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PB12" --- dilemma ---

M

Mr.Furious

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jun 8, 2003
2
0
Ames, Iowa
I can finally afford a PB... Yippee! --- I am looking at the 12"----

But I got a few ques..

1. Do you guys think the prices are gonna drop even further after the conference later this month?

2. Can the PB12" handle movie editing?

3. Any disadvantages to the 12" other than a small screen?

thanks
 
Well, considering the price cut recently, it is not exactly a bad time to purchase your 12 inch PB. However, if you can indeed exercise the necessary patience, then you might as well wait until the WWDC later this month to find out what Apple has under its sleeves.
 
I think most folks are expecting an updated 15" powerbook, not a 12".

Re your questions:
1. No, few people expect further price cuts.

2. Yes (it has firewire and a G4), performance with iMovie or even Final Cut Express should be adequate.

3. The small screen is the disadvantage. No external video or multiple screens. For movie editing, the small screen could be a significant issue.

If portable movie editing is your main concern, you might want to wait and see if an updated 15" is coming out. The 15" has a faster CPU and external video, plus a bigger screen.
 
You can hook up a VGA screen to the 12 inch PB and if you use the DVIator, you can even attach an Apple monitor. Price is clearly an issue for this guy -- he just saved up enough for a 12, the new Al15 is going to be quite pricey, perhaps a grand more than the 12. I own the PB12 and I don't think screen is that big of a drawback, but then again I don't do video editing and I have a 17 inch iMac as well.
 
Originally posted by cubist
I think most folks are expecting an updated 15" powerbook, not a 12".

Re your questions:
1. No, few people expect further price cuts.

2. Yes (it has firewire and a G4), performance with iMovie or even Final Cut Express should be adequate.

3. The small screen is the disadvantage. No external video or multiple screens. For movie editing, the small screen could be a significant issue.

If portable movie editing is your main concern, you might want to wait and see if an updated 15" is coming out. The 15" has a faster CPU and external video, plus a bigger screen.
Click to expand...
huh? you can hook up a vga adapter, or you can hook it up to your tv via svideo or composite. and with the right equipment a digital monitor can be hooked up. the 12 is fine for video editing, just wont render as fast as a higher end, but will do just fine. only complaint i have about the powerbook is that the left palm gets hot, but you get used to it.

iJon
 
Originally posted by Rezet
12" doesn't have lvl 3 Cache.
15" Ti runs on slow SDRAM ram.
I'd recomment waiting for new 15" powerbooks.
Click to expand...
the 15 is still much faster even with the sdram, thats my opinion from me using both and the 17"

iJon
 
Originally posted by Rezet
15" Ti runs on slow SDRAM ram.
Click to expand...
better than running on slow DDR RAM. apple's current DDR is a sham, IMO. SDRAM is plenty fast, even by comparison. you don't get double the data transfer rate with DDR. not even close. also, DDR RAM is still SDRAM.
 
Originally posted by Shadowfax
also, DDR RAM is still SDRAM.
Click to expand...

Well, since we're splitting hairs tonight... :p ;) :D

It's actually DDR SDRAM. ;) :p :D :D

But that's besides the point.

With regards to the question at hand, I'd wait. Save up more money over the summer and go for an updated one or the 15". I've read a few horror stories about the nVidia card in the 12" PBs.

In other words, if the purchase isn't essential, wait and save more money. It can only get better from here.
 
Hey Mr.Furious,

I'm in the same boat you are. I have the money and I certainly have the desire for a 12" Powerbook, but do I buy now or wait until the units are refreshed in the next few weeks?

Here's what I expect to see:
- The 12" will get a moderate speed bump to either 900Mhz or 1 Ghz
- The 12" will ship with a little more memory

Here's what I'm not sure about:
- Will the current discounted price points stay the same after the refresh, or is this just to clear inventory?
- Will the 12" get a level 3 cache?
- Will the 12" get a larger hard drive?

So, personally, I'm not sure what to do. I like the idea of saving $200, but if the prices go back up after the refresh then I will be disappointed I didn't buy earlier.

