What do YOU want out of the new iBook?

[sintaxi]

Well, watching a DVD on a train is a bit of a bugger if you have to plug in an external drive just to do it, as is watching a DVD on a plane where the use of outboard peripherals is prohibited.

When traveling it's nice to have everything built in, no arsing about with an external CD drive when you want to burn some CD's of your photos to send home.

Not to mention it would take up a port that can otherwise remain free.

Apple have shown they can build a complete laptop that is only 1" thin, I think with the little extra space the wider format would bring and by removing the modem (prematurely in my opinion - now I have to take another little port-sapping dongle with me just because Apple think every hotel/conference centre/public place has high-speed net access - but that's not a topic for here) I think it could be possible to build a laptop as sturdy and as light as the iBook but in a case about 1.1 or 1.2 inches thick.

ok. those are all good points. but a PB or a MBP would do all those things you described.

I would just like to see the iBook (macbook) it own thing. with its own advantages. not just a poor mans MBP.

I would rather have an extra RAM slot than an optical.
less weight, longer bat, and thinner. seams like a good trade off to me.

but no one has yet to agree with me so I will shut up now.

 

[sigamy]

I'm split on the sub-notebook idea. I'd love a smaller iBook mini, but there definetly are times when an internal optical drive would be best....decisions, decisions.

I was recently on a plane and the guy next to me had some Wintel sub-notebook. It was pure white like an iBook and he was watching episodes of "The Office" in iTunes for Windows. It really made me wish Apple made a sub-note.

 

[revfife]

1. We can forget about any type of "metal" enclosure. (Remember we want Apple to lower the price not raise it)
2. Probably not going to have screen mirroring support still (Takes away MBP sales)

So what does that leave us?
I see:
Only one model initially:
Revised form factor
1.5 Core Solo
64 x1300
512 MB expandable to 1.5
60 GB HD expandable to 100 GB
13" widescreen format
Magsafe
...and the most important thing: Available in your choice of White or Black

 

[jefhatfield]

1. We can forget about any type of "metal" enclosure. (Remember we want Apple to lower the price not raise it)
2. Probably not going to have screen mirroring support still (Takes away MBP sales)

So what does that leave us?
I see:
Only one model initially:
Revised form factor
1.5 Core Solo
64 x1300
512 MB expandable to 1.5
60 GB HD expandable to 100 GB
13" widescreen format
Magsafe
...and the most important thing: Available in your choice of White or Black

i can envision a core duo if the price of the chip comes down by then, and have number and choice of ports and screen size be the major differences between an ibook and a macbook pro

before the macbook pro, the ibook and the powerbook shared the same processor and offered different ports and choices of ports and screens

by design the macbook pro should have at least one more port than the ibook to justify the price difference

maybe a very rudimentary ibook with core duo and combo drive could be at $999 usd, and varying upgrades from $1299 on up with superdrives, more ram, widescreen lcd formats, and larger hard drives

i think the dual core, low voltage laptop pentiums are going to become a standard among laptops at nearly every price point

 

[jefhatfield]

ok. those are all good points. but a PB or a MBP would do all those things you described.

I would just like to see the iBook (macbook) it own thing. with its own advantages. not just a poor mans MBP.

I would rather have an extra RAM slot than an optical.
less weight, longer bat, and thinner. seams like a good trade off to me.

but no one has yet to agree with me so I will shut up now.

if targeted to students and everyday home users like me, (not hard core gamers), then the small size, durable plastic body, and good battery time could make the ibook its own machine capable of satisfying most of that market

it's already a given that an ibook can run photoshop well enough and run other adobe/macromedia apps with relative ease, but it would be great for apple to shoot for a sub-4 lb. battery life road champ in their new ibook

so maybe a single low voltage pentium processor would be more appropriate

 

[Chundles]

ok. those are all good points. but a PB or a MBP would do all those things you described.

I would just like to see the iBook (macbook) it own thing. with its own advantages. not just a poor mans MBP.

I would rather have an extra RAM slot than an optical.
less weight, longer bat, and thinner. seams like a good trade off to me.

but no one has yet to agree with me so I will shut up now.

But I can't afford a PowerBook or a MacBook Pro, I don't want to have to sacrifice ultimate usability when I don't have to. I'm fine with paying less for a less capable machine so long as it can do everything I need it to do with a minimum of fuss but I do not want to have to pay the $1500 difference just to be able to use a laptop as a properly featured computer.

Apple have shown they can make a thinner MacBook with all the features, with new materials and more space they'd easily be able to do the same for the iBook replacement whilst keeping the simplicity of the "everything included" form factor.

 

[Epicurus]

If the iBooks get an iSight built in like the MacBooks (which seems very likely), then Apple should at least offer the smallest model (12") without the camera. If the iSight 12" hits the old price point of $999, then the iSight-free 12" should come in at $899 or less. Front Row might be hard to avoid, but still, knocking out the camera should drop the base model iBook a good bit below $1000.

It may not be the "iBook mini" people have been wanting, but a really inexpensive Apple laptop should sell like hotcakes leading up to the start of Fall term 2006. If Apple is really aggresive about cutting features we might really see the 20-25% thickness reduction rumored about the Intel PowerBooks...

 

[stefan15]

Widescreen (13/14") and a fast processor preferrably low voltage with 2mb cache. Core Solo? If that hasn't been announced yet, I can't see Intel using it in the iBook. I'm going to assume they are under production currently and will be using a Core Duo.

