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New Al 15,4" powerbook? When?

D

dennis88

macrumors member
Original poster
May 13, 2003
68
0
Hi, I'm new here. :)

I really want a 15" powerbook, but I hear all this rumors about a new one, that is coming soon, but when?
I can't wait any longer than july-august, will it be out before then?

I have also heard rumors about the ati 9600 in the 15" powerbook, is this possible, or just a stupid rumor?

I'm going to get the cheapest 15" powerbook, so do you guys think that both the 15" powerbooks will have the ati 9600, if it's going to be put in the 15", or will just the expensive one have it?

So when is it possible that the new 15,4" powerbook will be launched?

Thanks! :)
 
Comparably equipped, there's $250 difference between the cheaper and more expensive ones now. That gets you a 1GHz vs 867MHz, a 2nd 256MB stick of memory (or cheaper upgrade to a single or dual 512MB setup), and 64MB/128-bit video vs 32MB/64-bit video in the ATI Mobility 9000

If they use the ATI Mobility 9600, I suspect the cheaper model will get the one with 32MB/64-bit video and the more expensive one will get the 64MB/128-bit video. I don't believe Apple will opt for the 128MB 9600 in the 15" unless they add it to the 17".

Of course, they could use the 12"PB NVidia in the cheaper one and the 17" NVidia in the more expensive one if that's the route they're taking.

Sometime this summer is the best guess for the new aluminum one, maybe July. I'd expect to see 133MHz bus with DDR266 in both, or maybe even 166MHz bus with DDR333 in the more expensive one, like the 17". But I also suspect they'll still be G4s with current speeds.
 
Re: New Al 15,4" powerbook? When?

Originally posted by dennis88
Hi, I'm new here. :)

I really want a 15" powerbook, but I hear all this rumors about a new one, that is coming soon, but when?
I can't wait any longer than july-august, will it be out before then?

I have also heard rumors about the ati 9600 in the 15" powerbook, is this possible, or just a stupid rumor?

I'm going to get the cheapest 15" powerbook, so do you guys think that both the 15" powerbooks will have the ati 9600, if it's going to be put in the 15", or will just the expensive one have it?

So when is it possible that the new 15,4" powerbook will be launched?

Thanks! :)
Click to expand...

Fully expecting it by July. My fiancé wants one too and I have made here wait for the last few months. If they don't come out with something I'm going to be in trouble and Apple is going to have a lot of dissapointed customers. Seems like the 15" has been forgotten about and left behind.
 
Re: New Al 15,4" powerbook? When?

Originally posted by dennis88
Hi, I'm new here. :)

I really want a 15" powerbook, but I hear all this rumors about a new one, that is coming soon, but when?
I can't wait any longer than july-august, will it be out before then?

I have also heard rumors about the ati 9600 in the 15" powerbook, is this possible, or just a stupid rumor?

I'm going to get the cheapest 15" powerbook, so do you guys think that both the 15" powerbooks will have the ati 9600, if it's going to be put in the 15", or will just the expensive one have it?

So when is it possible that the new 15,4" powerbook will be launched?

Thanks! :)
Click to expand...

first of all , welcome on the boards :D

I hope even if it might be irrealistic the ppc970 wil debute in the pb 15.4 '' @ the wwcd. I want to buy one too. so lets get ready.
My only fear is it might be delayed. Lke presenting the new cpu, and building it immediatly, but hundrets of people buying one, and the date you ll get it will considerably go towards unprecise future...
 
I'm also looking on the 12".

Is it a good buy?

It seems to me that the crappy nvidia 420go is slower than the ati7500 in the ibook..(!)
Is this true?

I really want the 12" too, but the crappy nivida card is stopping me.. :(

If the 12" had a ati9000 or a 440go, I would buy it right away.

When can we expect a new 12"?
Is it "safe" to buy a 12" now? :confused:

Thanks!
 
i wish the damn things would come out yesterday. i agree that it seems they've been forgotten about. but i think july might be a bit far off...i'm more expecting them any time now, which seems like a rumor that's made it onto a few boards (including this one, somewhere)...
 
