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Author Topic: Which new powerbook to buy?  (Read 2660 times)

Offline acg

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« on: May 22, 2003, 05:56:56 AM »
I admit it... I simply cannot decide! Currently my one and only computer is a Powerbook G3 500 (aka Pismo) with an expansion bay combo drive, airport installed, 384 Mb RAM and a 20 Gb HD.  I am running 9.2.1 and I am using it mostly for web browsing, photo archiving, video editing (mostly iMovie, just getting into FCP), MP3 ripping and transfer to my iPod.  Oh, plus the occasional office apps and light printing and scanning of docs.

I have been thinking of moving to OS X and in my mind this move should also coincide with the purchase of a new powerbook, not only to have the luxury of a parallel run while migrating from one OS to the other, but also because the Pismo is getting too old for my taste and I don't feel like putting more money into it (it needs a new battery real bad...). Plus I want a superdrive:)

Anyway... these are the options and the obvious pros/cons of each one as I see them:

12": least expensive option, but is the screen too small?

17": top of the line (can't go wrong), but do I NEED to spend the extra cash?

15" Ti: good screen compromise, but it's pretty darn close to its end-of-life, not to mention the known issues with paint chipping and Airport coverage.

15" Al: Yeah, I know...  So far it is "vaporware".  It should be the obvious choice if it is anything like the other two Albooks, but how long should I wait for it?

So there you have it... I am open to suggestions and comments:)
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Offline Spartacus

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #1 on: May 22, 2003, 08:25:07 AM »
Whatever you do, don't buy the 15" model now!
Rumors say that a new model can be expected within the next weeks.

Personally, I think the 17" PowerBook is too large. Although extremely light, it is not very comfortable to travel around with because of the size.
Hence, I call it a portable desktop rather than a laptop.
Performance and that cool backlit keyboard are definitely the strengths of the 17" model.

I love the 12" model, but I know the screen from the current iBooks and they are small. Too small, perhaps. On the other hand it makes the 12" PB the best portable model.

The next revision of the 15" model is probably the most interesting.
Speedbump, Airport Extreme, larger display (15.4"?), BlueTooth, perhaps backlit keyboard.

Therefore, I would wait until Apple releases the new 15" PowerBooks. Perhaps at WWDC?
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Offline kelly

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #2 on: May 22, 2003, 08:29:24 AM »
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kelly
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Offline Gary S

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #3 on: May 22, 2003, 08:59:32 AM »
IAWSAK-wait a few weeks. smile.gif
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Gary S

Offline Paddy

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #4 on: May 22, 2003, 10:11:35 AM »
Agree with all above. I started a post and then Safari decided to quit on me, but if you look at the Mac rumors sites (AppleInsider etc.) there is a lot of buzz about a new 15" model ready and waiting to go, once existing stocks are gone. I have a Ti and love it - it's a great size, it has a PCMCIA slot (very handy if you have a digital camera - pop the CompactFlash card into the $9 adapter and pop it into the slot) lacking on the 12" and the screen size is very nice. The cost of the 17" is somewhat steep & if you're going to be carrying it around a lot, I'd think about the convenience factors. The 12" is just too small from my point of view - kinda like the 12" iBook with a G4 processor....
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Offline acg

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #5 on: May 23, 2003, 02:10:45 AM »
The results are in and it looks like it's unanimous!  So, I think I'll wait for the new 15" (15.4" maybe?) aluminum powerbook.  Hopefully apple won't make me wait too long...

 thanx.gif everyone!
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Offline JohnKentucky

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #6 on: May 23, 2003, 04:40:59 AM »
I think the 12inch is awesome in terms of the size and what it has..but it is certainly lacking in some areas.

If Apple would:
put an L3 cache in it
increase the screen resolution to something higher
backlit keyboard
Firewire 800 port on it

Then I would sell my 15 for a 12 in a heartbeat!
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Offline kps

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #7 on: May 23, 2003, 08:25:17 AM »
I would agree with the others that you should wait a little to see what the rev 15" will bring to the table.

Having said that...I have no complaints with regard to the 12" PB I purchased. I didn't buy it as a desktop replacement and realistically, it's not designed for that.

I bought it precisely for the form factor and the mobility. Photoshop runs just fine without the L3 cache for checking and enhancing digital images d/L from my camera, it may not work well with a 300MB prepress file, but then it wasn't designed for that and I think few laptops are. wink.gif

I do find using the LCD screen a bit problematic for accurate color correction, but I suspect that's the case with all LCD laptop displays and it could just be ME.

I haven't had a chance to fully test importing from my DVcam, but iMovie works fine for editing...don't have FCP, so I can't comment on that. I'm planning to do a big video project and will probably get FCX (Express) to edit it...so we'll see.
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Offline acg

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #8 on: May 23, 2003, 03:52:07 PM »
I forgot to mention that my Powerbook rarely leaves the house.  I go for a laptop instead of a desktop only for the luxury of wireless surfing anywhere in the house.

Up until a few hours ago I was convinced that I should wait. Then I saw a couple of 17'ers going for 3000 bucks each and since a friend is coming over from the US in a couple of weeks, maybe it's a good idea to get one.  The price difference is HUGE.  3000 bucks is about 2550 euro and here the 17" costs 4130 euro jawdrop.gif   It's a double window of opportunity here (my friend coming over so I can avoid import taxes and the euro being so strong against the dollar) that makes me think that I should act on it.  Hey, the 17" ain't half bad now that I think about it biggrin.gif
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Offline kelly

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #9 on: May 23, 2003, 07:44:11 PM »
Go for it. smile.gif
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kelly
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Offline JohnKentucky

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Which new powerbook to buy?
« Reply #10 on: May 24, 2003, 08:32:47 AM »
If you are going to mainly use it around the house then I say go for it! Those 17inch PB's are beauties! And if you do need to take it someplace, you still can...just it's larger but so what?
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