ibook vs powerbook whats the diff.

DrPepper said:

also i want to know why the g4 proccessor clock speed is so low, is it fast but not just a high clock speed, intel has 3.4 ghz proccessors, thats 3.4 times as fast as the ibook proccesor

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A G4's clock speed has nothing to do with actual processing speed.. at least in comparison with the Pentiums and Athlons. Each chip does it's instructions very differently. The easiest quivalent is, multiply the G4 clock speed by ~1.7 and you get the 'equivalent' clock speed in a Pentium4. At least, you get a better idea.

DrPepper said:

also i want to know why the g4 proccessor clock speed is so low, is it fast but not just a high clock speed, intel has 3.4 ghz proccessors, thats 3.4 times as fast as the ibook proccesor

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It's called RISC processing architecture. Let's just put it this way: if computer A can process 3 instructions per cycle, whereas computer B can process 1 instruction per cycle, how many cycles will each one need to get the job done?

That's the basic answer to your question right there.

The technical explanation for your GHz question:

The G4 chip has seven stages in its "pipeline" (one stage takes one clock cycle). The Pentium 4 has twenty. One stage in the G4 does more than one stage in the P4, so it takes longer to complete each stage. So the clock speed has to be lower so that each stage has enough time to get its work finished.

Well, since the executables used by the different platforms are so incredibly different, raw speed isn't a good measure. Try out apps you'll use, and see if they perform sufficiently for you.

If you're looking to buy either a 12" iBook or 12" PB, it all pretty much comes down to what your needs are graphics-wise, since, that's the main plus of the PowerBook. Obviously, you can do a side-by-side comparison to see all the differences. However, if you're not a power user, then I think the iBook 12" is a fantastic deal compared to the PB. If you were looking between a 14" iBook and a 12" PowerBook, I'd probably try to sway you to the PB. One of the selling points of the PB - the ability to span monitors (i.e., plug in a second monitor and show something else on it, not just what's on your laptop screen) - is easily replicated on the iBook. Just Google for "iBook monitor hack" and you'll find it at the top. It works.

Don't get me wrong - the PB is fantastic and as good as or better than the iBook in almost every way. But it's also a lot more expensive.

The differences between the (faster) 12" iBook and the (faster) 12" Powerbook are (very generally):

iBook only has 1GHz G4 chip. Slower.
PB has a 1.33GHz G4 chip. Faster.

iBook has DDR266 RAM sticks. Slower.
PB has DDR333 RAM sticks. Faster.

iBook has smaller hard drive size options, 30GB, 40GB, & 60GB. Smaller.
PB has larger hard drive size options, 60GB & 80GB. Larger.

iBook has a Combo drive (CD-RW/DVD-ROM).
PB has a SuperDrive (CD-RW/DVD-R).

iBook has 32MB video card.
PB has 64MB video card.

I tire of looking and transcribing. All these things you can see and compare for yourself at the Apple Store online.

As far as battery life: latest MacWorld says the 12" can play a DVD for 3.25 hours. Better than the PB, they say.

Like I said, the PB is better. However, it might not be enough better for you to justify the price. Same screen resolution. Essentially the same size and weight. It's a faster iBook in metal as opposed to plastic with some upgrades you can't get in the iBook. For many, though, the iBook is a great deal.

DrPepper said:

i would buy the powerbook but i dont really have much $ im only 15

and i dont wanna buy 2 really expensive computers, because ive never tried osx and what if i hate it 2 death

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So what does a 15 year old need with that much power?

DrPepper said:

surf the web
talk on aim
or talk on ichat av if my friends had it
photoshop
listen to music

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If that's all you're doing... iBook all the way.

For the speed difference go here. This video will solve the problem better then words.

http://www.esm.psu.edu/Faculty/Gray/graphics/movies/mhz_myth_320f.mov

I have a 1 Ghz pbook G4 12" and I do just same as the person here does and I am 14. I got the pbook becasue it has a better build quality then the ibook. The ibook is more durable. The powerbook has a better screen then the ibook(brighter and sharper). The keyboard on the pbook is better then ibooks keyboard. In my opinion the speakers on the pbooks are better then the ibooks. The 12" powerbook is smaller and lighter then the 12" ibook. I say get the pbook. You will need it to last for a long time and the pbook could last longer depending on the abuse.

