PowerBook 15"

I need some recommendation on the new PB that I want to configure from the web.

First of all, I've finally saved enough money, (I think) to get a PB 15" w/ Superdrive.

I have saved some more for upgrade in configuration.
I don't think PB G5 will come out until they cool the temperature down. (Huge heatsinks won't fit in PB.) So I think it is a good time to buy a PB 15"

Of course I am upgrading to 128MB of Video RAM, and 1GB of RAM for PB.

However, I am not sure if there is a big difference (in laptops, I know there is for desktops.) of upgrading from 4200rpm drive to 5400rpm drive. Faster rotational speed would mean faster data loading and reading but doesn't it mean more battery use, more hot? I mean its just a laptop. Do I really need to upgrade to 5400RPM drive?

Also I am delaying wether to get the extra battery or not. I probably will be using my powerbook about 6hours a day. People tell me that the battery doesn't last longer than 1.5 hours. I mean during the 6 hours of on-the-road, I could charge it in a wall outlet or something? (How low does it usually take?)

Now the last thing, Apple Care. I wouldn't even look at it if it was a G5 Desktop. From years of experience, I could easily fix it by myself. However laptops kind of scare me. I deal with them with pre-caution. So I was thinking whether I should get the Applce Care Plan or not. My previous laptop didn't cause me any trouble for over 3 years. (Except batteries, which most laptop batteries die after 1.5~2 years.)

As for Tiger, I don't know. I know its will be availalbe next year but still the new features are much better than Panther. I have the developer edition handy, but I don't like Pre-releases that much. (From experience with Linux servers and pre-released server softwares aren't very reliable.)

Well, I need some help with decisions. I won't be buying it until September 1 so I need some suggestions so that I don't regret it.

Thanks
-Tom-

thanks..

i've fixed to getting a 5400rpm drive. However, I will be using the PB for Adobe Suite. (Photoshop, Illust, etc.) I will be using Shake and After Motion, etc... (Video editing with my Canon Digital Camcorder) and general 2D/3D animation design.

Some may recommend me of getting a G5 but first I don't have space to put an extra desktop (already have 4) I have to get a monitor for that. (I don't have a spare one) I know it is faster but bulkier. I usually do my work not in a fixed place (move around a bit.)

So I'm thinking of getting a PB 15"
with following config. See if it looks alright.

1.5GHz w/ 128MB VRAM
512MB x 1 + (Crucial 512MB)
80GB 5400rpm
SuperDrive
AirPort Extreme Card
AirPort Express Base Station with AirTunes

I haven't decided whether to get applce care or not! (Its quite expensive..)
Any suggestions?

hey thanks,

but of course all my games are installed in a PC. (3.6 HT Extreme Edition.)

The other two are Linux Server Cluster running RedHat.

The other one is an old G4 runnign at 450MHz

I'm buying a 15" PB with severla softwares such as Final Cut Express, iDVD Pro, iLife, and others and it is going to be used as an multimedia-on-the-road. (I don't like to sit down and do stuff, I like to move around. Although the new G5 looks awesome.)

Yes I did saw barefeat.com and the 5400rpm upgrade had a drastic difference from the stock one. I am going for it.

I know 1.33gHz and 1.5 gHZ won't make a big difference but why not the latest revision?

For applce care, I don't think I have the cash to afford it right away. I might think about it after 1 year passes by.

Here are the specs I am thinking of configuring

PowerBook 1.5GHz (15.2" TFT)
1.5GHz PowerPC G4 with 128MB Graphics Memory
80GB Ultra ATA drive @ 5400 rpm
SuperDrive (DVD-R/CD-RW)
Backlit Keyboard/Mac OS - U.S. English
512MB DDR333 SDRAM - 1 SO-DIMM + (Crucial 512MB Stick)
AirPort Extreme Card
AirPort Express Base Station with AirTunes

And I am still not sure whether I should get Airport Express Base Station or Airport Extreme Base Station. I want the AirTunes so that I could bring it around. However, Airport Extreme is a lot better. However, the internet connection is only a DSL. (Don't think fast would matter) However, in order for me to send video files, docs, programs to my Linux Cluster, I might need Extreme. Or, I was thinking of just giving up Wireless and have my laptop connected to Gigabit Ethernet (Which I currently have)

Any more suggestions?

vgoklani said:

Hi,

I would also recommend the 5400RPM drive, it is about a 20% speed increase. You should also get the biggest possible hard drive; changing the hard drive in the new aluminum powerbook is a pain in the $@#. I would also recommend that you get a gig of ram, Panther needs room to breathe. Personally, I find the G4 to be really slow - Centrino's are much faster!

also, save money for a bluetooth mouse (!) I have a Logitech MX900 - refurb from newegg!!!

