how cool would a widescreen iBook be?

progmac · September 5, 2002 2:37PM

Apple would absolutely, positively have the coolest looking notebook if the iBook were widescreen. They could also claim innovation, since I don't think anyone has done this. I guess they could be a pain to carry around though. And, uh, yeah. Nothing to see here, move along.

crusader · September 5, 2002 5:59PM

Hmm a 12.5 inch screen in widescreen? Apple would have to make it like 13 inch WS.

elbaroni · September 5, 2002 6:54PM

I went into my uni's Apple store yesterday, and they were out of all iBooks. No 600s, 700s, 14 inchers, nothing.

Except a 500 that they were willing to sell me at the same price as a 600, but with a digital camera.

reynard · September 5, 2002 7:09PM

I don't quite get the wide screen attraction. Regarding all LCDs--for laptops, in the iMac, and stand alone screens, why is the wide format so popular recently? I have a traditional 17" LCD Studio Display. I hear cries for a wide screen format in the future 17 inchers. I can understand this for the larger cinema displays.

But my 17" is just tall enough to see most documents without scrolling (including the menus on top). Id not like to give that up.

And the width is still enough that I can set 2 documents side by side?

Is the wide format popular due to recent emphasis on movie editing and video in general?

curiousuburb · September 5, 2002 7:12PM

the expensive option would require a case mod to fit a WS display

(picture the same depth but greater width a la TiBook)

the cheaper option might be to add not subtract function from the current iBook GPU

ideally, next rev comprimise will see full Quartz Extreme Compliance in a 32Mb Radeon iBook with a few more pixels of horizontal aspect ratio, but mostly a fully enabled GPU in multi-res/span

no rectangular HDTV pixels, thank you.

given the choice between WS iBook and OLED though... hmmm

flashgordon · September 5, 2002 7:31PM

Widescreen format is becoming industry standard. You will stop seeing 4:3 aspects slowly as the whole industry goes toward widescreen. In 2006 all TVs will have to be widescreen and digital in USA. Expect monitor makers to follow suit. Expect widescreen CRTs to be widespread soon, along with big time price drops as the market gets competitive and saturated over the next couple years.

On subject, I think a widescreen ibook would be cool, but would prolly infringe on the Ti's design too much for Apple to consider it. Dont see it happening in the next year+, But it would be hella cool.

escher · September 5, 2002 7:45PM

I'd like to see a widescreen mini-iBook, akin to Sony's <a href="http://www.sonystyle.com/home/item.jsp?hierc=9683x7018x9032&catid=9032&itemid=44 421&viewall=true" target="_blank"> VAIO C1 Picturebook</a>. I would kill for an iBook that was half the weight of my current one, 2.5 lbs instead of 4.9 lbs!

Escher

i-bent-my-wookie · September 5, 2002 11:14PM

[quote]Originally posted by reynard:

I don't quite get the wide screen attraction. Regarding all LCDs--for laptops, in the iMac, and stand alone screens, why is the wide format so popular recently? <hr></blockquote>

Personally I like it for movies. You get more movie for your screen size because of the letterbox format is limited by width not height on a computer monitor. Its nice in some other programs like Flash to have the wider screen without paying for the next bigger panel.

reynard · September 5, 2002 11:54PM

Yes, I have seen that televisions are moving the wider aspect ratio. Im more accepting of it there than with computer monitors.

And with DVD drives on computers I guess it will be more common to use the computer for a video entertainment device.

I just wondered if I was missing something aside from the graphics/video advantages. For my humble purposes, the old style suits me. (listen to me--"old style"! Hell, 2 years ago any LCD was state of the art.)

I will admit, the wide aspect LCD is more attractive than would be the squarish 17 incher.

torifile · September 6, 2002 12:02AM

I like the widescreen on my Ti because it allows me to have more real estate without sacrificing readability or length. A 4:3 powerbook with a 15.2" diagonal would be unwieldy and unattractive. I HATE notebooks with screens bigger than 14.1" (at a 4:3 aspect ratio) because they are so bulky and freakin' ugly too boot. Give me a G4 and widescreen in an iBook style case (with reduced weight if possible) and I'd sell my Ti.

pscates · September 6, 2002 12:55AM

That's what I've been hoping for, torifile! I've said in a couple of threads lately (past month or so) that I'd REALLY love an iBook that had a G4 and perhaps a cool widescreen. Perhaps not 15", but a cool 13 or even 14 widescreen?

That and a nice video card (for OS X and all) and a slightly zippier Combo Drive (although 16x burn speed is totally acceptable and just fine), and i'm there!

