PowerBook 12" or iBook 14"

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gphillipk

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Please help me decide whether I should buy a standard PowerBook 12" or 14" iBook. In South Africa, the price is nearly the same. Which one is the better buy, though?
 
Depends on your needs. What/how are you going to use it?

For light use (home, education, minor work) the iBook is usually the best value. For moderate use (work, desktop replacement) the PowerBook is the better value.
 
I'll be using the notebook largely for work purposes. I'm a business systems developer. According to mdnky the PowerBook is more suitable, but why? the 2 notebooks have the same HDD and I wouldn't be playing games a lot on it so the Graphics card is not such an important consideration.
 
This is not a iBook Bash! I find the PB much better for daily use. Why? My personal opinion is the screen (brightness, etc) is better on the PB than on iBook. I know that is my opinion, and open to debate. Second, the keyboard on the PB is second to none. It is very comfortable to type on, especially for long periods of time. Although the iBook keyboards are much improved over previous models.
The PB may provide you with additional ports you may need (not sure), take a look. Lastly, a cosmetic point, the PB is sleek, and the silver has a nice business touch. Those are my opinions, I am sure you will be pleased with either one!!!! :D
 
i would go for the powerbook if the price is about the same. the iBooks 14' screen has the same resoulution as the 12' so you wont gain any actual screen size (except that it will be more dificult to carry with you) if you pick the 14'. The powerbook is sturdier (since it is made of aluminium and not plastic).
 
Also, the screen resolution of the 14" iBook is still 1024x768 (check here ), so you don't have an actual larger desktop, if you need it.. I can't find the weight for the iBook, but I know for sure that it's heavier than the PB, so if in your business you have to travel a lot, well, a lighter and smaller notebook is really important....
 
the superdrive is the ONLY valid reason for buying a 14" ibook. the 14" screen looks worse because its doing the same resolution as the 12 but on a larger screen.

no offense but only retards buy the 14" ibook. :)
 
so the powerbook is a better investment that the iBook. Thanks for your time and opinions. I'll sleep on it and in the very near future you'll see which notebook i bought in my signature...
 
I would go with the 12" Power Book. From a business standpoint the Power Book looks more professional than an iBook. it should not make a difference but it does. Further, if you travel a lot the 12" PB is lighter and easy to tote.

I would wait a little bit if you are going to get one. The predominating rumor seems to be the Power Books are going to get a speed bump within the next 2 weeks.
 
Actually, I own a 14" iBook and it works great...very easy to tote around, longer battery life than a 12" model, easier to see what's on the screen too. I bought it as a cheap mobile solution, wound up using it as a desktop replacement. Works fine for both situations, and mine is an older G3 model. Most of the work done on it is in Photoshop, InDesign, BBEdit, Fireworks, etc..

Durability wise, the iBooks will take more bumps, hits, drops, etc. and keep going. They're designed for that kind of abuse.

The downside is the resolution for the screen. 1024x768 is a bit smaller than I'd prefer. Then again anything larger than that on a 12" screen starts to become too small.

If the superdrive isn't something you absolutely have to have, consider a 15" PowerBook with the combo drive. It's still very easy to tote around and might be a better size for what you're intending to do.

Best bet is to go to an Apple Store/reseller and play with them all, see what YOU like the best.
 
Just checked the weight of my present laptop, an HP nx9010 and its 7.7 lbs!!! :D So in matters of weight, I win with either the iB or PB. The 15" PowerBook suggested by mdnky is slightly out of reach at the moment. Though I did say the cost of the iB and the PB is nearly the same, I could use the difference to buy an external USB Bluetooth module and a few other accessories. Therefore, I'll go for the standard iBook G4 with ComboDrive and bump up the RAM as I go along. I s'pose that relegates me to super-retard status blue&whiteman :confused: ???
 
but go for the 12' ibook then (if you don't really need a superdrive). and keep in mind that the powerbook already got built in bluetooth.
 
The ibook also only does video mirroring (1024 x 768), unless you do one of the mods I've seen on the forums. The powerbook has "Dual display and video mirroring: Simultaneously supports up to 1024 x 768 pixels on the built-in display and up to 2048 x 1536 pixels on an external display, both at millions of colors." So you could buy a cheap 19" crt for the office and have lots of desktop.

The only ibook I've tried for any length of time is my wife's 15 month old G3. The keyboard has a very flimsy feel, and bounces under use.
 
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