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Please help; iBook or not??

post #1 of 24
1/12/02 at 4:06pm
Thread Starter 
The time has come. Mr. Gates shall no longer have control over my desktop. Instead, mr. Jobs will have the pleasure. Now, as a DOS/Windows user since 1987, I really need advice on which machine to buy; the iBook, or the new iMac?? Anything other than the two are out of my pricerange (all financed by the sale of my current computer), so even though I really would like a PowerBook, it will never happen. I would very much like my machine to be portable, and had actually settled on the iBook with the combo-drive. But now I've been browsing around these forums, becoming more and more aware of the fact that G3 processors really can't handle MacOS X that well. Some say they work fine, others say they don't. What to believe??

The machine will mostly be used for music, photo and perhaps a little DV, but no games or anything. Is it utopia for me to want an iBook that perform well with MacOS X??

I can't wait to get feedback on this, as I would like to become a Mac-user very, very soon...

[ 01-12-2002: Message edited by: fowlah ]</p>
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post #2 of 24
1/12/02 at 4:54pm
  • Anders
  • Feared and Biased Moderator
Its actually quite simple: DO you REALLY need it to be portable? If so the iBook handles X better than good enough for your need (Not quite sure about DV. You mean iMovie once or twice a year?) as long as you fill it with ram (but don´t go for the 500 Mhz model).
But go check them out in Officeline at Åboulevarden 15. they have the iBook on display.

And one thing to remember: The iBook is here now. We won´t get the iMac in any form the first one and a half month. And if you act quick on monday morning you can buy iBooks on sale at Officeline and most other online stores here. They start at 8995 kr plus VAT for the 500 Mhz (the one you shouldn´t buy but). Check <a href="http://www.mediamac.dk" target="_blank">www.mediamac.dk</a> for more info.


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[ 01-12-2002: Message edited by: Anders ]</p>
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post #3 of 24
1/12/02 at 5:01pm
see my recent post - hub and spokes


Adam
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post #4 of 24
1/12/02 at 7:03pm
Go for the iBook. You'll love it.
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post #5 of 24
1/12/02 at 7:23pm
I just ordered the 14.1" iBook because I have to move around... but if I didn't, I would DEFINETLY get an iMac. For the same price I am paying my 14" iBook, I could get 15" TFT, tons of HD space, 32MB video, and 800Mhz G4, AND A DVD-R!!!. Ouch.

The iBook is great for the type of stuff you said you need to do and works fine with OS X, but would be even better with the G4 and extra power of the new iMac.

Remember, transporting the iMac is not difficult... but if you actually have to TRAVEL... then get an iBook (12 or 14inch)

[ 01-12-2002: Message edited by: ZO ]</p>
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post #6 of 24
1/12/02 at 7:43pm
Thread Starter 
It's not that I really, really need to transport the Mac around, it's just that... well, with AirPort 'n all it would be soooooo nice to be able to take a dump whilst editing a photo (wow??!! did that sound sick?? ), lay on the couch while surfing, accessing imdb.com while watching a movie with your friends in your hometheatre and impress them with your knowledge (ok... a little lame, but...) and so on and so on... but on the other hand, the iMac does really look... well, stunning. Why did I not take Macs seriously until now?? Dear me, could've propably saved a lot of money on the ever-present once-a-month-hardware-upgrades-just-because-I-need-to-have-the-newest-hardware-'cus-that's-just-how-our-mentality-in-the-wintel-world-is-mos tly-because-intel-makes-us-think-it-is-so... wow, I don't even remember what I started out to say! Never mind, it's almost 5 AM where I'm sitting now (I've been browsing these forums extensively to get the answer; I really want to make sure, because going from wintel to Mac is like... well, converting from christianity to buddhism! It's a big, big leap!!), and I shall sleep now...

I really appreciate your answers, guys, and if you have more to say, don't hesitate to do so. Thx for now...
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post #7 of 24
1/12/02 at 7:48pm
either way you win.
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post #8 of 24
1/12/02 at 7:59pm
well, welcome to the Mac religion We are always here and help eachother as much as we can. Thats what makes having a Mac even more enjoyable, forums like these.

From what you described, it sounds you really want a mobile solution. I would recomend a 12.1" Combo with Airport plus at least an extra 128MB ram (256 tot)... and you will be set. If you need bigger screen to view, hook up to a monitor, and you're off!
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post #9 of 24
1/21/02 at 2:05am
I bought a iBook 600Mhz with DVD about a week ago, i added 256mb ram witch made my total ram 384. It works like a dream, even thou some might think 12.1" is to small i dont. I sold my G4 with a 19" LaCie monitor (i ran 1280x1024) and i have no problems at all with the iBook display. Its really nice, sharp and pleasant to look at.

