Making the switch!

Discussion in 'Buying Tips, Advice and Discussion (archive)' started by Nlkead, Oct 31, 2004.

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  1. Nlkead, Oct 31, 2004

    Nlkead macrumors newbie

    Joined:
    Oct 26, 2004
    #1
    Hello, new here.

    I'm finally making the switch-- I'm ditching my Dell Inspiron 8100 (The WORST purchase I've ever made-- great for a year, completely fell apart on me after that) for a mac. I'm familiar with macs, and like 'em a lot, and, despite my old laptop's many problems, loved the whole portability thing. So, I've decided on a powerbook-- I'm going to wait 'til January or early February of '05, for various reasons. But, first, I have a few questions:

    1. Do you think, by the time I purchase my PB, it'll be upgraded? I'm new to the mac world, so I don't now how this stuff works. I've heard some stuff from friends who have macs about new powerbooks in the fall, I don't know if that's true or not...

    2. 12 inch or 15? My Dell was a 15, and while it wasn't exactly a behemoth, it was a little too big for my tastes. I went to the mac store recently to compare sizes, and I liked both, although I felt the 12 was more portable. The 15 seemed nicer, and it certainly is. I'd like a 1.5 ghz machine... if the 12 inch was updated to something around there, I'd totally go for it. But now? Hmmm....

    3. I have a 2wire wireless network in my house. Will a PB work with it? My Airport Express (for airtunes, of course) works fine, although it took a while to figure out how to set it up. After that, it was a synch. Also, do PBs ship with wireless cards installed, or do I need to buy one?

    Anyway, thanks for the help. I can't wait to get a new mac!
     
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  2. Duff-Man, Oct 31, 2004

    Duff-Man macrumors 68030

    Duff-Man

    Joined:
    Dec 26, 2002
    Location:
    Albuquerque, NM
    #2
    Duff-Man says...

    1) Apple has said that there will be no new Powerbooks until next year...MacWorld San Francisco is in early january so it is possible something will be announced then...but what that is, well, it is too early to get any reliable rumours.

    2) Only you can decide that. I have a 15" Powerbook and I do not find it heavy or cumbersome in any way - unlike the 15" DEll laptops I support at work.

    3) Some Powerbooks ship with the cards installed - usually the higher end models...for the lower end it is usually an add-on

    hope that helps a bit....oh yeah!
     
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  3. panda, Nov 1, 2004

    panda macrumors regular

    Joined:
    Mar 15, 2004
    #3
    gogogo

    good plan to go apple!

    its great.

    pbooks are terrific. all new ones ship with wireless cards and bluetooth included i believe.

    the 12¨is certainly the most portable, but i personally feel it is a shame to have so much power in a machine with 'only' a 12¨screen.

    as to updates, there have been none to pbooks since april (see mf buyers guide) and most people expect to see something begining january.

    again, great you are going apple, you will love it. :)
     
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  4. Pixeled_Apple, Nov 1, 2004

    Pixeled_Apple macrumors member

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    Oct 24, 2004
    Location:
    MeLbourne, Vic Aussiee!
    #4
    It's worth 2 make the switch!

    PowerBooks always ship the lastest Airport Extreme (802.11g) already installed... from the 12" - the 17"... and its really worth make the switch 2 apple...!!!
     
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  5. wPod, Nov 1, 2004

    wPod macrumors 68000

    wPod

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    Aug 19, 2003
    Location:
    Denver, CO
    #5
    1) i imagine by feb there will be an upgrade. it may be only a small speed bump but it will still be good.

    2) i am a portable enthusiast. i have a 12" PB and its the best! smallest computer that still has power on the market. (other smaller wintel computers or slower, look worse, and well run windows so youll have lots more trouble with them) so i say go for the 12" . . . you will enjoy the protableness of it. but remeber the 15" PB is more portable than the 15" dull you were lugging around before.

    3) yep, all PB ship with airport express and it will work with any wireless around!!

    i hope you enjoy your PB!!!!
     
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  6. Zaty, Nov 1, 2004

    Zaty macrumors 65816

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    Switzerland
    #6
    ALL current portables come with Airport Express Cards!
     
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  7. Nlkead, Nov 1, 2004

    Nlkead thread starter macrumors newbie

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    Oct 26, 2004
    #7
    Thanks for all the info, guys. Keep those opinions on the 12 vs. the 15 coming. :)
     
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  8. RonJ83, Nov 1, 2004

    RonJ83 macrumors member

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    SiNy
    #8
    i made the switch from an IBM Thinkpad R50 to an Apple PB 12in. Havent looked back since. I love that its compact and so user friendly. as for going with a 12 or 15 inch thats all up to you, i personally like my 12in i can see everything fine and its nice and small, doesnt take up alot of space. if you want to have a more visual feel than a 15 is probably right up your ally.
     
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  9. Mechcozmo, Nov 1, 2004

    Mechcozmo macrumors 603

    Mechcozmo

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    Jul 17, 2004
    #9
    Mechcomo says.... look at the new iBooks! They have wireless cards installed by default and the PowerBooks too, for at least a revision now, if not more. :D Yeah! It is the desktops that don't have the wireless cards built in. Bluetooth also comes standard on the PowerBooks but not the iBooks. Yeah!!! :D :cool:



    And sorry if I made fun of your posting style but I couldn't pass up the chance.
     
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  10. cube, Nov 2, 2004

    cube macrumors G5

    Joined:
    May 10, 2004
    #10
    A 15" or 17" Powerbook has a PCMCIA slot, so if someone makes an UMTS/GPRS/802.11n/WiMAX card with drivers for Mac, it will be useful.

    Swisscom has a UMTS+GPRS+802.11b/g card with autoswitching, but with drivers only for PC.

    Also, there's only one open RAM slot in the 12" (256MiB built-in). So the maximum is 1.25 GiB.
     
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