15inch PowerBook Details and Supplies

[beloit08]

You know what? I just don't care anymore about upgrades to the processor or snazzy new graphics cards or anything. All I really want is the Aluminium case and snazzy keyboard. As soon as I can have a 15" PB and don't have to type on that spongey plastic keyboard, I'll be a happy camper.

And yet, I keep checking the site and getting all the prices mixed up and thinking that the current 1GHz is now the low-end model and I can't take it anymore.

 

[dwalls32]

Originally posted by stevil
I started looking for a new Mac two weeks ago. I have never owned one, but used to work with them 5 or so years ago. I started researching, found all these great rumor sites and then thought... should I wait or not? Well - after talking it over with my girlfriend (it's really her computer - I get the dual G5 😀 ) we decided to set a date, if there wasn't anything substantial, we'd get what was available.

Two days ago we picked her up a 12" powerbook, a 10gb iPod and a printer - ~$1700 with the educational discount. It's a sweet system, and we couldn't be happier.

My girlfriend and I just did the same with my 17" powerbook. I left it in the box, waiting for updates, until last night. I couldn't stand it and ripped into the box. This thing is awesome (and big).

 

[mactastic]

This is getting to be like the boy who cried wolf. By the time the PB's are updated, no one's gonna believe it.😀

 

[iEric]

damn when will it freakin' come out....I wanted the 15 inch cause the 17 wont fit into my bag...lol..but the 17 is cool too..
damn dont know what to get...

 

[RoadMonkey]

Originally posted by nagromme
I wonder if most of the people who buy 1600x1200 laptops really try to work with one first... or just like how the numbers sound, and end up with a less usable/readable display. I'd NEVER buy one, personally.

I have a 1600x1200 laptop and it is the only way to work. I can understand sticking around 1024x768 if you only look at websites, email and use iTunes. But for people that do actual work on them, it is a HUGE concern. If you dont need a Hi-Res large pixel count display, buy a iBook. 😉

 

[dongmin]

Folks, no new powerbooks this week. (Just checked the Apple store. They're not doing updates to the page any time soon.)

You can all go home now. Join us Monday for our next installment of "PowerBooks... any day now."

Get this: there are no new PBs because there are no new chips to put in them. No new chips = no new powerbooks. Yes Apple has dropped the ball (like countless times before with the G4). And yes they've lost a lot of customers. But there's nothing they can do about it in the short term. They are at the mercy of Moto. The best they can do is bitch (which they've done), threaten with lawsuits (which they've probably done), and wait.

 

[Zwiggles]

Could someone please let me know what they think might happen with the pricing of the 15". Will the 1.0GHz drop down close to the price of the current 867MHz, and the 1.25 down to just above the 1.0?

Could some pro provide some insight? What happened after the last update?

Cheers

 

[Squire]

Re: I'm holding until the 5 inchers.

Originally posted by srobert
15" Powerbooks are soooooo early august 2003. *sigh!* You guys really got to freshen' up. I'm savin' my pennies for the all new 5" Powerbook coming out next tuesday.

This has probably been said a dozen times already but that- the intro then the pic- was hilarious.

What's the resolution on that bad boy, anyway?

On a more serious note, here's a quote from one of the other PowerBook threads:

Originally posted by yujini
Yo, check this out guys.
Though I'm sure most of you guys can't read Korean text at all,
I just checked the korean apple website,
http://www.applestore.co.kr/PowerBook.html

and though most of you won't be able to read one single character, if you look at the 15 inch powerbook sections,
there is a blue text below the 2 options.

If i translate it, it says the stock is low on this option.
You can pre-order it. Please call 080-3404-622 to ask questions.

Wow, this might confirm the fact that they are getting ready to
replace these notebooks very soon!
I have never seen the Korean apple website post something like this saying they were low on stock of any powerbooks. Usually they are never low on stock in korea due to the fact that macs are not even close to 5% of the computer users in Korea. (more like 1% i think)

I went on to say:

Originally posted by Squire
This, in my opinion, is the news many have been waiting for.

The 1% guess is very, very optimistic, in my opinion. I'd say more like 0.5%. They don't sell very many Macs here and they probably aren't going to bother getting any in until the new ones are announced. In the US, there are a lot more buyers. Not here. Stores are still trying to unload 667 MHz PowerBooks for top dollar.