I really recommend the iBook, its really slim and small. The only "but" is the ram, you really should add more.
The new iMac is a great choise to, now when it has a G4, but if you aint gonna to play games and the DV you are gonna do aint to advanced (like rendering big movies many times) i would say the iBook, portable computers are a joy

Edit: A bunch of typos, im really tierd

[ 01-21-2002: Message edited by: fobie ]</p>
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post #10 of 24
1/21/02 at 2:45pm
[quote]Originally posted by fobie:
<strong>I bought a iBook 600Mhz with DVD</strong><hr></blockquote>

This is the way to go. Im very angry @ apple for nog providing a 600MHz DVD iBook anymore... the combodrive for the 12.1 incher is only 4x VERY SLOW even the 14incher is only 8x. I'd rather get the DVD model save some $ and buy an external 24X burner with the money...
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post #11 of 24
1/21/02 at 3:03pm
[quote] I'd rather get the DVD model save some $ and buy an external 24X burner with the money... <hr></blockquote>

Thats for sure, I got the last DVD-only model. I saved about 2500 SEK ($200 or such) when I skipped the combo. You get a 16x burner for the same amount of money, sure its external but its not really a problem if you dont have to burn CDs "on the road".

I dont like the idea that you have to buy a burner with your new computer even if you dont want it and can save some money by skipping it (and buy extra ram for it).

If youre lucky maybe someone still have the DVD only model in stock.
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post #12 of 24
1/21/02 at 3:40pm
[quote]Originally posted by psantora:
<strong>

This is the way to go. Im very angry @ apple for nog providing a 600MHz DVD iBook anymore... the combodrive for the 12.1 incher is only 4x VERY SLOW even the 14incher is only 8x. I'd rather get the DVD model save some $ and buy an external 24X burner with the money...</strong><hr></blockquote>

But for the same price as the DVD model was you can get a Combo so you have the DVD and still get an external 24x burner.
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post #13 of 24
1/21/02 at 4:04pm
  • Leonis
  • AI Community Dictator
Of topic

I bought my DVD (only) 600Mhz iBook for $2000 CDN.

Not a bad deal
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post #14 of 24
1/21/02 at 11:27pm
i bought my custom 600mhz ibook (256 ram, dvd, 20 gig drive). it costs $2,820 canadian. conversely, the imac here (top of the line model) costs 2,899 bucks. quite close, eh? the trade-offs are obvious as you move from desktop to portable: dvdr-dvd, 60 gig drive to 20, geforce mx to ati rage 128 and g4 to g3. but what i get for the performance i lost is true portability. i bring this thing to the university, my friends' houses, and back. and i value portability over desktop power all the time because although i cannot say that i absolutely need it, i love having it.
and that's what you should ask yourself too...
do you want/need portability over desktop power? if not, then you cannot go wrong with the imac. if so, then you'll be damn happy with the ibook, just like many of the people here.

trust us..we own ibooks
And the priest goes to the man and asks, "do you take this lovely ibook as your lawfully wedded computer--to have and to hold, through crashes and upgrades?"
And the man said, "iDo."
And so the...
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And the man said, "iDo."
And so the...
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post #15 of 24
1/22/02 at 10:43am
Thread Starter 
Well, thanks A LOT for all your replies.

I can't help it; I'm going for the iBook!! It's soooooooooooooooooo cute!!

It'll still be a couple of weeks before I get it, but I'm looking so much forward to using OS X... I'm scouring the net for screenshots of it, but I'm not finding that many... any of you guys know where to find them?? My god, I just can't wait!! Only trouble is, I'm just gonna buy an iPod, an iMac later, and tons of other stuff, just because it's so cool... guess that comes with being an Apple-addict, huh??

Btw, I work with selling Wintel hardware (in a very Mac-unfriendly store... VERY!!) and I'm trying to convince everyone that Macs are WAAAAY cooler... and they're starting to believe me, thanks to the new iMac, the iBook and, very much, OS X...

Thanks again for your help, guys... appreciate it.
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post #16 of 24
1/23/02 at 12:33am
I just went from MacOS 9 to MacOS X on my iBook, its still slow but it was slow on my G4 to. I dont see any difference between the G4 and the iBook, sure its just a 450Mhz G4 but whatever

It works good enough and im pretty sure that OSX will get a couple of speed bumps.

Oh, btw.. I love when installers only run in classic, even when the software they are about to install is for OSX.. mm!
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post #17 of 24
1/23/02 at 1:04am
You are aware that the imac will SCREAM in OSX, while the ibook only performs "sufficient"?

Don't want to ruin anything for you, i have a ibook500DVD myself, and love it. But my 450 Cube is WAY faster... And the new imac... well it starts at 700 mhz... Its a machine made for OSX.

