Apple Releases New iBooks

[solvs]

Reading some of these, I know why Apple hates rumor sites.

It's pretty much what I expected. Not great, but still an update non-the-less. For all of those complaining, this is why they are moving to Intel. I would have preferred a better graphics card, but from what I've heard this one will be able to do Core Image. You don't actually need 64MB, as the 32MB 5200 To Go supports it. You just need something that support programable pixel shaders from what I've heard, and this should.

Most people couldn't care less about the specs, and while it isn't the best update, it's probably the best they could do (more or less). Not that I blame those who won't buy it. Not that I expect you to buy a Dell.

 

[pubwvj]

Nice machine. Just in time for the fall educational buying run.
I do wish it had a PCMCIA card slot for interfacing with cameras.
I find that more convient than the extra cable for USB.

 

[AidenShaw]

Think Choice - why only 2 'book lines

Now that the whining is down to a dull roar, I have a couple of comments.

Many people say that the "iBook must" and the "Powerbook must" - when I think that they should think different about their assumptions.

A lot of the arguments assume that Apple can only produce 2 portable models (or 5, if you distinguish by screen size) ((or 3, if you notice that the 12" PB is an odd duckling)).

Imagine 4 lines:

• PowerBook Mini
• iBook
• PowerBook
• PowerBook Pro

A. PowerBook Mini

A 10" to 12" widescreen super portable, ala the Dell X1 or small Sony/Toshiba systems. Under 1.5 Kg, no CD, long battery life. "PowerBook Mini" rather than "iBook Mini", because the tiny Intel laptops are usually more expensive than the larger ones.​

B. iBook

This is here now​

C. PowerBook

This is here now​

E. PowerBook Pro

Apple's answer to the 3 GHz HT Pentium 4 desktop replacement laptops. Single or dual 1.6 to 2.0 GHz G5. Big, heavy, hot, lots of ports, short battery life - but selling like hotcakes. Every band would have one running the soundboard, every video team would have one for on-location editing. Many consumers who wanted power, but also wanted to hide the system in a shelf or a drawer when not in use would have one.​

Why does a 10" offering mean the Apple has to kill one of the others? Why does a G5 laptop mean that the G4 PB has to go?

It's pretty clear that the super-small laptop and the big desktop replacement laptops are two big markets - and Apple has nothing to compete.

While you all prepare the "shutup, you troll" responses, I'll go Yahoo! for the sales figures on A and E....

 

[Stella]

I love this forum -

"APPLE DIDN'T INCLUDE THE WIDE SCREENS IN THE IBOOKS"

Since when did apple say they would?!!

Never. Only inaccurate rumours.

 

[syklee26]

expectation was too high...

we should've seen this disappoint coming. i don't happen to think Apple would make a huge update with the free ipod mini deal going on right now.

the free ipod mini deal ends September 24th. I don't even expect that rumored new ipod video.

 

[briansolomon]

I like these updates.

512 MB standard
Bluetooth standard
Airport Standard
Available 100 GB harddrive (vs 60 GB at this time last year)
And the high end model dropped $200

It's not bad. They're still slow. Bring on Intel

 

[chucknorris]

When exactly did Apple say this?

It was mentioned very clearly by Herr Jobs at WWDC.

Everytime this topic comes up somebody questions the validity of the claim that apple is moving the low-end to intel first. Specifically (as mentioned many times before), Jobs said that mactels would be shipping by wwdc 2006.

I really hope this answers any questions anybody still has.

 

[gkarris]

Powerbook G5????

Now that the whining is down to a dull roar, I have a couple of comments.

Many people say that the "iBook must" and the "Powerbook must" - when I think that they should think different about their assumptions.

A lot of the arguments assume that Apple can only produce 2 portable models (or 5, if you distinguish by screen size) ((or 3, if you notice that the 12" PB is an odd duckling)).

Imagine 4 lines:

• PowerBook Mini
• iBook
• PowerBook
• PowerBook Pro

E. PowerBook Pro

Apple's answer to the 3 GHz HT Pentium 4 desktop replacement laptops. Single or dual 1.6 to 2.0 GHz G5. Big, heavy, hot, lots of ports, short battery life - but selling like hotcakes. Every band would have one running the soundboard, every video team would have one for on-location editing. Many consumers who wanted power, but also wanted to hide the system in a shelf or a drawer when not in use would have one.​

Why does a 10" offering mean the Apple has to kill one of the others? Why does a G5 laptop mean that the G4 PB has to go?

It's pretty clear that the super-small laptop and the big desktop replacement laptops are two big markets - and Apple has nothing to compete.

While you all prepare the "shutup, you troll" responses, I'll go Yahoo! for the sales figures on A and E....

Don't you mean an "Intel Pentium M Dual Core"? Why is ANYBODY still talking about a "Powerbook G5"???

 

[AidenShaw]

PM would suck right now

Don't you mean a "Pentium M Dual Core"? Why is ANYBODY still talking about a "Powerbook G5"???

