Need PowerBook Advice

I was debating the 12 inch vs. 15.2 inch PowerBooks for a long time. I always considered that I could use something smaller than the 15.2 inch displays but then, Apple brought out a 1024x768 display and I think that's sqeezed enough on my 15 inch LCD at home.

Since you've been on a 15.2 inch PB, I don't think that you'll want to live with the smaller display area either. Get a refurb machine like I do--it's cheaper and since you've been living with an older machine, you probably won't mind if it looks a little bit used possibly.

ill try to be of a help here

what will you do with your powerbook? games? email? surf web? etc..?

i have a 12 inch Rev C g4 Powerbook

i love it, because i always tend to carry / bring it wherever i go

things i dont like about it? WEAK WIRELESS SIGNAL!

ibooks owns the powerbook anyday over wireless and battery life = )

then again your getting a lot more power and video from the PB's

it really depends on your budget and needs

as much as experiences with these machines is concerned, i wouldn't be too worried about it, i mean as long as you buy it new then your worry free, other than that whats there to worry about?

most people on the boards here prefer ibooks over powerbook because the mods are pretty close together when ram is maxed out 1.25gb

the price makes quite a difference 300-400 bucks...

same with the pb 12 vs 15in, price difference

additional ram...apple cert or aftermarket...

hope this helps!

PowerBook User said:

I need some advice on what type of PowerBook I should get. I currently have a TiBook 867 MHz with 40 GB HD and 512 MB RAM. Pop was spilled in it and it won't start up. Apple wanted $975 to fix it, so I figure it's just better to get a new laptop. I'm highly considering getting a new 12" or 15" PowerBook, but can't decide. I'm interested in people's experiences with these PowerBooks, especially with consideration to battery life and how solid they feel. Or does anyone think an iBook or used laptop would be better?

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Personally, if it was me, i would keep the tibook. They are thinner and in my humble opinion much more durable. Aside from the paint. The aluminum powerbook dents much to easily.

PowerBook User said:

I plan on using it for mostly Internet, e-mail, word processing, and occasional gaming. Is the wireless signal really bad? I plan to use the wireless Internet. I thought the Aluminum PowerBooks had much better reception than the Titanium ones (although I could be wrong). What type of battery life do you get on these? Is it similar to that of the TiBooks? Thanks for your help!

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My girlfriend just got a new 12" PB, and although we've only had it 2 days, I thought I'd weigh in.

She absolutely loves it, and even with only 512 mb of RAM it hasn't slowed down a bit with all the normal programs running. She doesn't work with videos or anything, but the battery lasted almost 4 hours, and that was with brightness all the way up, using the Combo Drive, and even charging an iPod from it. The build quality sure seems good so far.

Like I said, other people who have had their PBs longer can be more helpful, but just thought I'd give my $0.02.

my thoughts on:

toughness/durability:
I suggest you do not give the claims and counterclaims of relative durability too much weight. I've had this discussion before on these boards, and no one can really say what "toughness" or any other such quality means in truly transferable terms. Typically, people have anecdotes of what one accident did to one computer, but they have no idea how another computer would have done in the same situation. A lot of it, I suspect, has to do with Apple's "bulletproof" marketing theme for the iBook (who wants to test that their iBook is bulletproof? no one on this board has yet taken me up on the request). And a lot of it is, admittedly, perception: people say they treat their _book a certain way because they feel that's how it sould be treated ... ok, fine, it is probably better to treat a laptop carefully, for whatever reason. Rather than trying to sort all of this out, I say just be as careful as possible with any laptop you have, buy a sleeve, and recognize that no laptop likes to be dropped/kicked/mistreated. With nothing more than normal care and feeding, my 4-month-old+ PB travels in a sleeve and looks brand new. When necessary, it wipes clean with a moist (usually paper) towel.

battery:
As for battery life, my 12" rev. c can get a legit 5 hours, maybe more, with airport off, screen relatively low, low usage level, and iTunes playing. Heavy use (by my standards-- AP on, ripping and burning CDs) can still get 3 hours, more or less. Normal usage is somewhere inbetween, probably around 4 hours. These are not lab-quality test results, just my recollections, but that's all most of us here can give you.

wireless:
In my personal experience, I have never had any problems with AP reception, and I have never been anywhere in my home or on campus that my computer did not get reception but someone around me did.

There has been a bit of a discussion of the 12" vs the 15" here

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/111474/

Heya,

I owned a revision B 12in, and am currently in the process of buying a new rev D 12in (can't wait!)

I never had any issues with the Powerbook not feeling solid enough; indeed, its small size means that it feels really secure, with no flexing of the case or anything.

It's aluminium, which is a comparitively soft metal, and it will dent if you drop it or hit it too hard. I always carried mine in a Tucano skin, but even then, there was a little damage around the DVD drive and front hinge when I forgot it was in my bag one day and threw my bag down. It all bent straight back into place though, and it was perfect again.

As for screen size; yeh, 15in would be nice. But, more and more I'm realising I really want portability, especially for starting uni in September. And the 12in really gives you that.

andy.