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Predictions for the next gen/rev of PowerBooks... are they on?

J

johnbro23

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
I'm probably going to be buying the one of next rev of PowerBooks for college, unless they release a second rev before I go off to school in fall of 2006. Do you think the PB line will get 2 updates before then? Anyways, back on topic, here's my predictions for the next rev probably due this fall:

PowerBook G5 17"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2699

PowerBook G5 15"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2299

PowerBook G4 15"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
128 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$1899

PowerBook G5 12"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
128 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same except backlit keyboard
$1599

PowerBook G5 12"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
64 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$1399

So there they are. I think they're humble enough to be reasonable, but good enough to not let me be disappointed. So what do you think?
 
IMO: i dont think we will be seeing G5's this year, if we do that is going to be quite a thick PB that i dont think apple will want to release. the thing would end up looking like a XPS dell gaming notebook.

i think dualcore G4 is more likely as of now
 
buryyourbrideau said:
IMO: i dont think we will be seeing G5's this year, if we do that is going to be quite a thick PB that i dont think apple will want to release. the thing would end up looking like a XPS dell gaming notebook.

i think dualcore G4 is more likely as of now
Click to expand...
Well you never know. I can't see them making the G4 any faster than it already is. I mean its already way faster than the top PM ever was (1.42). I think if they can fit it in an iMac, which is 2 inches thick, they can fit it into a PB, which currently is around 1 inch thick. It will definitely be tight with all that cooling they need too.
 
johnbro23 said:
Well you never know. I can't see them making the G4 any faster than it already is. I mean its already way faster than the top PM ever was (1.42). I think if they can fit it in an iMac, which is 2 inches thick, they can fit it into a PB, which currently is around 1 inch thick. It will definitely be tight with all that cooling they need too.
Click to expand...


my exact point: COOLING

is the main problem i believe 😡

of course i want one, just not right now

new ibook does me just super duper
 
johnbro23 said:
Well you never know. I can't see them making the G4 any faster than it already is. I mean its already way faster than the top PM ever was (1.42). I think if they can fit it in an iMac, which is 2 inches thick, they can fit it into a PB, which currently is around 1 inch thick. It will definitely be tight with all that cooling they need too.
Click to expand...

Well 1 inch makes a HUGE difference! I have a 1.8 GHz 20" iMac and it gets quite hot. Mine has gotten as hot as 168 degrees and it happens quite a bit. Average temperature is at around 140 degrees. I'd like to see a CPU that gets 168 degrees on a regular basis work in a 1 inch enclosure. It just isn't going to happen.

Add to that, my hard drive is constantly around 120 to 140 degrees.

I don't foresee a G5 based PowerBook this year. The processor gets way too hot and uses too much power for a laptop. Hopefully the PPC970 Mobile Chip rumor is true. Time will only tell.....

As far the G4 goes, well it still has legs. Its still going strong. If it only supported a faster FSB. It would be great if it would support a 400MHz FSB instead of 167MHz max. It will be interesting to see how much heat/power the Dual Core G4 has.
 
buryyourbrideau said:
my exact point: COOLING

is the main problem i believe 😡

of course i want one, just not right now

new ibook does me just super duper
Click to expand...
Looking at your signature, you should be pretty happy with that loaded iBook of yours. Congrats, thats one sweet machine.

What do you guys think about having 2 updates between now and fall of 2006? I think it should happen, but if it actually does happen is the question (considering the long wait between the last revisions.
 
johnbro23 said:
Looking at your signature, you should be pretty happy with that loaded iBook of yours. Congrats, thats one sweet machine.

What do you guys think about having 2 updates between now and fall of 2006? I think it should happen, but if it actually does happen is the question (considering the long wait between the last revisions.
Click to expand...

yea thanks, was a few months early of a graduation present from my grandma and kind of an 18th b day present as well

updates: yea the ibooks will def get ONE upgrade IMO
pb, yea i think that they will go dual core G4 sometime this year and maybe late 06 we MIGHT see the G5 notebooks
 
johnbro23 said:
PowerBook G5 17"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2699

PowerBook G5 15"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2299
Click to expand...

I could see that happening; except I forsee a price of $2699 and $2999 respectively with a 9700 w/128mb VRAM.
 
mklos said:
The processor ... uses too much power for a laptop.
Click to expand...
Bingo. Cooling is irrelevant if the battery dies after an hour. My work PC laptop has a nice processor and fantastic 1920x1200 screen, but the battery life is horrible. I don't want a PB if the battery dies in under two hours with reasonable care taken, and I suspect the G5 would kill it faster than that.
 
auxplage said:
I could see that happening; except I forsee a price of $2699 and $2999 respectively with a 9700 w/128mb VRAM.
Click to expand...

Very rarely (actually almost never) do they RAISE the price of anything when they upgrade it. It gets lowered, if anything.
 
jsw said:
Bingo. Cooling is irrelevant if the battery dies after an hour. My work PC laptop has a nice processor and fantastic 1920x1200 screen, but the battery life is horrible. I don't want a PB if the battery dies in under two hours with reasonable care taken, and I suspect the G5 would kill it faster than that.
Click to expand...

right now unless they up the battery power, i could see a G5 pb dying on > 2 hrs of batt life on low processor performance, i really hope we dont ever have to see this 😕
 
Um... im still thinkin freescale this fall/next winter... but if they do get a G5 chip in there i will
1. Be very impressed and
2. think that those specs are about right for the top 2. not sure about the 12 inch.
 
buryyourbrideau said:
right now unless they up the battery power, i could see a G5 pb dying on > 2 hrs of batt life on low processor performance, i really hope we dont ever have to see this 😕
Click to expand...

