Apple PowerBook Laptop 17" M9110LL/A (1.33-GHz PowerPC G4, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD-R/CD-RW Drive)

by Apple

Product Details

Data Sheet [63kb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 30.3 x 5.5 x 15.6 inches ; 12.2 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0000D8DLH
• Item model number: M9110LL/A
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,169 in Computers & Accessories (See Top 100 in Computers & Accessories)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 15, 2003

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Faster and far more capable than any other Apple notebook to date, the freshly unveiled 17-inch PowerBook G4 may be the most sophisticated portable computer ever released. Featuring an enormous display, an unrivalled feature set and virtually no performance bottlenecks, the stunning yet undeniably pricey 17-inch PowerBook G4 is ready to satisfy even the most discriminating professional or personal user.

Don't let the clock speed fool you. The system's PowerPC G4 processor is a real step up from last year's 1 GHz G4 chip, running at 1.33 GHz and featuring 512 KB Level 2 cache for rapid retrieval of recently accessed data. Apple has added 512 MB of ultra-fast PC2700 (333MHz) DDR SDRAM memory (upgradeable to 2 full GB) and an ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics processor with 64 MB dedicated video memory, thus ensuring smooth operation during high-demand tasks such as 3-D games, 3-D drawing and multitasking.

This high-speed architecture continues throughout the unit, where you'll find connectivity options such a standard FireWire interface, an ultra-fast Apple-designed FireWire 800 port, two 480 Mbps USB 2.0 ports, integrated 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet, 54-Mbps AirPort Extreme wireless, and built-in Bluetooth for the new breed of cordless digital peripherals. Storage facilities include a spacious ATA/100 80 GB hard disk and a versatile DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive through which you can burn audio CDs, backup critical and write DVD-R discs at 2X speed.

Visually, the aluminum alloy-clad 17-inch PowerBook G4 is as dramatic as it is functional. Sporting the largest widescreen display of any notebook and the same screen dimensions as a 19-inch CRT monitor, the unit is nevertheless surprisingly thin and lightweight at 15.4 by 10.2 by 1 inches and 6.8 pounds. Other unique perks include a tap/double tap/drag trackpad, a convenient backlit keyboard for low-light situations, and a DVI output for the efficient digital connection of LCD monitors. Battery life is estimated at an admirable 4.5 hours under ideal conditions.

From the Manufacturer

The next big thing from Apple: The new 17-inch PowerBook G4. Featuring the largest, most spectacular display ever to grace a portable, miraculously engineered into a 1-inch-thin notebook that’s ultralight (just 6.9 pounds), ultradesirable.

Megawide 17-inch display
The first thing you’ll notice is its megawide display -- the largest ever in a notebook -- miraculously engineered into a 1-inch-thin body that weighs just 6.9 pounds. This PowerBook’s stunning display gives you the same viewing area as a 19-inch CRT monitor. And as for the amount of information you can see on the screen at one time, the 17-inch PowerBook supports a resolution of 1440-by-900 pixels -- an eye-popping 1.3 million pixels appearing on the screen simultaneously, with room aplenty for your menus, toolbars and palettes. Featuring a scorchingly fast 1.33 GHz PowerPC G4 processor, up to 2GB of DDR RAM -- and with AirPort Extreme and Bluetooth built in -- the top gun of notebook computers has it all.

Futuristic backlit keyboard with ambient light sensor
The 17-inch PowerBook features a fiber optic backlit keyboard that’s right out of the future. Built-in light sensors automatically adjust the keyboard illumination and your screen’s brightness based on the available ambient light. You’ll appreciate this breakthrough in ease of use when you’re working in a low-light environment like an airplane cabin or a music or video studio.

Leading-edge industrial design
You’ll love the high-resolution 17-inch active-matrix display with brilliant 1440 by 900-pixel resolution. And you’ll marvel at the way we’ve fitted this supersharp display into such a remarkably small frame -- just 15.4 inches wide, 10.2 inches deep, 1.0 inches thin and weighing a mere 6.9 pounds. Housed in a lightweight and durable aluminum alloy enclosure, the new 17-inch PowerBook G4 is resistant to stains and scratches. It also features a drop-dead gorgeous design -- perfectly smooth on all surfaces, with no doors, protruding latches or levers to break, no external buttons to accidentally press, and no sharp edges to catch on your clothing.

