The 12 inch powerbook funeral at G5
There is a rumor that when the Powerbook G5 comes out the 12 inch screen may not be an option. The company that makes the powerbooks 12 inch screen may not make them anymore. If that does happen Apple will change their line up to thr 14,15, and 17 inch screens. There is proof but, the proof is in German. If you can speak german let me know by repling and ill edit this thread to add the link.
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After buying the 12 for budgetary reasons, I'd be quite thrilled to see it get smaller, not bigger, I wouldn't use a screen smaller than 12" though.
If they can make a 14" (widescreen) that just as light, a tad thinner, and a possible only an inch wider overall, I could live with that. But then again, I'd have to think that if they can put that much effort into thinning down a 14, the I could have a 3.5lbs 1" 12. Damn.
Keep the 12 Apple!
The PowerBook G5's main problem is heat, but 90nm G5s make one much more feasible.
Why not add the link at first or run it through Babelfish ?
Originally posted by Stoo
I imagine that there are (many) more than Apple's current supplier making 12" TFTs. Maybe this supplier is moving away from this screen because Apple (posibly a substantial main customer for this product) has found another supplier ?
The PowerBook G5's main problem is heat, but 90nm G5s make one much more feasible.
Why not add the link at first or run it through Babelfish ?
Thank you for that link. Now here is the translated link.
http://babelfish.altavista.com/babelfish/tr
Sorry, if you type in this website to that link up there and change the translation option to German-English. Here is the website.
http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/45306
That's one additional screen size.
The article does not say that Quanta will stop production of the current 12" display size.
And no word of Powerbooks or even Apple!
Only Acer, HP and Sony.
I might have to change my mind, perhaps Apple should use this new screen size afterall. The resultant book would be no taller than the current 12, and if they thin the bezels a tad, only about 1.75" wider. More footprint means it could get a touch thiner too, and come in at about the same weight. Leaves room for a FW800 port and cardbus slot too!
1280x800 is a nice bump and should still be legible at 14" diagnal.
Ahem...
Originally posted by quagmire
There is a rumor that when the Powerbook G5 comes out the 12 inch screen may not be an option.
What a bunch of crap, quagmire! First, the linked article only mentions new 14" wide aspect LCDs. Second, the article doesn't mention anything about discontinued production of 12" LCD by any manufacturer. Third, 12" panels are a commodity which can be procured from many different manufacturers. Finally, Apple wouldn't be so stupid as to discontinue the successful 12-inch PowerBook, unless there was a comparable replacement to take its place.
Originally posted by bka77
The article states that Quanta will produce 14.1" wide-screen notebook TFT's with a width/hight ratio of 1,6:1.
Thats one additional screen size.
The article does not say that Quanta will stop production of the current 12" display size.
And no word of Powerbooks or even Apple!
At least bka77 correctly understands what he is reading.
That will teach us all (not!) to rely on machine translation! Machine translation may be useful as a crutch, but nothing beats actually speaking a language.
Escher
Originally posted by Escher
[B]What a bunch of crap...
can't stop smiling
Originally posted by quagmire
There is a rumor that when the Powerbook G5 comes out the 12 inch screen may not be an option. The company that makes the powerbooks 12 inch screen may not make them anymore. If that does happen Apple will change their line up to thr 14,15, and 17 inch screens. There is proof but, the proof is in German. If you can speak german let me know by repling and ill edit this thread to add the link.
If having 90 nm G5 in powerbook needs to redesign the current looks of powerbook, that may mean that G5 is a really hot microprocessor to put it into a powerbook, so, the question will be if this is a good ideal to buy a 1st generation Powerbook G5? I remember that when G3 was put into powerbook, there was heat issues, the same for the G4 powerbook. Maybe a 1.5 GHz G4 powerbook is a acceptable design since this is likely to be the last gerneration of G4 powerbook and gathering information/customer reponses from the previous G4 powerbooks, that might make the next G4 powerbook upgrade a fully mature design and a mature product is more reliable than a new product.
