15inch powerbook or 12inch with 20inch ACD?

derekderek
Posted:
in Current Mac Hardware edited January 2014
1.5ghz G4

768mb

80gb

superdrive

64mb 5200

12inch

20inch ACD



$3246 CDN







1.67ghz G4

1gb

80gb

superdrive

128mb video

15inch



$3224 CDN





little slower 12inch with a 20inch ACD compared to a faster 15inch powerb are the same price...



To me i would get the 12inch for the porability and then when i get home hook it up to the 20inch.



Which would you choose? why?

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 7
    eggman90eggman90 Posts: 24member
    well i dont yet own a mac but i would go with the 15 inch. it is pretty portable. the 12 inch isnt bad either. ive seen and used both of these models before though. when u connect to a 20 inch acd, the more vram you have, the better the picture will be graphics will be accelerated faster. if the 64mb can handle the resolution of the acd, then it would be fine. if not, go with the 15 inch. it really depends on what you are doing on the computer.
  • Reply 2 of 7
    jms698jms698 Posts: 102member
    I would (and, in fact, am very soon) getting a 12" PB with Dell 2005FPW (same display as ACD, but much cheaper, though, of course, less stylish).



    64MB of VRAM is enough to drive the display. I'd only worry about performance if you plan to run independent desktops on the two screens.



    The performance difference between 1.5 1.67 ghz is pretty negliable. Just make sure you get enough RAM - just don't buy it from (mega-overpriced) Apple.



    When the Intel Powerbooks get released the current powerbooks will look like old, wet dogs in comparison. I plan to upgrade again in about two years time. That's the main reason I'm getting a 12" + display. The display will last me beyond the looming laptop upgrade.
  • Reply 3 of 7
    pyr3pyr3 Posts: 946member
    My old Radeon7500 Mobility in my 3 year old PowerBook 667MHz can drive a Dell 2005FPW decently (with two independent displays that is, no mirroring or 2005FPW as the only display), so I wouldn't worry about the 12" PowerBook being able to drive one. And by decently I mean that it works fine unless I have a lot of programs going. Expose isn't too snappy either. An upgrade to a 12" would probably solve any of those issues.
  • Reply 4 of 7
    specialkbdcspecialkbdc Posts: 36member
    I am currently considering this exact decision. I've heard the 12 inch can get really loud when it is hooked up to the display. Plus, rumors abound that it gets way too hot to run in "clamshell" mode.



    I've been investigating every possible cooling option in the past couple days. From my highly unscientific research it would seem that a cooling stand is almost mandatory.



    Of course, being that I've never had a powerbook perhaps I should actually look at one in a store?



    Seriously though, can anyone weigh in on the fan situation with the 12 inch? Tolerable? Is it reasonable to have it hooked up to the display?
  • Reply 5 of 7
    sunilramansunilraman Posts: 8,133member
    15 inch. my brother has a 12 inch, nice very portable little machine with some kickass power compared to iBook 14",



    BUT



    the 12inch powerbook keyboard is hard to use, gets quite warm, slower graphics, only 64mb.



    if you need some sort of powerhouse portable go the 15". 1.67ghz is nice. 5400rpm drive is sweet, maybe you can push it to 7200rpm somewhere down the line and it'll handle things better.



    my 2 cents
  • Reply 6 of 7
    sunilramansunilraman Posts: 8,133member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by specialkbdc

    ....



    Seriously though, can anyone weigh in on the fan situation with the 12 inch? Tolerable? Is it reasonable to have it hooked up to the display?



    12", in clamshell mode, hooked up to the display, with no cooling stand, i would only do this, if it was less than 60degF / 18degC and there was good air circulation in the room.



    otherwise, 15-incher on an iLap (raindesign) is tres chic. and cool.



    that said,

    no acroutrements are really required for a 1.2ghz or less 15" powerbook or 14" ibook, these are quite tolerable, i have found...
  • Reply 7 of 7
    cj171cj171 Posts: 144member
    i don't know about you but my 1ghz 15" gets too hot..can feel the heat through the desk sometimes..i'm probably gonna get an ilap though
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