15inch Powerbooks - in 2 Months?

[MacRumors]

Railheaddesign reports that they've received conflicting info on the 15" Powerbook updates... but that they are coming...

A common denominator, though, is that it seems we?ll see the release of this new PowerBook within the next two months ? or so it seems. =)

[pyrotoaster]

Interesting, MOSR claims they're due in three weeks.

A design site with no track record and a rumormonger with terrible accuracy. Page 2, indeed.

[Kwyjibo]

makes sense to me one big update for all powerbooks. i dont' trust railhead or MOSR, at all. I'm really thinkign we will see an all new powerbook line.

[arn]

Originally posted by pyrotoaster
Interesting, MOSR claims they're due in three weeks.

A design site with no track record and a rumormonger with terrible accuracy. Page 2, indeed.

MOSR also said that "we may be waiting for Apple's music download service until the release of Panther, because it may not be directly tied to iTunes as previously though"

[pyrotoaster]

Originally posted by arn
MOSR also said that "we may be waiting for Apple's music download service until the release of Panther, because it may not be directly tied to iTunes as previously though"

Yeah, they're a laugh riot over at MOSR!

[Hawthorne]

Three weeks feels about right. I'd imagine Apple wants Panther (and any software related to it) to have all the limelight at WWDC, so they'll roll out any new hardware updates before that.

[DrGonzo]

duh? I think everyone is expecting it in the next 2 months or so.

[swdrumcp]

2 months=no way. We will see 15' updates way before then, within 2 months the entire line will see updates.

[lithium4k]

I heard from a Compusa employee that he was given a 70% probability that we will get an update on the 15" PB tomorrow. Don't ask me why, he just said that he was told apple was going to make an announcement about it.

[Moe]

Originally posted by lithium4k
I heard from a Compusa employee that he was given a 70% probability that we will get an update on the 15" PB tomorrow. Don't ask me why, he just said that he was told apple was going to make an announcement about it.

LOL! Man, I sure hope he's right! These rumors are too much for someone with high blood pressure! Like the guys in the PC notebook gaming community, I think we're all waiting for the new ATI mobility video (and DDR ram and an aluminum case for Macs). That's about it for the summer.

[billyb]

Originally posted by lithium4k
I heard from a Compusa employee that he was given a 70% probability that we will get an update on the 15" PB tomorrow. Don't ask me why, he just said that he was told apple was going to make an announcement about it.

The same day as the iPod show? I'd be shocked. But I'm easily shocked.

[Snowy_River]

Okay, I know that there may be some that will jump down my throat for mentioning this, but I will just the same.

If we are looking at later in June (i.e. WWDC), then that is suggestive of the possibility that this will be a 970 based upgrade. (And, of course, it would be made side-by-side with the PMs.)

However, I'd guess that if we see the update much before the WWDC, we'll have another G4 PowerBook. Perhaps matching the predictions made by (cough) MOSR, running at either 1 or 1.25GHz. (I must say, though, from what I know, it seems terribly unlikely that a 1.25GHz 7455 processor could survive in a portable setting. Therefore, if we were to see a 1.25GHz G4, that would either mean that we had a very hot PowerBook - and not in a good way - or we were seeing the release of the 7457, which, as I understand it, is even less likely than seeing the 970 in a PowerBook next month.)

Either way, I'd like to see a new PowerBook released, as I'm going to be relegated to an old PowerBook 3400 here shortly, until they release the next PowerBook. (But I really hope that they don't release a 15" PowerBook G4, only to replace it a just a couple of months. That would irritate me.)

[wallinbl]

Please release a new 15" soon! I'm getting ready to buy, and I'll be buying the 12" unless the 15" gets an update. I'd prefer the extra screen space...

[robodweeb]

... I had my faculty advisor (computer science) all set to buy a PB 15" back in Januaury. Month after month of "they're rumored to be coming in 3-4 weeks" confirmed, in his mind, that Apple is a screw-up company. So, he's bought me a Dell laptop and I'm going to have to spend the next 2-3 years doing my research and dissertation under Windows. I thought I could switch him, and our research group, but Apple just wouldn't play along ...

I think I'd have a breakdown if they came out now ... thanks, Steve ... don't mind those of us who're trying to do real work ... just make folks happy selling them the audio equivalent of the "sugared water" line you derided John Sculley with ...

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by robodweeb
... I had my faculty advisor (computer science) all set to buy a PB 15" back in Januaury. Month after month of "they're rumored to be coming in 3-4 weeks" confirmed, in his mind, that Apple is a screw-up company. So, he's bought me a Dell laptop and I'm going to have to spend the next 2-3 years doing my research and dissertation under Windows. I thought I could switch him, and our research group, but Apple just wouldn't play along ...

I think I'd have a breakdown if they came out now ... thanks, Steve ... don't mind those of us who're trying to do real work ... just make folks happy selling them the audio equivalent of the "sugared water" line you derided John Sculley with ...

Okay, I have to say that I think that this post is a little harsh. If you needed a computer and the 15" looked good to you, you should have bought a 15"Ti. If you look at the benchmarks, the current 15"Ti easily holds its own with the newer 12" and 17" ALs. Indeed, if I recall correctly, it outperforms them in some areas.

Apple was clearly having some problems with producing the updated 1GHz version of their computers (hence the long delay in the 17" ALs shipping). What makes Apple more of a 'screw-up company', releasing another computer that they'll have shipping delays with, or keeping their very reliable model on the line and holding off on releasing an update until they have the issues worked out?

Really, I think that the 'screw-up' in this scenerio was your decision to advise your advisor not to buy a computer based on rumors. In January, the 15" had been updated just a couple of months earlier. It was reasonable to suppose that it would be at least a couple more months before they updated it again.