If I could get an iBook that's roughly equivalent to my current LCD iMac (I'd even happily get up the SuperDrive and the larger screen), I'd get rid of the iMac and just have one nice, cool portable.

My battle cry? TiBook power wedded to iBook style/toughness.

G4, a widescreen of some sort, snazzy graphics performance...all TiBook hallmarks.

BUT glossy white enclosure, great AirPort reception, tough body/contstruction...all iBook traits.

Combine the two, for the best of both worlds. Now THAT would be the killer laptop from Apple!

I'm just waiting patiently for it to appear one day. You KNOW it will.

satchmo · September 6, 2002 9:00AM

The question however is will Apple listen to its customers?

According to Jobs, they do. If so, they might first address the top demands before looking into changing the screen ratio ( list based on readings here at AI)

1) G4 processor

2) video spanning

3) 133 bus

4) 13" model

5) Widescreen

chucker · September 6, 2002 9:17AM

[quote]Originally posted by Escher:

I'd like to see a widescreen mini-iBook, akin to Sony's <a href="http://www.sonystyle.com/home/item.jsp?hierc=9683x7018x9032&catid=9032&itemid=44 421&viewall=true" target="_blank"> VAIO C1 Picturebook</a>. I would kill for an iBook that was half the weight of my current one, 2.5 lbs instead of 4.9 lbs!

Escher<hr></blockquote>

Sony appears to do more and more pointless "VAIO" products recently <img src="graemlins/oyvey.gif" border="0" alt="[No]" />

reid · September 6, 2002 9:46AM

Wait a minute - you want an iBook with a G4 and a wide screen? Of course, you do: everyone wants a today's PowerBook for an iBook price! And you can have it - when the PowerBook G5 comes out and everybody starts selling their G4's on eBay.

i-bent-my-wookie · September 6, 2002 10:32AM

[quote]Originally posted by satchmo:

The question however is will Apple listen to its customers?

According to Jobs, they do. If so, they might first address the top demands before looking into changing the screen ratio ( list based on readings here at AI)

1) G4 processor

2) video spanning

3) 133 bus

4) 13" model

5) Widescreen<hr></blockquote>

You've just listed every feature of the Ti that apple uses to differntiate it from the iBook. So no chance on getting these features until the Ti is upgraded in those specs ('cept maybe the screen). But I doubt we will see a G4 or Spanning or 133 bus.

bradbower · September 6, 2002 1:23PM

I couldn't care less about the aspect ratio.. just as long as it has a 32MB Radeon in there.

And what I would really like to see in an iBook is a swivelling screen. No cumbersome hinge and latch mechanism, but just a little iMac-like arm on one corner that attaches the screen to the iBook, so you can angle it or move it closer or further away. And then reposition it, and snap the iBook together.

(not to mention you could use it as a tablet-screen-thingie with Ink, I suppose, if they made the screen touch-sensitive...)

Or who knows, maybe they'll save this feature for the PowerBooks, and then they can add all the spec goodies to the iBook, and have the innovative screen design be one of the selling points of the Ti.

[ 09-06-2002: Message edited by: bradbower ]

satchmo · September 6, 2002 1:43PM

[quote]Originally posted by I-bent-my-wookie:

You've just listed every feature of the Ti that apple uses to differntiate it from the iBook. So no chance on getting these features until the Ti is upgraded in those specs ('cept maybe the screen). But I doubt we will see a G4 or Spanning or 133 bus.<hr></blockquote>

Perhaps, but that's what iBook owners want...a Powerbook in an iBook plastic white casing.

No, we probably won't get the spanning or 133 bus, but I'm still holding out for G4.

After all the Powerbooks are going 1GHz this month right?

spart · September 6, 2002 8:52PM

Let's see, since Apple made the iMac utilize a 17" display without increasing the height, thus forcing it to not allow the arm to go as low, and making the arm longer, let's assume they do the same with the iBook.

17÷15=1.1333...

12.1x1.1333...=13.71333

So a widescreen iBook would likely have a display size of 13.6.

Assuming Apple takes removes the rather large (when compared with the TiBook) space around the LCD, and gets a 13" LCD w/4:3 aspect ratio squeezed in there:

13x1.1333...=14.7333...

Judging from where the PowerBook went from 14.1" to 15.2"

15.2÷14.1=1.078014

12.1x1.078014=13.04397

13x1.078014=14.01418

Take from this what you will..IMO the next iBook display will be ~13.5. Ryan Meader, if you report this on your little crud site (since you obviously can't do the math yourself,) well, we're all gonna laugh at you some more.

how cool would a widescreen iBook be?

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