Hello everyone... I am currently torn. I am 100% certain that my next computer will indeed be a powerbook, but what I am not sure of is whether or not I should buy now. The thought of a new G5 Pb coming out in the near future is unsetting, but I am fairly certain that it wopuld be out of my price range. So looking at what we have now, what major differences should i expect between the 15inch 1.25 and the 15inch 1.5? I am planning on using my powerbook for audio production/creation/recording, as well as moderate video editing and photoshopping. I am extremley anxious to get one of these machines in my hands, as it is now summer and I have more time than usual to focus in that direction. Will the wait be worth it for the G5, money aside? All opinions welcome, I truly do appreciate it.
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Powerbook now or wait???
- Thread starter decapitacion
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This certainly shouldn't be the case, when the mobile G5 is ready, it should be a straight replacement for the current G4 range, and prices should stay the same.decapitacion said:
i had the same question/worry as you.
but i went ahead and bought the newest pBook instead of waiting for the G5.
the reason is that there will definitely be problems with the new lineup. in one way or another...
i learned it the hard way wheni got my pBook 5300 right when it came out.
instead, the heat problems, screen problems etc have all been ironed out in the newest pBook, since it's been around for a while now. i've read a few articles from Mac magazines saying that this is the model to buy, and after owning mine for 3 weeks, i have not been disappointed.
hmm.... there are always risks involved in getting a Mac product though. i mean, i love them and all, but they are full of problems. but you expect that with cutting edge! my new pBook has a faulty line in port. i also bought a new iBook 14in for my family, and that one had a faulty antennae for the airport... it was replaced in a week. so... macs are by no means perfect, but the newer the line up, the higher your risk of faulty hardware.
hope this helps.
but i went ahead and bought the newest pBook instead of waiting for the G5.
the reason is that there will definitely be problems with the new lineup. in one way or another...
i learned it the hard way wheni got my pBook 5300 right when it came out.
instead, the heat problems, screen problems etc have all been ironed out in the newest pBook, since it's been around for a while now. i've read a few articles from Mac magazines saying that this is the model to buy, and after owning mine for 3 weeks, i have not been disappointed.
hmm.... there are always risks involved in getting a Mac product though. i mean, i love them and all, but they are full of problems. but you expect that with cutting edge! my new pBook has a faulty line in port. i also bought a new iBook 14in for my family, and that one had a faulty antennae for the airport... it was replaced in a week. so... macs are by no means perfect, but the newer the line up, the higher your risk of faulty hardware.
hope this helps.
I'm within the same situation and I decided to wait. Personally, I simply wasn't too impressed by the current line and knew I'd rather wait for a G5, then get something I didn't really want. Guess it's up to how urgent it is. The wait for the G5 will include more updates then simply a new processor, as most lines do. Yet, there's always an update nearby, except in this case the difference is probably worth the wait.
Will everyone PLEASE stop waiting for the powerbook g5? As Apple said a few weeks ago "there will not be a Powerbook g5 for a long, long time". When APPLE says that, that means FOREVER. The new g4 powerbooks are a tried and true design...I just got one and they are fantastic!
Bhennies said:
Do you really think that when announcing a new product that a company would tell you that a new one is coming soon? The only product announcement that I know Apple to have ever done was in announcing the G5 3GHz a year in advance, but how many people were willing to wait an entire year for one, when they knew what there was as of that moment? If Apple said "Hey, buy our laptops, and we're updating them in 2 months" would anyone buy one?