[pilotgi]

Seems to me that the longer it takes for the 15" to be updated, the more likely the update will coincide with WWDC. And if the update takes place then, it seems likely that it will be more than an aluminum case with FW800 and AE.

What will they do to the processor if they don't use the 970? I think Steve knows that any upgrade to the 15" PB short of the new PPC 970 would be boring.

[robodweeb]

[quote]Originally posted by Snowy_River
If you needed a computer and the 15" looked good to you, you should have bought a 15"Ti.

Yes, I see your point. The way to impress leading computer scientists is to buy older, slower, hotter models.

I *did* test our research needs on both platforms and, while the TiBook prformed adequately, it's relative cost (for our needs, not in general) made it diffcult to choose. The deciding factor was my long prior experience with Mac OS X (starting in Feb 1999 with the first release of OS X Server).

We record and analyze videos/audios of people collaborating and using IT at multple sites (hence the need for mobility). The 17" AlBook would have been fine with me, but grad students don' get 17" screens when all the faculty around them can only justify 15" screens. The smaller 12" screen, and the lack of a level 3 cache, also didn't work. It was reasonable to expect a 15" AlBook to be forthcoming that might have had a level 3 cache. FW800 was also a potential plus.

if I recall correctly, it outperforms them in some areas.

Not in the areas we needed.

Apple was clearly having some problems with producing the updated 1GHz version of their computers (hence the long delay in the 17" ALs shipping). What makes Apple more of a 'screw-up company'

I didn't say I agreed with him, but Apple has had a few years in which to diversify their sources of CPUs. I don't know the details of any problems Apple might have been having, and they didn't publish them. There's a growing interest - but with uncertainty - in academia for OS X machines - I see it daily - but Apple has to recognize that, for academics to plan their purchases , they need to know what to generally expect for at least 6 months in advance (they're grown-ups; they understand that real-world problems can delay schedules and they can deal with it if they know about it). The fact that Apple can't do that is an obstacle to Apple reclaiming its market share in academia. (FWIW, I've heard similar comments from friends who work for federal government outsourcers .. they buy thousands of Macs a year, and could buy more if they could only reliably plan their purchases 6-9 months in advance)

Really, I think that the 'screw-up' in this scenerio was your decision to advise your advisor not to buy a computer based on rumors.

I must not have explained myself clearly. My faculty advisor was buying the Dell in the first place and I argued to wait for an updated Powerbook. I did not advise against any prior model. Apple just ran the clock out ...

In January, the 15" had been updated just a couple of months earlier. It was reasonable to suppose that it would be at least a couple more months before they updated it again.

And, if anything had come out in that time, we would've bought it. If we'd had any reliable inkling that anything was forthcoming, we probably could have managed it. However, Apple said nothing either way, we couldn't wait forever, and Michael Dell gets the profits.

If you want to think 'harsh', think about a 16-year Mac user being forced to use Windows XP ...

cheerz!

[strider42]

Originally posted by pilotgi

What will they do to the processor if they don't use the 970? I think Steve knows that any upgrade to the 15" PB short of the new PPC 970 would be boring.

if you are xepecting the 970 to appear in the 15" powerbook before powermacs, xserve or the 17", you are going to be sorely disappointed. I don't understand the fascination with the idea, its obviously not going to happen. speed bumped G4's until the 970 is in other other machinse and until the 970 gets a bit cooler.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by strider42
if you are xepecting the 970 to appear in the 15" powerbook before powermacs, xserve or the 17", you are going to be sorely disappointed. I don't understand the fascination with the idea, its obviously not going to happen. speed bumped G4's until the 970 is in other other machinse and until the 970 gets a bit cooler.

What I don't understand is why, whenever someone says 970 PB, others think they're saying '970 PB before anything else'. Personally, I feel that the longer we go without seeing an updated 15" PB the more likely it is that when we see it it will be 970 base. If so, that will likely be concurrent with the release of the 970 based PMs, and at least the announcement of 970 based 17" models, if not 12" models, too.

As for the 970 being too hot, from everything I've read, currently a 1.2GHz 970 is cooler than a 1GHz G4, let alone trying to speed bump the G4. Unless you're talking about getting the speed bump from the 7457, which seems even less likely than the 970, at least to me. So, I'd be surprised to see any kind of a speed bump in the PBs until we get either the 970 or the 7457, both of which are in the realm of rumors.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by robodweeb

Yes, I see your point. The way to impress leading computer scientists is to buy older, slower, hotter models.
...
If you want to think 'harsh', think about a 16-year Mac user being forced to use Windows XP ...

cheerz!

You know, I don't know of any computer companies that release information on what chips are coming out six months ahead of time. Why should Apple be any different?

As for the TiBook: 'older', yes, but not by much; 'slower', again, yes, but not by much, and certainly proc speed is just the same as the 17"; 'hotter', to my understanding, this is just wrong. The 15" Ti runs cooler than the 17"AL. That's part of why the 17" AL took so long to ship, because they were having problems with it.

As it is, how long had the Dell model you got been available? Anything more than a few months and your advisor bought you a machine in the same range of being 'older' as the 15"TiBook.

But, anyway, chin-up. There are a lot of us that have to use Windows at work or school. If it's a better machine for what your doing, take advantage of it. But, all in all, we survive, and we're better able to explain the benefits of MacOS for the experience.

[pilotgi]

if you are xepecting the 970 to appear in the 15" powerbook before powermacs, xserve or the 17", you are going to be sorely disappointed.

I'm not expecting it, I just don't see the point of doing anything else. The alternative is to use a G4 that's even hotter than the one they're using now with a very modest speed increase.