item.89940

Ian Godfrey

I have a Powerbook G4 15" 1.5 GHz which for the last year or so has been exhibiting the same intermittent Memory Slot problem.

As others have commented on this site, the defective memory modules must have been finding their way into production much earlier than Apple claim.

My serial # is: W844107JQW3

Although now a relatively old machine, it has been cared for well, never been bashed about. It would seem that I was sold a defective machine.

item.89979

MacInTouch Reader

Ian Godfrey said

"I have a Powerbook G4 15" 1.5 GHz which for the last year or so has been exhibiting the same intermittent Memory Slot problem....As others have commented on this site, the defective memory modules must have been finding their way into production much earlier than Apple claim...Although now a relatively old machine, it has been cared for well, never been bashed about. It would seem that I was sold a defective machine."

Oh, the memory slot problems have been with us a looong time. I had a client with two 500mhz TiBooks with the problem. That was the first G4 PowerBook.

I'm not sure that absence of rough usage can be counted on to prevent what is apparently a manufacturing defect. Trouble is, some of those defects don't show up for years -- maybe they're caused by fatigue. Your PB was manufactured in Oct 2004. While we would like our computers to last longer than four years or so, it doesn't always happen. It's kind of hard to make a claim based on manufacturing defect four years after the fact.

item.103523

Mike Capps

Have a Powerbook 15" using Mac OS 10.4.11 has built in 512mb Memory, and i added another 1gb over a year ago, been using Aperture for nearly twelve months now. for some reason Aperture will not run as saying not enough memory to run now only showing 753mb of Memory which for some reason machine has lost half of its Memory.
Opened Memory door on G4, memory fitting ok, now only showing 256mb of Memory so halved again.
Can you help?

item.103654

Sterett Prevost

Re: Mike Capps and disappearing memory

Unfortunately, that Mac is known for having faulty memory module sockets. It will require a logic board replacement if zapping the P-RAM does not help
(after the startup tone, hold down <cmd> <opt> <P> <R> until two additional startup tones are heard). Logic board replacement can be expensive (check online resources such as iFixit.com,Pwrbk ResQ.com, Techrestore.com, etc).

item.103684

Randall Voth

Mike Capps - Unfortunately, Apple had to replace the motherboard to fix the memory problem on my old G4 15". They had a service extension on the problem (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2164), but it expired July 24, 2008.

You may be able to continue it's life by getting a 1 gig RAM module and only using one slot, but that is the biggest module I can see is available for the computer so you'd only have 1 gig for your software.

item.110632

Joel D

Same problem here. Just started recently...
Powerbook G4 FW800 serial: V7339

Any idea how much it costs to have this repair done? Is there actually a repair or is it just a mobo replacement?

item.122443

MacInTouch Reader

Replacement of logicboard to correct this RAM slot issue is about $350 with AppleCare at 1800-Apl-care and they do a depot repair which means they send you a box, you ship it, they repair, they ship it back. Surprisingly fast too not as slow as it sounds.

item.157779

Peter Schoonmaker

I have the lower memory slot issue on my 2005 PowerBook G4 15-inch 1.67-GHz unit.

I have noted some interesting things, but first, overall condition of the PowerBook is fantastic. It looks like it was just taken out of the box for the first time.

My background in electronics began when I was 14 and soldering printed circuit boards. I went on to get a college degree in Computer Information Systems.

I have built and re-built desktops and laptops from multiple companies including Dell and Apple.

I have noted the following "quirks:"

One of the RAM pins on the lower module is off center. This looks like it is due to a manufacturing defect, but it *does* mean that if the RAM is not seated *just* right, it does not read properly.

The second quirk related to this problem is this: If I insert the RAM into the slot but do not push it down until the clips lock it in, the computer has no issues whatsoever reading it. This does mean that the RAM cover does not go on, but in this fashion I can run with both memory slots filled.

While not necessarily a solution for everyone with the problem, I hope this information helps someone out there.

As to the "life" of computers on the market, I have both the 15" PowerBook from 2005 and a 12" PowerBook from 2003. Both run blazingly fast. The only issue I have had involves Adobe no longer supporting the PowerPC processor. This was solved by a third party who created a Flash Player plugin that runs YouTube at 360p with no issues at all, full-screen and windowed mode. I am not looking to upgrade anytime soon....

item.157902

MacInTouch Reader

Care to share the information about the 3rd-party alternative plugin for Flash? Does it only work with YouTube? I have an old Powerbook G4 that I used to use with UStream but it requires Flash, which now gives a "must upgrade plugin" error when it tries to load. Thanks! ~Chip