ibook G4 12" vs iMac G5 17"

pyrix

Hi guys.



I was wondering what I should buy?



Base level iBook G4 12" w/combo drive etc, or the iMac G5 17 inch.



Wouldn't move around much, maybe to a freinds place once a month, and have a PDA (Zire 31) for day to day mobile bits.



I thought an iBook would be fine, but the screen is teeny tiny, which I again thought to be fine until i played around with some of the older iMac's (the 'bubble' design with the hinged screen) in Film & TV at school, and was impressed by big wide buitiful 17 inch LCD.



At the moment I live a deprived life in a Pentium 2 300 mhz, Win 98SE with 256mb ram and 40 g hard drive, which I share with rest of family of 8. Either one would be a major speed boost.



I'll probs use it for web browsing, basic gameplay, word proccesing and a bit of 3d graphics.

rsteve

I'm no Mac expert but I think you've answered your own question really - you want the iMac really, and I'd agree cause if you've only need to move it once a month, the iMac is slim and light enough for it not to be much more effort than an iBook, and you get a better screen and a faster machine. Since you do word processing and gaming, a 12-inch screen would probably be too cramped.

wingnut

Yeah, it depends on how much you do at once. Most people might run 2-3 apps at the same time, but you can only ever give your attention to one at any given moment.



As owner of a 12" iBook, I can't say the screen bothers me. Then again, I don't have unrealistic expectations of it. I don't run 12 apps at once, and I know it won't be as fast or powerful as a desktop. However, I seek portability and battery life in a notebook first and foremost. Sometimes a sacrifice has to be made. To me, it looks like you either have to sacrifice a large screen (iMac), or portability (iBook). Ask yourself which is more important, and go from there. You can't move around an iMac nearly as much, but you will probably like the screen (which will likely be brighter) and zippiness it will have over an iBook. I don't think either will do much for you in gaming, as they both have very basic graphics solutions that aren't upgradable.

:-)

Quote:

Originally posted by pyriX

Hi guys.



I was wondering what I should buy?



Base level iBook G4 12" w/combo drive etc, or the iMac G5 17 inch.



Wouldn't move around much, maybe to a freinds place once a month, and have a PDA (Zire 31) for day to day mobile bits.



I thought an iBook would be fine, but the screen is teeny tiny, which I again thought to be fine until i played around with some of the older iMac's (the 'bubble' design with the hinged screen) in Film & TV at school, and was impressed by big wide buitiful 17 inch LCD.



At the moment I live a deprived life in a Pentium 2 300 mhz, Win 98SE with 256mb ram and 40 g hard drive, which I share with rest of family of 8. Either one would be a major speed boost.



I'll probs use it for web browsing, basic gameplay, word proccesing and a bit of 3d graphics.

To add an extra scenario, I use my 12" iBook hooked up to a 20" Dell when at home - that way I get portability and big screen, still the overall performance will be lower than the iMac, but personally I'm not bothered (I mostly surf, but also run a variety of DNA-tool progs)



:-)

de fox

This is a decision only you can make. I was in a similar situation about a year ago, I had wanted a new laptop for a long time. I am sitting in my recliner now typing while the wife is clicking channels with the remote. The new I-mac?s are nice and would do you a good job. I was in Little Rock over the weekend and had a chance to play with them, and the screen is nice.

Your needs are what should drive your decision.

archrenov8

Have you considered a 12" PB, or a 14" iBook. The 12" PB has a better keyboard, that awesome new scroll trackpad, and some more speed. The 14" iBook, even though it is the same pixels as the 12" PB or the 12" iBook, the screen is larger.



For me, portability is tops.



We just got a 12" PB, and I have another on the way to replace my iMac G4, which will go to my office. The swivel G4 was a great form factor, but I wish it was more portable.



You would not want to be lugging around an iMac even once a month- too heavy.

chipz

Consider getting a 12" PB and a separate large screen monitor. That way you could have the best of both worlds. You could enjoy the portability of a small screen laptop with the screen size of a standard desktop. The 12" PB is really the best choice here, although in a pinch, the iBook could suffice.