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New 15" PB Battery Concerns and Accessories Questions

The only other questions I had dealt with a "cooling" accessory. There's one from Macmice (http://www.macmice.com/ibreeze.html) that looks interesting, and it has fans and runs off USB pulling little juice from the battery (hopefully).

I'm just wondering if there's anything better out there, and whether there are any other accessories that I ought to look into now that I am using a laptop. I already have the carrying case and an extra AC/auto/air adapter.

Thanks for your input. :)
 
I have a 1.25 ghz alubook and have been getting much better battery life. I have found the "show time" indicator to be rather inaccurate though. I don't know what's up with it, but it seems to underestimate, then not move for awhile. I just use the % indicator. As long as I'm not gaming or watching a dvd I can pretty easily get upwards of four hours.
 
Do you really feel you need a "cooling device"? I hate the ones with fans; I like my powerbook nice and quiet. Apple designed it to be stable at the heat the computer produces, I don't really understand the need for concern. I have to say the GBreeze notebook cooler on macmice looks pretty phat, though it's not worth the money to me.
 
Specs

Has anyone already noticed, that the battery in the new 15" PB only has 46wh, compared to 61 in the old one.

Even the new 12" has got a 47wh battery. Not to forgett that in the specs for the new 15" is marked, that the "up to 4.5 hours" are based on the 1ghz modell. they did't mention a battery life for the 1,25ghz 15" PB.

I would say that apple doesnt forget to mention the number by accident. You could estimate that the 1,25ghz PB will go in the direction of 3 hours (if apple themself would calculate it) compared to up to 4 hours for the 1ghz 15" and 5 hours for the 12"
.
 
cooling advice

My Alu 15 is still in transit, but I have some cooling strategies based on the TiBook I've been using for a couple years...

The single biggest tip is to be certain that the PowerBook has air exposure on all sides. One way to think about it: any place that gets hot will also be where the heat gets dispersed, as long as you aren't insulating that spot.

Setting the computer directly on a couch cusion/pillow/lap/table cloth will usually impede the airflow beneath the machine and make it get a lot hotter.

For me, something as simple as a thick piece of cardboard/wood, large book, etc -- anything rigid enough to support the powerbook by its feet instead of its belly -- is sufficient.

Additional cooling fans etc shouldn't be necessary unless the environment is also uncomfortably warm, or you're performing a long, processor-intensive task... in such cases just increasing the gap below the computer usually compensates.

Try the easy stuff first! :)
 
Re: Specs

Originally posted by haifischjunge
Has anyone already noticed, that the battery in the new 15" PB only has 46wh, compared to 61 in the old one.

Even the new 12" has got a 47wh battery. Not to forgett that in the specs for the new 15" is marked, that the "up to 4.5 hours" are based on the 1ghz modell. they did't mention a battery life for the 1,25ghz 15" PB.

I would say that apple doesnt forget to mention the number by accident. You could estimate that the 1,25ghz PB will go in the direction of 3 hours (if apple themself would calculate it) compared to up to 4 hours for the 1ghz 15" and 5 hours for the 12"
.
Click to expand...

My 12" pBook gets 3 hours.
 
All posts are great input, and thanks for the recommendations on how to operate the PB cooler.

I just figured that the millimeter or so of space that the tiny feet provide just isn't adequate to allow for sufficient airflow, and that is why I was concerned about heat dissipation. I'll give your suggestions a try before buying anything. It's not like I haven't spent enough money as it is! ;)
 
Originally posted by Jr.HighTeacher
All posts are great input, and thanks for the recommendations on how to operate the PB cooler.

I just figured that the millimeter or so of space that the tiny feet provide just isn't adequate to allow for sufficient airflow, and that is why I was concerned about heat dissipation. I'll give your suggestions a try before buying anything. It's not like I haven't spent enough money as it is! ;)
Click to expand...

The heat is normal...it is dissapating through the aluminum.
 
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