Battery question... not another PB buy now?

[tuartboy]

Ok, this isn't a buy now question like those that seem to be multiplying around here.

It's about battery life. I haven't found a good thread about this, nor can I get any good, real numbers on the web.

So...

I am 90% going to end up buying a 12" PB new withing the month. Portability is an issue so the 12" is highly preferred. However, I really would like to hear about the battery life on the little guy from current users.

How much run time is typical for your 1.5Ghz 12" PB? What about with airport on? Screen brightness? Etc...

Also, does anyone have any comments on Othe World Computing's PB battery replacements? Might be nice to grab an extra if they are any good.

Thanks guys.

*PB not iBook. I know the iBook battery life is better; it's just not an option here.

 

[tuartboy]

uph...

maybe i shouldn't have put that in the title...

 

[Piarco]

I've just sold my 12" RevD PB, and upgraded to a 15", and battery length is what I am missing at the mo.
On half brightness, BT and AE turned off (no use to me at work) I could always get at least 3 3/4 hours, somedays nearer 4+ depending on use. Usually enought to get me through the day as I used it to augment my crappy Dell pc. There were times I wished I'd had a second battery (or just remembered my power supply) but not that often.

The 15" on the same settings gets between 2.5-3 hours I'd say. It is a new battery and probably needs a few discharge cycles to come good, but so far I'm always noticing its nearly out of charge. Maybe I'm just being hypersensitive!

If you can get a cheap second battery though, I would. Or if you are like me and use it predominantly at home and at an office desk, just get a second charger for work...

 

[tuartboy]

great, thanks.

Any particular reason for the upgrade?

Sorry, I am a cautious buyer (college = no $)

 

[Piarco]

Well I would love to say the practical reasons: more screen real estate for my work, the PCMCIA card slot for a card reader, the firewire 800 for my Lacie Extreme external HDD and the ATi 9700 graphics for the boost to make Call Of Duty playable......

But the fact is I'm an upgrade junkie!
This Powerbook is the sixth since November, although I can't count 2 because they were faulty and were returned to the Apple store. So four in total.... and honest I can justify each and every one of them!

With a student head on though (only a couple of years ago really) I'd say its definately the 12" you want - its portability and all-round nippiness is spot on. Especially if its the superdrive model covering mass backups of data.If you need the extra screen space (which you won't in lectures) get an LCD monitor for you halls.