!!! 12-inch PowerBook G4 Wanted !!!

[georgelien]

I'm thinking about upgrading my iBook G4 to a 12-inch PowerBook G4, but I need you to share you experience with me.

1. Please tell me what you like and dislike about your machine.

2. Would you've gotten a 15-inch PowerBook instead? Why, or why not?

Please advise.

Thank you!


Best Regards,

George Lien

 

[Viro]

Pros:
===========
1) Smallest Mac around.
2) Fast enough. But then, so are most of the Mac portables these days.
3) Unlike the iBooks (unless you flash them), they support an external monitor as an extension of the desktop area, rather than a mirror. Also, you can have a higher resolution on the external monitor.
4) Bluetooth and wireless built in by default.
5) Beautiful Aluminum chassis.

Cons
==========
1) No gigabit ethernet. Sure, not everyone uses them, but these are available on the 15" and 17" and it would be nice to have them on the 12" as well.
2) Firewire 400 instead of 800. I'm not too bothered by this since I don't have any firewire devices. It might be an issue to others though.
3) No PCMCIA slot. Again, it doesn't bother me unless I run Linux on it. But it shouldn't be too big an issue.
4) The chassis is made of aluminum. This means it gets quite hot. Also, if you live in a dry climate and have static electricity build up, this could give you mild electric shocks unless you ground yourself before touching your machine . This affects all Powerbooks though.
5) Battery life isn't as good as the iBooks. But then this also affects all powerbooks.

 

[Mephisto]

I concur with everything Viro stated. I would have really liked FW800 for my external drives. I can live without it but I would say that was my biggest let down between the 12 and 15 inch PBs.

Adding to that I would have liked the backlit keyboard that is in the 15" PB but not the 12".

Battery life is pretty good for me at around 4 hours if I do not use the optical drive.

Finally you should consider screen real estate. If you are not used to the screen size it takes some adjustment. My previous laptops were a Fujitsu P5000 (stolen) and an IBM X31 (now my secondary laptop) so I am used to it. It is a common complaint for others when they use my laptop though. OTOH you are coming from a 12" iBook so this point is largely moot I guess.

Overall size was very important to me so I do not regret getting the 12".

 

[pipermalibu]

I have to weigh in here....I have a 12" and 17" powerbook (both 1ghz models from ebay) and the 12" lasts 4 HOURS on a single charge. I have NO complaining about that. and its not a new battery, been charged hundreds of times already. I use the 17" as a desktop and take it with me between offices. I also use it for presentation of my photo work...it always impresses the clients. The 12" is much more portable, I throw it in my bag and away I go, can get in the net from any cafe etc. I also use a Targus bluetooth mouse with it. Very small and very portable. It has proven to be very durable.