If the prices stay the same and the machine gets a nice little upgrade, then I will be disappointed if I buy sooner.

Sugestions? Thoughts?
 
i dont own a mac so dont like think im not credible cause i feel i am... but i think that the 12" screen is incredibly crisp but obviously kinda small but MAINLY ive noticed that from some angles i think the colors are distorted but that could be just the one they had on the floor at the apple store and compusa ( i go there regularly to check up on my babys hahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa) that could be pretty important in terms of video editting, in hue saturation etc etc. Im fairly confident when i say that these prices are going to be as low as theyre gonna get. They're extremely close to that of the ibook...invest now while the hunting is still good
 
Having just bought a 12in powerbook for my wife yesterday, i'm prejudiced towards going ahead and getting one:) It's a great deal, esp. if you can get an education discount(another 100 bucks off), and it runs like a champ. Comes with a VGA adapter, so you can run in mirrored or dual display mode, if need be, and has enough speed for everything except running Virtual PC fast. But nothing runs Virtual PC fast:)(darn clients and their Access DB's anyway....)

Anyways, if you need a machine now, teh 12 is a good buy - anything more pricey, tho, i'd wait. While i can;t see =apple offering a faster cheaper 12in, anything else is suspect:)
 
Don't you think they'll up the processor soon though? The iBook runs at 900Mhz at this point. Of course they might up the price $200 as well.

Have you run VirtualPC on it? How well does it run?
 
Wait. It's been 5 months since the 12" was released now. If you've waited this long, you can surely wait 2 more weeks, and see what comes along at WWDC. You'll be kicking yourself if the 12" gets bumped to 1 Ghz or gets an L3 cache or something. And if that happens, maybe you can save even more on the current line.

The lack of L3 cache and limit of 640 RAM on the 12" PB really make me think of it as a G4 ibook, and not in the same class, performance wise, as the bigger powerbooks. I really advise waiting and seeing if Apple brings it up to speed with its big brothers at WWDC.
 
i think that the 12" will get a speed-bump quite soon, considering the iBook is @ 900MHz, and perhaps the new 15" will be speed-bumped as well. i don't think that the price will rise, it should stay around the same level. it is an actual price drop (not a 'rebate' like we've seen before) and it would be hard for Apple to put the price back up on new PowerBooks.
 
totally off topic

MrFurious is the name of my 10gb iPod. How crazy is that? Are you a big delirious? fan?
 

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Thanks for the suggestions... I just might wait till the WWDC b4 I make a purchase...

And I made my nic up. (not a delirious? fan) But it is crazy that your iPod called that too... hehe. Must be a badass iPod!
 
Re: totally off topic

Originally posted by skymaXimus
Are you a big delirious? fan?
Click to expand...

i was just wondering that! why would you name your iPod after d:'s record company?

I'm orignally from littlehampton btw :D used to go to Arun Community Church, was at the very first Cutting Edge and pretty much all of them until the end!
 
Re: Re: totally off topic

Originally posted by mrjamin
i was just wondering that! why would you name your iPod after d:'s record company?

I'm orignally from littlehampton btw :D used to go to Arun Community Church, was at the very first Cutting Edge and pretty much all of them until the end!
Click to expand...

man thats crazy cool! I'm a delirious freak. looking around my office i've got 10+ posters/flyers of delirious stuff. I had to name my ipod MrFurious b/c the main reason i got it was to hold my delirious collection. no other mp3 player could do that.
delirious and macs, life is good

(for those wondering what in the world we're talking about, check out www.delirious.co.uk)
 
I was thinking of that movie with Ben Stiller. Mr. Furious was his character.

Anyway - if you can, wait. If they aren't updated, I doubt the price would go back up. And yes, with an Education Discount you can save another $100 now. If something new comes out, but you can't afford it and/or it's not much better, you can probably still find the old ones for the same price, if not cheaper. Or refurbs (and use the extra savings for AppleCare).

And yes, you can attach to an external display. But no, you can't have more than 640MB of RAM.
 
Definately wait for WWDC before any purchase. You will maybe get a free* coupon for 10.3 until it arrives

Shipping and handling at $19,99 will apply :D
 
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