Why my 14" iBook is better than a 12"

Wireless Buddy · Mar 16, 2008

Yes, I know, a little late, but I still use this computer and I'm bored, so here we go.

- 14" iBook feels thinner.

- While the 14" iBook and the 12" iBook have the same resolution, the 14" iBook has a bigger screen so text is easier to read.

- The 14" iBook is easier to use because the keyboard isn't jammed up against the side of the laptop.

- The 14" iBook looks better because everything (speakers, trackpad, keyboard) isn't crammed onto the surface. The 14" looks/feels comfortable and natural. The 12" looks/feels crowded.

Feel free to add to the list.

lord patton · Mar 16, 2008

whatever, you just wish you had a 12" PB

eXan · Mar 16, 2008

And my MacBook is better than both 12" and 14" iBooks put together, so?

Wireless Buddy · Mar 16, 2008

This isn't a thread about MacBooks or PowerBooks. So I really don't care about your 12" PB or MB...

eXan · Mar 16, 2008

Wireless Buddy said:
Yes, I know, a little late, but...

Yes, more than 2 years late.

heatmiser · Mar 16, 2008

Wireless Buddy said:
- While the 14" iBook and the 12" iBook have the same resolution, the 14" iBook has a bigger screen so text is easier to read.

I'd rather have the 12" than the 14" for precisely this reason. In the same vein I prefer my 13" 1280x800 laptop to either of the 15.4" 1280x800 laptops I previously owned.

Tom B. · Mar 16, 2008

Wireless Buddy said:
- 14" iBook feels thinner.

But isn't.

Wireless Buddy said:
- While the 14" iBook and the 12" iBook have the same resolution, the 14" iBook has a bigger screen so text is easier to read.

12" has higher pixel density, and 14" has bigger pixels, meaning the 12" screen is sharper.

Wireless Buddy said:
- The 14" iBook is easier to use because the keyboard isn't jammed up against the side of the laptop.

How does that affect ease of use?

Wireless Buddy said:
- The 14" iBook looks better because everything (speakers, trackpad, keyboard) isn't crammed onto the surface. The 14" looks/feels comfortable and natural. The 12" looks/feels crowded.

Or you could say the 14" is unnecessarily large with no real benefits over the 12" model.

Wireless Buddy · Mar 16, 2008

But isn't.

It may be the same thickness, but it feels and looks thinner, and that's important. If you don't care how thin your laptop looks, use a circa 1997 ThinkPad.

12" has higher pixel density, and 14" has bigger pixels, meaning the 12" screen is sharper.

It may be sharper, but the text is still smaller, so some people would prefer this over the smaller text of the 12"

How does that affect ease of use?

You can spread out your hands. Have you ever used a 14"? It is easier.

Or you could say the 14" is unnecessarily large with no real benefits over the 12" model.

I disagree.

mosx · Mar 17, 2008

eXan said:
And my MacBook is better than both 12" and 14" iBooks put together, so?

Unless you want to play a game or do some 3D rendering. The last generation of iBooks with the Radeon 9550 will mop the floor with any of the MacBooks and Mac minis thanks to the horrible GMA 950 and X3100.

eXan · Mar 17, 2008

mosx said:
Unless you want to play a game or do some 3D rendering. The last generation of iBooks with the Radeon 9550 will mop the floor with any of the MacBooks and Mac minis thanks to the horrible GMA 950 and X3100.

Sure, but thanks to the horribly slow G4 processors iBooks run some games at the same speed and some much slower (Knights of the Old Republic, UT2004) than MacBooks.

Tried and tested

But you are right: in terms of the pure GPU performance in 3D Radeon 9550 > GMA.

wordmunger · Mar 17, 2008

The 14-inch iBook (which I have) is better as a desktop-replacement computer. But now that I have an iMac as my primary computer, I find myself wishing the iBook was smaller. Since I don't have to stare at that screen all day, I wouldn't mind it being a little smaller (with the same resolution).

Now I'm just waiting for it to die so I can get myself an MBA. Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on your perspective) that probably won't happen for another couple years.

idonotliketostu · Mar 17, 2008

Wireless Buddy said:
Yes, I know, a little late, but I still use this computer and I'm bored, so here we go.

