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Powerbook and iBook owner regrets
- Thread starter cooknwitha
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witness said:Everyone is different and has their own reasons for what they buy. I could never buy an iBook, it just doesn't have the features that I need, but lots of people do and are very happy.
Regret is usually a bad thing, you should always try to be happy with what you have.
Thanks to all those who took time to reply to this thread. The different reasons are equally valid and insightful. Like the original poster stated, only the purchaser decides in the end, but the opinions of others are very much appreciated. I know that reading such messages is helping to shape the eventual direction I will go in.
15" Powerbook owner, and absolutely no regrets. It is possibly the best machine I have ever used.
PB, and no regrets other than i wish i had became a mac user earlier. I suffered with windows until Win2000. No regrets on the switch or the PB.
I own both
Brought a new 1.5GHZ PB last summer for scriptwriting. It did what I needed it for, and was perfect, as I needed something portable, and big enough to display 2 pages on screen at the same time, and also capable of handling small scale video editing. (for working with tapes of improv sessions)
It's earned its money back.
Then I brought a second hand 700MHZ ibook 12" for my partner (£350), and its actually kinda become my own now
The 15'' PB is now kinda my home computer, as it's just a bit too big and heavy to move around easily, and when I go travelling, I take the 12'' ibook.
The ibook is perfect for pulling out on London buses and Tubes and trains and in cafes/ coffee shops, it's the right size for my lap. The 15'' PB is too flash and big, I worry that it will attract attention and get stolen. the ibook is much more unobtrusive.
Now, the PB is kinda stuck on my desk, as at any one time it will have a combination of mouse, keyboard, external monitor, mike, printer, webcam, still camera, video camera, ethernet, scanner,power lead, external 300GB drive, or all of them plugged in at the same time (!)
[I have wireless, but sometimes I plug in the ethernet as well for big transfers or modifying the ASDL router/firewall settings...]
I have no regrets about buying the PB; I would have never finished the script without it, and the money I earned from the script paid for it. I'm very happy to own one of the sweetest sexiest laptops in the whole world
That it does so much on my desktop now is testament to what a good machine it is is, the incredible expansion capablities that Apple laptops have, and it's still capable of pretty heavy video work.
Now, with a decent iMac and Mac Mini available, I would probably go for the cheapest second hand iBook I could find (cheap means less worry about taking it out, having it stolen) plus for a desktop the cheapest that meets your budget/needs from the mac mini/ imac/ powermac range.
cheers
tomato
Brought a new 1.5GHZ PB last summer for scriptwriting. It did what I needed it for, and was perfect, as I needed something portable, and big enough to display 2 pages on screen at the same time, and also capable of handling small scale video editing. (for working with tapes of improv sessions)
It's earned its money back.
Then I brought a second hand 700MHZ ibook 12" for my partner (£350), and its actually kinda become my own now
The 15'' PB is now kinda my home computer, as it's just a bit too big and heavy to move around easily, and when I go travelling, I take the 12'' ibook.
The ibook is perfect for pulling out on London buses and Tubes and trains and in cafes/ coffee shops, it's the right size for my lap. The 15'' PB is too flash and big, I worry that it will attract attention and get stolen. the ibook is much more unobtrusive.
Now, the PB is kinda stuck on my desk, as at any one time it will have a combination of mouse, keyboard, external monitor, mike, printer, webcam, still camera, video camera, ethernet, scanner,power lead, external 300GB drive, or all of them plugged in at the same time (!)
[I have wireless, but sometimes I plug in the ethernet as well for big transfers or modifying the ASDL router/firewall settings...]
I have no regrets about buying the PB; I would have never finished the script without it, and the money I earned from the script paid for it. I'm very happy to own one of the sweetest sexiest laptops in the whole world
That it does so much on my desktop now is testament to what a good machine it is is, the incredible expansion capablities that Apple laptops have, and it's still capable of pretty heavy video work.
