1.33 ibook vs. 1.33 pb

[maya]

Main reason I bought the PB 12.1in model is I needed it small and I wanted to play a game on it. 32mb of ram for a vid card is such a joke. Even 64mb nowadays. But at least I can run most stuff available for the mac. My Dell Inspiron 6800 kicks the apples around, but then again I could drop the Dell on the floor and crack cement because of how heavy it is.

It is well noted that you play only light games on an iBook and even a PowerBook. Games on Apple portables forget it you might as well buy an XBOX or PS2.

I don't get why people are willing to squint to play games and expect a killer machine to handle it. Buy a console Please, even the G5's have problems with game play since the Graphic Cards are not optimized code.

When the eMac goes G5 it will shin the iMac G5 only reason then is for an LCD unless you are smart and use a spanning hack on the eMac and have a dual display one CRT one LCD. 🙂

PowerBook people here are trying to justify they high cost of buying they machines that in a few months the same chip will make its way into the iBook. The iBook will stay G4 for sometime as it did with the G3 chip you can expect the iBook to outperform the PowerBook (if PB indeed goes G5) in battery life. And last time I checked battery life was all that had to do with portability, look at the complaints from iPod owners alone.

Face it people your PowerBook that cost 2+K in 2005 will be in a sub 1K iBook. 🙂 And when those dual core G4 chips are released and put into an iBook it will outshine any PowerBook G5 plus the battery life. 😉 🙂

 

[Jdm_rsx]

maya what do you do w/ the ibOOK anyways?

your like totally in love with it...

now im thinking twice about keeping my NEWLY BOUGHT POWERBOOK!

argh..........

 

[mcgarry]

May I attempt to summarize the obvious:

- The PowerBook is faster and has some more features which may or may not be important to you
- The iBook is cheaper
- if you want a PowerBook you might want to see what happens at MWSF

That about covers it.

And as an editorial aside, as someone who has used both a 12" iBook and a 12" PowerBook extensively (by my standards at least), I don't think one case is inherently "tougher" than another. If you make a habit of dropping your laptop, nothing is going to seem tough enough.

 

[mcgarry]

In relation to the original question about speed, the macworld review has some test results for the latest iBooks that compare to the 15" 1.33 GHz PowerBook. Yes, the PowerBook is faster, but is the difference (and the extra features, bigger screen, etc.) enough to justify the price? Up to you.

www.macworld.com/2004/11/reviews/ibookg4update/

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

It is well noted that you play only light games on an iBook and even a PowerBook. Games on Apple portables forget it you might as well buy an XBOX or PS2.

I don't get why people are willing to squint to play games and expect a killer machine to handle it. Buy a console Please, even the G5's have problems with game play since the Graphic Cards are not optimized code.

When the eMac goes G5 it will shin the iMac G5 only reason then is for an LCD unless you are smart and use a spanning hack on the eMac and have a dual display one CRT one LCD. 🙂

PowerBook people here are trying to justify they high cost of buying they machines that in a few months the same chip will make its way into the iBook. The iBook will stay G4 for sometime as it did with the G3 chip you can expect the iBook to outperform the PowerBook (if PB indeed goes G5) in battery life. And last time I checked battery life was all that had to do with portability, look at the complaints from iPod owners alone.

Face it people your PowerBook that cost 2+K in 2005 will be in a sub 1K iBook. 🙂 And when those dual core G4 chips are released and put into an iBook it will outshine any PowerBook G5 plus the battery life. 😉 🙂

Ok im going to say this one more time for everyone who always says forget games on your comp and just get a ps2 or xbox so here it is so you can understand and stop saying this....THERE ARE GAMES ON THE COMPUTER THAT YOU CANNOT GET ON A PS2 OR XBOX OK!!! LOL 🙄

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

My biggest reason for buying a powerbook would probably be the video card and the higher resolution of the screen i really like the crispness of it compared to the ibook

 

[maya]

maya what do you do w/ the ibOOK anyways?

your like totally in love with it...

now im thinking twice about keeping my NEWLY BOUGHT POWERBOOK!

argh..........

I use my iBook for web design, photo editing, 3D (yes believe it), word processing, giving presentations, surfing, email, listening to music, editing some videos and author DVD's (though I burn on an external Burner).

