The PB3400c is the only laptop I know of to ever have incorporated a subwoofer. It's built into the screen half of the clam shell, behind the 12.1" active-matrix display. Combined with dual tweeters above the keyboard, this might have been the pinnacle of portable Mac audio. Now that portables are getting lighter and smaller, a subwoofer seems a gratuitous waste of space. I guess this is all just Mac history now...

When this 'Book was released, it was the Starship Enterprise of the fleet. Not the lightest, nor the cheapest, but the best equipped. The 2400 offered 4lb. portability. The 1400 was inexpensive. But the 3400 had the best flat screen in the industry at that time, integrated networking and modem (one RJ45 port for both - another first - and last) and a solid construction that gave it a cool, hefty, reliable feeling. Yet it's hard to believe anyone ever paid as much as $3000 for a laptop with a 603e processor. There were a few sold at 240MHz and these might still be tolerable performers, but the more common 180MHz model would be a mere dog today. Even at the time of release, the entire PowerBook line was woefully underpowered.

When the first PowerBook G3 was released, it was in fact nothing but a 3400c with some motherboard modifications and a processor upgrade. It performed light years beyond the 3400, proving that Motorola's anemic PowerPC chips were cutting even less mustard then than they are now. It's too bad that the 3400 was held back by the 603 processor. As with the 1400 and 2400, it was a good machine but not terribly useful overall. If you bought the high-end model at the release price of $6400, you probably hated yourself for it within a year. Today's Titanium PowerBook is much, much more machine at roughly half the price.

Specs:
6-12X CD-ROM - not too bad even by today's standards. For normal usage, nothing above 8X makes much difference. Peak read speed is rarely achieved, and only for short bursts. It's nice that this CD-ROM drive was removable. There should be floppy modules, hard drive modules, and zip drive modules available on ebay for it.

33.6 modem: bare minimum for today's internet content. But I will say having supported many 3400s that the modem was reliable and completely integrated into the machines' hardware and software. Few problems.

1.3-3GB hard drive: Yikes. Tiny.

16MB RAM: Yikes again. 32 is passable for OS8 but you'll want more, I guarantee it.

2 PCMCIA slots: Nice to have for expansion. They were the first Apple released that supported Zoomed Video.

12.1-inch active matrix screen: smaller even than the iBook but well made. Bright, reliable, clear.

Monitor out: VGA. Good to have for presentations (Though I don't think it supports XGA resolution, only 800x600). Mirroring only. No dual-display.

Battery life: advertised at 1.5-2 hours. Not great, although you can remove the CD-ROM and add a second battery.

I assume you're looking for one used if you're reading this. It's a well-built machine if you can find one cheap. Don't pay more than $600 and try to get one with extra memory. If you can score a 240MHz model you might be happy with it. I'd advise passing on the 180MHz model, especially if it stretches your budget.