You wouldn't want to run those Pro AltiVec apps through Rosetta - a dual g5 would be a much better option right now. (Besides, a pair of the new low-power G5 chips aren't don't use much more power than a single Centrino under full load.)

When the time comes, the PowerBook (option D) would be a dual-core Yonah.

When pro apps are universal binary, then the PowerBook Pro (option E) would be dual dual-core Xeon or whatever chips give you a quad PowerBook.

It's cool that the PowerBooks are thin and sleek - but Apple's leaving a lot of money on the table by not filling the desktop replacement market.

The latter is especially confusing, considering Apple's apparent desire in owning the audio/video production market. Why not produce a flagship system that defines that market? (And a system that would be snapped up by the legions of people who consider performance more important than weight or battery life....)

 

[Val-kyrie]

A Minimal Update at Best

I have thought about this update throughout the day, and here are my ruminitions:

It seems that there are three (3) problems that will not be addressed until the Intel transition : the CPU, the screen, and the gfx card.

With regard to the CPU, it has been over-discussed on these boards so I will limit my comment not to speed or FSB but to one major problem--there is no native DDR support for RAM in the G4 architecture. This means that the RAM is not utilized as well as it could be because the G4 really only supports SDRAM, but no manufacturer is going to include SDRAM in their current offerings without being openly ridiculed by all.

With regard to the screen, I had hoped--though admittedly with very little faith--that Apple might change the iBook form factor, or at least the screen, and then later drop in the Intel chip, but no such luck. My problem is that the quality of the screens is poor and the 12" resolution is adequate only for running one window (e.g. a word processor) without eye strain, IMO.

Correlatively, the gfx card is better but still lackluster (the Radeon Mobility X200 or possibly the X300 is the approximate PCI-e equivalent, but they have more VRAM with the X300 starting at 64MB). It still is not clear whether this card will carry the full load of Core Image. Given my detailed thesis work and my need to run several programs at once, my desire is to run a Dell 20.1" widescreen LCD in spanning mode with a laptop. This is possible even with the current Intel GMA 900 chipset-- though admittedly it shares the main RAM--on even the lowend current PC notebook models, but not on the iBook. The fact that I would be unable to mirror, let alone span to this larger widescreen without buying a much more expensive PB is unreasonable given the PC equivalents in the iBook price range.

I really need a notebook now and had even considered buying the iBook, but unfortunately it just won't meet my needs for the price-point whereas almost any low-end PC laptop will. I guess I will be waiting until after 64 bit dual-cores (2d gen Merom chips perhaps) and likely Leopard come to the iBook.

On a positive note, I do think that these updates bode well in one major respect--there is no overlap between the iBook and the PowerBook lines. If I were to read between the lines (this is a rumor site), it would appear that whereas before (in Oct/Nov 2004) the overlap created by the iBook update was acceptable because the PBs were going to be updated soon (Jan 2005) and reestablish a line of distinction; now there is an intentional gap between the lines in terms of CPU speed. I can only hope that this means that the gap exists in order to prevent the iBooks from cannibalizing PB sales because neither line will be updated any time soon which in turn hopefully means that the next update will hopefully be to an Intel chipset.

Please, no flaming about how terrible Windows is--I optimize my computers and have no problems with slowdowns, viruses, or the like.

 

[digitalbiker]

Why not?

Don't you mean an "Intel Pentium M Dual Core"? Why is ANYBODY still talking about a "Powerbook G5"???

Why Not?

At least there is software currently available for it that will run at full speed.

There is also a huge crowd just waiting to purchase a G5 PB regardless of the intel switch. It will be the last great true Apple PowerBook, pure and uncorrupted by 'intel'.

 

[QCassidy352]

There is also a huge crowd just waiting to purchase a G5 PB regardless of the intel switch. It will be the last great true Apple PowerBook, pure and uncorrupted by 'intel'.

They'll be waiting a long time, i.e. forever. No way will apple change the PB processor in the last revision before changing again to Intel.

 

[Val-kyrie]

Dell 2005FPW

p.s.

if i used screen-spanning hack, can i increase the resolution to the dell 2005fpw's native resolution? or will it stick at 1024 x 768?

I don't know but I am betting against it--which is why I will not be buying an Apple laptop at this time. Dell lists all compatible AGP cards on their site and the Radeon 9550 is not listed. From looking at the list, I think the 2005FPW requires 64MB VRAM minimum (if not 128, 64 from the card and 64 from the main memory).

 

[digitalbiker]

They'll be waiting a long time, i.e. forever. No way will apple change the PB processor in the last revision before changing again to Intel.

I don't think they will change to a G5 either but I was just defending Aidens suggestion of why not a Powerbook pro line. I think he is right! There is a big market for high-end desktop replacement portables. Why can't Apple offer a dual low power G5 desktop replacement laptop?

Are they afraid to compete with Alienware? My laptop bag already weighs a ton anyway. Who cares about an additional 3-5 pounds?

