Given the choice between the two, which one would you purchase and why? I'm thinking of buying one and I need help deciding between the two. I'll just use it for the usual email, word processing, photo, etc., no hard core task i. e. video editing. Thanks
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12 inch PB vs 14 inch iBook
- Thread starter noel4r
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i would personally go for 12" pb, and i did go for it.
but, for you the 14" ibook sounds better. a bigger screen = not necessarily more pixels but easier to see. the hard drive's bigger than the ibook 12"s too.
i used to have ibook 700 and did what you do with your new one (and a lot more), and it was fine. so for sure a 14" new model of ibook can handle all that, and not feel at all clumsy or slow in them.
jsut get more ram to it, it'll be really smooth with 512 mb more ram.
but, for you the 14" ibook sounds better. a bigger screen = not necessarily more pixels but easier to see. the hard drive's bigger than the ibook 12"s too.
i used to have ibook 700 and did what you do with your new one (and a lot more), and it was fine. so for sure a 14" new model of ibook can handle all that, and not feel at all clumsy or slow in them.
jsut get more ram to it, it'll be really smooth with 512 mb more ram.
You sound like a perfect candidate for the iBook -- the real differences between the iBook and PowerBook are currently
1. Maximum RAM support (iBook: 640MB; PB12": 1.25GB) -- doesn't sound like too much of an issue for you, especially if you get an aftermarket 512MB DIMM (approx. $140)
2. Superdrive (iBook: not an option; PB12": optional) -- only you know if you are going to want to burn a movie dvd; if so, you might want to spring for the PB since you get not only the Superdrive, but also iDVD (saving you big $$ over DVD Studio Pro)
3. FireWire800 support (iBook: no; PB12": yes) -- I haven't seen any test where FW800 actually bechmarked at 2x the speed of FW400, and your projected uses really don't sound like this should be a concern
4. DVI support (iBook: VGA only; PB12": mini-DVI) -- as I understand it, there's no magic to DVI over VGA, but a good VGA image on an external monitor requires the monitor to have a good digital-to-analog algorithm. Unless you foresee this being a problem, it shouldn't be your choice criterion here.
So, from what you've described as your prospective use, I'd objectively recommend the iBook. HOWEVER, if you can afford the PB and WANT IT because:
a. It has the word "Power" in its name
b. It's made of metal
c. It's got a metal keyboard
d. My friends have iBooks and this is a chance to one-up them
e. My friends have iBooks and this is my chance not to be one-upped
f. I won't use [FW800 / SuperDrive / DVI / iDVD / 1.25GB RAM / etc.] but it would be cool to be able to.
g. I know I won't be burning my own DVD movies, but I like to think that I might and the PB will let me hang on to that fantasy a while longer
h. [other reason that people don't fess up to]
THEN -- I say BUY the 12" PowerBook.
If you can afford it and it makes you happy, then that's what this is aaaaaall about! Get the Mac that you'll enjoy.
Best of Luck!
1. Maximum RAM support (iBook: 640MB; PB12": 1.25GB) -- doesn't sound like too much of an issue for you, especially if you get an aftermarket 512MB DIMM (approx. $140)
2. Superdrive (iBook: not an option; PB12": optional) -- only you know if you are going to want to burn a movie dvd; if so, you might want to spring for the PB since you get not only the Superdrive, but also iDVD (saving you big $$ over DVD Studio Pro)
3. FireWire800 support (iBook: no; PB12": yes) -- I haven't seen any test where FW800 actually bechmarked at 2x the speed of FW400, and your projected uses really don't sound like this should be a concern
4. DVI support (iBook: VGA only; PB12": mini-DVI) -- as I understand it, there's no magic to DVI over VGA, but a good VGA image on an external monitor requires the monitor to have a good digital-to-analog algorithm. Unless you foresee this being a problem, it shouldn't be your choice criterion here.
So, from what you've described as your prospective use, I'd objectively recommend the iBook. HOWEVER, if you can afford the PB and WANT IT because:
a. It has the word "Power" in its name
b. It's made of metal
c. It's got a metal keyboard
d. My friends have iBooks and this is a chance to one-up them
e. My friends have iBooks and this is my chance not to be one-upped
f. I won't use [FW800 / SuperDrive / DVI / iDVD / 1.25GB RAM / etc.] but it would be cool to be able to.
g. I know I won't be burning my own DVD movies, but I like to think that I might and the PB will let me hang on to that fantasy a while longer
h. [other reason that people don't fess up to]
THEN -- I say BUY the 12" PowerBook.
If you can afford it and it makes you happy, then that's what this is aaaaaall about! Get the Mac that you'll enjoy.
Best of Luck!
ok iBooks cannot get sdupoerdrives from apple only from a third party ... personally as relaible as MCE seems i would not want to send my brand new iBook to some random guy who might void my warranty ... So all in all, its possible to get a superdrive but its not an option that shoudl be perceived as possible for the ibook.... I'm also not sure if MCE has a slot loading superdrive for the iBook...
