Toggle sidebar Toggle sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Dilemna: Cancel Mini order and get new 15" PB?

S

skp574

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Ok, I know that there have been a lot of threads about should I go for this or should I go for that. So I thought I'd join in! 😀

I have just seen the new PBs. I am interested in the 15", 1.5GHz. I went to a customer's house today and saw one (an older one that is) in the flesh, nice!

I have already placed an order for a BTO Mini. And have got another two weeks to wait 🙁 .

I am thinking now about cancelling my order for the Mini and reordering a PB instead (only 3-5 days away, even BTO).

I was thinking of getting the 15" combo and upping the RAM to 1 Gig. Also possibly changing the combo over to a Superdrive.

Yes, it's more expensive than the mini (~UK£600) but I would get a similar spec portable with a nice 15" display. I can then work anywhere and not be tied to my desk. (Roll on the summer in the back garden!)

The thing that is swaying me towards the PB is that I have a Compaq tablet PC that has seen better days and is sooooooo sloooooow.

I could go the extra £600 care of the credit card company!

Am I being silly, should I look at the higher spec 15" 1.67 PB?

Sorry to join the "I can't decide for myself, so please help brigade", but I need a second opinion.

Thanks for putting up with me.
 
Figure out how much you'll use the Powerbook somewhere other than a desk and work out how much extra you are paying each time you do so. Once a week for 2 years and you're paying pretty much £20 a time for the privilege of being portable*. On the other hand, if you think you might use it more since you can sit with it on the sofa, it can prove tempting.

As far as sitting in the garden goes, bear in mind that screens can be very tough to read in the sunshine (not that we see much of that in London in the summer 🙄 )

If you do decide you want a portable, go and have a good look at the iBook in Regent St. Unless you are really going to use the extra power than the Powerbook has (plugging into external monitors, needing up to 2GB of RAM, PCI card slot, Firewire 800 etc) then it's good value for money.

Edit: *if you add on the extra PB RAM etc and make it a round £1000 or so difference in price
 
Just my opinion here, but I think the PBs are overpriced and underpowered. If I had (or had already ordered) a 1.42ghz mini, with "all" the options (512mb+ RAM, 80gb HD, AE and BT, and SD) I would probably just stick with that. If I was dying to spend an extra 500-1000GBP, and was itching for a new portable, the 12" iBook is only 600GBP or so, right?

Just me.

Rob
 
I will prolly use it at home as well as work. Being self employed and administering the office network I can use the PB as my desktop replacement. 😎

If the battery life is as good as it says that will be better than any other laptop I've had is also a plus.
 
I would get the 15" PB over the Mini. It's a great machine, and I used it constantly at work and at home. True, it'll cost more, but I believe it's worth it. And do upgrade the RAM to 1 gig (or higher if you have the money). Get the 128 VRAM upgrade, too. The speed 1.5 vs 1.67 Ghz won't make much difference so don't worry too much.

I am not a big fan of the Mini (just me). You get a lot more from the PB! Also it's so portable. You should be able to test drive both the Mini and PB at your local Apple Store.

True Rob, PBs are costly, but they're so nice.

skp574, let us know what you decide!
 
I'll try to get to the Regent Street Store in London before the end of the week to have a look.

If I go for the PB I can pick it up there any then, even if I want more RAM? Is it something they do while you wait in the store or do you have to come back and collect later?
 
They will add more RAM for you but you may have to wait for them to do it.

I'd advise buying your own 3rd party RAM - Apple's is relatively expensive - and install it yourself. On the Powerbook, it's a doddle. Turn it off, take out the battery, ground yourself, unscrew 4 screws on a small back panel, insert RAM, rescrew panel, insert battery, turn on - it takes less than 5 minutes. On the Mini, it's slightly tougher - you need a putty knife to get the top off.
 
Ok couldn't wait, so cancelled the Mini and just ordered a 15" PB Superdrive with no upgrades. I'll get it in a week. Yippee! 😀 . I can add more ram later if I need to.

Now at least I can work/play wherever I like.

But can I wait a week though. D'oh!!!!
 
skp574 said:
Ok couldn't wait, so cancelled the Mini and just ordered a 15" PB Superdrive with no upgrades. I'll get it in a week. Yippee! 😀 . I can add more ram later if I need to.

Now at least I can work/play wherever I like.

But can I wait a week though. D'oh!!!!
Click to expand...

Cool. No matter what you get you will be happy with it. The BT2 may turn out to be a great feature to have in the coming years. I am hoping for all kinds of cool wireless gadgets to use it. Or it could be like BT1, overpriced and underused. 🙁

On the otherside, your canceling the mini means that someone else will get it that much sooner, so all the people waiting on mini's to ship should come in here and say thanks! 😉

Rob
 
Just to throw my two cents in. I would almost always choose a laptop over a stationary computer regardless. Portability, if not a necessity, becomes an addiction. I have to be portable, because I use it at work, at home, at school, and while having fun. I wouldn’t choose the portable if I needed more computing power at a more economical rate.

One little added feature of a laptop is that it has it’s own built in UPS, so if the power goes out, or drops, your computer doesn’t. Still, at least get a surge strip. I also like that I can slip my entire computer into my bookshelf.

The only thing that an older 15” PB might not do is burn +/- DVDs with its Super Drive. Check, my PB can only burn –DVDs. Then again, I don't know if that was an option you were looking at.

Cheers.
 
skp574 said:
Ok couldn't wait, so cancelled the Mini and just ordered a 15" PB Superdrive with no upgrades. I'll get it in a week. Yippee! 😀 . I can add more ram later if I need to.

Now at least I can work/play wherever I like.

But can I wait a week though. D'oh!!!!
Click to expand...

Great to hear that you decided to get the 15" PB superdrive instead! You made the right choice. (Again, I am not a big fan of the mini). Mine took about a week, too. Make sure you get more RAMs later on! There are threads about getting Crucial rams, which are cheaper than buying from apple.

Again, congrats!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back