691LL/A, M9676LL/A, M9677LL/A, M9689LL/A	M9691LL/A, M9969LL/A, M9970LL/A
Display (15" and 17" widescreen) (all matte)	12.1", TFT LCD display, 1024 x 768
	N/A	15.2", TFT LCD display, 1280 x 854			15.2", TFT LCD display, 1440 x 960
	17", TFT LCD display, 1440 x 900				17", TFT LCD display, 1680 x 1050
Processor	867 MHz PowerPC G4 with 256KB of L2 backside cache or 1 GHz PowerPC G4 with 1 MB of L3 backside cache	1 GHz, 1.25 GHz, or 1.33 GHz PowerPC G4 with 512 KB of L2 backside cache	1.33 GHz or 1.5 GHz PowerPC G4 with 512 KB of L2 backside cache	1.5 GHz or 1.67 GHz PowerPC G4 with 512 KB of L2 backside cache
Graphics	nVidia GeForce4 420 Go with 32 MB of DDR SDRAM or nVidia GeForce4 440 Go with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM	nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 with 32 MB of DDR SDRAM or ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM	nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM or ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM Optional ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 with 128 MB of DDR SDRAM	nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM or ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 with 64 MB or 128 MB of DDR SDRAM	nVidia GeForce FX Go5200 with 64 MB of DDR SDRAM or ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 with 128 MB of DDR SDRAM
Hard drive1	40 GB or 60 GB Ultra ATA/100 at 4200-rpm	40 GB Ultra ATA/100 at 4200-rpm or 60 GB or 80 GB Ultra ATA/100 at 5400-rpm	80 GB or 100 GB Ultra ATA/100 at 5400-rpm		80 GB, 100 GB or 120 GB Ultra ATA/100 at 5400-rpm
Memory	256 MB (two 128 MB) of 266 MHz PC-2100 DDR SO-DIMM SDRAM or 512 MB (two 256 MB) of 333 MHz PC-2700 DDR SO-DIMM SDRAM	256 MB (two 128 MB) of 266 MHz PC-2100 DDR SO-DIMM SDRAM or 256 MB (two 128 MB) or 512 MB (two 256 MB) of 333 MHz PC-2700 SO-DIMM DDR SDRAM	256 MB (two 128 MB) or 512 MB (two 256 MB) of 333 MHz PC-2700 DDR SO-DIMM SDRAM	512 MB (two 256 MB) of 333 MHz PC-2700 DDR SO-DIMM SDRAM	512 MB (two 256 MB) of 333 MHz PC-2700 DDR or 533 MHz PC2-4200 DDR2 SO-DIMM SDRAM
AirPort Extreme	Optional or Integrated 802.11b/g		Integrated 802.11b/g
Internal Slot-Loading Combo drive[c]	8x DVD read, 24x CD-R and 10x CD-RW recording (12" model only)	8x DVD read, 24x CD-R and 10x CD-RW recording (12" and 15" models only)			N/A
Internal Slot-Loading SuperDrive3	2x DVD-R write, 6x DVD read, 8x CD-R write, 4x CD-RW write	2x DVD-R write, 8x DVD read, 16x CD-R write, 4x CD-RW write	4x DVD-R write, 8x DVD read, 16x CD-R write, 4x CD-RW write		8x DVD±R (Dual Layer) write, 4x DVD±RW write, 6x DVD± read, 24x CD-R write, 10x CD-RW write
Connections	2 x USB 1.1	2 x USB 2.0
	Mini-VGA or DVI	Mini-DVI or DVI
	1 x FireWire 400 (plus 1x FireWire 800 on 15" and 17")
	Bluetooth 1.1			Bluetooth 2.0

[edit] Discontinuation

The PowerPC G5, which powers Apple's now-discontinued Power Mac G5 and iMac G5 computers, proved to be too power-hungry and heat-intensive to use in laptops.^[10] This, along with the stalling development of the G5, is said to be one of the main reasons for Apple's transition from PowerPC to Intel processors. It should also be noted that development of x86-based Mac OS X had been occurring for some 8+ years before its release to the public.^[10] On January 10, 2006, Apple released its first Intel-based laptop, the 15" MacBook Pro. A 17" version of the MacBook Pro followed on April 24, 2006. The 12" PowerBook G4 and the G4 iBook were discontinued and replaced by the 13.3" MacBook which was released on May 16, 2006, ending the whole PowerBook line. However, a replacement for the 12" subnotebook form factor was not immediately forthcoming; the MacBook Air, released in 2008, served as an indirect replacement while the 13" MacBook Pro released in 2009 is the direct replacement for the 12" PowerBook G4.

