Recommended PB for My Needs
My family has a G4 powerpc (dual 1.25 ghz, 1gig ram) that I have been using primarily to edit video. I however want to personally buy a laptop that I will use for programming/web surfing, etc/and editing with FCP4. Here's my dilema...
Should I buy a 12' 1.33 with 768MB ram? It is about $300-400 cheaper than the 1.5 15' with 1gig ram, is a lot more portable. The screen size doesn't matter to me because I will hook it up to a monitor for editing.
I don't know much about how Final Cut runs on PBs. I know it takes forever to render on my dual 1.25 and crashes sometimes. Apple of course says that FCP4 runs fine on the 12' 1.33, but I thought I would ask real users.
Which one am I better off going with? Is it really necessary to get the larger model and have more power, or will I be fine with the more portable 12'?
Thanks for the help guys!
Should I buy a 12' 1.33 with 768MB ram? It is about $300-400 cheaper than the 1.5 15' with 1gig ram, is a lot more portable. The screen size doesn't matter to me because I will hook it up to a monitor for editing.
I don't know much about how Final Cut runs on PBs. I know it takes forever to render on my dual 1.25 and crashes sometimes. Apple of course says that FCP4 runs fine on the 12' 1.33, but I thought I would ask real users.
Which one am I better off going with? Is it really necessary to get the larger model and have more power, or will I be fine with the more portable 12'?
Thanks for the help guys!
Comments
I do miss the smaller size of the iBook, but the screen is so much better on the powerbook...
Originally posted by mattfoley
has it crashed on you at all? And have you outputted the display to a vga monitor or can you see fine with the 12' screen?
No crashes, the screen is plenty for many things (though a massive video would require another monitor), and hooking this up to a tv (with the video adapter) or other screen is as easy as opening up the screen.
Since you don't care about the screen, and appreciate the 12" form factor, the case is pretty clear. Should you notice your tasks are memory bound, you could use the price differential towards a 1GB DIMM.
-Mattfoley
Originally posted by mattfoley
has it crashed on you at all? And have you outputted the display to a vga monitor or can you see fine with the 12' screen?
There was a thread where someone posted the pictures of my older 12" powerbook hooked up to a 23" Sony LCD via the VGA. Worked great.
Originally posted by mattfoley
Thank you so much for helping me decide to get the 12". I was wondering if I should also get the added APP (applecare protection plan) for an extra $239. You already get a one year warranty for free, so is it really necessary to get the added warranty?
This is how my reasoning goes:
- No one will sell you insurance when they expect a loss
- Therefore, you should expect to be on the losing end of the insurance deal. The only reason to expect the contrary is if your risk is significantly above the average person who takes the same insurance.
- You have to weigh the "additional cost" of the insurance against your risk taking ability (funds, peace of mind, etc).
In another words, only if you simply cannot afford any sudden repairs, or you think the computer will have a really rough time, you take the insurance (Applecare). I didn't take it for my 15" and probably will not buy it during the year unless circumstances change.
Another reason I'd want to steer clear of a lot of insurance: if you can affect the outcome, say, your pockets getting picked or not, and you have insurance, you are in effect "playing two horses". The better care you take of your stuff, the less you need the insurance. The little number-pusher in me squirms at the thought of the redundancy, no matter how small.
I don't know why but in my experience, things always break in my hands, even if I treat it as a baby. For the record I am on my 2nd powerbook (1st one broke on me) and my 5th iPod (4 of them broke in my hands). The Genius Bar people now know me very well I should add
Companies should choose me for Beta testing their stuff, anything that will go wrong WILL go wrong with me
In 1 day, I think the screen is going again. the bottom right is starting to fade.