16" Laptop with 1600x1200 res.

[Yukon]

I need to set one thing straight before I tell you about the 16" laptop with 1600 x 1200 res. I saw last night. I am a Mac fanatic. I love the many macs I have bought over the years and have been, and will continue to be, a true blue Apple promoter - as I travel all over America and meet with many people to make my living. With that said, last night, after a movie, I was passing by a Circuit City and had to stop to run in and see this apparent 16" laptop that just came out. Well, I was knocked over with amazement. Let me also interject here and say that I wouldn't buy one because I am Mac based (unless Apple released OSX to the Wintel world, than I would buy it before the sun set - only regretting the missed beauty of the Ti). However, the screen real estate was incredible. The res. was set at 1024x768, I think, and looked great - VERY bright with wide viewing angles. I played with the res. settings up to the max of 1600x1200 and couldn't believe the amount of stuff that I could view at once. Yes, it was small, but with a plug-in mouse it wasn't a problem and, by the way, that res. would only be used in certain apps. for certain work anyway. In other words, for those who want it, it's there for them. If you don't want it, than change the res. to your pref. That way we're ALL happy and those of you who whine about not wanting 1600x1200 won't use it. Also, it was running a 1.4 GHz chip, had 512MB of RAM, a combo drive AND cost only $2,495. I

If Apple wants to have the beautiful Ti considered as TOP SHELF, than it is my firm belief that they match or surpass the above specs. No, it didn't have Superdrive/DVD burning capabilities, but I could live with that for now. As long as they included the ADC within the Ti, I would buy one for everyone in my company. THAT'S how amazing that machine was. Sorry to say, it was a SONY but they really raised the bar and Steve and gang must not *****-foot around with a "tweak-tweak here and a tweak-tweak there" mentality.

Please, Steve! Deliver the above - stuffed in a Ti case and I'll even pay a premium up to $500. over SONY'S price for it. What else is there to say on this matter?

 

[mc68k]

VAIO -> sub-par

I've seen one of these. The screen is 16" but the Ti screen is 15.1" in the 16:9 aspect ratio. How much screen space does one really need? With LCD prices being so high right now, it would not be plausible for Apple to make a bigger screen— just like with the LCD iMac. Prices are already enough of a premium as it is. Apple would be going after a niche market with a bigger screen. Most people are happy with the Ti as it is. I really don't see any way they can make it better except to make it faster.

Does the VAIO have a slot-loading combo drive— no. Does it eat up the power and scorch your lap— yes. Does it run MacOS— no.

Just a bigger screen and more MHz does not "raise the bar". The Tibook will be on top for a long time to come.

 

[Mr. Anderson]

Dell's had a machine with a 1600x1200 res LCD out for over a year now. Its not that great. I'd like to see the Sony because I imagine that its thinner than the Dell.

But over all, the TiPB needs to be upgraded, I just hope they do it soon.

 

[Nipsy]

Re: VAIO -> sub-par

Originally posted by mc68k
How much screen space does one really need?

To use a machine as more than a web browser, 1280 X 1024 is the absolute minimum. The beauty of OSX comes at a price, all the exrta chrome makes your usable screen 5% smaller, 10% if you don't hide the dock.

Office Apps open with 3 bars of tools as default, and spreadsheets always benefit from more real estate. Photoshop opens with enough palattes to choke a small monitor, as do BBEdit, Dreamweaver, Flash, and most 'pro' video & audio tools.

The current Ti runs at 1152 x 768, which is far smaller than my 1999 Dell which runs at 1400 x 1050. In order to really use a Ti for more than light work, I need at least 1600 x 1024.

The extra time saved by being able to keep app palletes open, not switch windows/apps back and forth is enormous. When my boss offered me an Old Cinema display, I turned him down, and bought 3 18.1" LCDs instead (3840 x 1024). If I had a bigger desk, I would have opted for 3 21" CRTs. This way, I have my mail client & terminal always available to my right, my working window dead ahead, and my palattes, time tracking, and status displays to my left.

Apple figured out back in '90-'92 that the more information you could display at once, the more work you could do, and have supported multi headed configurations ever since.

I would run out tomorrow and buy a Ti if it had enough desktop to be viable by itself (1600 x 1024), as well as ADC & VGA/DVI out, so that I could lay it on a desk, and plug it into two non-mirrored monitors, and use it as a workstation. This would be a real boon to 'pro' notebook users.

And while I'm ranting, what's with the Apple site using all the stupid XGA acronyms in its iBook literature? 1024 x 768 tells me somthing. XGA, SXGA, UXGA, etc. are too meaningless...

 

[cb911]

the 1600x1200 res would be really good, but unless it was in widescreen like the powerbook it would look really weird. if i was a PC user i would get the 16" Sony. but i use Mac's so i'm waiting for the new TiBook.

 

[alex_ant]

Amen, Nipsy. I thought I would get this post in before all the half-blind small-resolution Nazis got here. Thank golly for at least the VGA output on the TiBook, because I don't know what I would do if I couldn't run 1600x1200 on an external monitor. 1152x768 is okay for web browsing, but I would rather the LCD were 1400x1050. Any resolution below the LCD's fixed resolution makes things ugly and blurry, so we don't want to go too high, since that's what the VGA out is for. But 1400x1050 is a nice compromise between 1152x768 and 1532x1024.

Alex

 

[mc68k]

Originally posted by alex_ant
Amen, Nipsy. I thought I would get this post in before all the half-blind small-resolution Nazis got here.
Alex

Well, I guess I am half-blind— comes from all the years of staring at computer monitors.

