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Apple Releases PowerBooks and iBooks

Downsides of a 12" Powerbook

I hope to be buying my first laptop soon. I'm looking for something ultra portable, the 12" Powerbook is really attractive (although that new Sony is pretty damn sexy too). What are the downsides to the 12"? As far as I see it the obvious ones are no backlighted keyboard (is that available as an after market item), less video RAM, no Firewire 800, no gigabit ethernet, and no PCMCIA/Cardbus slots. Am I missing anything? I have heard that the screen on the 12" Powerbook has some issues. Is this true, what is wrong with them? I'm not too worried about the video memory as I will be using this box for development while at the pub :D and such (I'm not a gamer or designer). Thanks.

--adam
 
Frequency Scaling

Almost forgot....

Do the newest Powerbooks support frequency scaling?

--adam
 
L3 Cache

What are the sizes of the cache on these PBs? Do they still have L3 cache?

-JD
 
taylor1725 said:
just ordered my first mac ever...15" optical, 1 512 slot, 5400rpm hard-drive...2 weeks baby!!!!!! i'm rediculously stoked! hope to be getting some help from all you crazy mac people, and hope to become one myself :)
Click to expand...

Sorry dude, you're too late. The faithful have renounced the Mac and High Priest Jobs due to lacjk of G5 updates. We'll be making our pilgrimage over to DellForums.com. Only 50 posts til you become an Intern.
 
JD77 said:
What are the sizes of the cache on these PBs? Do they still have L3 cache?

-JD
Click to expand...

All the new PowerBooks and iBooks have a L2 cache of 512KB, which runs at full processor core speed. No PowerBook has had an L3 cache since the TiBook was replaced by the 15" AlBook. Apple claims the 1MB L3 cache was no longer necessary due to the increased size of the L2 cache (256KB to 512KB). Benchmark tests confirm this statement in the majority of cases.

I'm not sure of the L1 data and instruction caches of the G4s used in the new iBooks and PowerBooks...you'd have to check Motorola, Apple, or somewhere like arstechnica.com
 
kinema said:
I hope to be buying my first laptop soon. I'm looking for something ultra portable, the 12" Powerbook is really attractive (although that new Sony is pretty damn sexy too). What are the downsides to the 12"? As far as I see it the obvious ones are no backlighted keyboard (is that available as an after market item), less video RAM, no Firewire 800, no gigabit ethernet, and no PCMCIA/Cardbus slots. Am I missing anything? I have heard that the screen on the 12" Powerbook has some issues. Is this true, what is wrong with them? I'm not too worried about the video memory as I will be using this box for development while at the pub :D and such (I'm not a gamer or designer). Thanks.

--adam
Click to expand...

You have spotted most of the major differences between the 12" PowerBook and the 15" and 17" PowerBooks. The others (that I can see) are:

- 12" only has one RAM slot (max 1.25GB RAM), 15" and 17" have two RAM slots (max 2GB RAM)
- 12" video chip is the relatively slow nVidia GeForce FX5200 GO, 15" and 17" have the brand new ATI Radeon 9700 Mobility. And as you pointed out, 15" and 17" are also capable of supporting 128MB of VRAM
- 12" has a mini-DVI out socket. 15" and 17" have a full-size DVI-out port and a separate S-Video port.

Whether or not these differences really matter to you is a personal issue. If you're not going to be doing a lot of gaming or heavy graphics work, then the video chip won't make much difference.

There were some significant heat issues with the very first release of the 12" PowerBook (the 867MHz G4 version). However, these were addressed for the second release (1GHz version). The 12" PowerBook still gets quite warm...the aluminium case is a very good conductor of heat, so while that may be good for the insides of the PowerBook, it means that all the internally generated heat ends up in your lap. Personally, I haven't found the heat output of the Rev. B 12" PowerBook to be a problem. It does get warm, but it's not like you're going to be scorched or anything like that. However, you may want to visit an Apple Store and play around with one for a while to get a real feel for the actual heat output.

It may be possible to add keyboard backlighting as a hacking-type project, but I don't think it would be easy, and you would almost certainly void your warranty. I'm not aware of any 3rd-party kits to add this to the 12" PowerBook.

For development work, the new 1.33GHz 12" PowerBook would probably be a pretty good fit. Have you also considered the 12" 1GHz iBook? It may be able to meet your needs also, while saving yourself a chunk of cash.
 
12" PB G4 w. BTO 80GB HD

I am just about to leave the University I have been at for 10 years and need to buy a Mac with my own money (the first since my PB 2400c). I settled on a 12" PB G4 with the 80GB 5400rpm HD. My thinking was very similar to when I bought my old "Comet" - In a couple of years it might not be fast anymore but it will still be small!

I can deal with the slightly less bright and narrower view angle screen (quite noticable if you compare the 12" and 15/17" models side by side).
Should tide me over until the PB G5 bugs are squashed.

I found out a couple of things about the new models that might or might not be news to you guys:

They need a new OS X 10.3.3 build (G33?) and will not boot with older versions of Panther.

The 12" now uses the same memory format as the 15" and 17" (they share part numbers for 256MB, 512MB, and 1GB SODIMMs.

Jon
 
I can't decide between ordering the 80gb 5400rpm HD as a BTO option (for the 12" w/superdrive) or waiting until someone releases a 80gb 7200rpm HD and installing it myself. The reviews say the Hitachi 7200rpm drive provides an appreciable difference in performance over 5400rpm drivs, even for day-to-day operations (Finder seems snappier, files open quicker, etc.).

Has anyone out there installed a drive in a 12" powerbook? How hard was it? If it's not that hard I'd rather just live with the 4200rpm drive for now and apply the $125 to a bigger and _much_ faster 80gb 7200rpm drive when it comes out).

