ibook g4 hdd upgrade and battery replacement

hello all


i been looking at upgrading the hdd in my ibook g4 - specs in link below


https://everymac.com/systems/apple/ibook/specs/ibook_g4_1.42_14.html


i am aware of the ulta ata 100 and old 2.5 ide connection


i read somewhere that 100gb hdd is the max it goes to


i was wondering if that is true or can use any size from any brand as long as it uses ulta ata 100 and 2.5 ide connection


and also looking to replace the battery as the one it came with is dead and doesn't hold the charge anymore (not surprised) but what recommendations is there to replace it with a third party one

Posted on Aug 19, 2020 10:25 AM

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3 replies

Aug 20, 2020 11:04 AM in response to Korn_fan_20

Finding suitable or any useful IDE/ATA (PATA) size has been a problem over several years.

Even the use of narrow availability SSD of this specific technology has become rarer still.


Other drive adapters, do not work. Or cannot fit the space allocated, for a special version

that may be able to work, in desktop PPC Mac. ~ Other builds are scarce as unobtainium.

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=PATA+ATA+IDE+2.5-inch+replacement+hard+drives&ia=web


I've searched a few years for the authentic parts, lastly from OWC for PPC, in PB & iBook.

Nearly four years ago, they should have offered bounty; that rare and significant of loss.


Those authentic PPC power batteries had been available from newertech/OWC online;

I'd bought one of the last available. My iBook G4 12-inch mid-2005 was also last build.

(From Apple refurbished online, batteries were covered under 2006 recall, back then.)


Knowing some third-party replacement batteries are awful, only hope is to locate source

who may be held accountable; with a guarantee. Sources may include walmart 'online.'

Many of those are not held in stock, or supplies come from other vendors. Hard to follow.


Sorry to say these are harder to keep going. Specs could be researched from online sources.

Former places to check for stock used to include ifixit or powerbookmedic; headgap, etc.


Replacement drives may be refurbished or of marginal quality; largest ATA/IDE HDDs were

larger than 200GB. My G4 Mac Mini (1.5GHz) last model, could use same physical size PATA

as PowerBook/iBook G4. Mine runs Leopard. Harder to get mechanical rotational HDDs, too.


Sources closer to third-party new stock replacement makers, in Asia? Maybe. And batteries

are colder trail. I've suggested those who know how to refurbish internal cells and re-use

those circuits inside original battery cases from Apple.. that may be worth the adventure.


Some older product users may have hints or practical leads to check; to restore these models.

Good luck & happy computing!🌻🐝

Aug 20, 2020 2:32 PM in response to Korn_fan_20

Some users with much older iBook/PowerBook used to partition their drives as

those had limitation to small drives; and installed their OS on portion of drive.


So the details vary over time as technology evolved; some could use over 2TB.

But portable older vintage macs with power and space constraints were more

likely limited to under 500GB; some shipped with up to 320GB ATA/IDE.


"How Big a Hard Drive Can I Put in My iMac, eMac, Power Mac, PowerBook, or iBook?", Low End Mac


However most later PPC Macs could use a larger HDD and options existed to

allow those, after 2002. Larger desktop mac drives (3.5-in) had better options.

Some users had external powered enclosures to run these; with fewer issues.


Battery powered portables often had good reason for limitations on drive size.

Some obvious, to those who'd ran them dangerously low on power reserves.


Take care & happy computing! 🙂🍀

Aug 20, 2020 2:08 PM in response to K Shaffer

ok thank you for reply


i not even thinking about ssds cause there are too pricey and need adaptors to work with older computers and like to try a keep the experience closer to when machine was new ish to it time period


as i maxed the ram out and also sourced a replacement internal disk drive as the one ibook doesn't read any discs anymore and spits them back out


i manage to find a 250gb IDE/ATA (PATA) 2.5 drive but waiting till payday and just wondering if ibook g4 can see the whole size of drive (thinking along the line of being a pc gamer and messing with older tech and bios limitations and what hdd size etc) and assuming it same on some level


i am based in uk, hopfully manage to find third party batteries from uk or europe as it would cheaper than importing from u.s. or anywhere else

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ibook g4 hdd upgrade and battery replacement

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