It comes down to what you're going to be doing on your laptop. It is a professional machine, but "professional" is not limited to graphics/high-end work. A laptop is meant to be a go-between, not a full-on workstation. The cost would be enourmous with all the superdrives/big LCD's everyone is talking about. Can't some of that editing wait 'till you get back to the studio?

 

[alex_ant]

Originally posted by mc68k
A laptop is meant to be a go-between, not a full-on workstation. The cost would be enourmous with all the superdrives/big LCD's everyone is talking about. Can't some of that editing wait 'till you get back to the studio?

I agree about the SuperDrive, but I don't think anyone is calling for a bigger LCD in the PowerBook... just one with a higher resolution. Right now, the PowerBook's resolution is only 12.5% higher than the iBook (128 more pixels on the x axis). Lots of software can benefit greatly from higher resolution, but so can multitasking. Lots of people like to have lots of windows open at once, which isn't easy to do in 1152x768. Even as a road machine, the PowerBook could really use some more pixels, in my opinion.

Alex

 

[iH8Quark]

Originally posted by dukestreet
Dell's had a machine with a 1600x1200 res LCD out for over a year now. Its not that great. I'd like to see the Sony because I imagine that its thinner than the Dell.

But over all, the TiPB needs to be upgraded, I just hope they do it soon.

Actually, Dell has had a 1600x1200 screen out for almost _3_ years now. My girlfriend has one, and it's SUPER nice. It's much brighter and sharper than my TiBook. Of course, the operating system blows. But I have more than once wanted to jimmy her screen off the Dell and affix it onto the ole "Black and Silver"

 

[mc68k]

HD LCD's

Well, if you want some optimism, the Cinema HD came out despite high LCD prices. Maybe it's a trend for high-end proffesional displays. Maybe the PB is next? I guess they're overdue for a major revision besides drives or a speed bumps.

 

[Rower_CPU]

Re: HD LCD's

Originally posted by mc68k
Well, if you want some optimism, the Cinema HD came out despite high LCD prices. Maybe it's a trend for high-end proffesional displays. Maybe the PB is next? I guess they're overdue for a major revision besides drives or a speed bumps.

Have you seen it (the HD) yet in person?

 

[Yukon]

Low Res'rs Missing the Point

"People, can't we all just get along?" I'm afraid the "mc68k" types are missing my point. If you don't want the biggest, fastest, best in your laptop, than get an iBook. When they put a PPC G4 in it (apparently just around the corner) than it will have all the goodies and limitations you seem to want. However, the iBook will than, at that point, be only a very small step away from Apple's current Professional series notebook, the most amazing laptop ever, design wise, the Apple PB-Ti. Therefore, it is imperative that Apple continue it's innovation - especially given its customer base for this particular model - and YES, put out a PB that will allow those of us who desire AND need the best to have it. Regarding my comments about the 16" 1600 x 1200 res. SONY laptop, the res. was NOT jaggy at other resolutions. It WAS brighter than Apple's laptops and the picture was much sharper. THAT is what I want from Apple and they know it! Listen to them. They're going after the best and brightest in the creative/thinking world within the movie and video industry to the advertising and design industry to the scientific and medical community. These people are walking/flying advertisements for Apple going to their conferences, shoots and clients...

AND, while many, most even, may have desktops to finish all the stuff the Ti can't, there are many of us who find great satisfaction in having one system that we can fold up, put in our briefcase and take with us. For those creative types mentioned above, you know, the ones who "think different;" innovators & explorers like Albert Einstine, Amelia Earhart (sp), Steven Spielberg, et al. used in Apple's recent ad campaign, their laptop is a statement about them. Hold on before you start flaming. It's not ONLY about making a statement. It's about the confluence of the very best in form AND function. Apple is there in "form" with the Ti but is sorely lacking in "function"compared to the current competition. Apple's "true" high-end professional doesn't want a showboat with the greatest "form" ever conceived in a laptop combined with secondary "function." So, Mr. Jobs, please. This isn't a wish list, it's a "must" list. If you truly want to convert the PC based innovators/thinkers/dreamers described above and keep the Apple innovators/thinkers/dreamers, include the following: 1) 16" screen with 1600 x 1200 capability AND an ADC plug (don't worry, I'll buy another one when they get OLED tech to the laptop so no rush here) 2) Firewire 2 (and USB2 if necessary) 3) a much faster processor with larger BUS and DDR RAM. 4) a GForce 4 Ti grade graphics chip with appropriate RAM 5) though anticipated but I'm not holding out for it, I look forward to the inclusion of the SuperDrive - "hold the line, hold the line" on the thickness issue. Don't go backwards here. Just wait it out until the drive can fit in the current case. 6) while I would appreciate an Apple designed dock al a BookEndz style, I appreciate what's available.

Thank you Steve and gang,

Yours truly,

Innovator, thinker, dreamer.

 

[mc68k]

Re: Re: HD LCD's

Originally posted by Rower_CPU


Have you seen it (the HD) yet in person?

No, is it out yet? I haven't been to the local Apple store in a few weeks. They told me sometime in April. I want to drool on it.

 

[jefhatfield]

i have been an apple computer products user since 79, and i don't understand how any mac user could hate this laptop...it is amazing

if you have not seen one yet, check this model out at circuit city

in another year i'm sure, the tibook will bump their 15.2 inch to a 16 inch...while the tibook had their huge screen, dell had a 15.5 inch out...but in a heavy, bulky unit so the tibook screen looks bigger by comparison because of the tibooks sleek exterior

the tibook and the sony 16 inch side by side would be interesting to see