How does the 12" perform in gaming? (want to play warcraft 3 and medal of honor on the go, with everything on full settings)

Is the 12" gaming performance much less than the 15"?

Thanks!
 
i'd wait on the next revision of 12's, just because it's the first model/version and apple usually works out some decent kinks the second time around (um, yeah that's me with the titanium 500).

i'd consider the 12s myself, if they could get over the one gig mark.

what i'm trying to guess is if apple is going to wait till a set time to update the whole line, or if they're going to stagger new updates (i.e. new 15's in a week, new 12's and 17s in two months...)
 
I'd hold off on buying any Apple portable right now (unless you absolutely have to).

Considering how long we've been waiting for it, the 15.4" Powerbook should see the light of day at the WWDC.

The more time that passes without a 15.4" release is just more evidence that its a Stevenote announcement at WWDC (along with 970 Powermacs, of course).

Once the Powerbook line enters G4 to 970 transition, the iBook will be free to move to a new processor (i.e. IBM's GOBI G3).

So, dennis88, you should wait to buy your new Mac, but you won't have to wait too long (at least for an announcement, shipping dates are a whole other thing).
 
pyro--

are you suggesting to wait for the 970 powerbooks to be released?

or are you saying no one should buy a PB until the very next line of updates in announced?

i'm definitely rusty on my rumors, but if waiting for a 970 to appear in a powerbook takes as long as it did for G4s to appear the powerbooks (1999 to 2001), we could be talkin a helluva long time, right?
 
I think pyro is just referring to the new form factor (Al) for the 15". I truly do not expect the 970 to be in the next 15" PB.
 
yeah that's what i'm thinking as well.

i bought my last two macs in 2001 (the 500 TiBook and a 533 tower) and both are a little long in the tooth for my work. I'm ready to just use my 533 as the email and iTunes store/wallet vacuum and get a workhorse PB for my real stuff, but buying an 8 month old PB off the shelf sure as hell aint happenin
 
Originally posted by erova
pyro--

are you suggesting to wait for the 970 powerbooks to be released?

or are you saying no one should buy a PB until the very next line of updates in announced?

i'm definitely rusty on my rumors, but if waiting for a 970 to appear in a powerbook takes as long as it did for G4s to appear the powerbooks (1999 to 2001), we could be talkin a helluva long time, right?
Click to expand...
Your point is perfectly valid, but there are couple of things to consider here.

First, when the G4 tower first came out, the G3 was still a young processor, so there was no need to make an immediate push towards a new technology for the laptops.
The G4 is now teetering on old age, and has just about reached its maximum possible clock speeds in desktop machines, with the Powerbooks only about 400 MHz behind.

Second, you have to remember that in 1999 (and even in 2001) portables made up only a fragment of Apple's sales. As Steve Jobs has pointed out, laptops are now 35% of the company's sales.
Also, Apple's laptops are its most competitive machines (although 970 Powermacs could change that). Newer faster processors can only help that all-important edge.

Third, iBooks are in dire need of a real update (those speed bumps are just getting to be annoying). Apple's policy of keeping consumer machines on the weaker end is preventing such an update (which would give Apple even more of an edge in the portable market).
The last major iBook revision was when Apple ditched the clamshell two years ago this month (might not seem like a long time, but the G3 has aged quite a bit since then). I expect a GOBI iBook this summer.

Lastly, remember that this is the all-wondrous "Year of the Laptop." Steve Jobs himself said that he wanted portables to be 50% of Apple's sales by year end. You need some big announcements to pull off something like that.

BTW, I got all the old product dates with Mactracker, so they should be right.
 
To clairify:
I do think Apple will put PowerPC 970s (low to mid clock speed) into the next Powerbooks (15.4" obviously included).

Sorry for being vague.
 
Originally posted by pyrotoaster
Second, you have to remember that in 1999 (and even in 2001) portables made up only a fragment of Apple's sales. As Steve Jobs has pointed out, laptops are now 35% of the company's sales.

