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I'm taking the plunge...

Yeah and it burns CD's a little slower. But honestly...I am not gonna mess with it. I am just gonna get the SuperDrive.
 
Great choice on the machine, NCTRNL - I'm going to order the same pb myself this week. I do have to question the decision to go for one 512 Ram stick though. It's only $10 more to buy a dimm from www.crucial.com than it is to swap the two 256s for one 512. I'm going to leave the 256s in then just buy two 512s from crucial; you spend the same money but you have two 256s to sell on. Anyone buying the combo drive pb is going to be interested in those.
 
Yeah, I see that those 512mb dimm's are $109.99 a piece. Maybe that would be a better idea. Is it tough to sell the 256 dimm's that come in the unit? I have never looked into anything like that.
 
I doubt it would be that hard. There aren't many chips at all on the uk eBay site - always a good sign. There's always someone looking for some cheap memory though - even if you can only offload them for $20-$30 each, you'll be ahead on balance.
I just don't like the idea of giving Apple even more money for a machine with the same memory spec. Not that the powerBook isn't worth every penny...
 
Yeah, here it is $90 to get one memory stick instead of the 2x256 chips. If I saved the $90 there and then bought the memory for $210 on Crucial.com, I guess if I could sell them together for something around $100, then I would be close to even and I would have 1GB of memory.
 
Upgrading to 1gig for an extra $110 sounds like a good deal to me. And you can wait until you're ready to add the memory; not feel obliged because you spent the $90 for the single stick. Good luck with it, and enjoy the powerBook.
 
Badradio said:
Upgrading to 1gig for an extra $110 sounds like a good deal to me. And you can wait until you're ready to add the memory; not feel obliged because you spent the $90 for the single stick. Good luck with it, and enjoy the powerBook.
Click to expand...

You make a good point there. I had thought about doing the memory like that but the way you explained it really makes sense. I was having trouble justifying it in my head but that sounds like a much better idea to me. How easy is it to add memory to the powerbook? I have added memory to desktops but not to laptops before. And with the money that I saved on changing the memory config I can get the 40GB Ipod instead of the 20GB. Another beautiful thing about the EDU discount is that the Applecare is only $239....
 
cr2sh said:
The specs look great.. so.. uh... what are you waiting for?!? Order it already! Jeez.. do you realize how life changing this thing is going to be! You'll never be the same dude, seriously.
Click to expand...

It's true, I was a life time PC user and I thought that I'd just give a 12" powerbook a try, for working on the plane and such. After 2 days it was already the best computer I'd ever owned. 18 months later I have that powerbook, 2 dual G5s (with cinema displays) and a little G4 for file and print serving. PC isn't even in my vocabulary any more!
 
Not ordered my pb yet so I don't have first-hand knowledge, but from the NUMEROUS pb posts I've read, it seems easy to swap out the chips. Just unscrew the panel underneath (as it shows in the docs you get in the box) and replace the chips. Download some of the user guides from the Apple support pages - lots to have a look at before the machine arrives.
 
morkintosh said:
It's true, I was a life time PC user and I thought that I'd just give a 12" powerbook a try, for working on the plane and such. After 2 days it was already the best computer I'd ever owned. 18 months later I have that powerbook, 2 dual G5s (with cinema displays) and a little G4 for file and print serving. PC isn't even in my vocabulary any more!
Click to expand...

Yeah, I am a lifetime PC user. We have started to dabble with Mac's here at work and I just have to have one of my own. I am just sick of PC's man. Have you ever gone and looked at laptops in a store? I am just drawn to the Mac's like crazy. The PC laptops don't interest me in the least anymore. The Dell laptops used to interest me a lot...but not anymore.
 
NCTRNL said:
You make a good point there. I had thought about doing the memory like that but the way you explained it really makes sense. I was having trouble justifying it in my head but that sounds like a much better idea to me. How easy is it to add memory to the powerbook? I have added memory to desktops but not to laptops before. And with the money that I saved on changing the memory config I can get the 40GB Ipod instead of the 20GB. Another beautiful thing about the EDU discount is that the Applecare is only $239....
Click to expand...