Let me make an analogy. Let's say Apple Computer, Inc. is Audi and there are rumors of a new Audi TT coming out soon. If you're a dealer in Manhattan, this rumor probably won't affect your sales too much due to the customer traffic. So you keep a shiny new TT on the showroom floor despite these rumors. However, if you're the dealer out in [insert backwoods town name here] and you know a replacement is on the way, you'd be a little more reluctant to order an "old" TT for your showroom.

My analogy is weak in a few areas but I'm sure you get the picture. (By the way, I was only comparing Korea to "backwoods town" in terms of sales volume. The Mac loyalists here are just as knowledgeable about upcoming product announcements as anywhere, it's just that their numbers are fewer.)

Good heads up, yujini. Not a bad first post at all. 😉 The Korean Apple Store would be the last place I'd expect to see a hint of future releases. (The online store's only been open for about 6 months.)

Squire

 

[MasterMac]

Re: Re: I'm holding until the 5 inchers.

Originally posted by Squire
This has probably been said a dozen times already but that- the intro then the pic- was hilarious.

What's the resolution on that bad boy, anyway?

On a more serious note, here's a quote from one of the other PowerBook threads:

[something that someone else said]

I went on to say:

[something that i said]


Squire

That sounds good. I just wonder why Apple can't just announce the new PBs and put the old ones at a lower price and if the new ones aren't ready yet you can preorder them =/

 

[chomsky]

Re: More rumors

Originally posted by VirtualInsanity

Mac is alienating its faithful followers by consistently not putting out.

To the contrary, the more these rumors come and go, the more I become convinced that 'the faithful' are willing to put up with almost any abuse from Apple. The posts I read usually say something like: "Damnit apple, i'll never buy a computer from anybody but you, but please give us the powerbooks."

With this sort of brand loyalty, what is Apple's motivation for timely releases? The worst thing that will happen is that they will miss out on potential switchers.

 

[Squire]

Re: Re: Re: I'm holding until the 5 inchers.

Originally posted by MasterMac
That sounds good. I just wonder why Apple can't just announce the new PBs and put the old ones at a lower price and if the new ones aren't ready yet you can preorder them =/

Ummm...That was my (and yujini's) point. On the Apple Online Store in Korea, they have a phone number under the 15" PowerBooks that DOES let you pre-order them.

Squire

 

[chomsky]

15" powerbook shipped....

Ladies and Gents, according to the apple store, my 15" has just shipped. My old, Ti 15" powerbook.

Nuts to all these rumors. Old 15" are still shipping.

 

[Lancetx]

Re: Re: More rumors

Originally posted by chomsky
To the contrary, the more these rumors come and go, the more I become convinced that 'the faithful' are willing to put up with almost any abuse from Apple. The posts I read usually say something like: "Damnit apple, i'll never buy a computer from anybody but you, but please give us the powerbooks."

With this sort of brand loyalty, what is Apple's motivation for timely releases? The worst thing that will happen is that they will miss out on potential switchers.

Please tell us in what way is Apple abusing their customers? When has Apple come out and promised new PowerBooks and given a specific timetable for their release? Put the blame where it belongs...not on Apple, but on yourselves (those who feel abused) and the inaccurate rumor sites.

To anyone that feels "abused" due to no new PowerBooks being available yet, Apple certainly isn't the one to blame. You have no one to blame but yourself for reading way too much into totally unconfirmed rumors and wishful thinking that has been posted online about this over the past few months. To accuse Apple of any kind of customer abuse here is simply comical...

 

[VirtualInsanity]

Not abuse, but its very annoying. Apple knows about the back to school market, and they also know people want to buy computers before school begins; they are not stupid. They also know the type of person who buys a powerbook knows something about them since they are so expensive, and this type of person does not want to buy technology that is virtually obsolete. They should at least announce it.

 

[jocknerd]

Who cares?

Until Apple comes out with some computers with something other than a G4, it really shouldn't matter.

I consider the PowerMac G5's to be the only line of Apple that is competitive right now.

The G4 is about 2-3 years too old.

 

[MasterMac]

Re: Re: Re: Re: I'm holding until the 5 inchers.

Originally posted by Squire
Ummm...That was my (and yujini's) point. On the Apple Online Store in Korea, they have a phone number under the 15" PowerBooks that DOES let you pre-order them.

Squire

I was talking about for everyone else, not just the Koreans 😉

 

[Squire]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Re: I'm holding until the 5 inchers.

