Which PowerBook G4 do you like?

Which PowerBook G4 do you like?

  • PowerBook G4 12"

  • PowerBook G4 15"

  • PowerBook G4 17"


Results are only viewable after voting.

ddma

The Most Stupid Member
Well, since each PowerBook G4 now features with some differences, which one is your fav?

12" - 867MHz, No L3 Cache, Smallest Apple notebook ever, Bluetooth, AirPort Extreme, 1024x768 (4:3), No PC Card Slot, No Firewire 800, Lightest weight, VGA, No Backlit Keyboard

15" - 867MHz, 1GHz, 1MB L3 Cache, Titanium, No AirPort Extreme, PC Card Slot, No Firewire 800, ADC-ready, No Backlit Keyboard, 1280x864 (16:10) Wide Screen

17" - 1GHz, 1MB L3 Cache, Largest Apple notebook ever, Bluetooth, Airport Extreme, 1440x900 (16:10) Wide Screen, Backlit Keyboard, Firewire 800, PC Card Slot, Airport Extreme, ADC-ready
 
Knowing someone that went to Macworld yesterday, they told me that the 17" PowerBook is awesome (they ordered one) and that the 12" PowerBook is like holding an iron, literally.

They said that the 12" PowerBook got so hot in fact, that many people couldn't stand to hold it. They also said they witnessed one stop working for unknown reasons (believed due to heat).

Anyway, from their report, I feel hesitant to decide which PowerBook I like the best without actually seeing the new ones firsthand.

From the stand point of what a PowerBook shoudl do, I like the Aluminum and updates and think once/if the 15" PowerBook next revision includes those, it'll still be the best PowerBook for price, size and portability.
 
Probably 12" is hot because it's .. for many things apart from the G4 it's still ibook. But it'd be probably what i'd buy now if i didnt have my ibook.

If i had a good job and a lot of money the 17" ... Wow ... *drools*
 
I will drool over the 12" when it allows more than 640 megs of RAM and has more video RAM. And other little thing....
 
But iron hot..? Having owned several PowerBook G4s, I know how hot they can get but I've never heard one described as iron hot before.

My iBook on the other hand barely gets warm. I remember using my PowerBook G4 on my lap in the summer and breaking a sweat.

I wonder if the Apple store has any of these units on hand. I'd really like to seem them.
 
I don't know about the heat issue, but it's definitely attractive: smaller and lighter than the smallest iBook (and even the Duo!), but full featured (new ports, heavy processor, new Airport, integrated BlueTooth etc.).

We can bicker about the ram and the videocard etc. but then, hell everything can be improved!

Without any radically new hardware (like the new rumored IBM processors for instance) it has delivered a very good product. Just now I'm reconsidering whether to buy an iBook or the 12" AlBook. I agree that it's a good idea to see it firsthand before buying though.
 
I love the 17, but I won't need that when i'm on the go, that's overkill for me, but if i had money for it, what hell, i'd get one. I prefer the 15, not too small, not too big, it's JUST RIGHT.
 
Having just handled a minibook in an Apple store, I didn't find it to be unusually warm. Admittedly, it was just sitting there idle, not encoding and burning dvds or anything exciting like that.

While I like the ancillary features of the macrobook (lit keyboard, firewire 800), I refuse to carry around anything that size unless it has commandments etched into it. (And even then, only for irony.)
 
Originally posted by Giaguara
Probably 12" is hot because it's .. for many things apart from the G4 it's still ibook. But it'd be probably what i'd buy now if i didnt have my ibook.

If i had a good job and a lot of money the 17" ... Wow ... *drools*

For desktop pictures, I prefere to imagine that you are working with the 12" PB. :D
 
I like all powerbooks, but if i had the money i would buy 17" PB.

I wouldnt realy have it with me all the time and i would use it for my desktop replacement. But it is still cool if you can unplug cables and take computer with you to vacation or something like that.

So i guess it wouldnt run on batteries very much, more like a portable worktation.
 
I don't wanna try a PB17 in a plane ! The effect may be more devastating than a knife !
 
I like the 17", but won't look at buying one until after the next Macworld. Let them iron out any bugs (remember the battery problem with the original TiBook?).

Who knows? Maybe by then they'll have dual 64bit CPU's. It is wide enough!
 
Hmm, I think the 12" is the way to go. The key feature for me is being able to drive an external display upto 1600x1200.

If it can do that, then I just want it as small as possible so I can carry it around between external monitors :)

I'm actually about this far away [measures an inch with fingers] from buying one. Does anyone else have any comments on them before I take the plunge?? Has anyone else noticed them being too hot??

Actually one thing I'm curious about, what is the keyboard made out of? Are the keys plastic?
 
Titanium PowerBook 15.2"/1GHz/DVD-R and not only because that's the one I've got :D

But because I think its the best form: Not too small and not too big! Another thing is that it is as fast as the top 17" or dare I say faster? :D
 
How is the speed with the 12inch pb? Does the loss of 1mb L3 cache slow it down dramatically?
And is the 12inch screen same like the iBook one? I really love it and if it would be a bit brighter... perfect!
 
Originally posted by aishafenton
Hmm, I think the 12" is the way to go. The key feature for me is being able to drive an external display upto 1600x1200.

If it can do that, then I just want it as small as possible so I can carry it around between external monitors :)

I'm actually about this far away [measures an inch with fingers] from buying one. Does anyone else have any comments on them before I take the plunge?? Has anyone else noticed them being too hot??

I can think of quite a few, but the biggest one that comes to mind is the 640 meg RAM limit.

Edit: As I have said, I did drool when I heard about the 12" PB, but the specs need to be improved. Better video, higher RAM limit, etc.

 
hmm. well. since i ordered the 17inch powerbook. i guess thats the one i like :) especially that huge screen and backlight keyboard.. and its superdrive.. and its Firewire 800.. and .. and.. :p WOW :)
 
i recieved my tibook today. a true beauty, runs like a charm. wouldn't trade for neither the 17" nor the 12" pb.
 
if I had to pay for it. It is nice and small. Anything is faster than the machine I have at work. It hooks up to a Larger monitor. And a Super drive. I can work on a 12" monitor if needed.

Now if someone said, I want to buy you one. I would get the 17".
 
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