High-speed architecture
The 1.33GHz processor gives a tremendous performance boost with an advanced cache memory architecture that provides ultrafast dedicated memory with massively enhanced throughput. The 17-inch PowerBook G4 features 512K backside level 2 cache. Accessing data from main memory is significantly faster than accessing data from the hard drive, but L2 cache -- which boosts processor function by providing phenomenally fast access to data and application software code -- gives this PowerBook G4 an even faster level of memory. The 17-inch PowerBook G4 comes with 256K or 512MB of DDR SDRAM, expandable to 2GB of RAM -- allowing you to run several RAM-hungry applications simultaneously, or to store an entire graphics project in main memory for fast image manipulations.

Lightning-fast graphics
The 17-inch PowerBook G4 comes turbocharged with the ATI Mobility Radeon 9600 graphics processor with 64MB of DDR SDRAM. The Mobility Radeon 9600 features a number of cutting-edge graphics technologies, including prgrammable pixel and vertex shading for lighting and shadow effects never seen before on a notebook computer. It dramatically enhances all aspects of your visual experience in every application, perfect for photorealistic 3D games and cinematic-quality video.

Fast FireWire 800 and USB 2.0
The PowerBook G4 features FireWire for connecting external hard drives and DV cameras, and USB for connecting graphics tablets, digital cameras, printers and scanners. With more than 30 times the bandwidth of the popular USB 1.0 peripheral standard, FireWire 400 has become the gold standard for high-speed data transfer. And now Apple has upped the ante yet again, effectively doubling data throughput with FireWire 800. The new 17-inch PowerBook G4 has two FireWire ports -- one for the hundreds of FireWire 400 peripherals already available, and the other for the coming generation of FireWire 800 peripherals.

The legendary SuperDrive
Your PowerBook G4 with SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW) comes loaded with iDVD software, and can be used to burn DVDs which can be played in most consumer DVD players. The SuperDrive also lets you use iTunes to burn your own music CDs, and the Disc Burner feature in Mac OS X to burn data CDs. The SuperDrive reads DVD titles at 8x, and writes to 4.7-GB DVD-R discs at 2x.

54 Mbps AirPort Extreme -- up to 5 times faster
The new 17-inch PowerBook G4 features the hot new 802.11g AirPort Extreme technology -- at 54 Mbps, the fastest wireless connection available on a Mac. The 17-inch PowerBook G4 comes with AirPort Extreme installed. And since AirPort Extreme is backward-compatible with 802.11b networks -- and with thousands of wireless "hot spots" in hotels, airport lounges, coffee shops and bookstores around the world -- you’ll be able to use your PowerBook G4 to get online from practically anywhere.

Sync with Bluetooth
Bluetooth is built into the new 17-inch PowerBook G4. Like AirPort Extreme, Bluetooth connects digital devices wirelessly. Operating within a much shorter range than AirPort, it enables high-speed wireless data transfers between a rapidly growing list of Bluetooth-savvy products. Using iSync, for instance, you can use Bluetooth to synchronize your personal information between your PowerBook, your mobile phone and your Palm OS-based handheld. And Bluetooth lets you take advantage of GPRS connectivity to check your email from anywhere -- a benefit that comes in handy on those occasions when an 802.11 wireless hot spot isn’t available.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FANTASTIC laptop but has some minor quirks, November 17, 2003

By 

SWL (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Apple PowerBook Laptop 17" M9110LL/A (1.33-GHz PowerPC G4, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD-R/CD-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

Greetings all, the other review by Sherrila Levin for this item is inappropriate and overzealous (I'm a die-hard Mac fan). Make no mistake this is a PHENOMENAL computer yet there are some buts...

In a nutshell:
PROS:
- You're walking around with 17" gorgeous object of envy that has a stunning display great for games, DVDs, doing PhotoShop/Illustrator work, etc. The great screen ratio is perfect for design apps with palettes, toolbars and the like.
- For a laptop, GREAT sounding speakers
- Backlit keyboard: Nifty little feature that is best when you have it plugged in. Otherwise, works well, but is an added drain on the battery when going mobile. Though, the AMBIENT LIGHT SENSOR that adjusts screen brightness and backlight is AWESOME when it fades in to let you know it's working.
- Usual suspects of big hard drive, fast processor, pretty snazzy 3d card, lots of ports, DVD & CD BURNER and loads of RAM make for a REALLY AGILE portable workhorse.
- It's always great owning something where you can see the designers put oodles of love and obsession to detail.
- Slot loading drive (has no breakable moving doors)
- Does not generate heat like previous G3 models or earlier G4s

CONS (Few and almost trivial, but worth noting for the uninitiated):
- 6.8 pounds isn't the lightest thing in the world if you're lugging it around on one shoulder
- Shell is slightly soft and gives way to some small body damage easily (I accidentally dropped mine on the corner from about 1.5 ft off the ground - now have a nice ding. Other users/reviewers have also mentioned this issue as well). Just don't be as klutzy as me and you should be fine.

