Trade-in 12" PB for 13" Macbook ?

[zimtheinvader]

Hello,
I have a dillemma of sorts...I am a mid-college student and am considering selling my 2yr old 12" PB (10.4, G4 1.33, 60GB, 1.25GB) for one of those shiny new Macbooks. -Is this a wise move? I am thinking I could probably sell my PB+ram+Case+Access (-)minus the free ipod (rebate, selling the free ipod,) and get the new MB for a wash.
The pros would be new warranty (PB has expired), brighter screen, isight, frontrow, XP, faster, better (newer) battery, free printer.
The cons would be not so nice KB (imho) glossy screen, no video card, and a little bulkier.
What do you guys think? I do not need the Coreduo2 anyway so I am thinking if they do not upgrade by next week I will sell so I can get the ipod deal.

Option 3 would be to keep my PB until I can save up for a MBP; pros: nicer screen and video card, KB, Con: not great value right now compared to MB, ie. right now a MB+20"+Xbox360 display or MB(Coreduo now)+iMac(later when CD2 is released)... I like the imac+MB idea since I miss having a dedicated desktop ...what do y'all think?

I am weary too, since my brother's new MB was just sent in for repairs...

 

[ITASOR]

Instead of selling the free iPod, just order from Amazon.com and you get a $100 rebate.

 

[xfiftyfour]

Instead of selling the free iPod, just order from Amazon.com and you get a $100 rebate.

With the student discount, the OP would be better off. Same price as Amazon, but you get all the free stuff through Apple (printer + iPod). If he doesn't want the nano, he can sell it and use that "free" money towards the cost of the MB.

 

[zimtheinvader]

Thats what I was thinking. I already have a nano and can get the edu discount...

 

[ITASOR]

With the student discount, the OP would be better off. Same price as Amazon, but you get all the free stuff through Apple (printer + iPod). If he doesn't want the nano, he can sell it and use that "free" money towards the cost of the MB.

Yeah, I guess. Factor in the tax too though.

 

[iris_failsafe]

What do you use your computer for?

If you do regular stuff its porbably a good idea...
If you are a designer or something similar I would try it before buying it...

 

[QCassidy352]

The pros would be new warranty (PB has expired), brighter screen, isight, frontrow, XP, faster, better (newer) battery, free printer.
The cons would be not so nice KB (imho) glossy screen, no video card, and a little bulkier.

- the KB is not as nice as the PB, but it's very nice. Waaaay nicer than ibook G4 keyboards.
- The glossy screen is a big plus in my book. Have you seen a macbook in person? A matte screen looks washed out after you've used a MB for a while.
- the GMA 950 is probably as fast as that old pos nvidea 5200go in the powerbook, if not faster.

the only downside is that the MBs do have a lot of bugs. I'm on my second, and I do believe the screen has started flickering...

Oh, and IMO you're being very optimistic thinking you can do this all for a zero net cost. Have ya seen the prices of G4 laptops, especially out-of-warranty G4 laptops, lately? It ain't pretty.

 

[Jovian9]

I just sold my 12" 1.33GHz PB 80GB Combo and bought a 1.83GHz Core Duo White MacBook. I'm not sure how I feel about it yet.

Pros:
-My wife and I can now play some games on Windows that we wanted to play for awhile
-I have to use Internet Explorer Windows version to do some of my time tracking/staffing at work so this allows me to do some work from home
-I really enjoy the new keyboards as compared to the iBook keyboards (but I like the PB keyboards more)
-Stronger wireless signal with the airport card than my PB had
-Widescreen
-I thought I would hate the glossy screen but I actually do like it

Cons:
-White plastic - definitely looks and feels much cheaper than my previous 2 Aluminum PowerBooks (scuffs up and has fingerprints all over it)
-Bigger - though not by much - but I really enjoyed the 12" PB (and I've had a 12" iBook, 12" PB, 17" PB and clamshell iBooks)....the 12" PB was my favorite
-512MB RAM really chokes the system. My 12" PB ran a lot smoother with 512MB RAM than this machine does. Though I imagine when I upgrade the RAM soon I'll see HUGE performance increases - especially considering this is shared memory so I don't actually have 512MB RAM for OSX/XP right now
-1 Random Shut Down in the 8 days I've owned it (seems to be a growing problem with MacBooks)

I like the machine but I'm not as "attached" to it as I was the PB. The aluminum design is just so much better (in my opinion). If they released a similar size MacBook Pro I'd immediately sale my MacBook and get it...but at this point I do not want a 15"+ screen.

