15" G4 Powerbook 1.67

[mseydel]

Let me first say that I was not always a fan of the concept of the portable computer. as a graphic artist and retoucher, I've grown so accustomed to my graphics tablet and multiple displays as part of a necessary workspace that I really never saw much of the need for a laptop. Two years ago , I bought a G3 iBook 800, and my eyes were opened. Now that I've upped the ante with the new 15" powerbook, my only fear is that I may become an insomniac. The new 'book is the middle child in the most recent lineup of portabe G4s; the biggest difference between the 15" and the 12" in this go-around is that the 15" has backlit keys. I wasn't sure that I would care about this feature, but it actually comes in handy quite often. My only gripe is that the illumination is very uneven, and causes me to occasionally miss keys; this may be due to surrounding ambient light, or my own hands over the keys increasing the constrast.

Out of the box, it has 512 MB of PC2700 RAM in the lower slot; I'd recommend another 512 for the top. I suppose that depends on what you intend to use your 'book for; mine gets alot of Photoshop usage, so a GB of RAM creates decent performance, but nothing that will set any speed records. It comes with Airport Extreme and Bluetooth onboard,and a multitude of ports: firewire 400, 800, USB, USB 2.0, s-video,
DVI, analog audio in/out, as well as a v.92 modem port for those of you who still connect with wires. The hard drive is faster than I would have expected; Apple upgraded to 5,400-rpm drives over the previous 4,200-rpm
models, but it seems like every PowerBook in the new line sports a HD from a different manufacturer. The Sudden Motion Sensor was a big sell for me: I use my new machine for work, and I can't afford to lose any data. Sure I back it up, but buying the piece of mind that the hard drive will be parked and I'll save my data if I accidentally drop my 'book down a flight
of stairs was priceless.

All in all, it's a solid machine; I find that it's sturdy enough to travel with, and robust enough to use for production work.

 

[drunkmac]

Sounds sweet man. Hope you enjoy it and welcome to the powerbook/lime green ipod mini/made up just now club

 

[powermac]

Who would have thought that a Laptop would be so useful. Remember the early notebook computers? 20 minutes of battery life, small screens, etc.
Glad you enjoy your PB. I rely on mine so much, it is like my right arm.

 

[fryke]

"the biggest difference between the 15" and the 12" in this go-around is that the 15" has backlit keys" ... I'd say the biggest difference is really the screen real estate, though.

and powermac: My 'early' PowerBook 150 had 2.5 hours out of a battery. More in direct sunlight, as you could then turn off the backlighting. With an (also 'early') PowerBook 540, I could get about 6 hours of work-time, as it had two battery slots. I wish somebody would make current battery technology available to, say, a PowerBook 180. That would make one great typewriter nowadays.

 

[malexgreen]

What kind of battery life are you seeing with the 1.67GHz 15" powerbook G4? How long does it take to drain the battery when you are playing a DVD?

 

[pipermalibu]

I, like the original poster, do photo work with multiple displays on the desktop. I use a 17" Powerbook, I find the couple of inches wider is very comfortable, is still easy to transport and gives me lots of desktop real estate. I also will hook a second dsiplay in once in a while to get the needed real estate once in a while. I just sold my 12"....the display was just too small for anything other than writing and browsing. I miss it already, as my macs are parts of my body

 

[mindbend]

A coworker of mine just got a 17". I have used it for a few projects. It's the first laptop I've ever used that I felt could conceivably replace my desktop. (It won't, cuz I always want more speed, but at least it's getting there). I presume the 15" is right in there in terms of performance.

 

[chornbe]

Sounds sweet man. Hope you enjoy it and welcome to the powerbook/lime green ipod mini/made up just now club

Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. The lime green one is just so gay. Get the pink one like me!!

 

[mseydel]

I feel a bit sheepish; I haven't actually tried a DVD on it yet.
But when I'm using Photoshop from the couch via my Wacom tablet,
it usually drains in about 2 hours or so...

Not sure that it's helpful, but one thing that makes this 'book so useful to me is having a desktop setup at work to plug into to reduce some of the stresses that working on a laptop on your desktop can cause: i use an iCurve to rest the 'book on to keep it cool and at eye level, an extra Apple Pro keyboard so my typing won't get cramped, and of course, a Wacom tablet alternately for writing (via Ink) and drawing/retouching. And yes, when I'm greedy, I liberate a nearby Apple 17" LCD for more real estate...

 

[Breber]

A properly calibrated battery of PowerBook G4 should be sufficient for about 3 hours or so depending on system's configurations. (I have wireless, bluetooth, word, safari, iTune, MSN running).

The upcoming Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger will include a better "Battery Profiler" which allows user to configure the battery profile which I found out when test driving Tiger beta version. With proper configuration, you will find your PowerBook has longer battery life and display battery life more accurately.


Breber

 

[Satcomer]

I feel a bit sheepish; I haven't actually tried a DVD on it yet.
But when I'm using Photoshop from the couch via my Wacom tablet,
it usually drains in about 2 hours or so...

You will greatly surprised that extending the battery uptime life is as easy as turning down screen brightness. Also, the benefits of a second battery is a must have for a serious PowerBook user.

I personally own a battery from OWC and have been greatly surprised at the battery I bought. It actually works better than advertised and matches the paint on my old TiBook.