Overview of PowerBook G4 - 12 inch
This chapter lists the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer’s features and provides references to detailed information within this developer note.
In this section:
PowerBook G4 –12 inch Features
Peripheral Devices
System Software
PowerBook G4 –12 inch Features
Here is a list of the features of the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer. Each feature is described in a later chapter, as indicated in the list.
Processor speed The clock speed of the Power PC G4 microprocessor is 867 MHz. See “Power PC G4 Microprocessor.”
Cache The microprocessor has a built-in L2 cache consisting of 256 KB of fast static RAM. The clock speed for the backside cache is the same as the clock speed of the microprocessor. See “L2 Cache.”
System RAM The computer comes with 256 MB of DDR SDRAM. The second 128 MB occupies the expansion slot. For more information, see “System RAM.”
Hard disk storage The computer has a hard disk drive with a storage capacity of 40 GB (and CTO 60 GB). For more information and developer guidelines for alternative hard drives, see “Hard Disk Drive.”
Power Saving This feature allows the user to step down the processor to conserve battery power. For more information, see “Power Saving.”
Combination DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive The standard configuration has a combination DVD-ROM/CD-RW drive. For more information, see “DVD-ROM/CD-RW Combo Drive.”
SuperDrive DVD-R/CD-RW drive (optional) A DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive drive is available as a build-to-order option. For more information, see “DVD-R/CD-RW SuperDrive (Optional).”
Display The 12.1-inch TFT display has XGA (1024 by 768) resolution. See “Flat-Panel Display.”
External display connector The external display connector supports VGA, composite, S-video monitors and projectors, and television sets. A video adapter with composite and S-video connectors is provided. See “External Display Port.”
Graphics IC The display controller is an nVidia GeForce4 420 Go and includes 32 MB of graphics DDR SDRAM. See “Graphics IC.”
Microphone The computer has a built-in omnidirectional microphone. See “Sound System.”
Battery The computer has a single battery bay that uses six lithium ion cell 47-watt-hour pack providing up to 5 hours of operation when maximum battery life options are specified in System Preferences.
Power adapter The computer comes with a 45 W power adapter with safety ground.
USB ports The computer has two external USB ports. See “USB Ports.”
FireWire port The computer has an IEEE-1394a FireWire 400 Mbps serial port. See “FireWire 400 Port.”
Target disk mode The computer can act like a FireWire storage device connected to another computer. See “Target Disk Mode.”
Modem The computer has a built-in modem that supports 56 Kbps data rate with and V.34, V.90, and V.92 support. See “Internal Modem.”
Ethernet The computer has a built in Ethernet port for 10Base-T and 100Base-T operation. See “Ethernet Port.”
AirPort Extreme Card (optional) A 54 Mbps AirPort Extreme Card is available as a build-to-order option or as a user-installable upgrade. See “AirPort Extreme Card.”
Sound The computer has a built-in microphone, audio line-in port, and stereo speakers with midrange-enhancing third speaker; it provides stereo output signals on the audio minijack. See “Sound System.”
Keyboard The keyboard has function keys and inverted-T arrow keys. Some of the function keys are used to control the brightness and sound and to toggle between dual and mirror modes. The keyboard also includes an embedded numeric keypad. See “Keyboard.”
Trackpad The integrated trackpad includes tap/double tap and drag features. See “Trackpad.”
Weight With the battery installed, the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer weighs approximately 4.6 pounds. The exact weight depends on the configuration options.
Size The dimensions of the computer are 10.9” (27.7 cm) wide, 8.6” (21.9 cm) deep, and 1.18” (3.0 cm) thick.
Security slot The PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer has a slot for attaching a Kensington security cable.
Peripheral Devices
In addition to the devices that are included with the computer, several peripheral devices are available separately:
The AirPort Extreme Card wireless LAN module is available separately as a user-installable option.
The battery is available separately as an additional or replacement battery.
The power adapter, which comes with the computer, is also available separately. The adapter can recharge the internal battery in less than six hours while the computer is running or in three and a half hours while the computer is shut down or in sleep mode.
A power cable for use on airliners is also available. The airline power cable should have a sense resistor of 24.3K ohms connected between the power plug's shell and ground. See also “Power Control IC.”
A VGA adapter with a 15-pin connector, included with the computer, is also available separately.
Additional Apple DDR SO-DIMMs are available.
A 65 W power adapter with safety ground is available separately for the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer.
System Software
The PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer comes with Mac OS X v. 10.2 installed. For more information about Mac OS X, see the reference listed in “Mac OS X.”
Here are a few items of interest about the system software on the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer.
Machine Identification
Current and recent Macintosh ROMs share the same BoxFlag. The intent is for applications to use properties in the Open Firmware device tree rather than checking BoxFlag to find out the features of the machine. On all these machines, a call to gestaltMachineType returns the value 406 ($196).
Asset management software that reports the kind of machine it is run on can obtain the value of the property at Devices:device-tree:model in the name registry. The model string is the first program-usable string in the array of C strings in the compatible field. For the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer, the model property value is PowerBook6,1.
The string obtained from the compatible property cannot be displayed to the computer user. If available, use the result from calling Gestalt ('mnam', &result), where result is a string pointer. This call returns a Pascal style string that can be displayed to the user.
Applications should not use either of these results to infer the presence of certain features; instead, applications should use Gestalt calls to test for the features they require.
Power Saving
Users can manually step down the processor by adjusting the Energy Saving Settings, which are located under the Energy Saver panel of System Preferences. Users can select from preconfigured profiles including Highest Performance and Longest Battery Life. Highest Performance and Longest Battery Life profiles override the DPS feature. Highest Performance maintains the highest processor speed while Longest Battery Life caps the processor speed at 533 MHz.
Target Disk Mode
The user has the option at boot time to put the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer into a mode of operation called target disk mode (TDM). When the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer is in target disk mode and connected to another Macintosh computer by a FireWire cable, the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer operates like a FireWire mass storage device with the SBP-2 (Serial Bus Protocol) standard. Target disk mode has two primary uses:
data transfer between computers
diagnosis and repair of a corrupted internal hard drive
The PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer can operate in target disk mode as long as the other computer has a FireWire port and either Mac OS X (any version) or Mac OS 9 with FireWire software version 2.3.3 or later.
To put the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer into target disk mode, restart the computer and hold down the T key until the FireWire icon appears on the display. Then connect a FireWire cable from the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer to the other computer. When the other computer completes the FireWire connection, a hard disk icon appears on its desktop.
If the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer is turned off or the FireWire cable is disconnected while in target disk mode, an alert appears on the other computer. Disconnecting while the disk is in use can cause loss of data on the disk.
To take the PowerBook G4 –12 inch computer out of target disk mode, drag the hard disk icon on the other computer to the trash, then press the power button on the computer.
For more information about target disk mode, see the section “Target Mode” in Technical Note TN1189, The Monster Disk Driver. For information about obtaining the technical note, see “Apple Technical Notes.”
© 2003 Apple Computer, Inc. All Rights Reserved. (Last updated: 2003-01-31)