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iBook, Powerbook Specs?
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oingoboingo said:
I dunno, iPhoto and iTunes are about all I use on a day to day basis, and I dont need it to be UBER faster like most, as long as it runs and im not waiting an hour for a picture to show im good, lol. But as you can see below in my sig my 2 Macs are more then up for the challenge of iLife, and I do so love Garageband. I can see GB tanking on a G4 500mhz
aswitcher said:
Oh, as for the features: don't expect any surprises (such as 3D-displays or a built in iSight camera), but expect a new, fresh case (look at the iPod Mini), 16:9 displays with higher resolution, upgraded ports (built in AE, Bluetooth, Firewire 800, USB2, DVI, whatever is new by that time, e.g. USB wireless?) in all models, a better graphics card, larger harddisks, faster superdrives, a better battery etc. plus a G5 (approx. 1.6-2.0 GHz) and maybe a 'convertible' model (I doubt it).
Diatribe said:
Right, right... waiting for backlit keyboard on the 12" as well. And the PB's really should have all 64MB minimum Graphics. Standart build in 128MB for the 17" and upgradeable to 128 for the 15"...
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My free Desktop Pictures!
http://homepage.mac.com/nuber
Updated eMacs, iBooks and Powerbooks are a nice start...
But lets not forget the G5 hasnt slipped into any of these models and lower speed (1.6Ghz and Im sure they ran some cooler/slower) G5 processors have been shipping since July of 2003. Not what I call progress. The Motorola G4 1.42 was widely available this same time last year and just now coming to the powerbooks. Honestly this isnt what I call progess. Low speed G5s have been out there for 9 months and high speed G4s they are sticking in these tings now have been around for over a year.
I dont know, Im just not excited about it at all. I still miss my Rev B PowerMac G5 that has yet to show up. Annoucing anything less than a dual 2.8Ghz at WWDC with some major new leaps like a PCI Express slot even if theres no card available for it yet, DDR2 or PC4000 to really take advantage of the 1GHz bus, dual optical drives, standard RAID, in a smaller... quieter tower........ Anything less than that would come as a huge disappointment. Lemme guess. 2.4GHz dualies with the exact same everything else as the current models. Whooopeddy-freaking-doo
But lets not forget the G5 hasnt slipped into any of these models and lower speed (1.6Ghz and Im sure they ran some cooler/slower) G5 processors have been shipping since July of 2003. Not what I call progress. The Motorola G4 1.42 was widely available this same time last year and just now coming to the powerbooks. Honestly this isnt what I call progess. Low speed G5s have been out there for 9 months and high speed G4s they are sticking in these tings now have been around for over a year.
I dont know, Im just not excited about it at all. I still miss my Rev B PowerMac G5 that has yet to show up. Annoucing anything less than a dual 2.8Ghz at WWDC with some major new leaps like a PCI Express slot even if theres no card available for it yet, DDR2 or PC4000 to really take advantage of the 1GHz bus, dual optical drives, standard RAID, in a smaller... quieter tower........ Anything less than that would come as a huge disappointment. Lemme guess. 2.4GHz dualies with the exact same everything else as the current models. Whooopeddy-freaking-doo
Totally off topic, but i'm sick of people saying:
Apple won't have a 64bit OS until all computers are 64bit. I guarantee apple will just release an OS where the code will execute... and when it gets to a loop, it will branch, one set of code for 64bit CPUs, another for 32bit. The 64 bit one will execute after less CPU cycles, thus yield a faster OS, but the 32bit code will run just fine.
Another way apple could do it is just that when the machine installs, it only installs the 64bit optimizations on the 64bit computer.
-Kev
Apple won't have a 64bit OS until all computers are 64bit. I guarantee apple will just release an OS where the code will execute... and when it gets to a loop, it will branch, one set of code for 64bit CPUs, another for 32bit. The 64 bit one will execute after less CPU cycles, thus yield a faster OS, but the 32bit code will run just fine.
Another way apple could do it is just that when the machine installs, it only installs the 64bit optimizations on the 64bit computer.
