New iBook?
Hi all,
I am considering a new iBook because I am looking for a low-cost portable Mac and it seemed to be a better option than buying an old PowerBook G3. I am looking at the 700MHz ComboDrive 12.1" screen version because I would like the fastest G3 with DVD capability and screen size is not a major issue. Visiting a store, I played with a 500MHz iBook with OS X and I could not believe how slow it seemed! <img src="graemlins/oyvey.gif" border="0" alt="[No]" /> I am not sure if it was a badly configured demo setup or suffering from only 128MB of RAM or other factors but are the 700MHz iBooks much faster? Would you recommend buying one? (My primary Mac is a G4/450 Sawtooth)
Thanks a lot!
I am considering a new iBook because I am looking for a low-cost portable Mac and it seemed to be a better option than buying an old PowerBook G3. I am looking at the 700MHz ComboDrive 12.1" screen version because I would like the fastest G3 with DVD capability and screen size is not a major issue. Visiting a store, I played with a 500MHz iBook with OS X and I could not believe how slow it seemed! <img src="graemlins/oyvey.gif" border="0" alt="[No]" /> I am not sure if it was a badly configured demo setup or suffering from only 128MB of RAM or other factors but are the 700MHz iBooks much faster? Would you recommend buying one? (My primary Mac is a G4/450 Sawtooth)
Thanks a lot!
Comments
Unless you have a need for PCI slots or a gamer's video card, then the TiBook solves everything in one fell swoop.
ting5
Although the TiBook is definately inticing is the iBook a bad choice? The extra thousand on a TiBook would definately hurt.
Thanks.
According to every report I've heard, the 7000MHz iBook is a good performer. Unlike the old 500MHz model, which is merely adequate.
<strong>According to every report I've heard, the 7000MHz iBook is a good performer. </strong><hr></blockquote>
I bet it is, Amorph!
Anyway, in reference to the above post by There is no g5, I'm pretty much doing the same thing. I've already sold my PowerMac, and I'm going to sell my iBook in a couple of weeks in order to purchase a lovely new PowerBook G4
But it's screen is too small for serious duty.
The TiBook does it all: portable, powerful, good working screen. Plus, the bonus of not having 40+ lbs of gear to lug around.
You can probably get US$6-800 or more for the Powermac (esp. if you leave any software on there for 'demonstration purposes only' that you've bought) plus the US$1500 or so for the iBook, which gives you around US$2300.
Throw a couple more $$$ on the fire, and you've got the lowend TiBook right there.
Unless you are a hardcore Power user who needs 1600x1200 screen res., a RTMac PCI card, an Radeon 8500/GeForce3, an/or other peripherals, the Tibook is the way to go.
ting5
In short, the new iBook is VASTLY superior to the older iBooks.
<strong>I'm not saying it's bad at all. In fact, it wil probably outperform your g4-450 in every way, even in Altivec apps with it's big, highspeed cache and adequate video system.
But it's screen is too small for serious duty.</strong><hr></blockquote>
My Power Mac G4 350 (AGP Graphics) dances circles around my 500 MHz iBook! As far as size, I actually prefer the 12" iBook model to the TiBook. Portability wise, the 12" iBook is sweet. I only wish I had waited for the 700 MHz model.
Now that people have confirmed that the speed on the 700's is a noteable improvement over the older ones, I feel much better about buying one.
Thanks all!!
[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: StateWolf ]</p>
A 700 MHz iBook will:
-Hold most of, if not all of, your song collection.
-Burn CDs and play DVDs on the road.
-Play games at speeds comparable to the speed of last year's TiBooks, which at that time cost twice as much as this year's iBooks (see buying strategy above).
-Output presentations to projectors, large monitors, or TVs.
-Record an entire year's worth of university lectures or office meeting minutes (and transcribe them if you use the money you save from not buying a TiBook to buy ViaType). You need never lose access to this sort of data that you're only told once again.
-Run everything that isn't always too slow anyway at a productive speed. (That is, rendering in Maya never has been and never will be fast enough. One merely uses the extra clock-cycles making bigger better models. On that you'll see a big difference between the iBook and TiBook. On Office, though, who cares? It's hard to write a letter or use Excel so fast that the refresh rate is even a significant nuisance.) In other words, do everything you've ever done with a computer, but with a portable.
Remember that when the 400 MHz G3 chips came out, there was a huge furor over the fact that home computers could do everything that had been done with them up until that point at an acceptable speed. Companies scrambled to make up new things people could do so that computer sales wouldn't flag. Though some of these things, like digital video and the new Mac OS, have indeed pushed the bar higher, a 700 MHz iBook is still about twice as fast as the machines the market feared could do TOO MUCH.
Edit: I didn't emphasize enough that only months ago, the double-priced TiBook had the current iBook's graphics system. Imagine how you'd feel if you'd payed top-dollar for that then?
Oh, and the iBook has better AirPort range, doesn't cook your legs so much, has better battery life, is more portable and tougher, accepts mini-cds, business-card cds, specialty-shaped cds, cleaning cds and the mini-dvds many video companies are using for the special features disc included with a movie dvd (whereas the slot-loading drive chokes on all of these), has its USB, FireWire, and all its other ports on the side instead of the back, where I find them much easier to access, and has its combo drive on the right hand side instead of the front, which I also find easier to access.
[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: AllenChristopher ]</p>
Wow, AC! Good post. Now I want to buy an iBook!
ting5
If that's the case, would an overclocked 500/66 to 600/100 be about as fast as the current 600 model?
This is great for two big reasons - one, that you can jack up the speed by 15% without touching the hardware.
Two - perhaps even more important - that, as per the recent announcement from Apple, the ibook is going to stay G3 for a while. This makes sense, because the Sahara chip from IBM in the new ibooks will scale to a ghz, and so the speed can rise without infringing too closely on the pro line. But what's very probable is that for the next iBook upgrade, Apple will merely make this software overclocking standard - which implies that they're crippling the current ones a bit, but come on - this is Apple.
So - my perspective is: wait, if you can, until MWNY. On the off chance that there's a Special Edition iBook released, think about getting it. But, if there isn't (and there probably won't be) go for the 700mhz 12". If you choose to overclock (which is admittedly still a somewhat involved process), you'll likely stay current even through the next minor revision, and not have to wait for late fall/winter for it.
And, of course, you'll have the sweet little computer so expertly argued for in AC's post. I happen to have one, and everything he says is right on.
<strong>Is the performance boost in the new iBook solely caused by the increased FSB?
If that's the case, would an overclocked 500/66 to 600/100 be about as fast as the current 600 model?</strong><hr></blockquote>
Not just FSB, read my earlier post.
So in buying an iBook, wait for Jaguar or not?
<strong>So in buying an iBook, wait for Jaguar or not?</strong><hr></blockquote>
I would wait for MWNY, I'm sure the iBook will get a speed bump at MWNY. But I wouldn't wait for Jaguar, there's no reason to wait since it's software. Software you can always upgrade, hardware is a different story. <img src="graemlins/hmmm.gif" border="0" alt="[Hmmm]" />
Still, we're close enough that it's certainly worth waiting for MWNY on the off chance. As for Jaguar concerns, I'd get the book now. You'll have months of faithful service before Jaguar comes out. Regarding Quartz Extreme, which somebody is bound to bring up soon, the iBook supports it over AGP now and the iBook won't get a better video card until the TiBook sloughs off a hand-me-down. That'll be a while.
[ 06-27-2002: Message edited by: AllenChristopher ]</p>