Installing memory in a PB is pretty easy - main part is making sure you get it installed all the way.

As for pricing at Crucial, check out this thread, which details some "on-the-fly" pricing at Crucial. You may save yourself a few extra bucks.

Oh, and keep rubbing in your educational discount... :D
 
I'm not sure if it's been said, but don't forget to get in on the printer deal. You can get a fairly nice HP 5150 for FREE (with mail-in rebate of course). Even if you don't want it, you could always sell it and make $50+ :)
 
In defense

Speaking as both a life long Mac addict and certified gaming geek, I have to say that the one thing I find PCs better for are the games.

Not necessarily in their performance ability vs Macs but in the sheer amount of titles available.

Yeah, I know developers are getting better about releasing games for Macs, bless their souls. But PCs still get the best titles first. That's just plain business sense considering the number of Windows machines vs Macs.

Not everyone can afford a pc and a mac. I'm lucky in that we have 3 PCs in our house plus an iBook from work and my own 15" PB.

My wife thinks I'm insane. Maybe I am. Maybe I am...

:)
 
how about an external monitor? do you have one already? the other thing you might want to save some money on the Airport Base Station and get another router instead (D-Link, Linksys, etc.). It works just fine w/ Airport Extreme Card.
 
noel4r said:
how about an external monitor? do you have one already? the other thing you might want to save some money on the Airport Base Station and get another router instead (D-Link, Linksys, etc.). It works just fine w/ Airport Extreme Card.
Click to expand...

True - both good routers and a lot cheaper than an AE basestation. Hang on a minute, educational discount and the printer offer is still available in the States? Why am I trying to save you more money when I have to pay full whack?

Grumble... ;)
 
Well if a Linksys or D-Link would be cheaper, then which model would work best. I use a D-Link wired router right now. Could I just plug one of those into the wireless router and then have it work for wireless? I was just going to go with the airport station but if this is easier and cheaper...than...what the hell
 
noel4r said:
how about an external monitor? do you have one already? the other thing you might want to save some money on the Airport Base Station and get another router instead (D-Link, Linksys, etc.). It works just fine w/ Airport Extreme Card.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I figured I would wait until about January to buy an external monitor. I really love the Apple HD Cineman displays but I just wonder if, for the price, I could get more use out of those or I should just buy another monitor...
 
NCTRNL said:
Well if a Linksys or D-Link would be cheaper, then which model would work best. I use a D-Link wired router right now. Could I just plug one of those into the wireless router and then have it work for wireless? I was just going to go with the airport station but if this is easier and cheaper...than...what the hell
Click to expand...

Just get a wireless access point ($80-$100 I think) and add it to your network). If you already have an adsl connection feeding your network, the ae base would be overkill. With the ae card already in your notebook, you're ready to go.
 
Good god how much are you people encouraging this kid to spend on his setup that 1) may not even last that long because it *is* a Powerbook, 2) he could spend on a much more powerful desktop instead, and 3) he doesn't even know if he will like???

@_@
 
I don't want a desktop. I know that I will like it. If I don't...I can sell the laptop. Now. Would this be a good wireless access point to go with? The reason that I was thinking about the Airport Extreme is because I would be able to print through it but maybe this is a better option:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1088680027519&skuId=6759849&type=product

I went to Newegg.com but it's only $4 cheaper there.
 
NCTRNL said:
I don't want a desktop. I know that I will like it. If I don't...I can sell the laptop. Now. Would this be a good wireless access point to go with? The reason that I was thinking about the Airport Extreme is because I would be able to print through it but maybe this is a better option:

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=1088680027519&skuId=6759849&type=product

I went to Newegg.com but it's only $4 cheaper there.
Click to expand...


Well I'm just saying that if you're a real gamer, a desktop is THE way to go.
 
vraxtus said:
Well I'm just saying that if you're a real gamer, a desktop is THE way to go.
Click to expand...


Believe me, I am not a real gamer. As I said above, I have a PS2 for that. This is mainly going to be for school work and internet stuff.
 
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