powerbook or imac

[Foxer]

Hey all. I'm in the market for a new mac. Primarily for home use, occassional travel. However, the ability to carry it around the house would be great. Use would be for "ordinary" home consumer. Occassional use of FCP and (lite) Photoshop 7. Also, some gaming as the graphics chip will allow. I was sort of set on a iMac (probably 17 inch), but it occured to me that the partability of the 15 inch Powerbook would be real nice. (Nice - but not required).

So, my question is one of performance. Same processor speed, both superdrive, etc. Will there be a dramatic difference in response and performance? If so, in which machine's favor? Which graphics driver is better (and how much better)?

 

[kanker]

PowerBook. More cache, and more RAM capacity = faster Mac.

 

[Waluigi]

They preform the same, so it really comes down to price, portability, looks, and a few other minor differences in things like the keyboard (attached vs. seperate), firewire 800, and dvi-out. It's up to you which of those factors are most important, good luck, and enjoy your new mac!

--Waluigi

 

[waitingforG5]

What about buying a refurbished G5? You can get a 1.6 G5 from expercom for $1400.

 

[hvfsl]

Originally posted by Waluigi
They preform the same, so it really comes down to price, portability, looks, and a few other minor differences in things like the keyboard (attached vs. seperate), firewire 800, and dvi-out. It's up to you which of those factors are most important, good luck, and enjoy your new mac!

--Waluigi

The PowerBook is much faster in games, but other than that, they are pretty much the same speed. But as always, wait until after MacWorld before you buy, to see if they bring out any new Macs. I would never buy an iMac if you need a fast computer, because they are out of date when you buy them (only have a G4). The only reason the PowerBook is good, is because it is portable. I am waiting until the G5 PowerBooks come out before I get a new Mac, because the G4 Macs are too slow when you compare them to PCs.

 

[johnnyjibbs]

The PowerBook has a much better graphics card and has twice the processor cache so will perform better. However, the iMac has a faster hard drive. Both are extremely nice machines asthetically. You will have a little more screen estate on the iMac, but then I'm perfectly content with the 1024x768 on my 12" PB.

Personally I can't tell any performance difference between my new 2.4GHz P4 Dell and my 1GHz PB 12" G4 so I wouldn't worry too much about that. Certainly the G4 Macs are very capable at Photoshop and Final Cut Express, especially when you load them with RAM.

I have grown to like the portability of my PowerBook, and it's nice to be able to have the computer on your lap in the lounge sofa while watching TV or something. But then you could wait to see if there are iMac or G5 updates at MWSF...

 

[Dont Hurt Me]

Powerbook is a better machine----poor imac when will it get the love it deserves from Apple?

 

[revenuee]

Originally posted by Dont Hurt Me
Powerbook is a better machine----poor imac when will it get the love it deserves from Apple?

It has 20" screen now ... i think it has all the love it needs

Now the iMac is a more consumer oriented machine and the Powerbook is more Pro oriented, but obviously that shouldn't stop you either way.

Personally i hate being constrained by one room ... i would love to be able to move my computer from room to room and even a coffee shop when doing work since sometimes a change in surroundings really helps the creativity ...

The iMac is relatively easy tomove ... but you are always constrained by the need for a power cord

the powerbook will give you the option to take it onto your porch, or your backyard ... if it's a beautiful clear day, why waste it inside when you can work, and get a tan at the same time ...