-Kev
hd bottleneck
why doesn't apple post the hard drive speeds at apple.com/ibook? even under tech specs it isn't listed. are they all 4200rpm or is there a 5400 among them? i did a dummy config on a g4 800 ibook in the edu store... upgrade from 30gb to 40gb = $22. upgrade from 30gb to 60gb $67. i think that has been too much of a bottleneck for me on my current system and would get whichever of those drives was the fastest. if anyone can provide info, i'd appreciate it greatly. ordering as soon as the new books go up. i know about the 3rd party upgrade service, but would rather have it done by apple so as not to void applecare or anything.
why doesn't apple post the hard drive speeds at apple.com/ibook? even under tech specs it isn't listed. are they all 4200rpm or is there a 5400 among them? i did a dummy config on a g4 800 ibook in the edu store... upgrade from 30gb to 40gb = $22. upgrade from 30gb to 60gb $67. i think that has been too much of a bottleneck for me on my current system and would get whichever of those drives was the fastest. if anyone can provide info, i'd appreciate it greatly. ordering as soon as the new books go up. i know about the 3rd party upgrade service, but would rather have it done by apple so as not to void applecare or anything.
thehypercube said:
If you buy a third party hard drive and have apple install it, your applecare is not void.
aus prices
A direct comparison is possible with the IBM Thinkpad T41p - $US3219 and $A4899 for the exact same specs. Taking Australian GST of 10% into account, that's an exchange rate of 0.723. The $A is now about $US0.742. Compare this to my preferred 15" Powerbook with superdrive - current exchange rate of 0.596... No special pleading is necessary for apple - the only possible excuse could be volume of sales, and that won't cut it with me.
So if there aren't some MAJOR price drops for the powerbook in Oz tomorrow, I'll be getting the T41p. One of the best things about it is it comes with a 7200rpm hard drive + 128mb video standard, plus all the other features of the powerbook.
thatwendigo said:
A direct comparison is possible with the IBM Thinkpad T41p - $US3219 and $A4899 for the exact same specs. Taking Australian GST of 10% into account, that's an exchange rate of 0.723. The $A is now about $US0.742. Compare this to my preferred 15" Powerbook with superdrive - current exchange rate of 0.596...
No special pleading is necessary for apple - the only possible excuse could be volume of sales, and that won't cut it with me.So if there aren't some MAJOR price drops for the powerbook in Oz tomorrow, I'll be getting the T41p. One of the best things about it is it comes with a 7200rpm hard drive + 128mb video standard, plus all the other features of the powerbook.
All the stock iBook and PowerBook have hard drives running at 4200 rpms... some of the Powerbook models can be upgraded to 5400 rpms as a build to order option on Apples store. However, it seems iBooks and the 12 PB cannot be upgraded with a faster HD. And it appears all Apple laptops 'out of the box' will have the slower 4200 hard drives
reply to RWBEAN
Wow,
I'm in US and I'm going for the same exact thoughts, only the T41 at this link for $2300.00 US.
Wow, what a thought, and I am too hoping for a good update as well because that would break my tie!
Wow,
I'm in US and I'm going for the same exact thoughts, only the T41 at this link for $2300.00 US.
Wow, what a thought, and I am too hoping for a good update as well because that would break my tie!
aswitcher said:
Any computer plummets after a few years, man. I couldn't have sold my iBook Tangerine for full price after three years. At purchase, it was $1599 and had 300mhz IBM 750 (revision A G3), 66mhz bus, 64MB of RAM, ATI Rage Mobilliy 4MB, a 12.1" inch LCD (800x600) , 6GB HD, a 24x CD, and it weighed 6.6 pounds. I updated the RAM to the max for the single slot (576MB), and added an Airport card, which let me run Jaguar acceptably and use wireless until its untimely demise.
In three years, the consumer laptop had leaped me terribly. For $1499, you could buy an iBook in mid-year 2002 that had a 700mhz IBM 750fx, 100mhz bus, 128MB RAM (upgradable to 640MB), ATI Rage Mobility 16MB, 12.1" SVGA LCD (1024x768), 30GB Ulta-ATA 66 HD, and a CD-DVD combo drive, weighing at a sleeker 4.9 pounds, and with another USB port and video out ports.