Now, with a decent iMac and Mac Mini available, I would probably go for the cheapest second hand iBook I could find (cheap means less worry about taking it out, having it stolen) plus for a desktop the cheapest that meets your budget/needs from the mac mini/ imac/ powermac range.
cheers
tomato
I have a 15" rev b PB, and zero regrets, best computer i have ever owned - previous were pc's that i pieced together.
recently i also bought a 12" dual usb ibook g3 800 and it is very nicely running tiger.
recently i also bought a 12" dual usb ibook g3 800 and it is very nicely running tiger.
I've had both an iBook G3 and a PowerBook G4.
I had ZERO regrets with neither.
Well, with the iBook G3, I kind of wish I could have gotten a refurb from apple so I could have the box and disks, but THE PRICE WAS SO RIGHT! ($500, I talked it down from $650. OH YEA!) But with the actual machine, it fit my needs perfectly.
< goob >
My PowerBook G4... I regret that I cried for an hour after winning it.
OK, I think I had a valid reason for crying-- I was sick, pretty hungry, EXHAUSTED, and I WON A FREAKING POWERBOOK. Come on, wouldn't you?
But *drooling* the PowerBook is ONE HOT MOMMA! I love it! It fits my needs even more perfectly than that G3 iBook. The G4 processor is LOVE!!!
The PowerBook is just so shiny.... and 15" screen... and fast and shiny...
< /goob >
So, no I have no (real) regrets about my iBook or PowerBook.
I had ZERO regrets with neither.
Well, with the iBook G3, I kind of wish I could have gotten a refurb from apple so I could have the box and disks, but THE PRICE WAS SO RIGHT! ($500, I talked it down from $650. OH YEA!) But with the actual machine, it fit my needs perfectly.
< goob >
My PowerBook G4... I regret that I cried for an hour after winning it.
OK, I think I had a valid reason for crying-- I was sick, pretty hungry, EXHAUSTED, and I WON A FREAKING POWERBOOK. Come on, wouldn't you?
But *drooling* the PowerBook is ONE HOT MOMMA! I love it! It fits my needs even more perfectly than that G3 iBook. The G4 processor is LOVE!!!
The PowerBook is just so shiny.... and 15" screen... and fast and shiny...
< /goob >
So, no I have no (real) regrets about my iBook or PowerBook.
Powerbook 15" all the way, they look so good and the performance is'nt that bad either. I dont like the iBook as much does'nt look as slick, and i love the widescreen on the powerbook. The extra money was well worth it, I would'nt get an iBook unless your on a tight budget.
All people have a natural tendency to want to avoid cognitive dissonance, which basically means that they try to convince themselves of the wisdom of their decisions regardless of how torn they were before making the choice.
If it is very clear that we made a mistake or the person in question is highly self-critical, the defense against cognitive dissonance may be overridden, and that's when you get regret. But for the most part, we want to believe that we made the right choice, and we will skew our view of what we did so that even if the two choices seemed equally good at the time, we later see the one we went with as clearly better.
The point of this psych 101 lesson is just to say that you're unlikely to find a lot of people who feel that they made the wrong choice because they all convinced themselves otherwise after the fact (even if they were torn when they decided, which not all of these posters were).
If it is very clear that we made a mistake or the person in question is highly self-critical, the defense against cognitive dissonance may be overridden, and that's when you get regret. But for the most part, we want to believe that we made the right choice, and we will skew our view of what we did so that even if the two choices seemed equally good at the time, we later see the one we went with as clearly better.
The point of this psych 101 lesson is just to say that you're unlikely to find a lot of people who feel that they made the wrong choice because they all convinced themselves otherwise after the fact (even if they were torn when they decided, which not all of these posters were).
iBook now . . . Power Book in the future
I bought a G3 iBook when my Compaq laptop died. I switched to Mac because OSX really appealed to me. I bought more harddrive space and sacrificed the CD burner (no superdrives available then). I also bought addtl. 3rd party RAM. I love my iBook but I am beginning to need a little more out of my laptop.