I would - and did - go for the Powerbook. But I agree with the posters who think you should go for the iBook.
One thing no one's mentioned about the differences between the two is cache. The Powerbook has twice the L2 cache (512K instead of 256K). RAM and cache are fairly major factors in the overall power equation (so a 1 GHz iBook isn't going to be as fast as a 1 GHz Powerbook).
I like the Powerbook because it has more power. I do occassionaly video editing, but I'm frequently using Photoshop, so the extra power is always good.
The only thing I envy about the iBook is the slightly longer battery life.
One thing no one's mentioned about the differences between the two is cache. The Powerbook has twice the L2 cache (512K instead of 256K). RAM and cache are fairly major factors in the overall power equation (so a 1 GHz iBook isn't going to be as fast as a 1 GHz Powerbook).
I like the Powerbook because it has more power. I do occassionaly video editing, but I'm frequently using Photoshop, so the extra power is always good.
The only thing I envy about the iBook is the slightly longer battery life.
If you can afford either one, definitely get the 12" PowerBook. It's just a much better laptop, no matter what you want to do with it. I advise you to go try them both out at an Apple store.
The PowerBook is quite a bit faster, even compared with the new iBook G4. You will notice the difference in speed even if you are just using the web or email. If you don't care about speed, then get the iBook I guess, but the PowerBook will last a lot longer because it will be able to run future applications and OS versions without any problems. Plus, you never know what you might want to do with the laptop later on. What if you get a digital camera and start doing some work in Photoshop? It takes a long time for Photoshop to start up on an iBook, not to mention running filters. Even if you are just using iPhoto or iMovie--they run a lot better on the PowerBook than the iBook. Just go try it out yourself. If you think the iBook has acceptable speeds doing these things, then by all means get it, but I would personally recommend the PowerBook.
I'm debating the iBook vs. PowerBook issue myself, and I will probably end up getting the iBook because I just don't think I can afford the PowerBook. But if I could, I wouldn't hesitate to get it. I'm even considering getting a refurbished Rev A 12" PowerBook instead of a new 12" iBook. What do you guys think, is this a good idea?
The PowerBook is quite a bit faster, even compared with the new iBook G4. You will notice the difference in speed even if you are just using the web or email. If you don't care about speed, then get the iBook I guess, but the PowerBook will last a lot longer because it will be able to run future applications and OS versions without any problems. Plus, you never know what you might want to do with the laptop later on. What if you get a digital camera and start doing some work in Photoshop? It takes a long time for Photoshop to start up on an iBook, not to mention running filters. Even if you are just using iPhoto or iMovie--they run a lot better on the PowerBook than the iBook. Just go try it out yourself. If you think the iBook has acceptable speeds doing these things, then by all means get it, but I would personally recommend the PowerBook.
I'm debating the iBook vs. PowerBook issue myself, and I will probably end up getting the iBook because I just don't think I can afford the PowerBook. But if I could, I wouldn't hesitate to get it. I'm even considering getting a refurbished Rev A 12" PowerBook instead of a new 12" iBook. What do you guys think, is this a good idea?
The PB has twice the L2 cache of the ibook. That's probably the biggest difference right now, as it will significantly impact performance.
The new 12" PB does *not* have FW800.
jamdr-
I would not get a Rev. A PB 12"; I'd get an ibook. For $75, you can upgrade the HD and add bluetooth to the ibook. The advantages would then be, for essentially the same price (12" Rev. A PB refurb from Apple):
Powerbook-
67 more mhz and monitor spanning
ibook-
better graphics and USB 2.
with the better keyboard and slot loading drive on the ibook, the PB really doesn't have any other advantage.
The rev. B PB 12" has DVI, also has USB 2, is 200 mhz faster instead of 67, has twice the L2 cache, twice the built in RAM, etc. So there is a pretty big difference between that and the other two. But if it's a question of the Rev. A PB vs. the new ibook, I'd rather have the graphics and USB 2.
The new 12" PB does *not* have FW800.
jamdr-
I would not get a Rev. A PB 12"; I'd get an ibook. For $75, you can upgrade the HD and add bluetooth to the ibook. The advantages would then be, for essentially the same price (12" Rev. A PB refurb from Apple):
Powerbook-
67 more mhz and monitor spanning
ibook-
better graphics and USB 2.
with the better keyboard and slot loading drive on the ibook, the PB really doesn't have any other advantage.
The rev. B PB 12" has DVI, also has USB 2, is 200 mhz faster instead of 67, has twice the L2 cache, twice the built in RAM, etc. So there is a pretty big difference between that and the other two. But if it's a question of the Rev. A PB vs. the new ibook, I'd rather have the graphics and USB 2.