I'm guessing they'll be $250-300, which is certainly more than the $125 for the 80gb BTO upgrade, but I can also sell the stock 4200pm 60gb drive to offset some of the added cost.

Thanks,

-j
 
kinema said:
No. Additional RAM will not make a computer hotter. RAM doesn't generate any noticeable amount of heat.

--adam
Click to expand...

It does actually. The RAM cover plate on my 12" PowerBook is one of the hottest parts of the case after extended use, and this was the same on my older Dell Inspiron 4100...it was in fact the hottest part of the Inspiron. High-end PC DIMMs usually have heat spreaders attached to them these days.

I don't know if extra RAM has any extra heating effect though.
 
Memory upgrades

How does Apple justify charging US$700 for a gigiabyte SODIMM? I can get a PC2700 SODIMM from Corsair, Samsung or Micron for less then US$300.

--adam
 
iomatic said:
What config did you get? Normal AppleStore or Edu?

Thanks.
Click to expand...

I bought an Edu discounted 12" 1.33 GHZ with 5400 RPM 80 gig hd and standard ram. I ordered an extra 512 ram chip from crucial.com. Total cost after tax and extra ram chip was about $1700. Should be here on thursday!
 
kinema said:
How does Apple justify charging US$700 for a gigiabyte SODIMM? I can get a PC2700 SODIMM from Corsair, Samsung or Micron for less then US$300.

--adam
Click to expand...

I was wonder the same thing. They charge $300 for 512 mb too, and you can buy it online for less than half that.
 
Damn.

Well, what time did you order; man, my order is still open; exact same configuration!

Thanks.

I bought Samsung RAM from MemoryX.

skinEman23 said:
I bought an Edu discounted 12" 1.33 GHZ with 5400 RPM 80 gig hd and standard ram. I ordered an extra 512 ram chip from crucial.com. Total cost after tax and extra ram chip was about $1700. Should be here on thursday!
Click to expand...
 
jamoses66 said:
I'm just curious to see what other ship dates look like from orders yesterday.
Click to expand...

I ordered a 17" with 128MB Video Ram, 5400rpm and 1GB ram (1 slot) around 11:30 pm yesterday.
My order says: 'Ship on or before 4/27/04'.
 
kinema said:
How does Apple justify charging US$700 for a gigiabyte SODIMM? I can get a PC2700 SODIMM from Corsair, Samsung or Micron for less then US$300.

--adam
Click to expand...

What is a good website to buy a gig SODIMM? I found Micron for around $300, but Samsung was more like $450. I haven't checked Corsair. Are there any differences between them? Also, is it okay to buy for Rev C if it says it's for the 1ghz model 12"?
 
gekko513 said:
If you like nitpicking, MAC also means Message Authentication Code in the field of cryptography, Military Airlift Command according to The American
Heritage ® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition ... and Naval Training Systems Command (NTSC) can tell us this about the MAC abbreviation:
MAC maintenance allocation chart
MAC maintenance action code
MAC mean aerodynamic center
MAC military airlift command
MAC months after contract
Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary says:
MAC**membrane attack complex; minimal alveolar concentration; Mycobacterium avium complex
Mac**abbreviation for L. macerare, macerate.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the humor... :D Its funny, because if the person who was trying to be nit-picky had paid attention, he'd see that someone had already "warned" the orignial poster about the nit-pickers... :D
 
kinema said:
How does Apple justify charging US$700 for a gigiabyte SODIMM? I can get a PC2700 SODIMM from Corsair, Samsung or Micron for less then US$300.

--adam
Click to expand...

check out how much 2 sticks of Pc2700 SODIMM 1ghz are. 1680 bucks.

It's funny because one stick is 700, like you said. 700 + 700 = 1680. riiiight apple.
 
hellocody said:
What is a good website to buy a gig SODIMM? I found Micron for around $300, but Samsung was more like $450. I haven't checked Corsair. Are there any differences between them? Also, is it okay to buy for Rev C if it says it's for the 1ghz model 12"?
Click to expand...


I've always had excellent luck with Crucial.

www.crucial.com
 
emilsjr said:
I ordered a 17" with 128MB Video Ram, 5400rpm and 1GB ram (1 slot) around 11:30 pm yesterday.
My order says: 'Ship on or before 4/27/04'.
Click to expand...

I'm getting a 15" BTO and my order says 'Ship on or before 4/26/04'

I think they're going to ship it earlier and surprise me.
;)
 
nichijin said:
Hi.

Quick question:

The reason I avoided the initial run of 15" PBs was the numerous reports about defects (loose latch, white blotches, wide gap when PB is closed). Have these been fixed in this run?

I am especially concerned about the last one. Though this may not be a "flaw" per se, I hate the fact that there is a large gap between the two "leaves" of the PB when it is shut, the fact that the gap is eneven, and the fact that it rattles.
Click to expand...

Can anyone help me out here please? Can anyone answer this? Thanks.
 
Originally Posted by emilsjr

I ordered a 17" with 128MB Video Ram, 5400rpm and 1GB ram (1 slot) around 11:30 pm yesterday.
My order says: 'Ship on or before 4/27/04'.
Click to expand...
I ordered 15" 1.5 BTO (early Mon. am, after store came back online) and ship date is "on or before 4/26/04"
 
15"

Big ol' number 700! wow, this thread is massive, so sad I've read it all...

Ordered my 1.5 GHZ 15" an hour ago with 5400 80 gb HD and 128 graphics, just like a lot of other people on here - should be amazing! I don't think I can bear the wait though.... Well, Its been 6 months so I should be able to make it 2 weeks :)
 
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