Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

PowerBook or Tower?

P

pc_convert?

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jan 18, 2002
171
0
UK
I'm planning to buy my first mac in July after MWNY.

The problem is should I get a PowerBook or Tower?

I've never had a laptop but I like the idea of being able to work anywhere, but I don't like the lack of expandability(my PC roots...)

The Towers look cool and are expandable and will always be faster than the laptops.

I mainly plan to use the Mac for software development and the odd game. I don't know if I'd ever use a superdrive for burning DVD's but you never know...

I'd appreciate advice from anyone about the various pro's and con's especially if you have both a tower and powerbook (lucky ?%*&£^s).
 
Developers

Apple has a special store for developers, infact, I am a member of it :D

I made a custom G4 Tower 933MHz. I dropped the SuperDrive (didnt need it) and I downgraded to a Radeon 7500, because it was stronger in most areas of gaming. I also dropped the modem.

Now, this put me at a price of 1579. But, Apple has a new Promo standing right now. 300 dollars off a 933, or 1GHz G4!

That means it is only 1279 for an awesome machine.
I wondered how much it would cost to get a nice 17in Apple Display to go along with it. Well, from the dev store, the display costs 799. But, there is a special deal where if you buy a tower and a display, get 200 dollars off!

This put you 600 dollars higher.

Now were at 1879 for the 933MHz tower, and the 17in display. If you want, add an iPod for 219 (319 standard minus the 100 dollar music deal)

For the PowerBook, here is what I came up with.

From the dev store, its 1999 for the standard 667MHz model. Its nice to be portable, but you will get more life with a tower.
 
I love the powerbook because of it allows me to work anywhere, (eg. at school or on a train) where most people sit reading a book or news paper I sit there and use my tibook. Where as the tower has alot more power (Dual800) and is much more useful because it has the extra expandiblity and is so much cheaper (for instance I have put 3 120 gb HDs in my Tower and it cost just over £200 for the drives) I could never afford to upgrade the drives in my Powerbook, they are just toooooo expensive.

Ensign
 
MacWorld, I think, had an article way back, which was similar to a questionaire, that helped determine which computer was right for you. I didn't really like it that much.

So let me put it straight. If you are looking for raw power and speed, get a PowerMac. If you want something fast but cheap, get an iMac or an eMac. If you absolutely need to go portable and you still want a lot of power and speed, get a Powerbook. If you need portablilty, but just something light, get an iBook. That is basically the way I see it.
__________________

Any time is a great time for iPod.
Working on 500 post signature...
 
Developer

TBA (to become a) member, you go to Apple's Developers Section on their website. Click on the Members button, and it will link you to a new page. From there, on the left side of the screen, there will be a button that says Join ADC (Apple Developer Connection). It will link you to another page, and on the left of that page, you will see a join section. Its all you from there ;)
 
i am a member since jan 2002

I didnt know there is a discount for developers..MacAztec, thank you for the Info. Where is the Store section in the apple developer section? I download dev tools and SDK's, never realized there is s tore..i could not locate either
 
so macaztec, you paid 99 for student, or 500 for select?

i guess even if you pay the 500, it's worth it with a purchase....

this seems too good to be true. what's the catch???
 
Originally posted by jelloshotsrule
so macaztec, you paid 99 for student, or 500 for select?

i guess even if you pay the 500, it's worth it with a purchase....

this seems too good to be true. what's the catch???
Click to expand...

Huh? What do you mean 99 for student or 500 for select?
 
Originally posted by MacAztec


Huh? What do you mean 99 for student or 500 for select?
Click to expand...

that's the thing, i'm not really sure. i guess i just joined, but it's hard to tell....

if you go to the developer's section... and look under purchase. you'll see "memberships" and there are a few different types... including select and premier...

so then i guess you never paid at all? have you ever bought anything with the developer's price?

if so.... isn't this too good to be true??? someone tell me the catch.
 
Get the powerbook

I have the same problem right now, I have a Pismo (PB G3500) and a G4 400 tower.

I work with audio and video and I'm making the transition from PCI cards to Firewire devices (to be able to use them with the PB too).

The problem is that for $3000 (aprox) I can get dual 1.4Ghz or one 800Mhz portable.

If I am a software developer I would take the Powerbook, because I can take it any where (of curse) and I do not need PCI ports.

If you get the tower you would be getting more speed but NO MOBILITY and that is bad.

If I have to choose between my tower G4 400 or my PB G3 500 I get the Powerbook, even having a G4 700 Mhz tower.

I produce more with the powerbook, I mean, it resolve more, it is more versatile. If I need to burn something, I get a Firewire drive, I won't burn things all the time, I can have that drive in the office or in my house.
 