That would be INSANE. They simply could not do that. Nobody would buy it. That's a DESKTOP. I mean that's not enough for a short plane ride.
 
StarbucksSam said:
That would be INSANE. They simply could not do that. Nobody would buy it. That's a DESKTOP. I mean that's not enough for a short plane ride.
Click to expand...

exactly, my friends pb gets just about three and he has a 1ghz tibook, i cant imagine seeing a G5 get ahold of that battery 🙁
 
johnbro23 said:
Well you never know. I can't see them making the G4 any faster than it already is. I mean its already way faster than the top PM ever was (1.42). I think if they can fit it in an iMac, which is 2 inches thick, they can fit it into a PB, which currently is around 1 inch thick. It will definitely be tight with all that cooling they need too.
Click to expand...

actually, the dual G4 chips (e600) most people think will be used are different from the current ones.

http://www.freescale.com/webapp/sps/site/overview.jsp?nodeId=018rH3bTdG7249 said:
Freescale has leveraged its expertise in building high-performance PowerPC™ processors and highly integrated communications processors to design the MPC8641D Dual Core Processor. This processor integrates two e600 PowerPC cores, two memory controllers, Ethernet controllers, a RapidIO™ fabric interface, a PCI Express I/O interface, and a high performance MPX bus that scales to 667 MHz. It's one powerful processor, but it doesn't break the power budget starting at 15 Watts.
Click to expand...

if apple used this, the bus could run at 667 MHz, and Apple could use DDR2 RAM. it would put Apple at the forefront of notebook computing, again. also, over 1mb cache per core. freescale also offers single-core e600 models. all of these chips are supposed to run at and above 1.5 GHz. they are expected to reach 3.0 GHz (I think) before the full transition to the e700 (64-bit) chips.

I would think the next pbooks will be:

High end - 17 inch - HD display - dual e600 chip, 667 MHz bus, DDR2 memory, 5400RPM HD, x650 mobile graphics.

High end - 15 inch - all same specs as above except the smaller screen (still HD), slightly worse (but upgradeable) graphics, and a smaller (same speed) hard drive.

Middle end - 15 inch - single core e600, 200 MHz bus, worse graphics card& HD, everything else pretty much the same as the above models

Low end - 12 inch - single core e600, same specs as above but maybe a worse graphics card (ATI Mobility Radeon 9700, perhaps)

Low End - 12 inch - G4 processor running at 1.67 GHz, same specs as current high-end 15 inch powerbook.

All models with (faster?) superdrive, bluetooth (2.0?), AE (maybe they'll add in the next-gen card, even though no technologies are out that support it really), and backlit keyboards. slightly improved battery life and airport reception, and a different chassis. perhaps no 12 inch model and a 13.3 inch powerbook instead.

i like the picture here: http://www.freescale.com/files/32bit/doc/fact_sheet/MPC8641DFACT.pdf

I don't really understand much of it, but the spec sheet basically tells you what Apple will get if they buy from freescale.
----
http://www.freescale.com/files/32bit/doc/fact_sheet/MPC7448FACT.pdf

that talks about the single core...it says that the single core e600 is the same as the MPC7448...I'm too tired to change what i wrote in my predicted specifications... (but I think the dual-cores are still different).
 
Doesn't a G5 require a lot of power. When using the battery, it would last about 5 mins. before it dies.... I *think* they will need to make a entirely different chip.
 
wide said:
----
http://www.freescale.com/files/32bit/doc/fact_sheet/MPC7448FACT.pdf

that talks about the single core...it says that the single core e600 is the same as the MPC7448...I'm too tired to change what i wrote in my predicted specifications... (but I think the dual-cores are still different).
Click to expand...

Well, you're not exactly wrong. The single core version of MPC8641D is MPC8641 (not much of a surprise, huh 😛 ). MCP7448 is a pin-for-pin G4 compatible e600 core (8641 has a different pin arangement and, probably, number, but don't quote me on the last one). When people are saying e600 (either dual or single core) they are generally refering to MPC8641(D).
 
The dual core looks like a nice alternative, but will it fit in a laptop.

I think the vast majority of people looking for a PBook update just want the next gen of apple laptops, be it a G5 or another alternatives so that their investments last a bit longer.

I hope this happens soon and apple does not continue to sit on an old machine just because it is generating more profits for them, but I guess as long as people keep buying them.....
 
The battery issue may be solved by inventing a totally new battery. Like Sony with their new mp3s, it can play up to 20 hours with 3 minutes charge or something.
 
johnbro23 said:
PowerBook G5 17"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2699

PowerBook G5 15"
1.8 GHz
600 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
100GB HD (either faster than now, or possibly 120GB?)
256 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$2299

PowerBook G4 15"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
128 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$1899

PowerBook G5 12"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
128 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same except backlit keyboard
$1599

PowerBook G5 12"
1.67 GHz
200 MHz FSB
512 MB RAM
80GB HD
64 MB VRAM
Everything else stays the same
$1399
Click to expand...


Aside from the physical size issue, is there any reason why the 12" Powerbooks are always lower in spec than the bigger machines? I have an 12" 1ghz machine, which I'm quite happy with for the time-being, however if/when Apple release a G5 Powerbook I'd be sorely tempted. I like the compact size and general portability of the 12", but miss the faster processor speeds, PCMCIA card, back-lit keyboard etc. Are all of these due to space issues, or it is a psychological play by Apple that smaller must be not as powerful?

Any thought/comments?
 
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