How Long Can I Expect My iBook to Last Before Becoming Obsolete?

[Amie]

With computer technology fast progressing these days, I've heard some pretty scary things as far as "oh, that will be obsolete in two years" and the like. I bought a new iBook in June 2005. I use it primarily for Internet, e-mail, writing, etc. Nothing fancy really. I'm planning (and hoping) that I can continue to use my laptop for a long, long time. I baby it and take great care of it, and I'm not planning to buy another computer in the near future. I basically have everything I need installed right now (applications, programs, etc.). Do I need to be concerned about my iBook becoming "obsolete" any time soon?

[eric2006]

Email? Internet? Writing? Naw, that will last a while. I still use laptops from 5 years ago for stuff like that (Then again, I can't get anything newer..) Your iBook will last as long as you want it to last - with proper care and maintenance. Of course, websites are getting more multimedia, and loading speeds increase on new machines, MS Word, if you get a new version, can actually be a rather demanding app. If you can live with not having the bleeding edge of software, or the fastest loading speeds, you'll be fine. The one thing that will become obsolete, however, is your battery. Batteries will slowly lose charging ability over time. It's easy to buy a new one though, so I wouldn't worry about that.

[Mobius Rex]

Sounds like you're a worrier; it's ok, I can relate. As long as your "baby" does all of the things you want it to do, it won't become obsolete for the foreseeable future.
I bought my Powerbook in July '04 and am still most satisfied with it. Except for a failed hard drive a few months back which was replaced under my AppleCare warranty, it's been performing like a champ, and I use it most days for many hours. I can't see any reason to upgrade to a newer model any time soon.
Of course, laptops have miniaturized components, and they do tend to get jostled and bumped about, so they're more prone to problems than desktop units, but with careful handling they can be loyal and satisfying servants for years.

[sgould]

Don't worry!

Our iBook is the same age as yours and is still working!!

Also our 1998 G3 Powerbook works for everything as well when needed.

And.... the 1995 Performa desktop is on loan to a neighbour to use for e-mailing her grandchildren and helping them with homework

I think the 1992 LC that's in the shed would work as well, unless the squirrels have eaten it!

[fryke]

While your iBook certainly will be able to do the things you do with it _now_ even in 2, 3 maybe even 5 years, there are _some_ other points to think about.

Your useage will change. You'll learn new things all the time, so you might start to take an interest in, say, digital videos. Sure: That iBook can handle a miniDV cam with iMovie just right - why not. But if that wish starts in 2007, the quality of those old miniDV cams might look old, too, and the iBook won't do HD. That's just an example.

New software. There's always going to be newer software (unless the world ends one day, of course), and at some point in time, it just won't run on that iBook. Whether that'll be in 2007, 2009 or 2012: Who knows. It'll start with higher end software, which might or might not be of interest to you, then. But even iLife '06 doesn't really want to run on an iBook G3 now, see? So: We just don't know on what hardware iLife '07 and '08 will feel comfortable.

[Mikuro]

My father still chugs away day after day on a Power Mac 9600 from 1997, running OS 9. I made do with my 450MHz iMac for years in OS 9, and more years in OS X. It was slow (in OS X), but it worked. And I do quite a lot with my Macs, including "heavy-duty" things like video and graphics work.

Granted, we are in the middle of an awfully sharp transition, from PPC to Intel. It's not often that we have a machine that can run software that a machine one week older simply can't, but that will be the case down the line. But really, so what? I can't run any new software in OS 9, but I can still be very productive in it.

Macs tend to remain useful longer than PCs. I'd expect to get use out of your iBook for quite some time. Your iBook has about the same specs as my Mac Mini, and I'm sure not kicking myself for buying it before the Intel switch. I expect it to last at least four years, like all my other Macs.

The only thing that will really be driving me to upgrade is HD video. But y'know, I think I'll be able to live without it for a while. Heck, even today's consumer machines couldn't handle it, so I really have to wait up.

[JetwingX]

Get your self a spare battery or two and it will last you a long time

[Veljo]

Over the years I've found the average lifespan for a computer is around 3 years before it needs to be replaced. That being said, it always depends on what you need it for and what you do with it.

To give you an idea, I bought my 800MHz G4 iMac back in 2002, and 4 years later I'm still using it as my primary machine. I run my own .com, and I still use this iMac daily for Photoshop, video editing in Final Cut Pro, and a lot of other things. With the exception of rendering and exporting in H264 taking a while, it's still perfect. I can still handle 100+ layer Photoshop documents with relative ease and have a million apps open and not notice any lag.

So in other words, your Mac should last you a long time. If you're into heavy video editing and image work then maybe in a year or so you should update, but if you're into pretty much anything else your iBook will last for years to come.