While I still have not convinced myself that a portable G5 is ready to go, I can't understand why people want to see another low performance G4 upgrade. Frankly if Apple has to continue with the G4 I want them to milk as much performance out of it that they can. So if the G4 or a follow on is in the next laptop form Apple I want to see a machine that has had significant improvements made to it. It is hard to deny that there is alot of potential in a G4 if one can ignore its 32 bit nature, the questions can Freescale and Apple introduce hardware that makes the chip sing.
As to the G5, I'm more hopeful than in the past that IBM might be able to deliver a chip that is suitable for laptop usage. The problem is that it is not just the 970 that is a power problem, they need a whole system solution. To that end things are farther along with G4 hardware and the "E" series chips move even farther ahead with optimal portable solutions.
Maybe Apple will have a dual approach, that is 32 bit in the physically smaller machines and 64 bit in the larger. I suppose that is a cop out, that is suggesting that we will see PowerBooks foffering both options.
Dave
Quote:
Originally posted by ryanh
1) stick with the G4 with minor hardware revisions (speed, GPU, HD, RAM maybe?) and cut the price by around $200.
2) G5 in my possession by February (early March at the latest) ready to scald my lap to no avail.
I had actually thought about that too. Have a Powerbook G5 and then a Powerbook "Lite." Sacrifice some portability for lots of power, or take a power cut for a super sleek notebook.
I have a Rev B 12" PB and the machine is great. But it's time for me to upgrade. The G4 is getting a bad rap right now because the G5 is out. Now don't get me wrong, I want a G5 in a PB asap, but the G4 is not a bad processor. If they can cut the price enough with a decent upgrade, I can't see how it wouldn't be worth it. I mean, if that's all we see at MWSF, well then I will be dissapointed. But Stevie J better have a damn good explanation and I can't see how he could just not mention it.
Part of me is positive that the PB G5 is going to be introduced at MWSF. This is due to how tight lipped Apple has been as of late, how active and varrying the rumour mill has been, and how far behind the release scheduale the PB's are. Then the conservative side of me says "Just wait for your overclocked G4 update, you jackass." I don't like that part of me. He makes me cry.
But still, a decent update with a decent price cut won't stop me from buying. I have a dual 2.0 G5 tower sitting next to me so maybe that is all I need.
Bah. I'm wasting my time. I have a final tomorrow. I guess I'll just hold my breath until the eleventh of January.
Actually what I posted was "- More than one channel of FW800 built-in." That's more than one channel, not port or slot. You can have a ton of ports, or even daisy-chain, but they're all sharing the same FW bandwidth unless they're on different channels.
It seems like a minor detail, but it's the kind of thing I would hope to expect from Apple's Pro line of products. At least at the high-end. It's easy to add ports, just get a FW hub, or daisy 'em. But if you're dealing with multiple FW devices and need to keep things running smooth, a FW PCI is necessary, wasting a precious slot.
Comments
1) stick with the G4 with minor hardware revisions (speed, GPU, HD, RAM maybe?) and cut the price by around $200.
2) G5 in my possession by February (early March at the latest) ready to scald my lap to no avail.
While I still have not convinced myself that a portable G5 is ready to go, I can't understand why people want to see another low performance G4 upgrade. Frankly if Apple has to continue with the G4 I want them to milk as much performance out of it that they can. So if the G4 or a follow on is in the next laptop form Apple I want to see a machine that has had significant improvements made to it. It is hard to deny that there is alot of potential in a G4 if one can ignore its 32 bit nature, the questions can Freescale and Apple introduce hardware that makes the chip sing.
As to the G5, I'm more hopeful than in the past that IBM might be able to deliver a chip that is suitable for laptop usage. The problem is that it is not just the 970 that is a power problem, they need a whole system solution. To that end things are farther along with G4 hardware and the "E" series chips move even farther ahead with optimal portable solutions.
Maybe Apple will have a dual approach, that is 32 bit in the physically smaller machines and 64 bit in the larger. I suppose that is a cop out, that is suggesting that we will see PowerBooks foffering both options.
Dave
Originally posted by ryanh
1) stick with the G4 with minor hardware revisions (speed, GPU, HD, RAM maybe?) and cut the price by around $200.
2) G5 in my possession by February (early March at the latest) ready to scald my lap to no avail.
I had actually thought about that too. Have a Powerbook G5 and then a Powerbook "Lite." Sacrifice some portability for lots of power, or take a power cut for a super sleek notebook.
I have a Rev B 12" PB and the machine is great. But it's time for me to upgrade. The G4 is getting a bad rap right now because the G5 is out. Now don't get me wrong, I want a G5 in a PB asap, but the G4 is not a bad processor. If they can cut the price enough with a decent upgrade, I can't see how it wouldn't be worth it. I mean, if that's all we see at MWSF, well then I will be dissapointed. But Stevie J better have a damn good explanation and I can't see how he could just not mention it.
Part of me is positive that the PB G5 is going to be introduced at MWSF. This is due to how tight lipped Apple has been as of late, how active and varrying the rumour mill has been, and how far behind the release scheduale the PB's are. Then the conservative side of me says "Just wait for your overclocked G4 update, you jackass." I don't like that part of me. He makes me cry.
But still, a decent update with a decent price cut won't stop me from buying. I have a dual 2.0 G5 tower sitting next to me so maybe that is all I need.
Bah. I'm wasting my time. I have a final tomorrow. I guess I'll just hold my breath until the eleventh of January.
Originally posted by slughead
Some of these posts are just insane..
I mean.. two firewire 800 slots? ridiculous!
Hehe
Actually what I posted was "- More than one channel of FW800 built-in." That's more than one channel, not port or slot. You can have a ton of ports, or even daisy-chain, but they're all sharing the same FW bandwidth unless they're on different channels.
It seems like a minor detail, but it's the kind of thing I would hope to expect from Apple's Pro line of products. At least at the high-end. It's easy to add ports, just get a FW hub, or daisy 'em. But if you're dealing with multiple FW devices and need to keep things running smooth, a FW PCI is necessary, wasting a precious slot.