Looking to buy 12" ibook for college...

darkwolfb87

Although it's probably not going to be necessary to have laptops I'd rather have it open as an option. I will mainly be using it for internet, writing papers, music, and occasionally for some graphics work. I am curious about whether the 14.1" model and additional ram would be that important. However, I am willing to wait until the beginning of summer for Tiger and ilife '05 to be preinstalled. The 14.1" ibook would cost $250 more for 2 inches of desktop space, .13 Mhz, and 30 GB. 12" or 15" Powerbook can be an expensive option, but would also be much more prone to getting stolen on campus, i would think



$949.00 \t

1.2GHz PowerPC G4

512K L2 cache @1.2GHz

12-inch TFT Displays

1024x768 resolution

256MB DDR266 SDRAM

30GB Ultra ATA drive

Combo Drive

ATI Mobility Radeon 9200

32MB DDR video memory

AirPort Extreme built-in

scott

That's hard to pass up.

darkwolfb87

Hmm, I can also get an Apple reconditioned model without the CD-writing drive for (!!!) $799. Now that is hard to pass up. I could buy it now and use it, or wait for a better, cheaper model.

frugle

I would really consider a bigger harddrive... we just bought my mom a 14 inch... 60 GB harddrive... out of the box it had 28GB free...........Apple shipped with 30GB of used space...... (of course about 10 of those are going to be gone anyways after formatting.





30 GB doesn't leave you a whole lotta space for personal things, the iBook comes with a lot... I mean, at the same time we bought my sister a 12inch powerbook, 60GB and 40GB free..

aplnub

I'll give you my $0.02 on notebooks. I have had notebook computer since, well, a long time. My first notebook than ran windows was a Toshiba 210 Satellite (I think that is right).



I currently have a Dell M60, very nice (minus running windows).



I am about to purchase me a new iBook to compliment my new and first mac (G5 iMac 20"). I can say that screen size on notebook computers are overrated when compared to desk space (in my opinion). Don't get me wrong, big screens are nice, but when portability arises I don't have 40 acres and 5 backup batteries to carry around to support that billboard I call a computer. I want something small and portable to do the job. The 12" iBook looks like a great deal. I just wish they were $200 cheaper and offered a DVD writer in the 12" model.



I look foward to ordering a new 12" iBook, once they make a move on the website with the power books. I am curious if the price drops any.



I say the $949 option looks great (I feel a CD writer is a minimum neccessasity).



Eric

frugle

why don't they offer a superdrive option in the 12 inch iBook? my sisters 12" powerbook has one, and isn't it a little smaller than the 12 inch ibook? I dont' see a problem with it fitting...then again, i'm not an apple designer.

darkwolfb87

For those of you with the 12" iBook, is the screen size comfortable for something like photoshop? This will also be my only computer, so all work will be done on it. I'm actually using a 17" flatpanel LCD right now at the same resolution of 1074x768, so I guess my main concern is how much eye strain it will cause (I have terrible nearsightedness...) I share the 17" LCD with my family, so if I wanted to be mean, I could just grab this and a mac mini and be happy

gene clean

Quote:

Originally posted by darkwolfb87

I'm actually using a 17" flatpanel LCD right now at the same resolution of 1074x768, so I guess my main concern is how much eye strain it will cause (I have terrible nearsightedness...) I share the 17" LCD with my family, so if I wanted to be mean, I could just grab this and a mac mini and be happy

Can't your 17" LCD go higher than that? I have an old Philips 17" CRT and it goes up to 1280x1024 at 75 Hz. I'm using Ubuntu Linux right now on it, I use it as a server and sometimes I tinker with it, but on Windows 1024x768 was all I could get.



Now that I think of it...anyway.