If you need it, buy it. The new powerbooks are wonderful. However, if you don't need it, then I feel your pain. I too am waiting for the G5 powerbook, but I don't need a new 'book cause my rev. A. 12" pb is still plugging along quite nicely. I remember reading an article earlier this year that was published in the British press (I think, it was European for sure) where they interviewed Steve Jobs and he said they expected to have a G5 pb by the end of the year.
the current PB offerings are nice and certainly worth the money. If you need a laptop right this minute, then by all means buy one.
since i currently own a Rev A 12" PB as well, i will wait for the G5 laptop (even if its not for another year). My 12" isn't going to get any slower in the meantime, in fact i expect it to only get faster. It got faster when Panther came out (by about 20% according to my Xbench scores). And one main application i use, Ableton Live, will finally be implementing Altivec optimization this summer... which will make it feel even more faster.
and don't beleive any blanket claims of Rev A products being troublesome... i've owned nothing BUT RevA Apple's, never had problems, and my next Apple will be a RevA (G5 PB)
since i currently own a Rev A 12" PB as well, i will wait for the G5 laptop (even if its not for another year). My 12" isn't going to get any slower in the meantime, in fact i expect it to only get faster. It got faster when Panther came out (by about 20% according to my Xbench scores). And one main application i use, Ableton Live, will finally be implementing Altivec optimization this summer... which will make it feel even more faster.
and don't beleive any blanket claims of Rev A products being troublesome... i've owned nothing BUT RevA Apple's, never had problems, and my next Apple will be a RevA (G5 PB)
...but there was a recent interview I believe by the BBC (?) where the main Apple product rep. said a "very long time" until the g5 is in the powerbook. It was referenced on macrumors so do a search and maybe you can find it. My guess is an announcement next spring at NAB. That's a LONG LONG time to wait. By then, your g4 PB (if you bought one now) would be through a third of its life span. Then you can get a 2.6 ghz g5 powerbook three years from now when all your friends will be stuck with a problem plagued rev. a 1.6 g5yoda13 said:
p.s. no flaming about the 2.6 ghz comment- it's a joke...
whats with the RevA hate?
just because the G5 PB will be indeed a RevA, doesnt mean it will be problem ridden. These blanket statements are baseless.
i have owned a RevA iMac, G4 PowerMac, G4 Titanium Powerbook, and currently the 12" PB. i have never had a single problem with any of them.
am i lucky? or just a realist that doesn't beleive the false blanket claims that so many on this site make on a daily basis.
Yea, several people have had problems with RevA Apple's... and several people have had problems with RevB and RevC Apple's as well (can you say iBook logic board? , or Wallstreet Power Supplies). But i know folks on this site that say they will never buy a RevA Apple product, yet they have never even owned a RevA Apple product.... thus no experience to speak from.
Well i do have experience to speak from and one purchase i will make based on said experience is a brand new G5 Powerbook whenever it does come out.
just because the G5 PB will be indeed a RevA, doesnt mean it will be problem ridden. These blanket statements are baseless.
i have owned a RevA iMac, G4 PowerMac, G4 Titanium Powerbook, and currently the 12" PB. i have never had a single problem with any of them.
am i lucky? or just a realist that doesn't beleive the false blanket claims that so many on this site make on a daily basis.
Yea, several people have had problems with RevA Apple's... and several people have had problems with RevB and RevC Apple's as well (can you say iBook logic board? , or Wallstreet Power Supplies). But i know folks on this site that say they will never buy a RevA Apple product, yet they have never even owned a RevA Apple product.... thus no experience to speak from.
Well i do have experience to speak from and one purchase i will make based on said experience is a brand new G5 Powerbook whenever it does come out.
whw5 said:
Hoping to be in your shoes soon and that the G5PBs are a ways off...better not be wwdc because the way things are going if that happened I would have "hopefully" only had my G4PB for less than a month...
Bhennies said:
Somebody just bought a new PowerBook...
I personally think the G5 might never arrive in a notebook...which is dissapointing, because I was thinking of getting one.
But I am a little surprised: what's with all this talk about a G5 PowerBook? Why G5? Has everyone forgotten that Motorola recently announced the prototype for a new chip, sort of a souped-up version of the G4? With speeds parallel to the G5?
I think that Apple might incorporate the new Moto chip into the next line of PowerBooks (once it is released), because apparently desktop processors are getting too hot and consume too much power for notebooks to handle (let alone notebooks made out of metal that are incredibly thin.