<img src="graemlins/hmmm.gif" border="0" alt="[Hmmm]" /> Hard call... if you ain't gonna WORK seriously on the machine. the ibook will be fine.
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post #18 of 24
1/24/02 at 12:34am
Nothing SCREAMS in OSX, its slow as hell

At least compared to OS9, it just need a speedbump or two and it will work fine.

Apple really f****d up with the OSX realease, 10.0.4 should have been the Public Beta and the Public Beta should have been som shitty alpha or something

Today, OSX is far away from a "complete" and "final" system..
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post #19 of 24
1/24/02 at 4:27am
My 2 cents:

I am a wintel guy thinking about switching to OS X as well. I have been looking at the ibook and the imac as have you. My solution: I can get by with my current hardware long enough to wait for Apple's release of a G4 iBook with DVD-R. I know I will get flamed for my patience, but by then OS X will be at 10.5 and the ibook will have the guts to burn to DVD. Be patient...6 more months of wintel...small price to pay.
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post #20 of 24
1/24/02 at 6:58am
  • Escher
  • Sub-PowerBook Lobbyist
[quote]Originally posted by YakManDoo:
<strong>I can get by with my current hardware long enough to wait for Apple's release of a G4 iBook with DVD-R. I know I will get flamed for my patience, but by then OS X will be at 10.5 and the ibook will have the guts to burn to DVD. Be patient...6 more months of wintel...small price to pay.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Seriously, YakManDoo, your wait will be closer to 18 months, if not much longer. You'd be lucky to get a G4 in the iBook this year. A DVD-R in a portable, especially the consumer/low-end, is years away. The waiting game can only take you so far.

Of course, I have no doubt that you can get by with your current Wintel setup for many more years. I know plenty of people who still use Windows 95, or Mac OS 7. Why upgrade if your system fulfills your needs. But I wouldn't be caught dead using those OSs on my main machine (it's a different story on my collection of old PowerBooks).

Escher
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Until we get a 3 lbs sub-PowerBook, the 12-inch PowerBook will do.
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"The only laptop computer that's useful is the one you have with you."
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post #21 of 24
1/24/02 at 7:15am
[quote]Originally posted by YakManDoo:
<strong>My 2 cents:

I am a wintel guy thinking about switching to OS X as well. I have been looking at the ibook and the imac as have you. My solution: I can get by with my current hardware long enough to wait for Apple's release of a G4 iBook with DVD-R. I know I will get flamed for my patience, but by then OS X will be at 10.5 and the ibook will have the guts to burn to DVD. Be patient...6 more months of wintel...small price to pay.</strong><hr></blockquote>

Seriously, if you're waiting for DVD-R on an iBook you'll be waiting well over a year. Do you really need a laptop? If not then go for an iMac.
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post #22 of 24
1/24/02 at 8:16am
Guys,

The market is way to tight right now for DVD-R not to be a standard laptop feature in the next 8 months. Six might be wishful thinking for sure, but on the go media creation will become a necessity for education and the proliferation of the DVD format is telling. In 8 months the iBook will have a G4 and a DVD-R drive. The digital hub strategy demands it. If Jobs cannot get DVD media creation portable and into the hands of students his strategy will die. Apple's hardware will make some very rapid strides (not higher than wintel, but enough) in the next 10 - 12 months OS X demands it as well.

In six - eight months I will buy my dvd-r ibook.
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post #23 of 24
1/24/02 at 12:49pm
[quote]Originally posted by YakManDoo:
<strong>My 2 cents:

I am a wintel guy thinking about switching to OS X as well. I have been looking at the ibook and the imac as have you. My solution: I can get by with my current hardware long enough to wait for Apple's release of a G4 iBook with DVD-R. I know I will get flamed for my patience, but by then OS X will be at 10.5 and the ibook will have the guts to burn to DVD. Be patient...6 more months of wintel...small price to pay.</strong><hr></blockquote>

I think the G4 w/Altivec will help OSX and other apps performance. If you can, go for the G4. The iBook 14.1" is a nice laptop. there are some thinmgs on it that are nicer than the powerbook. i really like OSX and cant wait to get os9 completely removed. in 2-3 months i will not run os9 at all.

i also like having UNIX under the hood.
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post #24 of 24
1/24/02 at 2:39pm
[quote]Originally posted by YakManDoo:
<strong>Guys,

The market is way to tight right now for DVD-R not to be a standard laptop feature in the next 8 months. Six might be wishful thinking for sure, but on the go media creation will become a necessity for education and the proliferation of the DVD format is telling. In 8 months the iBook will have a G4 and a DVD-R drive. The digital hub strategy demands it. If Jobs cannot get DVD media creation portable and into the hands of students his strategy will die. Apple's hardware will make some very rapid strides (not higher than wintel, but enough) in the next 10 - 12 months OS X demands it as well.

In six - eight months I will buy my dvd-r ibook.</strong><hr></blockquote>

I sure hope you're right.
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