PowerBook 12-Inch 2003

The 12-inch PowerBook G4/867 (Al) showcased an 867 MHz PowerPC 7455 (G4) processor with the AltiVec "Velocity Engine" and 256k of on-chip L2 cache. It included 256 MB of PC2100 DDR SDRAM, a 40 GB Ultra ATA/100 hard drive (4200 RPM), a slot-loading 8X "Combo" drive, and integrated Bluetooth 1.1, with AirPort Extreme available as an option. Graphics were powered by an NVIDIA GeForce4 420 Go with 32 MB of DDR SDRAM, displayed on a 12.1-inch TFT XGA screen (1024x768) within an appealing aluminum alloy enclosure. Compared to previous PowerBook G4s, the 12-inch version utilized a new logic board with quicker memory and graphics, built-in Bluetooth, and support for internal AirPort Extreme. Upon its introduction, Apple promoted it as the company's "smallest notebook ever" by volume.

The arrival of the 12-inch PowerBook G4 was met with great enthusiasm, as it finally offered a truly compact professional notebook from Apple. [3, 11] Its sleek aluminum chassis was not only stylish but also more robust than the preceding titanium models, and its small footprint made it exceptionally portable. [3, 11] Despite its size, it boasted a full-sized keyboard which was highly praised for its comfortable typing experience. [3] Performance was considered quite capable for its class, effectively running Mac OS X with its GeForce4 420 Go graphics. [6] While it lacked some features of its larger siblings, such as a backlit keyboard or FireWire 800, it was celebrated for successfully packaging the PowerBook experience into a much smaller and more mobile form factor, making it an instant favorite among writers, students, and frequent travelers. [6, 12]