Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

chibianh

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2001
783
1
Colorado
How many of you tibook owners here carry it around a lot? How many of you are in college and carry it around a lot?

I'm currently a freshman in college and am going to get the tibook as soon as the next revision comes out, whether at the end of this month or during the summer. I will be carrying it around a lot and I want it to last me until I graduate.

How well has your tibooks held up? What types of carrying cases, protection, etc. do you use? Is carrying it in a backpack good enough?

I currently have a 3 inch thick, 15 lb black pc laptop (SLIGHTLY exaggerated) that I carry around. The thing, however, is very durable.

p.s. The iBook is out of the question.
 

nonreflectiveobject

macrumors newbie
Dec 18, 2001
6
0
I've had a tibook here at college for quite a few months, now. It's durable if you don't bang it around. The titanium case will get a few scratches. It happens. Overall, just take care of it and all will be well. The screen is most likely the most fragile part. I would suggest cleaning the keyboard and screen with a swiffer sheet (found in any convenience store/walmart, etc) fairly frequently. Any padded carrying case will do you fine.
 

MacAztec

macrumors 68040
Oct 28, 2001
3,026
1
San Luis Obispo, CA
Here here!

I think I read in a Macworld or some other Mac magazine where they performed a real test. They got a Ti Powerbook, and a car, and performed a test.:D No joke here...

They Dropped it out of the window of the car at 20MPh, and it worked fine, just some scratches.

At 30MPh, the monitor didnt work, but they hooked it up to an external and it was fine, no problems.

At 35MPh, same thing happened as 30MPh.

At 40MPH, the machine broke. It no longer worked. I dont think you will be inflicting that much damage ;)

I also saw a test for an iPod if anyone cares.
On a bike, they dropped it:

At 10MPh, it scratched, and still worked.
At 15MPh, some major scratches, but still worked.
I think at 25MPh, the LED display gave out, and it didnt work.
 

alex_ant

macrumors 68020
Feb 5, 2002
2,473
0
All up in your bidness
I am in college, and I bought a padded sleeve for my TiBook. I put the TiBook in the sleeve, and the sleeve in the rear compartment (closest to my back) of my backpack. I have the top (screen side) facing toward my back, because my back is flat and my various books etc. are not. I haven't gotten any scratches/dents in my TiBook yet, but I am careful not to bang it around.

If you're looking for a PowerBook to last you through college, and you're a freshman, then I would be more concerned about it being not fast enough than not durable enough, unless you plan to run only OS 9. Unless it hits a gigahertz in the next revision (har har har), it will still be too slow, for me at least. And I'm not talking about FCP and Photoshop - I'm talking about such supercomputing feats as scrolling web pages smoothly. Have fun.

Alex
 

idkew

macrumors 68020
Re: powerbook durability

Originally posted by chibianh
How many of you tibook owners here carry it around a lot? How many of you are in college and carry it around a lot?

I have owned a 667 at college since it came out.

I keep it in a neoprene http://www.madsonline.com case. I really like it and it is a slime case. I have a leather keyboard cover from http://www.macsales.com that keeps my hand grease off the screen. I would reccomend both.

-idkew:p
 

Gelfin

macrumors 68020
Sep 18, 2001
2,165
5
Denver, CO
Re: how about this for durability!

Originally posted by chibianh
following link contains gruesome pics of a mutilated Tibook. View at your own risk.

I think I'm gonna be sick. :eek:

If I may ask, why is an iBook out of the question? The titanium on the TiBook is paper-thin. It seems to survive certain impacts very well, but other impacts (notably, drops that land on corners) can be unexpectedly catastrophic. I've owned an old clamshell iBook, worked with a new iBook, and now own a TiBook, and there's just a world of difference in ruggedness. It boils down to this: with the iBook I didn't have to think about it; with the TiBook I do. If I were an undergrad again, I think I would really prefer the iBook.
 

jefhatfield

Retired
Jul 9, 2000
8,803
0
Re: powerbook durability

Originally posted by chibianh
How many of you tibook owners here carry it around a lot? How many of you are in college and carry it around a lot?

I'm currently a freshman in college and am going to get the tibook as soon as the next revision comes out, whether at the end of this month or during the summer. I will be carrying it around a lot and I want it to last me until I graduate.

How well has your tibooks held up? What types of carrying cases, protection, etc. do you use? Is carrying it in a backpack good enough?

