Powerbook or iBook and Mac Mini?

[Chrispy]

Hello all. As many of you know my journey to a working Mac has been long and hard. I am now the happy owner of a new Rev. D 12" Powerbook When I was buying a laptop I wanted one that I could hook to my 19" LCD display. I did not go with an iBook because it was not best suited for this type of activity. However, I find myself using the laptop out of home much more than I expected. I have noticed that hooking the laptop back up to the display is quite the task. I have to plug in all the cables again and then sometimes when I go to hook up the monitor the mouse pointer disappears! This take some tweaking around with to finally make it come back and gets very old.

My question is will I hurt the powerbook if I continue to plug and unplug the mini-DVI adapter every day? I use the computer for web surfing, web design, e-mail, Office 2004 for mac, music (listening not creation), and watching movies. Would it be to my benefit to take advantage of the new Mac Mini and use that for home use and get an iBook for the road? I know both would probably be fast enough for me and if I sell my Powerbook I could get almost enough money to get both and break even. Is this something I should consider or do you all think I will be ok with my current setup? Just looking for some constructive opinions from a very well informed group of mac users Thanks all!

 

[joetronic]

I don;t think it would hurt the pb, but i'm not really sure.

I would go with the mini and the iBook myself. then you would have two machines if needed, and you could just leave the mini on all the time and not have to worry about connecting all the cabels every time you want to have a computer with you.

 

[cyanide]

go iBook and Mini. It is such a better idea to have two computers. Plus.. depending on how much you spent on your powerbook you could be SAVING money. 12" iBook with edu discount ="949" Mini="499+60for Ram=559" you are 1508 before tax...i know your powerbook cost at least 1499, if not more.. depending on what you did..

 

[Chrispy]

Hm so far two votes for the mini and iBook. I am becoming tempted to do this... anyone interested in the powerbook in my signature for around $1400 shipped Keep the opinions coming

 

[Chrispy]

Someone brough up a good point in the thread for the sale of this item (https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/111149/) that I should have thought about my purchase more before buying. I agree that purchases should be given a good amount of thought before being made. However, at the time I bought my first powerbook (it took 3 bad ones before I got one from apple that worked) the Mac Mini was not even out yet. Had it been, I would have thought more about what to buy. Also, I did not anticipate taking my mac with me as much as I do and I would hate to cause harm to it by plugging and un plugging cables all the time. I just wanted to address this point on this thread where it can have fair treatment. Thanks for your opinions all

 

[joey4127]

iBook and Mac Mini. I have the 1.42Ghz 80gig Mac Mini and it is great. It is my only computer and i am satisfied with it.

 

[Platform]

The best PB that you can affoard.
With the PB you can hock it up to yoor current monitor and have a dual setup right out of the box
Also I like the PB a lot with the Al case

 

[devman]

I plug/unplug DVI on my PB ALL the time. If that's the only reason, then there's no reason to change.

Beyond that a 2 system setup (mini and laptop) gives you some redundancy (e.g. if your laptop is lost or away for repair or whatever, then you still have a home system to work on). A 2 system setup also gives you need to sync your data between them so that you get that redundancy.

 

[dotdotdot]

I think Im getting the PowerBook...

...I have the same situation as you, I believe. I want to get the baseline 12" powerbook and hook it up to my 19" Samsung Syncmaster 910t and take it portable as well...

... I don't think it would hurt it if you unplugged the mini-DVI -> DVI often, as it IS made to be portable... Apple wouldn't make it so that you would hurt the system if you unplugged it - however, don't yank it out with all your might, take it out safely.

 

[Jsmit]

Your PowerBook is more powerful than either the iBook or Mini, though looking at your uses the iBook and Mini should serve you well. I guess the question is, do you want more power or more computers? I personally would stick with the PowerBook.

 

[thequicksilver]

Go for the iBook and mini. The iBooks are surprisingly nippy, as are the minis from what I've heard.

I've used my iBook for quite a few things recently which most would say I'd need a Powerbook for - namely DV editing in iMovie and DVD creation in iDVD - and it's worked great. From the uses you say you're going to get out of it, the extra few MHz won't make too dramatic a difference. Having a backup machine is also a lifesaver if you have any trouble with the notebook (they're so easy to drop etc).

 

[ShadowHunter]

Don't bother changing out your PowerBook. The iBook is a nice machine...but I think doing that + a Mac Mini would feel like a step down. It is no issue at all for the changing of plugs a lot. I connect multiple monitors several times a week on my 15" PBook and I have no problems, it has been a very sturdy machine. I find I enjoy having all-in-one computer way more than multiple computers. I think you would find you would still end up using your iBook 95% of the time, and then be disappointed with the downgrade.

 

[elva]

display

ya keep the the powerbook i have a 15" powerbook and i use an apple 20" dipslay with it .. my QUESTION is though should i turn my computer off when i unhook my display form my powerbook or it is okay for both my Powerbook and Display if they are on or asleep when i diconect them .. thank you .. KEEP YOUR POWERBOOK


1.25pbook 1gig ram superdrive 40gig i pod 512 shufffle
1ghz imac 256 ram

 

[Chrispy]

Wow this is a very divided thread. I love this site becuase most everyone is very constructive in their opinions. I think my job may have just answered my question on what to do. I telecommute from Valparaiso to my job in Indianapolis during the months I am not there at a time. For awhile I was able to do some of my work on my mac and then use the PC for just database work in Access. Now, I have just been informed I need to use my PC for everything work related This means my mac will now just be used for very basic tasks and note taking. I could save some money by just going with an iBook and saying goodbye to my much beloved powerbook. Since I will not need to use the external monitor for my mac anymore I think it would be best for me to save the $400 bucks or so. I really do not even need to get a mac mini anymore nice I will be using the PC the majority of the time anyways I really appreciate everyone's feedback and feel free to keep the comments coming

 

[rosalindavenue]

I think having two macs and keeping them synched (or passing files from one to the other) would be a lot more of a pain than plugging the powerbook into the monitor. Once I got a laptop at home I never touched my desktop again unless my wife was using the laptop. If you have a book and a mini you'll have to pick one for downloading photos and ripping cds/ buying itunes, etc. Eventually I predict you'll use the ibook 95% of the time, so you'll have all your data with you whereever you are.

 

[jaromski]

hey man

just keep your powerbook. if it is working now you would be wise to keep it and hook an external display for extra screen real estate. plus the pb has better specs and less entropy with one system than keeping two in sync. and plugging/unplugging the mini-dvi connector won't hurt it.

i just upped to a 15" pb from the 12" rev. c and it is my favorite computer now. i have x86 desktops that are faster but i still prefer using the mac pb for everything.

anyway i would just keep your current rig and get a nice display. dell makes a pretty decent flat panel for $600-$700. i talked my mom into getting rid of her old PC and switching over to a 12" pb + dell 20". it is a pretty sweet setup, plus she has the option to take her computer with her on a whim.

plus i would wait for them to up the components in the mini. it is a cool computer but not a good buy IMO until it has 64meg VRAM std and a 5400rpm drive.

just my .02-

-jaromski

 

[dm33186]

it shouldn't hurt it at all, some of the profs at the school i go to hook up monitors multiple times a day to their notebooks wether they are powerbooks or pc laptops. I think with DVI though its a good idea to turn it off before doing the plug. If i remember hearing right there is a 5V line in the dvi cable whereas vga is not powered in that way. Might be worth looking into further.