It was not only cheaper, but all around better. These kinds of things happen in computers, and no system you buy now will be guaranteed to weather the market that long, no matter who your ORM of choice is.
If I KNEW it was September...I think I would wait, especially if I knew a bit more about the other features on the G5PB...
What to do
I've already told you what I think you should do. Get a slightly older iBook off of eBay to play with. Learn OS X (not that it's hard, or anything
) and get used to things before you really, really jump in. When you're ready for the PowerBook, eBay off the iBook again and recoup most of what you put into the investment.Meanwhile, you'll have a mac to play with!
Mokona said:
Specifically, people usually mean the Thinkpad line when they talk about quality.
AMEN!
People doing serious professional editing on a laptop are in a very strange market, and one where the processor is unlikely to even last through the lenghtier tasks on. Yes, you can get PC "desktop replacement" systems that are using the fastest processors around. They also last all of 45 minutes to an hour and a half, at the best. Good luck on compositing video or doing complex renders!
If you're doing things like that, the hardware support just isn't there yet in a true laptop. Yes, it's getting a bit faster on code optimizations, but those are going to be most pronounced on a system built to take advantage of them and with a steady power source (not to mention a less restrictive heat budget!).
reply to RWBEAN
Wow,
I'm in US and I'm going for the same exact thoughts, only the T41 at this link for $2300.00 US.
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=34-146-036&depa=0
this is what IBM has it for
ThinkPad T41 $2,649.00 IBM List Price Model Name: 23739EU
Wow, what a thought, and I am too hoping for a good update as well because that would break my tie!
PS: AUSSIE CUP, US or OZ.................
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK OF THIS IBM MODEL FOR THE PRICE
23739EU
IBM Notebook ThinkPad T41 Pentium M 1.7Ghz, 14.1"TFT, ATI Mobility Radeon9000, 512MB, 60GB-7200, DVD/CDRW, 56K, GigabitLAN, WinXP Pro
Wow,
I'm in US and I'm going for the same exact thoughts, only the T41 at this link for $2300.00 US.
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=34-146-036&depa=0
this is what IBM has it for
ThinkPad T41 $2,649.00 IBM List Price Model Name: 23739EU
Wow, what a thought, and I am too hoping for a good update as well because that would break my tie!
PS: AUSSIE CUP, US or OZ.................
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK OF THIS IBM MODEL FOR THE PRICE
23739EU
IBM Notebook ThinkPad T41 Pentium M 1.7Ghz, 14.1"TFT, ATI Mobility Radeon9000, 512MB, 60GB-7200, DVD/CDRW, 56K, GigabitLAN, WinXP Pro
Sounds like a 'mid cycle' update to me...
Mee thinks this a typical 'refresh' before a big upgrade later in the year... once those pesky low power G5s get into decent production and the volume is available (after filling the G5 Xserve requirements) I think its all on for a G5 PB... new design, new architecture and new performance everything...
And becuase of the heat issues you won't see a G5 in anything less than a 17"pb... you think your knees are hot now!! All that heat he to go somewhere so i expect a pretty unique design to the innards of the PB to cope with this requirements - in fact that is probably the only thing that will hold a G5 PB back... what to do with all the damn heat so near to your delicates....
We will see in the summer when Steve makes his next big on stage appearance.....
Mee thinks this a typical 'refresh' before a big upgrade later in the year... once those pesky low power G5s get into decent production and the volume is available (after filling the G5 Xserve requirements) I think its all on for a G5 PB... new design, new architecture and new performance everything...
And becuase of the heat issues you won't see a G5 in anything less than a 17"pb... you think your knees are hot now!! All that heat he to go somewhere so i expect a pretty unique design to the innards of the PB to cope with this requirements - in fact that is probably the only thing that will hold a G5 PB back... what to do with all the damn heat so near to your delicates....
We will see in the summer when Steve makes his next big on stage appearance.....
patriotn11 said:Wow,
I'm in US and I'm going for the same exact thoughts, only the T41 at this link for $2300.00 US.
