Powerbook 1.5 vs. 1.67

[machiker]

I'm getting a Powerbook and was wondering what people thought. Should I go for the 17inch 1.67 model or the 17inch 1.5 model? I can get a new 1.5 model for about $700 less than the 1.67 model, with that price difference does it make sense to get the slower (if only by a little) Powerbook. Opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ericssonboi]

$700 ... that seeems like a lot more than just the processor speed increase.

Are you getting combo drive or super drive?
64mb or 128mb of vram?
more ram?
more hard drive space?
What will you be using it for?

If your doing a lot of intensive graphics stuff.. get the extra 0.17 and the extra bells and whistles.. (if you can afford it and if your planning on keeping your system for a few years)

And also.. since your going 17"... are you travelling a lot with it?
Its either LOVE or HATE for the size... so choose wisely.

But you can't go wrong with the Powerbook..
I love mine..

 

[machiker]

it's the standard config. for both.

both have super drive
100Gb drive vs. 80gb drive
128 MB video Ram vs. 64 MB video Ram

plus the other upgrades.

I'm not going to be using it for vieo intensive apps. Some music apps (as a portable, my studio computer is a G5) as wll as interent, etc.

 

[ericssonboi]

it's the standard config. for both.

both have super drive
100Gb drive vs. 80gb drive
128 MB video Ram vs. 64 MB video Ram

plus the other upgrades.

I'm not going to be using it for vieo intensive apps. Some music apps (as a portable, my studio computer is a G5) as wll as interent, etc.

Your basicly paying for the extra hard drive space + video ram + upgrade in processor speed.

If your looking for something to compliment your G5.. then go with the lower model.. you don't really need that much "Power" ..
The upgraded Vram would just be a waste since your only using it for simple tasks... and not graphic work or any gaming..

 

[machiker]

Where would I notice the video RAM difference? Just in games and video editing?

The most graphics intensive thing I'll use it for is printing CD labels in PhotoShop or Quarke. Is the 64 MB of Video RAM in the 1.5 model sufficent?

 

[AlBDamned]

I'm getting a Powerbook and was wondering what people thought. Should I go for the 17inch 1.67 model or the 17inch 1.5 model? I can get a new 1.5 model for about $700 less than the 1.67 model, with that price difference does it make sense to get the slower (if only by a little) Powerbook. Opinions would be greatly appreciated.

Why not get the 15" 1.67? Best of both worlds in terms of power and size and you can get the 128 Vram in it if necessary.

 

[machiker]

Why not get the 15" 1.67? Best of both worlds in terms of power and size and you can get the 128 Vram in it if necessary.

Well for music apps the 17inch screen makes a huge difference. To be able to see a whole score page without constantly having to scroll down and up is great.

 

[7254278]

I would definetley go for the 1.5, the price just doesnt justify the other upgrades, and the lack of vram should only be noticed in gaming and video editing, printing cd labels would be 100% fine.

 

[ericssonboi]

Where would I notice the video RAM difference? Just in games and video editing?

The most graphics intensive thing I'll use it for is printing CD labels in PhotoShop or Quarke. Is the 64 MB of Video RAM in the 1.5 model sufficent?

I don't think you'll notice too much in Photoshop or Quarke.. but if you intend on using dual displays or a big 30" Cineama.. I would suggest going with the 128mb VRAM...

If your just doing work on the PB and not hooking up an external monitior or any intensive file editing.. don't think you really need the extra video ram and power..

 

[xyian]

Not worth it

I'd say go with the 1.5ghz model. Why? Because the price premium isn't worth it. I had a g4 ibook @933mhz and I just got a 1.67ghz PB. Don't notice that much of a difference even in Photoshop and such. I don't think you'll ever see the difference in the VRAM either. Not worth it. Save the money and spend it on RAM.

 

[sbb155]

forget the 17 inch
get a imac and an ibook for nearly the same money

 

[AlBDamned]

Well for music apps the 17inch screen makes a huge difference. To be able to see a whole score page without constantly having to scroll down and up is great.

Aplogies, I read it wrong and thought the choice was a 15" 1.5 or a 17" 1.67.

You got a definite source for a 1.5 17"? You can't buy them direct from Apple any more in the UK (don't know about the US). Seen a few from random retailers but they're quite scarce from official sources (cheaper than it used to be though).

 

[BornAgainMac]

To answer the question, think back to a time when Powerbooks were only 800 Mhz or something. I can't remember specs but what if they sold another PB that was running at 867 Mhz for another $400 dollars more. Looking back now you would think both are slow and not worth the extra $$$.

Mhz is Marketing-hz.

 

[machiker]

I'm about to pull the trigger .....

I'm about to pull the trigger .....

One last question.

I noticed that on the 1.5 Ghz model that the speed of the hard drive is 4200 rpm as opposed to 5400 rpm on the 1.67 model. Will this be a problem for me? I've never owned a laptop before (all my other computer have been top of the line PowerMacs so I've never had a internal drive slower than 7200 rpm). Obviously when I use it for music apps and audio I'll use an external firewire drive. But will the internal spinal speed be a problem???

Thanks for your help.

 

[ramuman]

You're comparing the previous gen 1.5 to the current 1.67. Yea the 4200 is pretty slow, but for the $700 difference, you can have an Apple authorized center put in a 5400 RPM drive (maybe), preserve the warranty and still save quite a bit. Of course if you have to have the 1.67, Bluetooth EDR, SMS and native scroll trackpad then the 1.67 is your only choice. I thought all the previous gen 17s came with the 5400 rpm drives.

4200 will sour your experience (I've had 12"s PBs with both and a 15 currently with a 5400 rpm). However, $700 is a big difference.

If you don't mind me asking, where are you getting this deal on the old 1.5? If it's not from an Apple authorized reseller, it might not be worth it to save a few bucks. Almost any repair on the Powerbook is very expensive.

 

[machiker]

I thought all the previous gen 17s came with the 5400 rpm drives.

4200 will sour your experience (I've had 12"s PBs with both and a 15 currently with a 5400 rpm). However, $700 is a big difference.

Well this 1.5 version comes with a 4200 rpm hard drive. And I checked the specs on this model and it came standard with a 4200 rpm hard drive. The 5400 rpm hard drive wasn't standard until the 1.67 model.