So I'd suggest another PB update with the G4 would be fine from a performance standpoint--update the CPUs to perhaps 1.5 (when avail), 1.42/1.33, use faster HDs as standard, update the video card if necessary, etc. Keep the pricing the same or reduce it some, and the PBs would, I would bet, continue to sell very well.
Finally, far better Apple hold off on a G5 PB until they can do it correctly, which is to say they would offer substantial performance advantages, no heat problems, etc.
Best,
Bob
Originally posted by Escher
[snipperdesnipsnip]
but nothing beats actually speaking a language.
more important: the ability to understand and read a language when it's spoken or written.
my german sucks, my english sucks even harder.
but i read it like it's, mijn moerstaal: dutch.
anyway,
is the step from such a 14"widescreen pb to a 15"pb to small to be interesting?
isn't it better (if apple actually want's a widescreen like that) to have a 11", 12" or a 13" widescreen subnotebook option instead?
Originally posted by Automaticftp
Finally, far better Apple hold off on a G5 PB until they can do it correctly, which is to say they would offer substantial performance advantages, no heat problems, etc.
they probally did already and to offer more substantial performance advantages isn't as important as the commercial effects of the name: powerbook G5
Originally posted by gar
more important: the ability to understand and read a language when it's spoken or written.
my german sucks, my english sucks even harder.
but i read it like it's, mijn moerstaal: dutch.
gar: I should have been more clear. I used the term "speak" to signify all three modes of communication, i.e. speaking (including listening and understanding, of course), reading and writing. As you point out, the three do not always go along.
Back on topic:
isn't it better (if apple actually want's a widescreen like that) to have a 11", 12" or a 13" widescreen subnotebook option instead?
That would be right up my alley. The 12" iBook and PowerBook are nice. But an 11" or 12" widescreen could potentially make a better form-factor. Think of a Sony VAIO C1 Picturebook, but with a full-size keyboard and an LCD that does not kill your eyes.
Escher
However, there is room to shrink wrap the 12" further, and I welcome it!
The question becomes, how should Apple use this new panel, and they should use it.
PScates, gorgeous widescreen superdrive 14" iBook comes to mind. Make that and there really is no need to make both a 12" and 14" iBook. The resultant 14" 16:10 would only have to be about 1.5" wider than the current 12" iBook, and have a much smaller footprint than the current 14". It could weigh the same and be thinner too. Why make two? Certainly a savings arises from simplifying the lineup. 14" combo, 14" super, 14" super loaded.
Then you take the 12" PB, and really streamline it. Cut the depth down, make it thinner, employ some really agressive power saving. Yeah, 3.5lb DVD-burning 12" aluminium beauty!
OR,
They could do it the other way.
Use the 14" in the PB line up and slim it down to where it's overall volume and weight are no more than the current 12" and keep making the iBooks in 12 and 14" "square" 4:3 designs.
hmmm...
Originally posted by Matsu
TOO MUCH SCROLLING, sorry Escher. Though I must say I find myself wanting a smaller book, I still want it full featured and legible.
However, there is room to shrink wrap the 12" further, and I welcome it!
The question becomes, how should Apple use this new panel, and they should use it.
PScates, gorgeous widescreen superdrive 14" iBook comes to mind. Make that and there really is no need to make both a 12" and 14" iBook. The resultant 14" 16:10 would only have to be about 1.5" wider than the current 12" iBook, and have a much smaller footprint than the current 14". It could weigh the same and be thinner too. Why make two? Certainly a savings arises from simplifying the lineup. 14" combo, 14" super, 14" super loaded.
Then you take the 12" PB, and really streamline it. Cut the depth down, make it thinner, employ some really agressive power saving. Yeah, 3.5lb DVD-burning 12" aluminium beauty!
OR,
They could do it the other way.
Use the 14" in the PB line up and slim it down to where it's overall volume and weight are no more than the current 12" and keep making the iBooks in 12 and 14" "square" 4:3 designs.
hmmm...
