Q: Is my Powerbook G3 Pismo dead?
I had a collection of old Macs that I've now sold - apart from one - a beloved Powerbook G3 400ghz laptop with the gold keyboard. But I was horrified to find a few days ago that it wouldn't power up - I've tried with two different chargers and nothing. It's been in the attic for about 3-4 years but it was wrapped up nicely and presumed it'd be ok.
Does anyone have a clue what's happened? Or how to resurrect it? Or should I just sell it for spare parts?
Many thanks.
Posted on Mar 11, 2015 10:16 AM
You probably hae a dead PRAM battery. An old trick for non-responsive Pismos is to disconnect the internal backup, or PRAM, battery, You can access the connector through the keyboard without having to do a full teardown.
Tee illustrated guide here:
https://www.ifixit.com/Guide/PowerBook+G3+Pismo+PRAM+Battery+Replacement/21
shows how it looks inside. In one image that show disconnecting the battery, you can see its position is revealed when you simply lift the keyboard out.
If it starts with the PRAM battery disconnected, that is a good indication that the battery os dead. You can get a new PRAM battery here:
Posted on Mar 11, 2015 12:37 PM