Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

Miscellaneous Ramblings

PowerBook 5300: The Real PowerBook

Charles Moore - 2002.04.01 - Tip Jar

The concept of Luddite Mac appeals to me at the gut level because I am temperamentally resistant to change. When I have found something that works well for me, I'm happy to stick with it and reluctant to move along to the next big thing.

This is why I'll probably never find a computer that grabs me emotionally as much as the PowerBook 5300 did and still does. The 5300 wasn't my first Mac, but it was my first portable, and I discovered - in about the first five minutes after taking it out of the box - that I'm a portable computer guy.

For me there was something just right about the 5300. I loved its size, its styling, and even its fairly hefty weight. There's something reassuringly substantial about a diminutive object that turns out to be heavier than it looks. Ever pick up a Krugerrand?

Even though my base-specification 5300 had only a passive matrix grayscale monitor screen, I even liked that. Of course, I wouldn't have objected to the bright and jewel-like, 105 dpi, 800 x 600 TFT monitor of the PowerBook 5300ce either, but there is something soothing and comfortable about passive matrix LCD screens that appeals to me.

"But the PowerBook 5300 is a slow as a lame dog," you might object. Okay, by today's standards the 5300 is slow, especially if you try to run any system later than OS 8.1 on it. However, back in 1996 it didn't really seem that bad, and the 5300 was actually quite tolerably lively running System 7.5.5 and using contemporary software like Word 5.1, Eudora Light, and Color It! 4.

I prefer the general feel of the 5300 to that of any other laptop I've ever tried. The light-touch, positive click of the trackpad button is much preferable to the simultaneously stiff and mushy feel of my later, G3 Series PowerBooks trackpad buttons, and the palm rest ergonomics are better, too, although I must concede that the 5300 keyboard is mediocre compared with the lovely keyboards on my WallStreet and Pismo. However, I do like the way that the tops of the key caps on the 5300 keyboard are recessed to the level of the palm rest surfaces.

The dual-USB, 12.1" screen iBook has about the same footprint as the PowerBook 5300, is not radically dissimilar in styling, and offers performance that blows the 5300 far into the weeds. However, the iBook still falls short of the true PowerBook mystique, while the 5300, despite some shortcomings, is a full-fledged PowerBook, complete with a removable module expansion day (we have a Zip drive, a second hard drive, and a floppy drive for ours), two PC Card slots, a full set of classic PowerBook connectivity ports, 16-bit sound in and out, video out including monitor spanning, and an infrared port.

For me, the 5300 is and always will be the real PowerBook benchmark.

Charles Moore has been a freelance journalist since 1987 and began writing for Mac websites in May 1998. His The Road Warrior column is a regular feature on MacOpinion, and he is a news editor and columnist at Applelinks.com. If you find his articles helpful, please consider making a donation to his tip jar.

Recent Miscellaneous Ramblings

WPA for Original AirPort, Stainless Browser, Multiple Input Bug Persists in Snow Leopard, and More, 03.11. Also kudos for Shiira, G3 vs. G4 upgrade for Pismo PowerBook, and 17" PowerBook still suffices.
Shiira Browser Is Lightning Fast, 03.08. "...I'm finding myself not in any hurry to stop using Shiira 2.3 and go back to Safari 4 as my WebKit browser pick."
The Mac-PC Divide, Apple vs. Smut, WiFi Troubleshooting, Planned Obsolescence, and Pismo Upgrades, 03.03. The differences between Mac and PC users, the 'latest and greatest' syndrome, clearing corrupt WiFi preferences, and more.
Handshoe Mouse a Good Ergonomic Option, 03.02. "If you suffer from mousing pain, they should prove well worth the price."
More in the Miscellaneous Ramblings index.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: iMac G5 (iSight), Oct. 2005 -Apple built an iSight webcam into the last version of the G5 iMac.
Group of the Day: Old Mac MP covers 604-based multiprocessor Macs and clones.
March 13 in LEM history: 89: Tim Berners-Lee lays foundation for the Web - 00: G4 insignificantly superior to G3 - Mac IIcx for a friend - 01: Apple wins and loses - Accessorize your TiBook - 03: Student questions about the Mac - 06: Copyright bullies - 08: Mac critics now exclaim that Apple isn't successful enough
Support Low End Mac

Recent Deals

Best iPod classic Deals, 03.12. Used 20 GB, $119; 40 GB, $139; 60 GB, $159; 30 GB video, $129; 60 GB, $159; 80 GB, $169; refurb 120 GB, $189; new, $214; 160 GB, $228 shipped.
Best G3 iBook and AirPort Card Deals, 03.12. 366 MHz 12" clamshell, $89; 466, $125; 500 white CD, $100; 600, $199; 800 Combo, $239; 14" 900, $225.
Best Xserve Deals, 03.12. Used 1 GHz dual G4, $499; 2.0 dual G5, $599; 2.3, $749; refurb 2.26 4-core Nehalem, $2,499; new, $2,699; 8-core, $3,449; refurb 2.66, $4,299; new, $4,799; more.
Best iPod touch Deals, 03.11. Refurb 8 GB, $149; 16 GB, $199; 32 GB, $249; 64 GB, $339; new 3G/8 GB, $184; close-out 2G/16 GB, $229; 3G/32, $270; 64, $355. Shipping included.
Best 17" MacBook Pro Deals, 03.11. Used 2.33 GHz, $1,099; 2.5, $1,349; refurb 2.66, $1,949; 2.93, $2,199; new 2.8, $2,249 after rebate; 3.06, $2,749.
Best Mac OS X 10.5 Deals, 03.11. "Leopard" one user, $180; upgrade from 10.4, $150; 5 users, $400; Server, 10 users, $493; unlimited users, $600.
Best iPod nano Deals, 03.10. Refurb 4G/8 GB, $99; 16 GB, $119; 4G/8 GB, $129; 16 GB, $139; new 5G/8 GB, $134; 16 GB, $160. Shipping included.
Best 15" PowerBook G4 Deals, 03.10. 1 GHz Combo, $400; 1.25 GHz, $460; 1.33 GHz SuperDrive, $539; 1.5 GHz, $550; 1.67 GHz, $589; hi-res, $800.
Best iPod shuffle Deals, 03.10. New 3G/2 GB, pink, $53; other, $55, 4 GB, blue, $71; other, $73. Shipping included.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Miscellaneous Ramblings ©1999-2010 by Charles W. Moore. Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2010 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.