I've been a member of the ADC for some time now, but didn't know about the store. Had I known, I would have purchased my TiBook that way. Oh well, live and learn. I do know that I will go that way when it is time for another Mac system though.
 
i dont think we will get any discount using free membership in ADC.. the front page says "
NOTE: The person placing the order must have at least one "ADC Hardware Discount" asset on his/her Manage Assets page in the ADC Member Site or the order will not be processed.
MacAztec, can u clairfy ?
 
Originally posted by jaykk
i dont think we will get any discount using free membership in ADC.. the front page says "
NOTE: The person placing the order must have at least one "ADC Hardware Discount" asset on his/her Manage Assets page in the ADC Member Site or the order will not be processed.
MacAztec, can u clairfy ?
Click to expand...

i saw that too. so i was very skeptical. i pm'd macaztec about it all, no response yet though.
 
Originally posted by jelloshotsrule
so macaztec, you paid 99 for student, or 500 for select?

i guess even if you pay the 500, it's worth it with a purchase....

this seems too good to be true. what's the catch???
Click to expand...

Ok, here is the rundown on the ADC discount...

To join ADC is free, this gives you some very minimal benefits such as forums for developers.

If you are a college/university student over 18 you can join the student ADC program for a $99 annual fee. This gives you developer toolkits, some special developer software, and sometimes early access to software in development. They also throw in a copy of OSX, and I think they may have mailed CDs of all the updates so far for free. The big plus here is the hardware discount. You get one (per lifetime, yes per lifetime) discount of approx. 20% at the Apple Developer Store. By the way, when you place an order you are supposed to send proof of registration in developer related courses (I don't know if they actually check or not).

Those who are not students can join "select membership" for $500, and they recieve all the benefits of students, more early software, and hardware discounts (these discounts are renewable annually w/membership). There are more benefits, but I'm not sure exactly what they are.

There is also a "Premier" Membership for $3500, which gets you 10 hardware discounts a year, I believe. This membership is obviously not intended for individuals.

I hope that answers some questions about the hardware discount.
 
elan 0204

ok, that explains some of it. i think macaztec must not have ever bought anything with it...

question then.... do you haave to show some sort of development to get the 2 higher memberships?...

thanks for the info.
 
Originally posted by jelloshotsrule

ok, that explains some of it. i think macaztec must not have ever bought anything with it...

question then.... do you haave to show some sort of development to get the 2 higher memberships?...

thanks for the info.
Click to expand...


This pdf gives a brief comparison of the three ADC programs...
http://developer.apple.com/membership/pdf/adcprograms.pdf

I was wrong about the "Select Membership" hardware discount. You don't automatically get a discount, you have to become a member and then renew one year later to get any discount. The "Premier Membership" gives 10 disounts per year. I don't think you actually need to prove that you have software in development to join (I highly doubt it, the point of the program is to encourage people to start to develop).

Here is a little more info direct from Apple:
The ADC Hardware Purchase Program allows ADC Members with ADC Hardware Discount assets (these are included in Premier memberships, Select renewals*, and occasionally as part of special promotions) to purchase Apple hardware at a significant discount to use for development purposes.

ADC Premier members receive ten (10) "ADC Hardware Discount" assets each membership year. We make ADC Hardware Discount assets available to Select members who have renewed and occasionally for special promotions.

Each asset represents one system purchase. With each system purchase you may also include peripherals such as a monitor, adaptor, or an iPod (you are limited to one of each peripheral per system purchased). These hardware discount assets are transferable to other employees or contractors at your company. You may even transfer a hardware discount asset to a colleague in a different region.

Please note that the ordering process and policies differ slightly in each region around the world due to local sales and distribution policies and may not be available in all regions.

*Hardware discounts are not included as a benefit of Select membership. However, Select members who renew their ADC membership after one year become eligible to receive one (1) hardware discount as a thank you for their commitment to Apple platforms. To qualify for this renewal hardware discount, Select members must renew before the expiration date of their current membership. If you let your Select membership lapse and join again at a later date, you will not be eligible to receive a Select renewal hardware discount.

Let me know if you've got more questions.
 
Here in northern California it's hard not to get laptop-lust. Seems like every other coffeeshop is going 802.11b.

Sit down, order a latte, and up your MacRumors post-count wirelessly...
 
I love the portability of my TiBook...

I can take it with me anywhere...it's small...powerful....does everything that I need it to...and it looks great! :D

there are some obvious reasons why I would pick a tower over it though...the main being upgradability...u need to decide what's important....portability or upgradability...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back