Hope this helps.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A joy to use, and road-ready to a T, February 1, 2004

By A Customer

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Apple PowerBook Laptop 17" M9110LL/A (1.33-GHz PowerPC G4, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD-R/CD-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

This aluminum-shelled gem marries beauty and brawn so well that that owners of lesser laptops will surely have a hard time hiding their envy. It's fast and capacious and, like other Apple products, a joy just to take out of the box and see how Apple has thought about every step of the user experience, from unpacking to setting up the built-in wireless networking (a total breeze, and I'm a klutz at that kind of thing). In that same vein, there's the G4 Powerbook's keyboard that automatically lights up with a soft glow from underneath the keys as the light in your office or your airplane cabin dims. It's a small thing, but indicative of a genuinely respectful, design-centric, user-oriented mindset that no other computer company can match.

The display is lovely to behold and s-h-a-r-p, and the wealth of (count 'em) 1.3 million pixels makes it hard to go back to my 15'' flatpanel iMac desktop screen. Watching a DVD on a Powerbook screen this big and this good is about as satisfying as visiting my local cineplex, sans the sticky floors.

Like the new G5 desktops, the G4 Powerbooks strike me as quite hi-tech and futuristic. That's not a bad thing, but it's a far cry from the happy candy-colored iBooks of a few years ago. The G4 Powerbooks are also not as "warm & inviting" as the current generation of elegant white Powerbooks. The persona of the G4 machines is a bit more stand-offish, stark even, and you either like that or you don't. I think they're plenty gorgeous but, at the risk of sounding sexist, my hunch is that it's a 'guy' computer, and that a lot of women won't take a shine to these machines. But I'll let Apple's marketing department worry about that.

Finding Panther (Mac OS 10.3) loaded on this machine was a greater boon than I'd imagined. I've used 10.2 (Jaguar) since it came out in August 2002, but Panther is such a big step forward, it almost qualifies as a whole new operating system -- without the learning curve. You can log out without quitting open applications, for instance, in a matter of literally seconds. The improved Finder -- which appears to be modeled in part on Windows XP, though no Mac user would admit that without the benefit of thumbscrews ;-) -- makes navigating through complex hierarchies of folders and files a snap, and it's easy to customize. Also, Apple has brought back color labeling of files and other items -- an OS9 staple it stupidly discarded when the company launched OSX a few years ago. There are more than 150 other big and small improvement (wait'll you get a load of a feature called Exposé, which displays all your open windows, across applications, at the roll of a mouse!), but this is supposed to be a review about the computer, not its operating system.

Well then, the G4 17'' Powerbook is a tactile and esthetic pleasure to use. The fit is tight, the finish beautiful. Everything just works right out of the box without the user having to study manuals or spending time on the phone with tech support. I would gush about this machine (and so far I have!), but there are a few minor points of criticism, too:

- Apple does sometimes put good looks over practicality. The shell of this Powerbook has no ridges on it -- it's just this sleek, smooth expanse of aluminum. Very purty, but since this is a large and relatively heavy laptop, you're quite likely to let it slip from your grasp at one point or another. Some kind of grip would have been a good idea. Also, there's a latch at the front of the machine that you push to unlock the screen. The latch is almost perfectly flush with the front of the case (so as not to visually break the sleek line of the shell, I'd wager), and I find that it sometimes takes two or three pushes before the screen pops open.
- The material looks like it might scratch easily (but I'm trying not to find that out first-hand). At this price -- 3,000 semolians! -- Apple should have included a soft leather sleeve or something, so that you can toss the thus-protected Powerbook into a shoulder bag or backpack and not worry about it. I ordered a neoprene third-party solution called a Sportfolio (40 bucks) that does the job.
- I've been forced to use them for years and I still don't like 'em: trackpads. Ugh. Get a mouse. Kensington makes one that works well with a Powerbook; it has a retractable USB cable that stores inside the device when not in use.
- The power cord plugs into the side of the machine. That's a bit unsightly. It should have been in the back, where it essentially doesn't show.
- More visual clutter: the sides of the machine. They're outfitted with a bevvy of ports, including a Firewire 800 port and an S-video socket (excellent!) and no cover (not so excellent). I realize doors can easily break off, but maybe a molded rubber strip would have (a) been better-looking, and (b) kept dust, dirt, and lint out.
- Apple should take a cue from the automobile industry and its included standard 3 year/50,000-miles warranties. The Powerbook has a one-year warranty and only 90 days of phone support. To extend coverage to three full years, you're supposed to purchase a protection plan for -- gulp -- 350 bucks. I guess I'll do it, but I have the uncomfortable feeling I'll be paying for a few years' supply of Steve Jobs's black turtlenecks. I'm OK with him playing hardball with Disney, he just should let up on his own loyal customers a bit. ;-)