 

[AidenShaw]

oportunity lost

They'll be waiting a long time, i.e. forever. No way will apple change the PB processor in the last revision before changing again to Intel.

Probably true.

But, Apple could have given you a G5 PowerBook 52 Tuesdays ago if they hadn't been paralyzed by the "it's gotta be 1" thick" straightjacket.

 

[Val-kyrie]

Why

Why, Why, Why are you using Norton? Try Avast or AVG (both free) for AV protection and Sygate for a personal firewall.

That could be the smartest post I've read after on a new product forum for quite some time. It's actually a ridiculous cycle that some people are in - people who will never be satisfied with any upgrade to any any product.

If you actually compare specs to what was offered yesterday to what is offered today - it's actually fairly impressive.

The only dissapoinment I see is still no Superdrive on a 12", that would be great.

IMO, we won't see a widescreen ibook for a while though, here's hoping.

As someone who uses OS X and XP both on a daily basis, you can load up any PC laptop with specs, I'd much rather have an ibook that people feel is a dissappointing update. (6 restarts to install Norton 2005, thanks, XP).

 

[mashinhead]

Why? I'm very happy with my 12" screen, and there's very good chances my next 'Book also gonna be a 12"... A 12" widescreen, now that would be stupid, since a widescreen has smaller area than a regular screen of the same (diagonal) size, and I guess a 13" widescreen LCD costs MUCH more than a 12" regular...

when i mentioned the powerbook i wasn't really knocking the regular screen vs the widescreen (the widescreen is just something i was personally looking forward to) but rather the fact that the specs are now so similar, its not worth the price for the 12 powerbook.

 

[Val-kyrie]

High Def

Lots of complainers as usual. The only thing I can really see as something people should be complaining about is that the 14" iBook is not widescreen like everybody was expecting. The 14" iBook is just too "big" compared to all the other books in the whole line. But then again Jobs never said the year of widescreen like some have said incorrectly, he said the year of HD. And not even a PowerBook can play back a 720P movie at a stable 24 or 30 fps, so the widescreen would be only for a more compact-looking iBook and to watch DVD's a little better, not HD. Well, too bad for no-widescreen. The updates are OK anyway, for those who were waiting, finally you can get your iBooks. If I didn't have a PB already I would get one... )

A 14.1" widescreen will play a high-def movie at 720P.

 

[Val-kyrie]

Any userland comments on what version of windows can run in virtualPC on an iBook (to host some VB intensive windows apps?)

If the thing is too slow, I'll prolly flip it when the 7448 PB rev comes out.

Win 2000 is the most commended on these boards for speed with VPC, but I have no experience with it and therefore cannot verify it.

I doubt the PB will receive the 7448--don't hold your breath.

 

[jollyroger]

ipod rebates and ibooks

dude, i would DEF buy now!!

your current iBook is old, and out of date, although it gets the job done. the bottom of the range iBook now is, i believe i saw, (im english so look at the uk store prices) $999, with the student discount, probably just above $900. then u get ur free iPod mini, which you could sell for the $200 it gets (maybe 20 less as ull have to cut the bar code out to get ur rebate), plus the fact that ur G3 would get at least $200 on eBay i reckon, (post it worldwide).
amazing.!!'

One caution about the student ipod rebates - the pdf 'coupon' says that the offer specifically _excludes_ the 12" ibook. Understandable, I guess, but too bad!

 

[mashinhead]

One caution about the student ipod rebates - the pdf 'coupon' says that the offer specifically _excludes_ the 12" ibook. Understandable, I guess, but too bad!

only the one with the cd-rom, only available on edu store. but it wasn't there when i checked today. Combo drive 12 inch is eligible

 

[digitalbiker]

Powerbook with 7448 almost a lock.

Win 2000 is the most commended on these boards for speed with VPC, but I have no experience with it and therefore cannot verify it.

I doubt the PB will receive the 7448--don't hold your breath.

What makes you say that? I think a Powerbook update at Mac Expo Paris to a 7448 is almost a lock.

The 7448 would not require a major change to the design or motherboard, it would allow 200mhz fsb with possibly 2 ghz clock speed.

The intel powerbook is a long ways off and the last powerbook update was a minor speed bump six months ago. There most definitely will be one more PPC upgrade to the PB before intel and the 7448 is the most likely choice.

This is the machine I will probably buy before I make the long long wait of Apple transition to a good bug free rev b model intel with 64 bit and native applications.

 

[Lacero]

I voted these updates as a Positive because the crappiness of these updates only means 99% of Apple engineers are working hard to bring us the coolest intel iBook (henceforth named iiBook) yet to come.

 

[v idioteque v]

I must be the last person on earth to get this,

I am a junior in high school. I am buying an ibook in 3 days (maybe 2). Will I be able to get a free ipod mini along with that?

I keep hearing college this and that and it's throwing me off because i thought it was available for anyone.

 

[sundog73]

voted negative for propagating 3 year old display technology. That is NOT thinking different.