My first portable Mac computer was a 14 inch 800mhz G3 iBook. When I purchased the laptop, it was the top of the line in Apple’s Consumer portable line. Today, this laptop, while feeling a quite a bit sluggish, especially when compared to the newer computers from Apple, is still a good little notebook for typing notes, surfing the web and sending email. This model, however, does suffer from a fatal flaw. About 4 years ago, it started to experience a problem where the screen would blank out and then the laptop was unusable. Well, there was a manufacturing problem with this model in which flawed logic boards were installed. Apple stepped up to the plate and extended the warranty on these logic boards, and would replace them, no questions asked (the logic board, not the laptop). Well, when the warranty finally ran out, it would cost you about $275 to have Apple swap out the logic board, most likely with another flawed part (I had mine replace twice before the end of the warranty program).

Of course, the logic board on my old girl decided to die about 3 months after the program ended. What to do now? Being a thrifty guy, I really didn’t feel like plunking down another $275 and not have the problem permenantly fixed. Someone actually told me a workaround where you could stick business cards inside the case (no lie) and it would cause the video chip to make contact with the logic board and it would work. I actually tried this for about 2 months. It worked occasionally, but it was not a long term fix. Well, enter First Phase Technologies, a company in Arizona that provides a service where they will take your logic board that you have removed from your iBook, reflow the solder on the chip and send it back to you. They even sent before and after x-rays of the solders which show you the faulty solders that were on the original logic board. You do have to completely take the iBook apart to remove the logic board to send them. I was at the point where if it didn’t get fixed, it would be worthless eventually anyways.

After 4 months, the iBook is still working great, other than some scuffs on the finish. I can recommend, without reservation, their service as it really does seem to do the trick. To find out more about First Phase Technologies iBook repair, go to http://www.firstphasetech.com/ibook-repair-g3-g4.html.