Lastly, remember that this is the all-wondrous "Year of the Laptop." Steve Jobs himself said that he wanted portables to be 50% of Apple's sales by year end. You need some big announcements to pull off something like that.
Click to expand...
Not hard to get 50% when PM and xServe sales are so horrible ;)
 
i like your points and hey, I agree with ya, I want real improvements as well, not just going from an 867 chip to a 1 gig.

i can easily wait till the next line of PBs come out, but I can't keep using my 500 as a real machine (hell, i'm typing this on my work's pc as much as i hate it...)
 
I hope they do come soon - the 12" is a touch underpowered for my tastes plus I need a PCMCIA slot and the 17" is just too damned big, but I really want bluetooth and airport extreme so I'm stuck waiting too :)

I reckon theres no chance of a 970 in there though.

Not that I'd complain if I was proved wrong of course :)
 
Originally posted by pyrotoaster
To clairify:
I do think Apple will put PowerPC 970s (low to mid clock speed) into the next Powerbooks (15.4" obviously included).

Sorry for being vague.
Click to expand...

that sounds good, and i'd like to beleive it. but there has been a lack of info about the 970 in relation to the PowerBooks. considering that there haven't been many rumors of 970 equiped PowerBooks, i'm not getting my hopes up.

but then again, knowing Apple, they are very good at keeping secrets. and there was a rumor that there would be a "twist" at WWDC. that could turn out to be a 970 PowerBook. that would be awesome!! :D
 
Originally posted by dennis88
I'm also looking on the 12".

Is it a good buy?

It seems to me that the crappy nvidia 420go is slower than the ati7500 in the ibook..(!)
Is this true?

I really want the 12" too, but the crappy nivida card is stopping me.. :(

If the 12" had a ati9000 or a 440go, I would buy it right away.

When can we expect a new 12"?
Is it "safe" to buy a 12" now? :confused:

Thanks!
Click to expand...

I've read conflicting things about the 420go compared to the 7500. My understanding is that the 420go comes out on top, but not by much... not by much at all.

In any case, if gaming is a big concern for you, the 12" PB is not the way to go. I use an ibook with the 7500 to play warcraft III and that works fine, but if you're in to more intensive 3D games, the 12" PB is going to be underpowered, IMO.
 
So you guys think I should wait for the 15,4"?
I want a powerbook now, and I don't want to wait much longer now...
Well, many people are saying that the 15,4" pb is coming in september together with the 12" and 17".
If this is true, then it will be too long!

Do you guys think that the new 15" will be in stores before the end of june? Then I can wait, but if no, I think I'm going with the 12"... :confused:

How many fps does warcraft 3 run on a 12" pb with settings at high?
What about medal of honor?

Thanks!
 
Originally posted by dennis88
So you guys think I should wait for the 15,4"?
I want a powerbook now, and I don't want to wait much longer now...
Well, many people are saying that the 15,4" pb is coming in september together with the 12" and 17".
If this is true, then it will be too long!

Do you guys think that the new 15" will be in stores before the end of june? Then I can wait, but if no, I think I'm going with the 12"...

How many fps does warcraft 3 run on a 12" pb with settings at high?
What about medal of honor?

Thanks!
Click to expand...
Wait until the WWDC keynote. I'm fairly sure we'll at least see 15.4" Powerbooks running 970s (although it won't ship immediately).
 
I'd definitely wait for the 15" AlPB, even if it's still G4. The 12" PB has half the Level 2 cache of an iBook, and no Level 3 cache like the other Power series. It has what looks to me to be the same screen as the iBook, where today, 1024 X 768 isn't much desktop.

It's more like a notebook version (read that less capable in almost every respect) of the desktop 17" iMac, and I see it as an expensive, aluminum version of what an iBook should functionally be today.
 
Wait for the new 15" wether it's a 970 or a faster G4 (7470 or otherwise) it will be a much better machine with the Aluminum housing, Airport Extreme, Firewire 800, and most likely longer battery life. Who knows it might even get the light up keyboard.
 
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