Graphics on Powerbook

bachobacho
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
I am working on my degree and I need to run Adobe CS, all of the applications that comes with that. I currently have a toshiba laptop and love it. Due to graphics, I am going to have to get an apple. I swore to myself that I will never own another desktop again after having a laptop. I was looking at the Powerbook with the 12 inch screen, due to price and easy to carry. I was wondering if any of you people out there have run some of these applications on the Powerbook and if so, are they stock or more ram? I am very very familar with the PC world but I am new to the mac world. FILL ME IN!!!!

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 8
    netbansheenetbanshee Posts: 74member
    I do all of my graphics work on a 15" Tibook (1ghz G4) and it handles things fantastically. In fact, I have a somewhat faster desktop at work, but prefer my setup connected to a 21" external monitor for the ease of use and the extra desktop space. I would use the desktop if it did have two screens and the tools I needed though.



    I'd say 1gb of ram will do you well and if a graphics card with at least 64mb of vram is in your setup, you should do fine. Keep an extra slot open if you want to add more ram later. External FW drives are also a nice way to get extra storage and a faster throughput (helps things like video).



    I do both print and interactive/motion graphics work, so I usually put the system through the more demanding apps that are available. I would like to add a desktop ( if I do more video work, etc.) and leave this system as my portable solution some time in the future. I'll be waiting dual-core G5s and PCI-e before I make that jump.
  • Reply 2 of 8
    bulky craniumbulky cranium Posts: 141member
    I am a designer & use a powerbook all the time for onsite freelancing.



    I used to use a 15" TiBook 667. I had the Ram maxed out to 1 gig. It worked OK.



    I just upgraded to a 17" 1.5 gig powerbook with a gig of ram as well. That is awesome! I left one ram slot free so I can upgrade in the future when I need it.



    I was considering a 12" because of the portability. I was thinking that I could grab a 17" monitor, and leave it at my clients office. I have a 19" in my office that I was going to use as well.



    I would not go less that 1 gig of ram if you are going to be using Photoshop. Even more if you are working on larger files. That is the only feature that drove me away from the 12" was the 256 megs of ram built in. I don't know if it is soldered in, but still there was no BTO option that did not include that, leaving the machine maxed out at 1.25 gigs of ram.



    So if 1.25 gigs of ram is not an issue with you, & you are OK with the screensize (Which is easily corrected with an external monitor at your main desk--or even a pair of them, there cheap enough), then it looks like a great "Little" computer.
  • Reply 3 of 8
    bachobacho Posts: 5member
    Our computers at school only have 512 and they run fine. But they are desktops, I dont know if they are different in the apple world than laptops. That is another thing that I am wondering.
  • Reply 4 of 8
    bulky craniumbulky cranium Posts: 141member
    Hi Bacho,



    Guess it depends on your working style. Personally I like to have Photoshop, Indesign, Illustrator, Mail, Safari, Time Chache, iTunes, Dreamweaver, all open at once. I need a gig of ram. But I guess if you closed programs once in a while 512 would be ok. The real memory hog is Photoshop. If your not using that for printable files (300ppi) then you'd be fine.



    As for the difference between laptops and desktops--I am sure there are some such as bus speed, and geekier stuff than I know about, but I think the main difference would be hard drive speed. Most of apple's laptops come standard with a 4200RPM Drive, while my old Powermac G4/1.25 came with a 7200RMP speed drive. When you run short on ram OSX starts using hard drive space for virtual memory. You can get a 5400 ROM Drive BTO from Apple.



    I have 2 computers.

    I have a desktop G4/1.25 Gigahertz/1.25 Gigs Ram/80 gig 7200 Drive.

    Also a 17" Powerbook G4/1.5 Gigahertz/1 Gig Ram/80 gig 5400 Drive.



    I never use my desktop anymore. I haven't ran any speed comparison tests, but my laptop feels slightly faster. Even in large (500 meg+ Photoshop files).
  • Reply 5 of 8
    mattyjmattyj Posts: 898member
    Go for a Gig of RAM, I have 768MB in my Powerbook 15" 1.33Ghz, and it runs everything great, I just upgraded the RAM today in fact, I realised how slow only 256MB was making my Powerbook.
  • Reply 6 of 8
    bachobacho Posts: 5member
    thanks guys, where should i get one, i really dont want to plop down 2k for one, due to the fact that i have to get the adobe creative suite for school. the educational discount is only 100 bucks off of new ones, i think that is a crock. maybe there is some place that you know where i can get it for a better price, since the only reason i am getting it is for school.
  • Reply 7 of 8
    bulky craniumbulky cranium Posts: 141member
    Not much room for fluctuation on prices I've been told. Somebody once told me Apple resellers only get a few hundred (Canadian) on each sale. They said it was the extras they made their money on.



    I doubt you will find much better than your educational price.



    Somebody correct me if I am wrong there, please.
  • Reply 8 of 8
    admactaniumadmactanium Posts: 812member
    i have a titanium powerbook 1Ghz with 1 gig of ram. i'm a freelancer ad art director/creative director. i use the illustrator/photoshop/indesign all the time and it works fine. a tower would be faster of course and i'll probably buy one soon so my work at home is faster. for travelling and doing work on site the powerbook is fine.



    however, the adobe cs apps all have LOTS of palletes. i think with a 12" powerbook you're going to be really hard pressed to use those apps efficiently on such a small screen.
Sign In or Register to comment.