Click to expand...

I personally liked PCs. I do like Centrino technology and other Intel Proccessors but what I don't like is the operating system that is so limited, window$.

I am not going to get another x86 or amd architectured PCs. Yes, I admire the new intel chips that take up less energy, and are generally faster. (Though I argue that 1GHz G4 is way faster than 1GHz Intel Centrino Mobile)


And for the storage, I wish Apple dropped to 60GB with 5400rpm. I have 1TB Lacie handy, and my cluster have 4 x 200GB Drives with 160GB of document backup.

Thanks Though.

Thanks for your comment. Yes, I agree. Centrino with 1400x1000 resolution is nice. I will think of switching to Windows when they have their longhorn come out officially. (Beta releases from MSDN doens't really please me at all. Still like Mac OS X). Trust me, I did like Windows when Mac OS 9 was present.

vgoklani said:

I agree with you, but right now I have a 1.33 GHZ Powerbook G4 with 768M of ram, and adobe acrobat feels so slow compared to my roommates 1.6GHZ Centrino. His machine feels so much faster......I agree with you about the OS, but this is something you should keep in mind when buying the powerbook

one more thing, the resolution of the powerbook screen is very low, 1280x854 - compared with the ~1400x1000 in my roommates ASUS W1N. That makes a huge difference; the windows on my powerbook are just too damn big!

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micsaund said:

The latest Acrobat 6 reader is a serious resource pig, at least on Windows (my only experience until the PB arrives). Everyone at work will bitch about how slow it's gotten (start-up times are atrocious) compared to older versions. Thus, my dual Xeon 2.0GHz machine at work even takes forever to start it up - it's truly ridiculous how flabby Acrobat has gotten!

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You've gotta take consideration that the modules Acrobat possesses. Just like Photoshop Acrobate improved. But improvement usually means more coding, and more complicated engines and modules. Well, Same things are happening to Linux distributions. Getting bloated everyday. (Fedora Core 2...... 6 GB....)

micsaund said:

True, but they could handle all those bloated modules better. For example, why are they verified/loaded at start-up every time, even when they are not needed? The core PDF functionality should come-up immediately and then the modules can load *as-needed* per the document's requirements. I often create very simple ASCII->PDF files at work using Acrobat 4 on Solaris. These are as plain-jane a PDF as you can get, yet Reader 6 *still* loads all that bloatware to view them even though it's not needed.

I don't have a problem (usually) with bloat or feature-itis, but it should be handled in a way so as to not affect the core functionality of the tool as much as possible.

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I sorta disagree with you. I would rather have all the modules loadup. I don't want the program to stop to load the modules when I try to extract text and images from the document. I mean, you could be different. I just want a program to flow nicely.

micsaund said:

True, but they could handle all those bloated modules better. For example, why are they verified/loaded at start-up every time, even when they are not needed? The core PDF functionality should come-up immediately and then the modules can load *as-needed* per the document's requirements. I often create very simple ASCII->PDF files at work using Acrobat 4 on Solaris. These are as plain-jane a PDF as you can get, yet Reader 6 *still* loads all that bloatware to view them even though it's not needed.

I don't have a problem (usually) with bloat or feature-itis, but it should be handled in a way so as to not affect the core functionality of the tool as much as possible.

Click to expand...

The only improvement I see of programs now days is to utilize the dual proccessors and hyper threading technology within the application. Such as feeding modules simultaneously into both proccessor if other apps are not using it.

Jo-Kun said:

I wish apple would add the 60gb 7200rpm drive in the options ;-) yes it runs a little hotter but for those who are in need for speed an portability... its the right choice...

I was thinking to add one in my Ti-PB but then the PB got stolen... and I bought a G5...

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Yes 7200rpm would be good for a PB.

Yet, I was suprised to find that the new G5 was not shipped with 10000rpm drives.