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I read somewhere that 78 percent of Macintosh Computers ever built are still in service. That means that an awful lot of people are still doing useful and productive things with older Macs.

How much Mac do you need? You will probably be happiest over the long haul with the most Mac you can comfortably afford. However, even if all you can afford is two or three hundred dollars, you should be able to find yourself a very nice used Mac that will do word processing, email, Web surfing, and spreadsheet work efficiently -- if not with the speed of a G3 or a G4. I paid Can$220 for the PowerBook 1400 I use every day as a typing/editing platform.

Unless you’re really hurting in the wallet, though, I don’t recommend buying a pre-G3 Mac for a general use machine, although I have friends who are still using older PPC Macs or even the occasional 680X0 machine for word processing and email, and getting along happily, albeit at a bit slower pace than those of us with newer machines. You really can get a usable Mac setup for $100-$200 complete. There are literally dozens of Macs from the mid/late-’90s selling used in the $100 (or less) - $400 range. Beige desktop G3s and Blue and White G3 towers, for instance, are now selling in the upper end of that price bracket.

If you like portables, 500MHz-600MHz iBooks are running in the $550 - $600 price range, and 333 MHz Lombard PowerBooks are now below $500.

Of course, if your budget will stand a bit more than that, opting for a new $799 eMac or $999 iBook will get you a new computer and a full warranty (although Apple refurbished units carry a 1 year warranty as well).

Charles W. Moore

Cool Mac Gear