Powerbook Advice

[doctormod]

Hey everyone -

Been reading these forums for a long while but posting now for the first time...

I had a first gen 17" powerbook get destroyed in a car accident and I'm looking on getting a new one...I'm hoping to notice an increase in speed with the bump from 1ghz to 1.67ghz, and the faster hard drive, etc. My question is if there is any real benefit to having 2GB of RAM in a powerbook instead of 1GB?

I'm debating waiting for the Paris Expo to see if there are any updates, but I haven't heard of any significant new tech that may be put in to the powerbooks anytime soon, and a minor speed bump probably isn't worth the wait for me...

Thoughts/advice?

Thanks!

 

[mad jew]

Welcome to the community doctormod.

What will you be using the PowerBook for?

 

[joecool85]

In anything like web browsing and email you won't notice a difference, but if you do any medium/heavy photoshopping, medium/heavy multitasking (more than 5-6 apps at a time open and multiple windows) you will notice.

btw, do you post on all the threads mad jew? j/p, but wow, seriously, you post a lot lol.

 

[mad jew]

btw, do you post on all the threads mad jew? j/p, but wow, seriously, you post a lot lol.

Yeah, I'm writing a pretty big paper at the moment and it's just so incredibly boring. To be honest, MacRumors is a little more fun at the moment.

 

[doctormod]

thanks for the quick replies...

I do some minor photo editing and playing around with final cut pro...
Those are probably the most intense tasks I do

 

[HasanDaddy]

well - we 'might' see Dual Core G4 PB's in Paris

however, for minimal FCP and PhotoShop work, I think the current PB is terrific!

 

[mad jew]

Well, 2GB of RAM would be great, but I suppose 1.5GB would be adequate. I'd try to get more than 1GB though, considering you'll be using FCP.

 

[doctormod]

Out of curiosity, is the screen any brighter with newer PBs? I know the backlit keyboard is supposed to be brighter, but I would love a brighter screen as it gets pretty washed out in daylight...

 

[AstrosFan]

My question is if there is any real benefit to having 2GB of RAM in a powerbook instead of 1GB?

Unless you have need of very RAM-intensive applications (video, graphics, etc.), I think you should get the PB with the stock 512MB on 1 DIMM.
Then, if you want the upgrade, get 1GB of third-party RAM.
I think from a functional standpoint, it would be difficult to tell the difference between 1.5GB and 2GB for most applications.

Sorry to hear about your car accident/PB loss, but glad to hear that you'll at least get to replace the PB!

Good luck!