dont get a cube. it wont be much of an upgrade from your 500MHz iBook. i've owned one, trust me. i can go into reasons later but at the moment im on my way some where.
actually, i have a few minutes so ill go onto explain.
even though the cube has no internal fan, it isnt silent. the HD and DVD drive are noisy. DVDs arent happy being played vertically, which creates vibration and noise. if your cube is on a hardwood desk, it'll vibrate like crazy.
the cube is HEAVY. its a pain in the ass to move around and moving it around you will be. why? because the ports are on the bottom and can not be accessed without putting the cube on its side or upside down.
the power switch sucks. its electro static activated so by brushing against it or putting your cube upside down while plugged it, it will turn your cube on or put it to sleep.
USB audio sucks. the pro speakers crackle and pop and lag due to the USB bus. there is also no audio in.
upgrading. RAM and airport is about it unless you want to take your cube apart. video card upgrades that will fit in your cube will run around $300. mind you these are old radeon and geforce3 cards, nothing current. CPU upgrades are around $800-$1000. trust me, you'll wish your cube wasnt 500MHz. you wont see much improvement over your iBook. any upgrade other than RAM or airport are about as difficult to do on a cube as they would be a notebook such as upgrade the HD. (yes, i know you cant upgrade the video card or CPU in a notebook)
more or less the cube seems way cool until you own one. its way over priced even today. youd be better off getting a 500MHz powermac for a lot cheaper.