How are you paying for this in the first place?
If you can get more money to spend on the unit, you should strongly consider PB since it will last you longer. I got my Powerbook 2 weeks ago and that is my first Mac. I am a hardcore PC user and Mac OS and Windows will not coexist in my life (unless Macs become extremely customizable).
So far, I love the Mac OS X for its stability (which is the reason why I got a portable unit that is Mac).
You will not hate Mac OS.....even if you worship Bill Gates part time.

im 14 and made the mistake of getting a pos toshiba celeron laptop that weighs 10 lbs because it was 500 dollars. ive been kicking myself over not saving more and paying 999 for a 12" ibook w/ edu discount. if i were u, id go with the pb because if u get the ibook u might be disappointed u didnt get the pb. and if it turns out you hate osx, pb has a better resale value.

will ibooks have any problem with Tiger? i've heard some things about them not being able to work with Core Image and Core Video. is this true?

Ryan1524 said:

will ibooks have any problem with Tiger? i've heard some things about them not being able to work with Core Image and Core Video. is this true?

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No, not true. What's true is that they won't look as nice in certain circumstances. However, they'll work fine. An example of a similar situation can be found in my 1999 400MHz G3 PowerBook running Panther: it does everything my G5 does, except for a few glitzy GUI things. Example: it doesn't do the "Ken Burns" effect on the slideshow screensaver. No biggie.

The iBooks will be fine under Tiger. Some of the flashier stuff might not show up, but they'll work fine. For example, Exposé works fine on my G3 PB.

Ryan1524 said:

will ibooks have any problem with Tiger? i've heard some things about them not being able to work with Core Image and Core Video. is this true?

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I think Tiger will require a 64mb graphics card, which the PB has. Unfortunatly, the iBook only has a 32mb graphics card, so it won't be compatible with many Tiger features.

I'm 14, and I've had my 12" PB for a few weeks now, and I love it. I am definatly glad I didn't skimp and get the iBook, I know I'd be kicking myself.

KevRC4130 said:

I think Tiger will require a 64mb graphics card...

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... for the eye candy. Older Macs, or Macs with lessor cards, just won't look as fancy at times. And the requirement isn't for 64MB so much as it is for graphics cards capable of pixel-level programming, which happen to all have 64MB or better now.

so if i get the revB 12" Pb which only have 32 mb too, then the same limitation applies?

Ryan1524 said:

so if i get the revB 12" Pb which only have 32 mb too, then the same limitation applies?

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Here are the graphics cards with full Tiger support, to date:

• ATI Radeon 9800 XT
• ATI Radeon 9800 Pro
• ATI Radeon 9700 Pro
• ATI Radeon 9600 XT
• ATI Radeon 9600 Pro
• ATI Mobility Radeon 9700
• ATI Mobility Radeon 9600
• NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Ultra
• NVIDIA GeForceFX Go 5200
• NVIDIA GeForceFX 5200 Ultra

Not sure what the Rev B has, but it's fully supported if it's on this list, and partially supported if it isn't.

As far as I can tell, the 12" Rev B has the GeForce FX Go 5200. It would seem to be fully supported.

I just went through this problem

I went for the 12 in PB not just because of the processor, but Clubmac had a good deal for more RAM, also built-in Bluetooth and Airport express saves some bucks if you know you will need them anyway, and who wants a bluetooth usb wart? Like everyone says, how will you use it? But for $500 more I got a bigger free-after-rebate ram package, faster G4, faster ram,larger HD, bluetooth, airport extreme, better video, and a sexier box!

I recommend getting the cheapest Mac (iBook) for your first Mac. If you don't like the Mac experience then you can sell it. The resale value for the iBook holds up very high so you don't risk that much to try it. Mac OS X like lots of ram for speed and internal disk storage for importing digital video if you want. Memory and disk space is more important than getting a PB over an iBook. The iBook performance when using the old G3 at 600Mhz seemed faster than most laptops my Windows friends used. The fan never came on and I used it to encode video, play DVDs, surf the web at airports, hotels, and coffee shop, and organize my music and photos. It runs MS Office, Dreamweaver and Photoshop Elements fine. Never had to deal with viruses and spyware and popup windows. Worked with all my printers and cameras and without installing drivers. People people loved the look of it when I was in a public place. It was light but full featured. Battery life and wireless networking were it's strongest features compared to the PB.

I moved to a PB because I wanted faster gaming in a portable and the ability to run Virtual PC faster, modern graphics card, more disk space and memory capacity for running Oracle 10g along with Dreamweaver and Virtual PC on two monitors. It feels more like a desktop replacement but at twice the price of the iBook.

You should go with what you want. The iBook is less expensive but the powerbook has more power and a much sexier case.
I'm 16 and personally I'm going to be going with the 15" Powerbook because I do a lot of video editing and the like (I'm really liking the new production suite thingy).
Of course by the time I actually can afford my powerbook, They'll probably be G5.