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another powerbook dilemma

W

Wally

macrumors member
Original poster
Mar 18, 2005
44
0
I know i wanna wait for the new intel powerbooks... this is a given.. but i also wanna buy one for my first year in college... a friend is offering to sell me his 1.33 ghz, 60 gb hd, combo, 128 vram powerbook for like 1200, good deal? anything i should know about this model powerbook like ram capacities?


any help u could give me would be appriciated
 
Wally said:
I know i wanna wait for the new intel powerbooks... this is a given.. but i also wanna buy one for my first year in college... a friend is offering to sell me his 1.33 ghz, 60 gb hd, combo, 128 vram powerbook for like 1200, good deal? anything i should know about this model powerbook like ram capacities?
Click to expand...

$1200 is ok if the PB is in good condition (I assume you're talking about the 12" PB). I had one of these PBs myself, and it even has an advantage over the current 1.5GHz Powerbooks: The fan is almost never running, while it seems to run all the time on my new Powerbook. So, the Powerbook you're about to buy is really amazingly quiet.

If it's equipped with only 256MB of RAM, get additional 512Megs from Crucial. If you need a DVD writer, you can buy an external one that is superior to the Superdrive.
 
the specs i know are 15 inch, 1.33 ghz, combo, 256 ram, 128 vram, panther, ms office, 60 gb hd ,,, no apple care :(

i think i might offer 1000... i bet he will take it
 
Wally said:
the specs i know are 15 inch, 1.33 ghz, combo, 256 ram, 128 vram, panther, ms office, 60 gb hd ,,, no apple care :(

i think i might offer 1000... i bet he will take it
Click to expand...

If he'll go for $1000, that'd be a very good deal.
 
I would pay $1200 for that machine, but if you can get him down to $1000 it would be awsome. You'd be getting such an awsome deal. Just pop in some more ram and you have a killer machine.
 
does anyone know the specs on those machines? such as if its a 5400 rpm hd, or if it can go to 2 gb ram?

thanks
 
Wally said:
does anyone know the specs on those machines? such as if its a 5400 rpm hd, or if it can go to 2 gb ram?

thanks
Click to expand...

It's probably this model PB which means that it's got a 4200rpm HDD and the RAM can be upgraded 2GB (max).
 
so do u guys think i should buy this guy... wait a year with it... then get a intel mac... think thats my best option?
 
Get it now, if you need something new next year, look around then and see what's on the market.

With computers, playing the waiting game never works, as there is always something new just around the corner.

Get what you can afford now, and deal with the future when you get there
 
What's your friend's number? Hell I'll buy it :D

It's a really good purchase and will last you for quite a few years to come. I say get it.

Let us know
 
I'd definitely add extra RAM to it!
Talk him down to $1000 and use the cash you are saving to buy extra RAM!
My PB loves RAM and I'm running 1GB on my 1.5GHz 17" PB I bought mid last year. From reading several forums over the past year... there are alot of very experienced and knowledgeable Mac users that have encountered problems with several of the Rev A products (any first new product release) and they often recommend waiting for the second release...

Using that principle you might want to wait for any second Powerbook styled product with the new chips in them.
 
Wally said:
the specs i know are 15 inch, 1.33 ghz, combo, 256 ram, 128 vram, panther, ms office, 60 gb hd ,,, no apple care :(

i think i might offer 1000... i bet he will take it
Click to expand...

I think it only has 64 vram, the current 15" pbooks are the first to offer 128 vram?
 
weg said:
I had one of these PBs myself, and it even has an advantage over the current 1.5GHz Powerbooks: The fan is almost never running, while it seems to run all the time on my new Powerbook. So, the Powerbook you're about to buy is really amazingly quiet.
Click to expand...

Ok, so I'm new to apple computers, but I figure the principle with most computers stays constant.

But wouldn't you WANT the fan to operate if the laptop is getting hot? A little noise from the fan would not bother me at all, if it meant it would cool down a sensitive piece of equipment as a laptop?

Someone inform me if I'm incorrect :)
 
My old TiBook sounds like its going to take off for mars in the "high" fan mode.

G4 laptops are much nicer in the winter :)
 
anyone think i should wait till august to see if powerbook prices drop? or specials?
 
Wally said:
anyone think i should wait till august to see if powerbook prices drop? or specials?
Click to expand...

There's a special right now. At apple, you can get a $100 off discount in ADDITION to your edu discount.

If i was you, I'd go with your friends for $1000. It sounds like your going to be getting an intel-PB next year anyway. Don't wait. Buy your friends to tie you over till next year... Who knows, you might just stick with his.
 
FRRYY said:
Ok, so I'm new to apple computers, but I figure the principle with most computers stays constant.

But wouldn't you WANT the fan to operate if the laptop is getting hot? A little noise from the fan would not bother me at all, if it meant it would cool down a sensitive piece of equipment as a laptop?

Someone inform me if I'm incorrect :)
Click to expand...

I think he meant the 12" PB's run cooler... :)

I'm in this dilemma too- Should I get a bottom spec iBook to tide me over until the Yohan PB's are out, or get a top spec 15" PB so that the resale in a year will still be good, or just wait...

Grr - had just about figured out what I was gonna do, then along came 'that' keynote... lol
 
Lunja said:
or get a top spec 15" PB so that the resale in a year will still be good..
Click to expand...

That won't be, unless OSX goes platform independent. The resale on a PPC will not be good. While a ppc mac may last you 2-3-4 years if your willing to use your old software, you can not expect a buyer to pay good $ for an old platform.
 
roadapple said:
That won't be, unless OSX goes platform independent. The resale on a PPC will not be good. While a ppc mac may last you 2-3-4 years if your willing to use your old software, you can not expect a buyer to pay good $ for an old platform.
Click to expand...

Hhmmm... So which laptop do you think will have the least depreciation? I could see he PB still being worth £1100 (£1500-ish new) when the Intel Macs come out... After all, it will still be a good machine for a college student/amateur film maker etc to use... I suppose it all depends on the price of the Intels when they are released.

Sorry to take over the thread btw... $1000 sounds great for such a laptop. Converts to around £600 here (very roughly) and I'd expect to pay £900 for it
 
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