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Apple has released all kinds of notebooks since the first Macintosh Portable in 1997, but we don’t have time to cover every single model in this video, so we’ll focus on the MacBook Pro and it’s predecessor the PowerBook G4 since the two are very closely related.

So the PowerBook G4 was introduced by Steve Jobs back in 2001 at the MacWorld Expo and it was a huge release. It was the first time Apple used pure titanium metal in any of their products, a sharp contrast from the black plastic PowerBook G3. That of itself was such a cool concept that Apple included the word when naming it the Titanium PowerBook G4. The notebook was just 1 inch thick which may not be impressive by today’s standards, but the PowerBook G3 was 1.7 inches thick, so Apple had reduced the PowerBook’s thickness by 40% which was an incredible feat of engineering.

It was also one of the first notebooks with a wide-screen aspect ratio, which Apple marketed as an “ultra-wide screen display” that measured 15.2”. It also featured a slot-loading disk drive on the front rather than on the side which made inserting and removing disks more convenient when space was tight. Now although this notebook’s official name was Titanium PowerBook G4, users nicknamed it TiBook, which went well with the lower end iBook.

Now, remember how I said this was the first time Apple used titanium? Well, it was also their last. You see, the titanium metal was painted in order to give it a more attractive finish, and that paint would start to peel and bubbling after extended use, especially around the trackpad and palm rest. But this wasn’t the only problem, the hinge was made from plastic and became notorious for breaking even under typical use. And because the video cable was routed was routed through the left side of the hinge, it was vulnerable to damage, causing random lines, a jumbled screen, or backlight issues.

So, while the Titanium PowerBook G4 had some good qualities, Apple knew they had to make it much more durable. Which they did two years later with the Aluminum PowerBook G4. It was released in 2003 and not only brought a new design but laid the foundation for Apple’s notebook designs for the next five years. Even the keyboard was given a big upgrade. It was a silver aluminum instead of black plastic and featured backlighting. Which was the first case of keyboard backlighting seen on a notebook computer. In addition to the 15 inch model, this release reintroduced the 12” notebook back into Apple’s line which was missing since 1998. But they didn’t stop there. For the first time ever Apple offered a 17” model in their line of notebooks.

Now, the transition from the PowerBook G4 to the MacBook Pro in the beginning of 2006 wasn’t as dramatic as you might expect. The MacBook Pro used the same design at the PowerBook G4 so they weren’t really distinguishable at first glance. But the MacBook Pro received some exciting updates that really modernized Apple’s notebook line.