Granted its not a 2.5 GHz G5 however at the speed tech is underway that G5 you spent 3k on will drop in price soon enough considering all the press the G5 and IBM are getting along with IBM's partnership. IMHO the iBook looks sleek and it a great price for what it does with WiFi and it being light along with battery power and other little features its quite a bargain.

RAM will always benefit any computer. The Video Card is not that great however I that is not an issue as of yet.

I also do not play games. 🙂

EDIT: Core Image will run slow on 64megs on a Graphic Card you will need a good 128+Megs to get acceptable performance. Do you honestly believe Mac OS X will run acceptable on 128Megs of Ram as is the minimum requirements. We all know that you need a good 512+Megs of ram to work in OS X. Core Image is no different, don't expect to do miracles. 🙄 And for the love of the top end cards have half-arsed divers. 🙁 "Tiger" seems more and more targeted towards the server and high-end professional market and the notebook line is not on PAR with it look no further than the systemBUS. 🙂

 

[maya]

In relation to the original question about speed, the macworld review has some test results for the latest iBooks that compare to the 15" 1.33 GHz PowerBook. Yes, the PowerBook is faster, but is the difference (and the extra features, bigger screen, etc.) enough to justify the price? Up to you.

www.macworld.com/2004/11/reviews/ibookg4update/

Exactly my point, in another few months your powerbook will not be so hot try to resell that for 3/4 of the cost you bought it it will be difficult since if Apple drops prices on the PB line you all have just lined Apples profit margin.

Interesting I priced all the components battery, Combo Drive, HDD, LCD, etc...of the iBook 12" Apple actually doesn't make much of a profit on it that compared to the PB 12" Apple is making you pay more for oh the "Power" name, Al, and a tab bit faster ram and bus plus BT. 🙄

Go ahead price the components for a 12" PB and iBook see which one is a better deal and its the PB 12" Combo drive since one has to be fair unless the 12" iBook has a superdrive option. 🙂

Besides I have a PowerBook and I do not use most of the ports it has (what a waste 🙁).

 

[maya]

My biggest reason for buying a powerbook would probably be the video card and the higher resolution of the screen i really like the crispness of it compared to the ibook

If you are comparing the 12" iBook screen and PowerBook screen its the same one Apple doesn't look for low cost component for all they lines they put the same 12" in the iBook and PowerBook the same 17" in the PowerBook and iMac G5 line. All this is to cut cost.

If you feel the 14" iBook resolution is bad well people with poor eyesight (not me) appreciate the resolution to size ratio.

I always liked the 12" iBook, the 12" PowerBook seems like a miss for some reason. The top 2 PowerBook models are better in specs however the price it absurd for a G4 chip at this level in the game. 🙂

 

[maya]

Ok im going to say this one more time for everyone who always says forget games on your comp and just get a ps2 or xbox so here it is so you can understand and stop saying this....THERE ARE GAMES ON THE COMPUTER THAT YOU CANNOT GET ON A PS2 OR XBOX OK!!! LOL 🙄

Have you either written or called the game developer(s) of the company and asked if there were going to port it to a console, its rather odd for a game developer to only write Mac ONLY games. 🙂

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

Have you either written or called the game developer(s) of the company and asked if there were going to port it to a console, its rather odd for a game developer to only write Mac ONLY games. 🙂

I didnt say mac only games im talking about PC games and i really doubt doom 3 and wc3 or ut2004 will be coming out on ps2 or xbox anytime soon u simly dont get the same detail as u do on a high end pc

 

[Jdm_rsx]

when i had a ibook, i used it to play sim city 4 and thats it

surf internet, lots of homework / powerpoint / word processing

but i just wanted something better

sigh, i really dont know what to do now..

 

[rstroud]

I didnt say mac only games im talking about PC games and i really doubt doom 3 and wc3 or ut2004 will be coming out on ps2 or xbox anytime soon u simly dont get the same detail as u do on a high end pc

Actually, Doom 3 is coming to consoles....at least, it's in development!

