iBook or PowerBook?
This question is bigger than pop socks and causing me a few moments of creating the classic thinker pose.
Should you get a iBook or a PowerBook? I’m after any one’s feed back and justification on this.
Before the standard ‘get a PowerBook; it’s better’ is rejoiced throughout the land here is the problem.
Next year I’m doing my end to end challenge, soon after that I’m planning a Wild Wales Challenge (or so it’s called) before these I hope to spend some time in France, then some more time after the events. Plus the standard UK events and venues I want to visit. Add to this using for work and general lazyness around the house. So all in all the machine will travel quite a bit, probably in a backpack or worse yet a support van or dark damp motel rooms (nice!). Would be nice to plug it into my display when at home but also needs to fit on the work desk at times. Wants to be man enough to cope with the abuse both from use and environment.
All I’m really after is something to store photo’s and music on, basic photo editing and uploading, mobile blogging and surfing and the odd bit of coding and flaffing with the site, more than likely end up doing more on it for work related projects.
To which the iBook is the cheaper and by accounts more robust, but the PowerBook is faster better and more shiny (thats a plus in my book) but the iBook leaves more in my pocket for something else…
Do I go for robust and hope it will survive longer than the machines spec’s or risk carrying a powerhouse around with me knowing if I knock it my heart will sink.
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I’m still using a G3 iBook as my main computer. It was three years old last month.
Does all the internet stuff, photo editing (PS Elements 2), a bit of iMovie, a lot of iTunes and even more iPhoto. My needs aren’t great - I use a Mac Mini for heavier video work and stuff the iBook chokes on, so I’m not comparing it with an iMac or G5 tower; but for day to day computing it’s been great.
It comes to work in a ruck sack and still gets oohs and aahs from my PC using friends.
James.
I have a G4 iBook thats a year 3 months old now. It still ticks liek new. I have it hooked up to an external 17inch monitor with the screen spanning doctor running. I use it for all my Graphics stuff (I’m doing graphic design at uni, I know my blog doesn’t really prove this yet, but it will!!) using CS suite and it handles it fine. i did wack some extra ram in it when I bought it though.
There are a couple of things to be considered:
1. The iBooks are rumoured to be the first up for the MacIntel switch next month in Steve’s keynote, boasting of a 13.3″ widescreen format. As with all Macs, 1st gen of a new Mac is not without its hiccups and it’ll be after a few more upgrades (again Apple’s track record) before you’ll have a flying product.
2. The current G4 Powerbooks is probably the best that you can get now, after going through cycles of upgrades. It won’t get any better than this, at least not until the MacIntel Powerbooks hits the market (1st gen rumoured to be out in mid ‘06). Again, there’s probably gonna be teething issues with the new Intel PBs and we’ll probably see a stable product towards end 2007.
In my case, I’m closing in on a PBG4 purchase anytime now coz it’s either now or an 18 month wait. The Powerbook is a workhorse and if you soup up the RAM and HDD rpms, I think it’ll hold its ground well into the 2nd gen PB’s (speed differential aside).
My 2.5 cents worth.
Thanks for the replies people. I have to admit I’m leaning more towards the iBook, for the price difference alone I could also get a mini!
But like you say Ka-Meng with the Intel-Macs on the horizon it does make you wonder, I did hear of a 13inch iBook option but also dropping the 12inch PB.
So many options, too many ideas.
Is there such a big price gap between the iBook and PBG4 that you could get a mini?
Edit: Just checked the Apple Store, you’re right. Hrmn maybe that is a better deal for you, but I would maybe wait for the Jan keynote for the rumoured release of Intel iBooks before committing to an iBook purchase.
IMO, the 12 PB is really just for portability, as its max res is only 1024×768, not a good point in my books if I’m doing graphics work.
Yeah I think as it is only just round the corner wait and see what uncle Steve has to offer. My only concern is the software side of things with the Intel machines, do I really want to invest all over again.
I’m still seriously thinking of the mini idea, if you search enough you can find a way of running FrontRow on the current mini, could this be a replacement to my dvd player?
If i’m not mistaken, FrontRow is now available as an independent app already and not iMac specific, and you don’t have to use the hack that first came out to get it running on other Macs.
If you already have pre-existing Mac software, I think they should still work on the new Intel machines with the Rosetta engine. It’s more the speed and efficiency of the Rosetta transalation with the 1st gen Intel Macs. However, I think Photoshop does not the new Intel Macs, at least not for now.
Both Macs look completely sweet and I’m in the same problem… but by now the iBook it’s cheap, robust and beautiful… could be a good present for xmas ^^
I’ve owned both the iBook and the Powerbook. Took both over to Iraq. The iBook’s keyboard was less to be desired. I would go with the Powerbook just for the backlit keyboard. It’s been great when sharing rooms.
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