History
This, the third generation of the PowerBook G3, changed to a different case design and larger screen.
It was available in two configurations - a 333MHz unit with a CD-ROM, and a 400 MHz G3 with one
of the first commercially available laptop DVD-ROM drives.
The PowerBook Lombard used a 66MHz system bus and accepts
up to 384MB of PC66 or PC100 RAM.
The Lombard was the first Mac laptop to use USB - something carried over
from the iMac. It was also over 20% thinner and two pounds in weight lighter than it's predecessor.
A change in battery type resulted in significantly longer battery life.
The machine shipped with Mac OS 8.6 installed but will support Mac OS 9 to OS 10.3. It will not run 10.4 (Tiger) or later.
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How to Identify these Machines
The G3 Lombard can be distinguished from older PowerBooks (such as the G3 Wallstreet) by the colour of its keyboard, which is a translucent bronze colour. The subsequent PowerBook G3 "Pismo" has an almost identical case and keyboard.
The Lombard has an HDI-30 SCSI connection (a square port with 30 pins) and two USB Ports. This differentiates it from the Pismo, which has 2 USB ports and 2 FireWire ports but no SCSI.
The machine has also a 56K modem and a 15 pin VGA port for an external monitor.
If you are still unsure you can contact us on 01223 833 412 or by email for confirmation. If you want to upgrade but aren't happy to install your upgrades then we can help. Simply ask our engineers for further details.
Memory Upgrades
The PowerBook G3 Lombard has two memory sockets. The machines can accept up to 384MB in RAM - a lot for the time, but a sensible amount for today's applications, particularly if you're running OS 10 or later.
The RAM fits in two slots: either of which can take a 256MB module. Once a 256MB stick is installed, the second socket can only take up to 128MB.
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
Difficulty 3 / 5 - Reasonably easy (top socket only)
Turn off the machine and remove the power cable and battery.
The hard drive and RAM are
housed below the keyboard. To remove the keyboard, release the catches at the top of the keyboard (between ESC & F1 and
F8 & F9).
This reveals the internal parts. There is a metal protective plate secured with a screw. Remove the plate to reveal
the top RAM socket.
The top socket is easily reached, however if you need to install 2 memory chips we advise you to contact us for professional
installation, since the second socket is housed beneath the processor card and is difficult to replace.
We do sell RAM for installation in the lower socket, but we cannot provide any instructions or support for the installation.
CD & DVD Drive Upgrades
The PowerBook G3 Lombard came equipped with a CD ROM drive (333MHz) or a DVD-ROM (400MHz) in its left drive bay. At present we do not supply CD or DVD writers which fit internally into this machine.
Please note, a DVD unit from a 400MHz Lombard or a Pismo will fit into a 333MHz Lombard. However only the 400MHz Lombard has DVD decoding hardware. These machines are not powerful enough to decode in software. This means that a 333MHz unit fitted with an internal DVD-ROM cannot play DVD movies, although it could read data DVDs.
It is possible to use an external CD-RW. You can do this through the USB port, but the drive will only run at around 4x speed due to the speed restrictions of USB 1.1. You can also fit FireWire (requires OS9) or USB 2.0 (requires OSX) as a PCMCIA (Cardbus) card, and then use a fast external CD-RW. See the expansion card section at the end of this page for PCMCIA cards.
Unfortunately the Lombard is underpowered when it comes to burning DVDs, and we do not sell DVD-RWs to work with this machine.
There are no optical drive upgrades available for these Macs
Difficulty 1 / 5 Easy
Install any supplied software, restart your machine and connect the new device.
Internal Hard Drive Upgrades
This range of hard drives will work in your PowerBook Lombard.
If you don't want to fit a new hard drive yourself, you can take advantage of the MacUpgrades Installation Service. Add the installation service from the list below to your cart along with your chosen hard drive. We can also clone your existing hard drive onto the new one, simply add the Clone Original Hard Drive service below to your cart.
Once you have booked the service, send your machine to us, we will carry out the work and return it to you. Alternatively, we do offer a Collection Service with our courier, please see here for details.
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
Difficulty 3 / 5 - Reasonably Easy
Turn off the machine and remove the power cable and battery.
The hard drive and RAM are
housed below the keyboard. To remove the keyboard, release the catches at the top of the keyboard (between ESC & F1 and
F8 & F9). This reveals the internal parts.
There is metal protective plate secured with a screw. Remove the plate to reveal
the RAM socket. The hard drive is located to the right, housed in a caddy.
Very gently, take either side of the caddy and lift up
and out towards the centre of the PowerBook. Don't move it too far as it is connected with an IDE cable. Gently remove the
cable from the end of the drive and, with a TORX screwdriver, remove the 4 black holding screws at either corner of the drive.
Fit the new drive and reassemble the machine in reverse order.
Start your computer from CD, and initialize the drive.
If you are unsure please contact our team who can carry out the installation for you.
Graphics Card Upgrades
This laptop can take a secondary graphics card through it's PCMCIA (Cardbus) slot, to allow it to control a wider range
of external displays that it can by default.
There are no graphics card upgrades available for these Macs
Difficulty 1 / 5 - Very Easy.
Install any supplied software, turn off the machine, and insert the PCMCIA card into the socket on the left of the machine.
Connect it to your monitor and your finished.
Expansion Card Upgrades
Your PowerBook G3 Lombard has one available PCMCIA sockets for connectivity expansion. This is located
to the left of the machine.
These credit card sized sockets allow users to take advantage of newer connectivity such
as USB 2.0, FireWire and wireless networking.
There are no optical drive upgrades available for these Macs
Difficulty 1 / 5 - Very Easy.
Install any supplied software, turn off the machine, and insert the PCMCIA card into the socket on the left of the machine.
Restart the machine and away you go.
Keyboards & Mice
The following keyboards and mice are compatible with this Mac.
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
Difficulty 1 / 5 - Very Easy
Keyboards plug into the relevant port on your Mac. Mice can either be plugged into your keyboard, or they can be plugged directly into your Mac.
Power Supplies & Batteries
Listed below are power supplies, batteries and related products
we supply for this Mac.
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
Cables & Tools
Listed below are power cables, tools and related products
we supply for this Mac.
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
External Hard Drive Upgrades
It is possible to upgrade this Mac with an external hard drive, however you will need to add a modern connectivity type to your Mac. For this machine we
strongly recommend looking at FireWire if you want any external data storage devices. FireWire can be added with an expansion card (see below).
You will need to be running at least OS9 to use FireWire.
| 1 | Only suitable for this Mac if you have added USB 2.0 or eSATA with an expansion card. Will not boot this Mac. |
Any fitting information below is intended as a guide before purchase ONLY, when fitting these products you should refer to the original manual for your computer, and any instructions that come with the item. Please see this page for more information, or here for information on our fitting service.
Difficulty 1 / 5 - Very Easy (assumes you have already added the required connectivity)
Install any supplied software and connect the new device.
You will need to format the drive before use. This is done with the "Drive Setup" utility, which can be found in Applications > Utilities.