Apple CEO Steve Jobs noted during the introduction of the MacBook Pro that Apple wants the word "Mac" in the name of all its Mac hardware products. Consequently, the trademark name "PowerBook" was retired in early 2006 despite the G4 version still on support.^{[Neutrality is disputed]}

Also, as of August 28, 2009, the PowerBook G4 stopped supporting the maximum version of Mac OS X. Snow Leopard (10.6) requires an Intel processor, which the PowerBook G4 does not have, meaning that Mac OS X Leopard (10.5) is the maximum version of Mac OS X that can be installed on the PowerBook G4 and all other Apple products using a qualifying G4 processor for Leopard.

Timeline of portable Macintoshes

[edit] References

1. ^ http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powerbook_g4/stats/powerbook_g4_400.html
2. ^ http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/powerbook_g4/stats/powerbook_g4_500.html
3. ^ http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=303173
4. ^ http://www.apple.com/support/powerbook/displayprogram/
5. ^ http://knit1spin1.wordpress.com/2007/11/14/narcoleptic-powerbook-cured/
6. ^ http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/98931
7. ^ http://dotjava.blogspot.com/2006/10/powerbook-narcolepsy-issue-hack.html
8. ^ http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/06/05/apple_retail_preps_for_iphone_17_inch_pbg4_defect_eu_deadline.html
9. ^ http://www.engadget.com/2007/06/02/17-inch-powerbooks-starting-to-see-new-vertical-line-screen-defe/
10. ^ ^{a b} WWDC 2005. Steve Jobs Keynote. (youtube video)

• 15-inch PowerBook G4 Developer Note
• 17-inch PowerBook G4 Developer Note
• Mactracker Detailed information on Apple Macintosh computers.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: PowerBook G4

• Apple - Support - PowerBook G4
• Video of Jobs launching PowerBook G4 Titanium at Macworld 2001
• Video of Jobs launching PowerBook G4 Aluminum at Macworld 2003
• EveryMac.com - PowerBook G4
• 15" Alu Powerbook G4 Narcolepsy Ambient light sensor-sleep issue repair
• Alu G4 Disassembly

v • d • e Apple Model Navigation Replaced Current Model Successor PowerBook G3 (14 inch) PowerBook 2400c (12 inch) PowerBook G4 MacBook Pro Preceding Family Model January 7, 2001 Following Family Model

v • d • e Apple hardware since 1998 Consumer computers eMac · iMac (G3: Tray, Slot; G4; G5; Core; Core 2: Polycarbonate, Aluminum) · Mac mini (G4; Core; Core 2: Server) Professional computers Mac Pro · Power Mac (G3: Outrigger, Minitower, AIO, B&W, Server; G4: Graphite, Quicksilver, MDD, Server, Cube; G5) · Xserve (G4, CN; G5, CN; Intel) Notebook computers iBook (G3: Clamshell, Dual USB; G4) · MacBook (Core; Core 2: Polycarbonate (Discrete, Unibody), Aluminum) · MacBook Air · MacBook Pro (Core; Core 2: Discrete, Unibody) · PowerBook (2400c (Japan only), G3: Wallstreet, Lombard, Pismo; G4: Titanium, Aluminum) Consumer electronics Apple TV · Displays (Cinema, Studio) · iPhone · iPod (Classic: 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, Photo, 5G, 6G; Mini: 1G, 2G; iPod+HP; Shuffle: 1G, 2G, 3G; Nano: 1G, 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G; Touch: 1G, 2G, 3G) · Newton (MessagePad: 2000, 2100; eMate 300) Accessories AirPort (Card: B, G, N; Base Station: Graphite, Snow, Extreme G, N, Express G, N) · iPod (Click Wheel, Dock Connector, Camera Connector, iPod Hi-Fi, Nike+iPod) · iSight · Keyboard (Pro, Wireless) · Mouse (USB, Pro, Wireless, Mighty, Magic) · Remote · SuperDrive · Time Capsule · USB Modem · Xserve RAID Italics indicate discontinued products. See also: Apple hardware before 1998.