I've had the G4 17'' Powerbook for a week and intend to really put it through its paces in weeks and months to come. So far, the verdict is very positive. The first Apple Powerbooks, in 1992, also cost multiple thousands of dollars, just like this one. For the same money (less if you count inflation), you can now buy a super-good-looking supercomputer that is a kick-ass music player, an excellent movie-playback machine, a top-notch number cruncher, a high-powered portable recording studio, a serious photo- and video-editing tool, and on and on... I shrugged when I heard about Apple's plans, three or four years ago, to turn their computers into "hubs for the digital lifestyle." But the company did just that, and no portable computer today is a more capable, pleasure-to-work-with digital hub than this gorgeous 17'' G4 Powerbook.

Addendum: A few weeks after I wrote this review, I'm on a plane, with the Powerbook in its neoprene sleeve tucked safely in the overhead luggage compartment. Well, maybe not SO safely after all. After touchdown, people start grabbing their bags, anxious to get out -- and some idiot yanks her own luggage out so hard and carelessly that my computer goes flying. It drops in a graceless arc, like a limply flung brick, and lands with a thud that churns my stomach. I actually gasp. This is more abuse than any consumer laptop can handle. After all, it's a fall from almost seven feet high; surely the case is cracked, or the screen broken, or the hard drive knocked out of whack and my data lost -- or all of the above. Absurdly enough, though, I'm wrong. I zip open the sleeve, fingers trembling, but all is as it should be. The aluminum case is un-dented and as tight as ever; the screen unblemished; the hard drive unperturbed. Now, I wouldn't care to duplicate this little involuntary experiment. Clearly I got lucky. But it's also proof that Apple builds its Powerbooks with real structural integrity -- equipped to deal with the rigors of the road, and with the abuse inflicted on it by hapless users and clumsy strangers alike.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Laptop Ever Made!!!, February 19, 2004

By 

Muhammad Miguel Ali Hasan "Film Director & Po... (Sunset Beach, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Apple PowerBook Laptop 17" M9110LL/A (1.33-GHz PowerPC G4, 512 MB RAM, 80 GB Hard Drive, DVD-R/CD-RW Drive) (Personal Computers)

I don't know what more I can add to all of these great reviews

but believe the hype!!!

this is one AWESOME laptop!

I'll just make a list of why I love it --- forgive me if it comes off with any irrationality ---

1. Portability ---- seriously, feel free to laugh, but this laptop really is portable....... yes, it can get heavy (by the end of the day) but it really is comparable, if not lighter, than most laptops available......... I commend Apple for doing such a great job on actually making this computer portable enough to throw in a backpack and take with you

2. The Widescreen 17" screen!!! gosh this screen is beautiful! Sometimes I find myself using a smaller computer and I can't stand it ---- I've officialy been spoiled! Even 15" widescreens won't do anymore!

3. Keyboard ---- there's something special about this keyboard - its pretty cool

4. Speed ---- Apple gets knocked around a lot for its speed, but seriously, the G4 in this thing really handles things greatly! I highly recommend 1 gig of RAM, for the ultimate speed and stability ----- this thing will run Final Cut Pro, Garage Band, OS X, all of those programs, greatly! Take my word for it ---- no probs at all!

5. Stablity ---- this is more of a software thing, but OS X is such a great OS!!! Never freezes, never crashes ------ I have five different apps open right now (Safari, AOL, Preview, MS Word, and iTunes) and the speed isn't slowing down one bit!

6. Output options ----- were talking Firewire, Firewire 800, USB, DVI, best of all, SVIDEO and AUDIO output ---- making it VERY easy to connect this baby to a nice TV!!! its pretty freaking cool

I don't know what else to say ---- buy it! IT ROCKS

for those of you afraid to switch, let me give you reasons why ---

- Microsoft Office on OS X (which works better here than it does on XP)

- Final Cut Pro (better than any Windoze editing system)

- All Adobe apps available here

- All Macromedia apps available here

did I forget anything?