 

[danny_w]

I would very much caution anybody from jumping on a Macbook until Apple fixes the Random Shutdown problem that seems to be so prevalent right now. It does seem to have settled down somewhat with the latest firmware fix that keeps the fans on low, however not everybody is reporting success with this "fix". I suggest checking out the Apple support forums before making a decision. I know that I am going to wait for a fix to be announced, not just some silent update.

 

[sikkinixx]

I just sold my 12" 1.33GHz PB 80GB Combo and bought a 1.83GHz Core Duo White MacBook. I'm not sure how I feel about it yet.

Pros:
-My wife and I can now play some games on Windows that we wanted to play for awhile
-I have to use Internet Explorer Windows version to do some of my time tracking/staffing at work so this allows me to do some work from home
-I really enjoy the new keyboards as compared to the iBook keyboards (but I like the PB keyboards more)
-Stronger wireless signal with the airport card than my PB had
-Widescreen
-I thought I would hate the glossy screen but I actually do like it

Cons:
-White plastic - definitely looks and feels much cheaper than my previous 2 Aluminum PowerBooks (scuffs up and has fingerprints all over it)
-Bigger - though not by much - but I really enjoyed the 12" PB (and I've had a 12" iBook, 12" PB, 17" PB and clamshell iBooks)....the 12" PB was my favorite
-512MB RAM really chokes the system. My 12" PB ran a lot smoother with 512MB RAM than this machine does. Though I imagine when I upgrade the RAM soon I'll see HUGE performance increases - especially considering this is shared memory so I don't actually have 512MB RAM for OSX/XP right now
-1 Random Shut Down in the 8 days I've owned it (seems to be a growing problem with MacBooks)

I like the machine but I'm not as "attached" to it as I was the PB. The aluminum design is just so much better (in my opinion). If they released a similar size MacBook Pro I'd immediately sale my MacBook and get it...but at this point I do not want a 15"+ screen.

I agree with you totally! I sold my 12"pb the day after the macbooks got released so I wouldnt have to buy the extended warranty. I love the macbook (despite some warranty issues) but after seeing a woman with a 12"pb at the Apple retailer today I really really REALLY miss my Powerbook... I really wish Apple had left a 12" form...

 

[FFTT]

The FREE printer is only FREE after you buy it and send in your rebate certificate.

 

[extraextra]

The FREE printer is only FREE after you buy it and send in your rebate certificate.

It's the same with the iPod too, isn't it?

 

[xfiftyfour]

-White plastic - definitely looks and feels much cheaper than my previous 2 Aluminum PowerBooks (scuffs up and has fingerprints all over it)

I definitely agree with this. I went from a 15" PB to a white MB and really started to hate it. The white feels too ibooky/cheap to me, and it scratches WAY too easily. I only had it a few weeks, but I can't imagine what it would have been like 2 years down the road... I ended up selling it on eBay and buying a blackbook instead. I *love* it. Much more professional/expensive looking IMO.

The MB's performance, though, is awesome. I went from a 1.67Ghz, 1gb RAM G4 PB that was definitely not slow.. I wasn't sure how much of a gain I'd see from the MB.. but the jump was defintely noticeable.

It's the same with the iPod too, isn't it?

Yepp. But if you turn around and sell it (and the printer if you can find a buyer), you're just getting "free" money once the rebates come back making the cost of the machine a bunch cheaper.

 

[prostuff1]

I like the machine but I'm not as "attached" to it as I was the PB. The aluminum design is just so much better (in my opinion). If they released a similar size MacBook Pro I'd immediately sale my MacBook and get it...but at this point I do not want a 15"+ screen.

Right there is the one reason i have not sold my iMac and iBook and bought a MB/MBP. If Apple would just release a 13.3 inch version of the 15in MBP i would buy one in a heartbeat.

Hears to hoping apple realizes that there is a market out there for a small pro machine and releases one buy the time leapord comes out.

And as for the OP's problem... I would hold off on the MB. They seem to be having problem right now and it would really suck to have to send the machine back while in the middle of school. At least with the PB you know it is working and running good.