 

[Elrond39]

Somehow I don't see Apple putting in a Core Solo, considering that many new WinTel laptops are utilizing the Core Duos... Apple prides itself on being cutting-edge, and so I don't think that a Solo will achieve that aim while also pleasing consumers.

Moreover, I don't see Apple using an external drive... I own an Acer Travelmate C110 TCi convert-able tablet laptop, and the external was the first to go. I've had so many issues with the drive, the connector, etc etc. Apple is about ease of use, and I think that an iBook (MacBook [-Express], whatever) should maintain that, and an external is not the way to do it. Unless the 12" would be ultra-portable, and the 13.3" widescreen not... In all fairness, I would love for it to be thin, but I wouldn't sacrifice the simplicity of a built-in drive for it.

And, yes, I expect the black and white option as well.

 

[macg4]

The new ibook pro.....

I beleive it shoudl have the following:
-Core Duo processor
-13" lcd and also 14" screen option
-512mb ddr standard memory
-80gb sata internal hd
-128mb ati mobile video card
-built in airport extreme
-choice of ethier cd drive/ cdr-w& dvd combo/ or cdr/dvd-r combo drive
-credit card size remote for front row, etc.. that clips in the side of the ibook.

I have owned 3 ibooks in the past and loved em all, hope they make me wanna buy another one!

Well thats all i got

 

[weldon]

I just want to pile on and say that I think the idea of offering the iBook in glossy white and glossy black (like the iPod) is a great idea.

 

[iGary]

A usable LCD.

 

[Val-kyrie]

Your wish may come true

1. We can forget about any type of "metal" enclosure. (Remember we want Apple to lower the price not raise it)
2. Probably not going to have screen mirroring support still (Takes away MBP sales)

So what does that leave us?
I see:
Only one model initially:
Revised form factor
1.5 Core Solo
64 x1300
512 MB expandable to 1.5
60 GB HD expandable to 100 GB
13" widescreen format
Magsafe
...and the most important thing: Available in your choice of White or Black

This sounds very much like what I expect Apple to release in the early/late Spring.

However, what I want is at least one revision away.

14.1" widescreen
2.0 GHz Core-Duo Merom chip
MRX1600 256 MB
1GB DDR2 667 MHz RAM
80GB 7200 RPM HDD
DVD+/- RW DL
Modem
S-Video
Hardware Wi-Fi switch to turn it on/off
4 USB 2.0 ports
1 Firewire 400
Digital audio in/out
HDMI/Digital video in/out
Express Card/34 slot AND
PCI Card slot Type I/II

Of course this sounds more like a MacBook Pro, but I can dream, can't I???
Actually, the first revision of the MBP should receive the MRX1800-it should be released by then.

 

[yankeefan24]

I posted this in another thread:

…MacPortable will be something for the 30th. available in 5 colors (white, black, metallic black, platinum, and aluminium.) 11,13, or 15" widescreen, airport extreme, bluetooth, 802.11n maybe, wireless card (you choose between service like verizon/vodafone, cingular,etc.). It will be light(er) than the ibook and powerbook(MBP), 1" thin, switchable bay (like switch between superdrive, dl superdrive, and extra hdd, battery etc.) core duo available for 13 and standard on 15, core solo for 11 and 13 standard. It would NOT be a pro laptop so its not a MBP, but its more designed for travel then ibook (MB).
…
the MacPortable would have 6 hours of battery plus the expandable bay to 15 hours. And will automatticly turn off what your not using (if no airports are available, it goes into low power standby, etc.)

i think sony makes a good sub-compact notebook, with an internal optical drive (im not sure if its actually sub compact) http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...VAIONotebookComputers_TXSeries&Dept=computers
if apple could make something like that…i would buy. it wouldn't be as nice as the MacPortable but i would settle for that.

EDIT: I kno that would be more expensive than the current ibook, but im saying as an additional laptop line. i never really liked to ibook (too slow, too thick, too small hdd, etc.) but if apple made an sub-compact laptop i would probably buy.

 

[shrimpdesign]

Somehow I don't see Apple putting in a Core Solo, considering that many new WinTel laptops are utilizing the Core Duos... Apple prides itself on being cutting-edge, and so I don't think that a Solo will achieve that aim while also pleasing consumers.

Pleasing customers? You mean, like in price? The Core Solo will most likely be less $$ than the Duo, that means a better price for consumers.... sounds like the iBook to me. MacBook Pros will have power, MacBooks will be cheaper. They'll use the same processor as the Mac Mini. You people are setting the bar way to high for the MacBook. Personally I think it'll turn out like this:

* 1Ghz - 1.6Ghz Core Solo (if the Solos are indeed released by Intel before the end of the year)
* 60GB HD
*ATI video X1xxx series, lower than the X1600.
*Glossy like the iPod to appeal to that market. (hoping for a brushed metal bottom)
*Widescreen 13.1 and 14 or 15(?)
*built-in iSight (I'm betting this'll be standard in apple displays and all-in-one computers by the end of the year.
* remote and front row (perhaps optional?)
* optical drive, combo no superdrive

Apple won't get rid of the optical drive, OS X comes on DVD, same with tons of software. That being said, I think with the Intel transition (meaning cooler processors), I think we'll see a Apple PDA/Tablet sometime without an optical drive. But we'll see if that happens.