I would go with the 12" but would get the DVD/CD-RW. Its a necessity in this day and age.

darkwolfb87

Well I just switched the resolution to 1280x1024 (it looks like it was optimized for this size) and everything is much clearer, but all the text is so small! I can barely read without straining... I'm starting to like the idea of a Mac Mini on this though.

andrebsd

Well between a mac mini and an ibook, id get the ibook... (if needed when home at your desk, hook up the external display as a second monitor [with that hack floating around] or clone the internal display



i'll be starting college this coming school year and i'm actualy just gonna shell out and get a powerbook (price to me isnt to much of a concern, since ive wanted a powerbook for like the past 8 years and could never afford it).. but portability has always been something that I really would like because I wouldn't mind sitting in a college class typing up my work, then sending it to a portable printer in my bag incase the teacher actualy needs a hard copy.



So personaly in college, id find a notebook really handy... ill probibly order internet on my phone (20 bucks with tmobile for unlimited) so i can have the pbook just bluetooth to the cell in my pocket for online research... and since I can type faster than I can write, id prefer to just type up all my work.

relic

Hmmm iBook or Mac Mini? Naaaaah, Powerbook!

frugle

Quote:

Originally posted by darkwolfb87

Well I just switched the resolution to 1280x1024 (it looks like it was optimized for this size) and everything is much clearer, but all the text is so small! I can barely read without straining... I'm starting to like the idea of a Mac Mini on this though.

get the 12 inch! or bigger.. its not to bad, the 12, it is a little small, but since you have another monitor you can just dual screen to it when you need more space.



I would recomend the PB over teh mini

darkwolfb87

Well, since I have some nice PC components lying around, I think I'll keep a shuttle or something as a desktop in the dorm, and I'll buy a Mac of some sort over the summer if I'll need a laptop. Well that's my plan for now

mcq

Another option if you want a stock 12" iBook is Amazon - $999 free shipping, no tax and $100 mail in rebate, so end price is $899 if you're willing to wait 6-8 weeks on the rebate.



That's pretty much what I did when I was in college after the first year, had a PC and then added the iBook for classes/mobility. It's a nice combination.

gon

I just bought a 12" iBook to replace a latest model 15" Powerbook. I took the 60GB disk and Bluetooth. They didn't cost much, I already used the full capacity of the disk in a couple weeks of use, and BT is very, very handy for syncing your contacts from a phone and (I guess) if you want a wireless keyboard/mouse later on.



The only things that are missing compared to the Powerbook that I would like to have are DVI and the slightly bigger screen.. but I can't really tell the difference in screen size after a period of use. In Photoshop I imagine there would be a clear difference - I tried Gimp a bit in the 15" and even its screen felt small - so I'd try to have an external screen for graphic work. Whether you use the 17" flatscreen or get a $250 19" CRT, I expect it's alright when you dual screen setup the palettes in the smaller screen.



I don't think portability is at all important in my college studies... I have the iBook because I like having a portable "just in case". It is my main computer and deals with everything important. I'm getting a desktop PC but that will be more for entertainment, and if need be, maybe Photoshop-type jobs.

splinemodel

Quote:

Originally posted by darkwolfb87

Well I just switched the resolution to 1280x1024 (it looks like it was optimized for this size) and everything is much clearer, but all the text is so small! I can barely read without straining... I'm starting to like the idea of a Mac Mini on this though.

Wear your glasses and sit further away, or take them off and sit closer.

darkwolfb87

Cool, it looks like I'll shell out the extra bucks for the new 12" PB. Thanks for your help guys.

darkwolfb87

If anyone else is in the market for the just recently outdated Powerbooks, they are being sold on Amazon.com with $100-$150 mail-in rebates. I'm gonna get the 12" for $1200 right now.

n0de

I just ordered one of the new 15", my 12 was just not enough real-estate for my daily work (dbase design).



If anyone is interested in buying my 12" send me an email.



It is only about a year old, 1ghz, 1.25gb ram, 60gb 7200rpm hd (upgraded myself about 6 months ago), combo drive, internal wifi/bt, external LaCie DVD burner.