Interesting thoughts. However, I am still partial to a thinner 12" PB with all the bells and whistles than cutting out the 12" PB all together. Maybe its because i'm using a 12" as my primary mac, but being in the possesion of a small, sexy, powerful, DVD burning, game playing laptop calls to me more than a 12" iBook. Making a slimed down version of a 14" PB seems to defeat the purpose of having a small, portable laptop to me.
Widescreen is nice for movies and games (latter only if there is support in the game). It's also good in graphics work.
In all these pursuits you should have a big screen.
I assert widescreen is no good for small (as in, 12") screens. What do you use the extra width for? Only one browser or document is going to fit anyway.
I'd actually welcome the death of small PB's since then they'd have no reason to be misery with DVI, Superdrive and screen spanning.. and those would appear on the iBook.
Originally posted by Gon
In my humble opinion...
Widescreen is nice for movies and games (latter only if there is support in the game). It's also good in graphics work.
In all these pursuits you should have a big screen.
I assert widescreen is no good for small (as in, 12") screens. What do you use the extra width for? Only one browser or document is going to fit anyway.
I'd actually welcome the death of small PB's since then they'd have no reason to be misery with DVI, Superdrive and screen spanning.. and those would appear on the iBook.
I agree with you that a 12" PB's screen is limiting, but the whole point of having a 12" PB is portability with the added muscle when you need it most. I use my PB all the time at university ( i dont know how people used to take notes by hand
Originally posted by onlyafterdark
I agree with you that a 12" PB's screen is limiting, but the whole point of having a 12" PB is portability with the added muscle when you need it most. I use my PB all the time at university ( i dont know how people used to take notes by hand
It's hard to understand how you could have misread my post that badly.
I think the 12" PB's screen size is fine. What I said in the last post was that it would not be a good idea to switch to a wide aspect ratio for the smallest PB.
I think the 12" PB has good features. As I said, I'd like to see them in the iBook. My reason for this is to get them for a more reasonable price without the Al "luxury" overhead. I said we'd probably see the features in the iBook if this PB form factor went away. Implied within the post was the condition that I only want the 12" PB to go away if that gives us a fully featured iBook.
Originally posted by Gon
It's hard to understand how you could have misread my post that badly.
I think the 12" PB's screen size is fine. What I said in the last post was that it would not be a good idea to switch to a wide aspect ratio for the smallest PB.
I think the 12" PB has good features. As I said, I'd like to see them in the iBook. My reason for this is to get them for a more reasonable price without the Al "luxury" overhead. I said we'd probably see the features in the iBook if this PB form factor went away. Implied within the post was the condition that I only want the 12" PB to go away if that gives us a fully featured iBook.
Sorry, my bad. I have had a long day.
Originally posted by Gon
I think the 12" PB's screen size is fine. What I said in the last post was that it would not be a good idea to switch to a wide aspect ratio for the smallest PB.
Actually, I'd disagree.
I think the 12" PB has good features. As I said, I'd like to see them in the iBook... My reason for this is to get them for a more reasonable price without the Al "luxury" overhead. I said we'd probably see the features in the iBook if this PB form factor went away.
The 12" PB is an iBook G4, but with slightly faster components.
My not so radical Apple notebook lineup for Spring 04:
12.1" iBook G4: 1024x768, 1 GHz 7447
14.2" iBook G4: 1152x864, 1.25 GHz 7447
with 167 MHz FSB, 2 PC2700 SO-DIMM slots, 32 MB video, mirroring, etc.
13.3" Powerbook G5: 1152x768, 1.4 GHz 970fx
15.2" Powerbook G5: 1280x854, 1.6 GHz 970fx
17.0" Powerbook G5: 1440x960, 1.8 GHz 970fx
with 700 to 900 MHz FSB, 4 PC2700/3200 SO-DIMM slots, 128 MB video, spanning, PC card slot, etc.
This 14" Powerbook business is pretty damn strange. A 13" would make a lot more sense to me however. It'll be the size of a 12x8.5 inch piece of paper, or in other words, it'll be 1.2 inches wider than the current 12" Powerbook G4. Also, it may have enough acreage for Apple to make it 1" or 1.1" thick like the real Powerbook G4's are instead of current 1.2" or the 1.35 inch iBooks.