When I buy a new PowerBook (this fall?), I am buying it because it has bluetooth built in, a superdrive, Airport Extreme, and (most of all) I can plug in an external monitor and increase my desktop space for when I am working at home. One thing I came to dislike about the iBook is that it only offers video "mirroring."
By getting a new 12" PowerBook, I can get everything I want in a laptop for the same price I paid for my iBook 3 1/2 years ago!
I will say though that I love my iBook and if I had it to do all over again, I would probably do exactly what I did (well maybe I would have waited three months for 10.2 to be released).
Eric
I bought a G3 iBook when my Compaq laptop died. I switched to Mac because OSX really appealed to me. I bought more harddrive space and sacrificed the CD burner (no superdrives available then). I also bought addtl. 3rd party RAM. I love my iBook but I am beginning to need a little more out of my laptop.
When I buy a new PowerBook (this fall?), I am buying it because it has bluetooth built in, a superdrive, Airport Extreme, and (most of all) I can plug in an external monitor and increase my desktop space for when I am working at home. One thing I came to dislike about the iBook is that it only offers video "mirroring."
By getting a new 12" PowerBook, I can get everything I want in a laptop for the same price I paid for my iBook 3 1/2 years ago!
I will say though that I love my iBook and if I had it to do all over again, I would probably do exactly what I did (well maybe I would have waited three months for 10.2 to be released).
Eric
QCassidy352 said:All people have a natural tendency to want to avoid cognitive dissonance, which basically means that they try to convince themselves of the wisdom of their decisions regardless of how torn they were before making the choice.
If it is very clear that we made a mistake or the person in question is highly self-critical, the defense against cognitive dissonance may be overridden, and that's when you get regret. But for the most part, we want to believe that we made the right choice, and we will skew our view of what we did so that even if the two choices seemed equally good at the time, we later see the one we went with as clearly better.
The point of this psych 101 lesson is just to say that you're unlikely to find a lot of people who feel that they made the wrong choice because they all convinced themselves otherwise after the fact (even if they were torn when they decided, which not all of these posters were).
For me as a Communication Design (graphic design, advertising) student a 17" PowerBook was the best and only way to go. Performance, Screen Real Estate and "Portability" (its more portable than anyother PC laptop with that screen size) was a winning combination.
iBook with absolutely no regrets. A PowerBook in my hands would now look like a ball of aluminum foil. The iBook takes physical abuse on buses, trains and planes. As for features, that's what my PowerMac is for.
Different angle now
For the iBook and Powerbook owners, is it your only machine? For those who have 1 machine and it's the laptop, does it do all you want?
I agree with what QCassidy352 said but surely someone's learned not to fool themselves
I guess my main quandry is for about 6 months, the laptop will be a machine with my G4 iMac but after that I'll be travelling and it will become my only machine.
Like leekohler, the strength of the iBook case is a big factor. Having never owned a laptop before, I don't know how much I can trust myself!! ARGH!
But getting back to the issue, who uses it as a primary machine?
For the iBook and Powerbook owners, is it your only machine? For those who have 1 machine and it's the laptop, does it do all you want?
I agree with what QCassidy352 said but surely someone's learned not to fool themselves
I guess my main quandry is for about 6 months, the laptop will be a machine with my G4 iMac but after that I'll be travelling and it will become my only machine.
Like leekohler, the strength of the iBook case is a big factor. Having never owned a laptop before, I don't know how much I can trust myself!! ARGH!
