FYI on 15" al powerbook issues

[somecows]

I wanted to post this because *I* think it's interesting, and because it might be useful to someone out there. At the same time, I don't mean to start another huge discussion about problems with the new 15" al powerbooks cuz I guess that stuff is sort of old news. But at any rate...

I got a 15" 1.25 ghz powerbook about 3 or 4 weeks ago - whenever it was that they first started arriving. Right away I noticed that it was making a really weird clicking noise. I think it was the hard drive but who knows. There were several threads about this noise, I think. Also, it was really hot and the fans went on all the time and made a huge amount of noise.

Since I had nothing to compare my powerbook to, I coulldn't tell whether these issues were normal or not. Mostly I was concerned about the clicking sound, it just didn't seem normal to me. I was very torn about what to do - I didn't want to complain to apple and make a huge deal about it if it was normal.

I ended up sending the machine back, partly due to the fact that I was also having a problem with the track pad.

I finally got my replacement yesterday and what I wanted to share with you guys is the fact that this new one is *clearly* different than the first one. I haven't heard a peep out of it - the hard drive is silent, its not hot at all, and the fans have yet to turn on.

I just thought this was interesting. Sorry for the long post.

 

[junior]

Thanks for the post. I'll know what to do now if I find any one of these issues in the 17 incher I'm looking to get pretty soon. I sincerely hope it comes out the box perfect though.

 

[Jottle]

I am curious about this as well. My hand rests get warm and the track pad is annoying but I can deal with that. I was curious if your hand rest (upper parts) get warm under normal usage? the had drive clicking seems to be fixed with apm tuner...it is not a malfunction.


Thanks

 

[ryme4reson]

I had the same speaker noise/clicking with me Rev A 12" and I hated it. Overall the system seemed slow, and I was unimpressed.

I ended up trading the system for a 667 15 TiBook, and I am really impressed with this 667. I previously owned an 800, but 10.2.7 really makes this 667 seem faster.

I do miss the ALU look and feel, but I prefer the 15" over the 12"

 

[Panopticon]

Good to know. I'm getting my 15" AluBook soon — so they say anyhow… If I find anything quirky with it, I'll be sure to post the news (crossing fingers, touching wood, praying for a problem-free laptop).



Its hard to have one of these suckers on order, only to come here and read about all of the bad stuff that *may* go on with them. Oh well, good to know before I get it so I can isolate any problems quickly.

Thanks for the post.

 

[somecows]

Originally posted by Jottle
I am curious about this as well. My hand rests get warm and the track pad is annoying but I can deal with that. I was curious if your hand rest (upper parts) get warm under normal usage? the had drive clicking seems to be fixed with apm tuner...it is not a malfunction.


Thanks

I wouldn't say that the hand rests (in the new one OR the old one) get that hot. It was more the underside.

I find the track pad to be really hard to press. I know that sounds so lame, but it's true! I just feel like I'm really conscious of having to PRESS it. But it's OK, I think I'm just gonna use a mouse.

What is apm tuner?

 

[Jottle]

The constant "gachunk" or clickin sound the hard drive makes every 20-30 is a normal feature of the hard drive. APM stands for adaptive power management. The hard drive constantly reseats its head to conserve power. By setting APM tuner x to the max value, your hard drive will seat less often, but require a little more battery juice. I really do hope Panther does fix this. I believe the apm tuner x has a negligable effect on battery life. I have been using it for a week and haven't noticed any decrease in my paltry 2.5hr battery

You can find APM Tuner X at this site:

http://homepage.mac.com/coolmacguy/apmtunerx.dmg

it doesn't come with a readme or anything. Just open it up, slide the bar to the highest setting, hit the set button, you'll hear a beep, close the app. Note: you'll have to run this thing evertyime you restart so it might be wise to put this in your startup items. enjoy!