I currently have a 3 inch thick, 15 lb black pc laptop (SLIGHTLY exaggerated) that I carry around. The thing, however, is very durable.

p.s. The iBook is out of the question.

did you say that you are a freshman and you want to have a laptop last you until you graduate?

in four years, any new laptop you buy will be something you will be screaming to get rid of...most people's normal mac lust factor will want them to dump it in half the time

two and a half years ago when i bought my revision a ibook, it was the second fastest laptop on the planet behind the g3 powerbook, but now the 300 g3 seems ancient now that ibm has announced (months ago) a 1 ghz mobile g3 chip which we could see in as little as six months

my guess is at 4 years, the mac laptops will be at 1.5 ghz or more...so do you really think one laptop will last you thru college these days?

yeah, back in the early 90s when technology moved a lot slower, maybe this would have been possible, so i hate to sound pessimistic, but expect two years to two and a half years for your tibook (less if you are a digital arts or music person)
 

mcrain

macrumors 68000
Feb 8, 2002
1,773
12
Illinois
Bag suggestion

I had a PC laptop and had two bags for it. I bought a fancy schmancy leather bag with lots of pockets and space for everything. You would think with its size, the computer would be well cared for, however, the biggest problem with the bag was that to get to, and then use, teh computer, you have to have a nice stable place to put it down, then open it up, and then remove the computer and any peripherals you need. Unfortunately, that means using a computer in a plane or on the go is very difficult. The most damage I did to the computer occurred when removing the computer. The best carry bag I've ever used, by a huge huge margin, is a bag called a lapdog. The lapdog holds your computer and stuff, but most interestingly, once the computer is in the bag, to use it, all you have to to is flip it open. No need to remove the computer all the time. In addition, the bag is designed to sit on your lap and has flaps that go on either side of your legs. It's non-slip, so you can use your computer on a stool very easily. I don't think the bag I have will work with a Tibook, so when I finally break down and buy the new powerbook, I'll have to look for a model of lapdog that fits it. I know they have backpack versions, thin wraps, school versions, etc...

In my opinion, most damage to laptops occurs when the laptop is on a slick surface and slides off or when the laptop is being removed from a bag. The lapdog does a fantastic job of protecting the computer in the bag and making removing it needless (not to mention providing a nice non-slip surface to use your computer on).

If your interested, the company that makes the lapdog is called SJ design. I think their website is http://www.sjdesign.com. They may also have a new site for their new line of student bags, but I'm not sure what it is, or if those bags are available yet.

Take a look at their website, they have reviews from various computer magazines you should take a look at.

M
 

chibianh

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2001
783
1
Colorado
The iBook, to me, is out of the question because I like the TiBook better, plain and simple. Besides, I think the G4 will be productive for me longer than the G3 in the iBook. As for the TiBook lasting me until I graduate, I really doubt that, too, jefhatfield. However, since I do not have the money to buy a new laptop every 2 years or so, I have no choice. So, unless I all of a sudden have the money in two years, my TiBook will have to do. Yes, I will probably be lusting over a new one, but it all comes down to $$$.

As for protection for the Tibook, i have a backpack with a laptop slip in the back. However, there is no padding so I am considering a slip or something of the sort to give it some cushion. Any recommendations?
 

Gelfin

macrumors 68020
Sep 18, 2001
2,165
5
Denver, CO
Yes yes YES

I second the vote for the Lapdog. I was going to get around to raving about mine in this thread eventually. I keep my TiBook in one, and it's just the best thing ever. It was more expensive than your run-of-the-mill Targus bag, but worth every penny.
 

chibianh

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2001
783
1
Colorado
thanks

Thanks to those who have replied and to those who have offered suggestions and opinions on protection.. You guys are too nice..

:p
 

Taft

macrumors 65816
Jan 31, 2002
1,319
0
Chicago
TiBook accident...

I was in a pretty major car accident over Xmas. We were in a 5 car crash in which a guy 3 cars up stopped short and five cars ran into each other pretty hard. A friend of mine nearly lost his thumb and had to have major surgery. It was pretty bad.

At any rate, I had my TiBook with and my friend (with the injured thumb) had his Dell with. Our laptop bags were packed in the trunk so that the bags were packed like this (your looking at a side view of the car):

----------bumper (& trunk)
--||-||----||
--||-||----||
--||-||----###
--||-||----###
--bags-----###

The laptops were standing upright with the screens parallel to the bumper. The trunk was completely smashed after the accident and I had to forcefully yank the bags out of the deformed trunk. So both laptops were smashed with a lot of force against their screens.

My TiBook had two minor injuries, the screen has slight marks on it where the keyboard enclosure hit against the screen. The marks are only visible against a black screen. No pixels were damaged. The second was that the CD drive enclosure was slightly smushed so that CD's would rub against the enclosure when spinning. I simply took the cd drive out of the case and gently bent it back to its normal form. Other than these minor problems the TiBook still runs fine. No more problems have presented themselves.

My friend's Dell didn't fare so well. The screen pretty much shattered. It did boot, and seems to work normally but it needed a replacement screen. The poor guy had a shattered thumb and laptop.

So in my limited experience, the TiBook holds up pretty well.