But getting back to the issue, who uses it as a primary machine?
cooknwitha said:
Yes, well, no. It was, but the latest computer I purchased was a desktop. I used my powerbook for nearly 3 years as my main machine and she has served me well, and will continue to.
cooknwitha said:
Having two computers you use can be annoying. One minute you'll be on one, doing this and that, then you stop... go do something, next time you fire up the laptop, and you can't get back to doing this and that from the other machine.
cooknwitha said:
I haven't really babied my powerbook, but she is still in great shape. I'm sure the iBook's case would stand up to much more punishment though, if you treat it well, it will treat you well.
cooknwitha said:
It's my one and only, I do have designs on a G5 iMac though...
It does everything I need it to and more. The only thing I wish I had is an external LCD. The 12" is more than enough for surfing, light web design etc, but watching DVDs I would appreciate a larger screen. I don't want a 15" or a 17", I like the überportability of the 12" just a larger screen for movie viewing.
Boy, do I have regrets
I've bought a 17" PB G4, a 12" PB G4 and a 12" iBook in the past 14 months. This week, I mailed in my 17" for the first warranty request of all of them. Guess what? I have scuff marks on the aluminum. They want US$974 to do any repairs! Unbelievable. I've posted pics on another thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/133047/
I've bought a 17" PB G4, a 12" PB G4 and a 12" iBook in the past 14 months. This week, I mailed in my 17" for the first warranty request of all of them. Guess what? I have scuff marks on the aluminum. They want US$974 to do any repairs! Unbelievable. I've posted pics on another thread: https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/133047/
My Powerbook is my only machine, I couldn't get rid of my PC fast enough after I got my Mac. Current laptops are more than powerful enough to replace desktops (IMHO). It is great for school because of the portabiltiy. After I am done school I plan on purchasing a 20" monitor and external HD for home use. I could easily get away with an iBook but I wanted a few features that the powerbook had and the iBook lacked. Audio line in jack, more vid RAM, ability to drive external monitor and I like the look of the Aluminum shell.
ibook as main computer
i've used ibooks extensively and i would highly recommend for 80% of the apps out there. for logic, final cut, and virtual pc it is possible but slow and a pb would be a recommended buy.
many people in this thread are under the impression that ibooks can't do dual monitors. in fact, with a small hack (works flawlessly) your ibook will do the same as a pb. i hook my 19" lcd up to my ibook all the time to watch movies on the big screen (not mirrored).
after seeing a couple years worth of customers with ibooks and pbs i'd recommend the durability of the ibook (scratches, wear, dropping) to the pb. but, that pb does have the best keyboard, screen, and overall visual appeal.
i've used ibooks extensively and i would highly recommend for 80% of the apps out there. for logic, final cut, and virtual pc it is possible but slow and a pb would be a recommended buy.
many people in this thread are under the impression that ibooks can't do dual monitors. in fact, with a small hack (works flawlessly) your ibook will do the same as a pb. i hook my 19" lcd up to my ibook all the time to watch movies on the big screen (not mirrored).
after seeing a couple years worth of customers with ibooks and pbs i'd recommend the durability of the ibook (scratches, wear, dropping) to the pb. but, that pb does have the best keyboard, screen, and overall visual appeal.
Yeah, I'm starting to re-convince myself on the iBook. One thing that I would like to have though is a Superdrive but I only want a 12" machine. But as a friend pointed out to me tonight, I could always get an external one and it's not like I'd be lugging it around everywhere.
My only concern is with the 4200rpm harddrive. To me that just seems quite slow and I'm trying to work out how that would effect some applications.
Ah well, the investigating is keeping me busy.
My only concern is with the 4200rpm harddrive. To me that just seems quite slow and I'm trying to work out how that would effect some applications.
Ah well, the investigating is keeping me busy.
i got a 12" powerbook sd a couple months ago, and i do sort of regret not going for the 12" ibook w/ upgrades...i love my powerbook, but i don't really know what i paid the premium for. if you're going to wait until the next ibook rev anyways, i'd get that. at worst, it'll reduce the already small performance gap between the ib and the pb.
on another note, i was surprised that nobody mentioned the bus speeds.
on another note, i was surprised that nobody mentioned the bus speeds.