* To answer the question this thread's starter asked: I would wait for the next line of PowerBooks.
sheeesh!
okay, thanks for all of the input.. but now, as a matter of price... i could get a 15" 1.25 superdrive refurb for $1899, or the new 15" 1.5 superdrive for 2,299. is the spec jump worth it considering i will be using media heavy programs? decisions, decisions, decisions.....
okay, thanks for all of the input.. but now, as a matter of price... i could get a 15" 1.25 superdrive refurb for $1899, or the new 15" 1.5 superdrive for 2,299. is the spec jump worth it considering i will be using media heavy programs? decisions, decisions, decisions.....
decapitacion said:
The spec jump is definately worth it. The 1.5Ghz will be a NEW and not refurbished machine, and it will come with a lot of cool software that the refurbished computer will not include. If you are going to buy a computer, you might as well go for the best you can afford.
You also might want to consider upgrading to a 80 GB 5400 RPM hard drive and 128 megabytes of vram.
decapitacion said:
upgrade vram, upgrade hdd, downgrade to combodrive, upgrad to 1 dimm of 512mb of ram. = same price
thats what I would do. Don't forget edu discount
I knows it....
decapitacion said:
Looks like you are buying with a student discount. Don't get a refurb 1.25 for $1899 - you can get a 1.33 for $1799, and it would be new, with all the benefits of a new machine.
These are your choices, I think: (all EDU prices - you will need to add tax to these)
Stock 1.33 (combo drive, 60 gb hd, 256 mb ram), $1799
1.33, combo drive, faster 80 gb hd, 256 extra ram (512 total), about $1965
1.33, superdrive, faster 80 gb hd, extra 512 mb ram (768 total), about $2200
1.5, combo drive, faster hd, 128 vram, standard 512 mb ram, $2209
Stock 1.5 (comes with superdrive, slower 80 gb hd, 512 mb ram), $2299
1.5, superdrive, faster hd, 128 vram, $2389
1.5, superdrive, faster hd, 128 vram, more ram to total 768 mb, about $2500
I understand that the faster hard drive makes a difference, and more ram will make a difference. (both can be added/replaced later, if necessary) I am not sure how big a difference the 1.5 is over the 1.33. Also, it is unclear that the extra vram makes a huge difference in video performance. The superdrive is nice if you can afford it and you feel you may use it. But if you plan only to burn CDs then I think the combo drive is faster at that (but you should check if you are interested). You can always buy an external superdrive later if you don't get one now but find you want one in a year or so.
Remember, buy your RAM from someone other than Apple, it will be cheaper.
So, there is quite a range of prices for you to choose from. The typical advice is to get the most that you can afford. Good Luck!
Here's the info on the combo drives and super drives:
Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW): reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 24x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 16x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed (12- and 15-inch models)
SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW): writes DVD-R discs at up to 4x speed, reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 16x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 8x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
Combo drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW): reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 24x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 16x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed (12- and 15-inch models)
SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW): writes DVD-R discs at up to 4x speed, reads DVDs at up to 8x speed, writes CD-R discs at up to 16x speed, writes CD-RW discs at up to 8x speed, reads CDs at up to 24x speed
RAM
can anyone recommend a solid place to buy extra RAM? also, how complicated is it to install?
can anyone recommend a solid place to buy extra RAM? also, how complicated is it to install?
It is really easy to put in. All you need is a tiny screwdriver and it takes maybe 5 or 10 minutes. The instructions (and screwdriver size) are in the manual.
As for where to buy RAM or what brand to buy - everybody has a different opinion. Do a search here and you can read what everyone thinks.
The 1.33 comes with one 256 MB and one empty slot. The 1.5 comes with two 256 MB and no empty slots, so upgrading it means getting rid of one of the chips.
As for where to buy RAM or what brand to buy - everybody has a different opinion. Do a search here and you can read what everyone thinks.
The 1.33 comes with one 256 MB and one empty slot. The 1.5 comes with two 256 MB and no empty slots, so upgrading it means getting rid of one of the chips.