 

[maya]

I didnt say mac only games im talking about PC games and i really doubt doom 3 and wc3 or ut2004 will be coming out on ps2 or xbox anytime soon u simly dont get the same detail as u do on a high end pc

Then you are stuck with a small pocket and big dreams. 🙂

EDIT: would it not be cheaper to buy a PC for gaming. I know some other Mac users who do this.

As for me I do not play games and at the current rate the system bus speed is it fits more inline of an iBook or eMac not a PowerBook. If the PowerBook had a 2.0 GHz processor and a faster bus along with PC3200 ram then I can see why people would prefer the PowerBook however at present its just too close and the

iBook 133MHz bus compared to the PowerBook 167MHz bus not much of a difference for the price as well as the iBook 266MHz ram compared to the PowerBook 333MHz ram speed.

That is why I feel that the PowerBooks are a bad bad deal the 12" iBook being the best deal for the features and money no contest. 🙂

The only thing lacking is a 64Meg Graphic Card however as mentioned above its not much of a concern for me. I will not be upgrading until there is a PowerBook G5 rev b or c and 1+Gig standard so that is a long time away. Plus by that time the dual core FreeScale chips should be ready and make its way into the iBook line. I would love to see a benchmark of a dual core 1.8GHz iBook G4 to a single core 2.0GHz PowerBook G5 given the battery life along the iBook will win the only way it will stagger is bus speed, Graphic Car, and a low rpm HDD. 🙂

Have you ever tried to find out the resale value of your PowerBook G4, I gather many consumers will still only look at the MHz rating. 🙂

To a off the street consumer should I buy a 1.33GHz iBook with XYZ or a 1.2GHz PowerBook for more money if details mattered to many consumers why do we have a slow bus. 🙂

 

[maya]

when i had a ibook, i used it to play sim city 4 and thats it

surf internet, lots of homework / powerpoint / word processing

but i just wanted something better

sigh, i really dont know what to do now..

Are you sure you just wanted the name "Power" and look of metal or was it something else. 😉 🙂

Again I have very little need for a card slot since I can use my phone to connect to the net and use a USB link to the iBook and there is the WiFi card that is now standard. 🙂 Don't need a DVD burner I send my DVD content to a pro KIOS since they can worry about the burning issues plus I get it discounted so its not much for me to get my DVD's burnt professionally all I have to do is take my iBook or iPod and upload the DVD image. 🙂

A PowerBook is like having features to put yourself at ease and never use it however paying for it in the slight chance that you might. I have hardly used any of the ports on my PowerBook the usual USB and FW, S-Video all that is included with the iBook. 🙂

 

[maya]

Actually, Doom 3 is coming to consoles....at least, it's in development!

That is reassuring that they are porting some games even at a slow pace to consoles this should pave the way if these early titles do well with consumers. Halo 2 on XBOX seems to be a hit in Canada. 🙂

 

[ravenvii]

Those aluminum PowerBooks scare me to death. I definitely will not buy one. All those warping stories, and people using hammers to stamp it back into shape... 😱

If you want an notebook now, definitely get the iBook. Definitely. If you don't, wait for the next generation of the PowerBook (by generation I mean the step from plastic to titanium, and the step from titanium to aluminum).

As for games, will World of Warcraft ever come to consoles? I think not! So don't say "just get a PS2 or XBox you dolt!", that just makes you seem very naive.

Anyway, I recommend the iBook. That metallic good looks won't enchant you for long when you suddenly notice that your PowerBook wobbles...

 

[maya]

Those aluminum PowerBooks scare me to death. I definitely will not buy one. All those warping stories, and people using hammers to stamp it back into shape... 😱

If you want an notebook now, definitely get the iBook. Definitely. If you don't, wait for the next generation of the PowerBook (by generation I mean the step from plastic to titanium, and the step from titanium to aluminum).

As for games, will World of Warcraft ever come to consoles? I think not! So don't say "just get a PS2 or XBox you dolt!", that just makes you seem very naive.

Anyway, I recommend the iBook. That metallic good looks won't enchant you for long when you suddenly notice that your PowerBook wobbles...

Watch the name call huh? 🙄 No one mentioned what games titles they were referring to and so forth. And its well noted that Mac's are not the best gaming machines they are working machines.