IBM Notebook ThinkPad T41 Pentium M 1.7Ghz, 14.1"TFT, ATI Mobility Radeon9000, 512MB, 60GB-7200, DVD/CDRW, 56K, GigabitLAN, WinXP Pro
Hi there patriot, I've decided a DVD writer is kind of essential now, and I don't want to be left behind... once upon a time Powerbooks were the only notebooks with all the features (DVD writer + wireless 802.11a/b/g + bluetooth). Now there's competition. The other T41/T41p difference is the video card - I suppose it's mainly a gaming or video editing issue.
$2300 for that sounds great - I wish we had newegg in Australia!
Aussie cup - were you referring to Flemington? Or is there some other event?
patriotn11 said:
It's not a bad deal, really, and the Thinkpads are the laptops I have read the most good reveiws and heard the most word of mouth about, other than PowerBooks. I'd take the PowerBook, especially with a speed bump, over it.
After all, the current PowerBook at the same price level has a better graphics card, more HD, the same RAM, and OS X.
If these are right, they look good. The 12" iBook will be the same power as my 12" PowerBook. The 12" PB gets a good deal: upgrade to 60GB hard drives as standard, 33% more proceessing power (and presumably 167MHz bus) - maybe 64MB graphics? Also Aiport built in on the 12"?
Well I cannot wait until they show up at the Apple store, I want to see something new
Cheers to all that buy tomorrow, I know that buy a Mac feeling is AWESOME! 2 months in and I'm still feeling the new Mac owner feeling! My wife as well!
Cheers to all that buy tomorrow, I know that buy a Mac feeling is AWESOME! 2 months in and I'm still feeling the new Mac owner feeling! My wife as well!
chasingapple said:I dunno, iPhoto and iTunes are about all I use on a day to day basis, and I dont need it to be UBER faster like most, as long as it runs and im not waiting an hour for a picture to show im good, lol. But as you can see below in my sig my 2 Macs are more then up for the challenge of iLife, and I do so love Garageband. I can see GB tanking on a G4 500mhz
Sorry, should have checked your signature
I wouldn't want to be using GarageBand on a 500MHz G4 either.
Actually, yes, it does sound bad. That would mean the iBook would be effectively faster for a lot of applications.iLilana said:
If you want more detail on this, look at the benchmarks of the Powermac G4 Dual 1.42GHz against the Powermac G5 Dual 2.0GHz.
The new 1.5GHz processor should be cooler than the 1.42GHz that was used in the Powermacs.Tomaz said:These updates look fine to me. And as I "predicted", there seems to be no 1.42 Ghz, but only 1.33 and 1.5 Ghz PBs, since the 1.42Ghz processor is not for laptops. Good news!! I shall order the 1.5Ghz 15" PB in a few hours!
Yiipeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Does anyone have an idea if it's worth to update from 64MB to 128MB videoram ??
As for the video ram. It will be helpful with Quartz Extreme and Expose. And also in cases where you are running dual monitor. If the price is reasnable, it'll be more than worth it.
I flat out don't believe your G4 1.5 == G5 1.0 claim but would be willing to capitulate if you can provide some evidence to support your claim. Each processor has different characteristics and will perform better/worse depending on the particular test.alexandero said:
Also, I understand Apple is very happy with PB sales and apart from disgruntled MacRumors PB geeks is likely to get continuing good sales from improved processor speeds and small price drops.
I will admit to believing that the G5 PB's weren't this far away. Right now I don't believe they are far away but Apple needed to do something while they ironed out remaining issues and IBM ramped up chip production. So what to do? Drop a pin-compatible slightly faster processor into the existing chassis, sweeten the deal with a price drop, and get everyone in the PB engineering team working overtime on the G5.
Personally a higher res screen would have tempted me to upgrade my 667 TiBook but I've concluded it just won't happen. It doesn't make sense for Apple to invest any more development in the current PB range.
A release date for the G5? I would punt on it being this year rather than next. Technology has moved on and the PB is no longer leading edge. Apple does need to re-establish the PB as an industry leader in both technology and design.
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