Matthew
 

Gelfin

macrumors 68020
Sep 18, 2001
2,165
5
Denver, CO
Originally posted by chibianh
The iBook, to me, is out of the question because I like the TiBook better, plain and simple. Besides, I think the G4 will be productive for me longer than the G3 in the iBook. As for the TiBook lasting me until I graduate, I really doubt that, too, jefhatfield. However, since I do not have the money to buy a new laptop every 2 years or so, I have no choice. So, unless I all of a sudden have the money in two years, my TiBook will have to do. Yes, I will probably be lusting over a new one, but it all comes down to $$$.

Of course, for the cost of the TiBook, you could buy an iBook now and then replace it in 2 years, probably with a G4 iBook by that time. :D All I'm saying is, if it really comes down to $$$, ruling out the iBook isn't necessarily in your best interests.

You know, unless you've got relatives offering to buy you whatever laptop you want now, and they won't be offering again in two years.

Not trying to be pushy here. I really do understand where you're coming from.
 

chibianh

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Nov 6, 2001
783
1
Colorado
Gelfin, u got me thinking...

Maybe that would be the way to go. However, my older brother is offering to lend me 1800 bucks. The iBook is nice. But I love the way the TiBook looks and it has a better graphics chip. I don't know... i'm all confused now.. :confused:

But then again, if I don't spend the extra money I have on the Tibook now, I will probably just spend it on other crap..
 

jefhatfield

Retired
Jul 9, 2000
8,803
0
Originally posted by chibianh
The iBook, to me, is out of the question because I like the TiBook better, plain and simple. Besides, I think the G4 will be productive for me longer than the G3 in the iBook. As for the TiBook lasting me until I graduate, I really doubt that, too, jefhatfield. However, since I do not have the money to buy a new laptop every 2 years or so, I have no choice. So, unless I all of a sudden have the money in two years, my TiBook will have to do. Yes, I will probably be lusting over a new one, but it all comes down to $$$.

As for protection for the Tibook, i have a backpack with a laptop slip in the back. However, there is no padding so I am considering a slip or something of the sort to give it some cushion. Any recommendations?

so in that case, get the tibook with as much ram as possible and protect it with the best case you can find and always keep a close eye on the machine and good luck...i hope this helps
 

kishba

macrumors 6502a
Dec 11, 2001
610
0
Michigan
i'm a junior in high school and here are my plans (i'm poor, but saved money up for a g4 that has to stay home)

i'm going to buy the best 12" screen ibook i can, load it with ram, buy some good software and hopefully use the rest on tution & stuff

then about 1/2 or 3/4 of the way through college i'm hopefully going to get a new one

i really hope its possible but i know for sure the ibook will work because it's durable, more portable, and i'm a lot less worried about it when compared to a tibook (being stolen or bent/smushed)

let me put it this way: i'm more worried about ruining perfect -- a tibook -- (when you're me--i smushed my ipod in a door... luckly apple replaced it for free) than ruins near perfection (an ibook)

hope that helps (ps: i can always hope apple speeds up the OS or makes a g4 ibook or go back to 9 in college)
 

Rower_CPU

Moderator emeritus
Oct 5, 2001
11,219
2
San Diego, CA
I bring my TiBook with me to school about 2-3 times a week. Same as alex and Gelfin talked about, I got the laptop sleeve (Lapdog) and backpack (Brain Bag) from Tom Bihn. Great quality and looks!

No damage to my TiBook except for some nicks on one of the display hinges.
 

mcrain

macrumors 68000
Feb 8, 2002
1,773
12
Illinois
Lap Dog is not a Lapdog

Originally posted by Rower_CPU
I got the laptop sleeve (Lapdog) and backpack (Brain Bag) from Tom Bihn. Great quality and looks!

I wanted to make sure there wasn't any confusion. Tom Bihn sells a bag he calls the Lap Dog. It's a normal bag that protects your computer. The Lapdog by SJ Design, at http://www.SJDesign.com is different. It is a bag with straps and padding, however, you do not remove the computer from the bag to use it. you place the bag on your lap, lay the flaps over your legs, and you're in business. Check out both websites and you'll see the differences.

I personally love the lapdog. It makes getting to and using your laptop extremely easy. (I've dropped my computer or nearly dropped it several times when removing it from a big leather bag, and have yet to have a reason to remove the computer from the lapdog).
 

ZeroKoolNess1

macrumors newbie
Feb 25, 2002
17
0
I have my ti book, and take it to school and work each day. I have a brenthaven bag for it . its nice, but expensive, and protects it very well. I love my ti book, and i plan on keeping it for about 3 year. I know how you feel about buying a labtop, i bought this for college (i'm high school senior). And when it comes down to it, you can do one of two things. But the ti book, but happy and have fun with your computer for a couple of years, and load it with ram (i have one gig) or you can buy a ibook, save about 2000 and then when you are in college spend that money on books ,food, beer, etc and then you will just have your ibook and a lot of empty pizza boxes.

I went with the ti because i know that i will most likely only have one labtop in college, so it might as well be the one i want :)

BUY THE TI, you won't regret it

ZeroKoolness1
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.