Get your matters correct before resorting to name calling even if you were not referring to any of the above? 🙂

Keep this place clean. 🙂

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

Those aluminum PowerBooks scare me to death. I definitely will not buy one. All those warping stories, and people using hammers to stamp it back into shape... 😱

If you want an notebook now, definitely get the iBook. Definitely. If you don't, wait for the next generation of the PowerBook (by generation I mean the step from plastic to titanium, and the step from titanium to aluminum).

As for games, will World of Warcraft ever come to consoles? I think not! So don't say "just get a PS2 or XBox you dolt!", that just makes you seem very naive.

Anyway, I recommend the iBook. That metallic good looks won't enchant you for long when you suddenly notice that your PowerBook wobbles...

My point exactly

 

[mcgarry]

Those aluminum PowerBooks scare me to death. I definitely will not buy one. All those warping stories, and people using hammers to stamp it back into shape... 😱

Almost all of those problems I heard about were for Rev. A 15" PowerBooks. Those problems could easily be matched by the early iBooks hinge, screen, and logicboard problems. My brother's iBook has had its share of quality control issues, my PowerBook none, but I do not therefore leap to the conclusion that no PowerBooks have problems and and all iBooks do. Any of the current generation of either model should be fine.

These are different computers for different uses: one is a little faster, has a few more features, the other is cheaper. One might be updated soon. That's really all there is to it.

Also, again to state the obvious, I wouldn't worry about resale value unless you plan to re-sell.

 

[CaptainCaveMann]

Almost all of those problems I heard about were for Rev. A 15" PowerBooks. Those problems could easily be matched by the early iBooks hinge, screen, and logicboard problems. My brother's iBook has had its share of quality control issues, my PowerBook none, but I do not therefore leap to the blanket conclusion that no PowerBooks have problems and and all iBooks do. Any of the current generation of either model should be fine.

These are different computers for different uses: one is a little faster, has a few more features, the other is cheaper. One might be updated soon. That's really all there is to it.

Also, again to state the obvious, I wouldn't worry about resale value unless you plan to re-sell.

As hard as it would be to resale a computer i am not worried about it, i have a really good pc and have had no luck selling it

 

[Jdm_rsx]

so what is the current resell value of the CURRENT G4 POWERBOOK?

 

[maya]

so what is the current resell value of the CURRENT G4 POWERBOOK?

Since the April model has not seen an update since April *cough* the resale value should be a few hundred less of what you paid if the computer is in good shape.

If a PowerBook 1.6GHz or a PowerBook G5 is introduced at MWSF 2005 with price drops the April released PowerBook will be a few hundred less of the new lower price if still a G4 if a G5 plan to loose even more money.

All depends PBG5 in Jan or PBG4 updates you still loose money how much will depend on the G5 or G4 chip that the PB will sport.

The 12" iBook G4 that was released in April same time as the PowerBook G4 now goes for about 700-800 CAD the higher price is if trade-in. Since the April iBooks 12" models cost 1099 USD in April and no WiFi however the ones released in October are 999 USD + WiFi included so that is an automatic 200 USD dollar loss. having BlueTooth in another rev iBook G4 next year will not loose to much on the Oct released iBooks for one reason some people want BT some people don't at most will loose 100 USD so the current iBooks will not loose much value considering the 12" will next sport a 1.33GHz G4 chip not much of a leap. 🙂

I will however find the current resale value on the April PowerBooks and post later.

 

[Jdm_rsx]

you sure know ur freakin market maya

may i ask what do you do for a living?

please look at my thread as well

its too late i already bought a powerbook

= )

 

[mcgarry]

I'm not sure why a new customer considering an iBook or a PowerBook should be overly concerned with what their computer's resale value may be at some unspecified point in the future. It might be a concern, certainly, but I wouldn't dwell on it. It's too hard to predict with much precision. One factor to keep in mind which could influence these numbers down the road is CoreImage compatibility. IF that is important to people, the value of the iBook will understandably be relatively lower than that of computers that do support it. Personally I don't think that's a major issue, I'm just trying to say that looking at used computer prices now might not tell you all that much about where'll they'll be 4,6,8 months from now. But I'm just guessing.