- 14" iBook feels thinner.

- While the 14" iBook and the 12" iBook have the same resolution, the 14" iBook has a bigger screen so text is easier to read.

- The 14" iBook is easier to use because the keyboard isn't jammed up against the side of the laptop.

- The 14" iBook looks better because everything (speakers, trackpad, keyboard) isn't crammed onto the surface. The 14" looks/feels comfortable and natural. The 12" looks/feels crowded.

Feel free to add to the list.

-Your 14" feels heavier.
-While they have the same resolution, the 14" in blurrier.
-The 12" is easier to use because its oh so portable
-12" looks better because it comes in a sexy tiny package much like the sexy 12" pb. The 14" looks bloated.

You should change the title to why i THINK my 14 is better than 12
because this is so subjective

OrangeSVTguy · Mar 17, 2008

Yes I prefer the 12" as well. Kinda weird how apple would put the same guts into a larger package? Doesn't that really go against technological advances when putting the same electronics into smaller packages?

Besides a 2" bigger screen is measured diagonally so the vertical increase isn't really that much so your bigger text isn't so much bigger and the dot pitch is actually bigger so I think images and/or text will look more jagged.

Arjy · Mar 17, 2008

I think my blackbook is the best >:|

mosx · Mar 17, 2008

eXan said:
Sure, but thanks to the horribly slow G4 processors iBooks run some games at the same speed and some much slower (Knights of the Old Republic, UT2004) than MacBooks.

Tried and tested But you are right: in terms of the pure GPU performance in 3D Radeon 9550 > GMA.

I haven't had the same experience.

I had a 1.1GHz Celeron (Coppermine core) overclocked to 1.2GHz (blazingly fast 112MHz FSB) and a Radeon 9550.

UT2004 was able to pull off 60fps at 800x600 full details. HL2 ran the same.

However, my MacBook w/C2D at 2.16GHz, GMA 950, XP SP2 with Boot Camp 2.0 drivers can't even choke out 30fps at medium settings and 800x600 resolution in UT2004. HL2 will only run if I use a bunch of different commands to force different DirectX modes and tone the details down. But even then, low settings at 800x600 equals a slideshow in many cases. The videos on youtube of people playing Half-Life 2 are all a fluke. They show the "good" scenes where there are no performance drops and fail to mention the awfully low detail settings.

The last generation iBook is definitely a better "gaming machine" than ANY generation of the MacBook or Mac mini.

eXan · Mar 17, 2008

mosx said:
I haven't had the same experience.

I had a 1.1GHz Celeron (Coppermine core) overclocked to 1.2GHz (blazingly fast 112MHz FSB) and a Radeon 9550.

UT2004 was able to pull off 60fps at 800x600 full details. HL2 ran the same.

However, my MacBook w/C2D at 2.16GHz, GMA 950, XP SP2 with Boot Camp 2.0 drivers can't even choke out 30fps at medium settings and 800x600 resolution in UT2004. HL2 will only run if I use a bunch of different commands to force different DirectX modes and tone the details down. But even then, low settings at 800x600 equals a slideshow in many cases. The videos on youtube of people playing Half-Life 2 are all a fluke. They show the "good" scenes where there are no performance drops and fail to mention the awfully low detail settings.

The last generation iBook is definitely a better "gaming machine" than ANY generation of the MacBook or Mac mini.

What map/number of bots and benchmarking app did you use for UT2004? I would like to try it on my MacBook.

Search

Search

Why my 14" iBook is better than a 12"

Wireless Buddy

macrumors regular

lord patton

macrumors 65816

eXan

macrumors 601

Wireless Buddy

macrumors regular

eXan

macrumors 601

heatmiser

macrumors 68020

Tom B.

macrumors 65816

Wireless Buddy

macrumors regular

mosx

macrumors 65816

eXan

macrumors 601

wordmunger

macrumors 603

idonotliketostu

macrumors 6502

OrangeSVTguy

macrumors 601

Arjy

macrumors member

mosx

macrumors 65816

eXan

macrumors 601

Our Staff