Originally posted by MasterMac
I was talking about for everyone else, not just the Koreans 😉

Then I agree with you. Good idea. 😉

I mean, really, it's not a secret that new PowerBooks will be released soon and some people will buy them regardless of their specs. So, yeah, why don't they let people pre-order? Just say I want a NEW 15" PowerBook when they come out. Here's my $50 deposit.

Squire

 

[crees!]

Originally posted by markajor
i was going to give mac a try for my next laptop.
this was about mid-july and i've been addicted to
this site waiting every day for the 15" pb update.
But alas, NO MORE ! I QUIT back to pc land where
things might crash, BUT they do ship and not play
all of these mindgames !

15" PB.......... YOU ARE THE WEAKEST LINK !....goodbye

Apple isn't playing any mind games... we are. Apple never said, "oh, it might be this week." Back to PC land my ass. Oh, and like I said in a previous post. People thought this past Tuesday was going to be the day. I say NO, the G5 ad was just posted on Monday... They're not going to put that up then take it down the next day. 2 more weeks was my guess for PB's but next Tuesday could be it. Wishful thinking.. actually, I'm just going to stop thinking about this. This is all stupid. See you all when they _actually_ come out.

 

[Squire]

Originally posted by crees!
I say NO, the G5 ad was just posted on Monday... They're not going to put that up then take it down the next day. 2 more weeks was my guess for PB's but next Tuesday could be it.

The G5 ad on the Apple site is a good point...maybe.

The Microsoft Office pic was only up for a few days. 😉

Seriously, though, if the PowerBooks only sport minor updates, they might not even be featured on Apple's "front page." I don't think the iBooks were when they jumped to 900MHz. Then again, with such a long wait before updates, they probably will. And if there's something special about the new PowerBooks, they'd definitely be featured. Of course, there's nothing that says two or three products can't share that online real estate. After MWSF, Keynote and the new 12- and 17-inch PowerBooks were featured.

What does all that mean? Next Tuesday?

Squire

 

[agentmouthwash]

powerbooks

so if Apple is going to wait for Paris perchance it will be a huge announcement.


Do I smell a G5 Powerbook?

Do I smell?

 

[dietsoda]

Until Apple comes out with some computers with something other than a G4, it really shouldn't matter.

I consider the PowerMac G5's to be the only line of Apple that is competitive right now.

The G4 is about 2-3 years too old

Well I hear what you're saying, but the Xserve line is very competitive right now, and always has been. The xserve, xraid, and xserve cluster node are VERY competitive.

The eMac is pretty good value too.

Of course simply by running OSX they are all competitive.

 

[cryptochrome]

All these problems with high resolution screens producing text and icons too small to deal with could be solved with a resolution independent interface that can be scaled on the fly. IOW, pixels would not be the basis for what size things appear on the screen. Relative sizes of screen elements would stay the same, but real size could be controlled with a slider, with the 3D card rendering them. Documents could be accurately displayed based on their native scale: Inches/cm/points for word processing, pdfs, vector graphics and such, and pixels for bitmapped images. Web browsers like safari would need to be particularly aware, and provide for adapting documents for visibility, for instance by allowing you to blow up the whole page instead of just the text size. The basics are already covered, thanks to Quartz Extreme. All it really needs now are system APIs and graphics (higher resolution tifs that scale well, or better yet vector graphics) that can take advantage of it, and special methods for taking advantage of and controlling scaling within the new system (default would be system controlling it via a virtual default pixel size).

 

[stingerman]

Originally posted by stevil
I started looking for a new Mac two weeks ago. I have never owned one, but used to work with them 5 or so years ago. I started researching, found all these great rumor sites and then thought... should I wait or not? Well - after talking it over with my girlfriend (it's really her computer - I get the dual G5 😀 ) we decided to set a date, if there wasn't anything substantial, we'd get what was available.

Two days ago we picked her up a 12" powerbook, a 10gb iPod and a printer - ~$1700 with the educational discount. It's a sweet system, and we couldn't be happier.

Sweet. I really like that educational deal and the $300 rebate for buying a Pinter and iPod with it. Just might have to go back to school.

 

[Fadl]

Why should Apple release a 15,2" non 16:10 format Powerbook?

 

[alandail]

Re: Powerbook Updates

Originally posted by joking
New powerbooks are not updated yet because the supply for the old ones is not completely depleted yet. Apple has always done this over the years. Until old powerbooks are gone, new ones will not appear.

If that's the only reason, then Apple way overdoes this. Missing back to school season on new models to clear old inventory has to hurt profits (and market share) more than discounting some leftover old models would.