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Crusoe · 09:17 AM

I have the luxury to "wait and see" for the new 15"ers but the wait is killing me.
I was going to buy a new 12"er or 15"er in January when I found a deal on a used TiBook 500 for $275.
I write 2D/3D simulations and build on a basic game (time permitting). Cache = less compile time and a good keyboard is a must.

My current system will tie me over but it has these problems:
Spongy Keyboard
8MB Vid Ram
Horrid Airport Range!

The 12" would be ideal if it had:
L3 cache
256 on board memory
DVI
64MB Vid Ram
I'd pay $2500 for this with SD and AE 768MB Ram

The rumored 15"ers will be the perfect fit if atleast spec'd at:
1Ghz (given)
Ambient Light Sensors
64MB+ Vid Ram
Hopefully will be $2999 or less for SD/AE model.

The 17" is a sweet system but the keyboard placement isn't optimal.
I felt I had to be too close to the screen to type comfortably and my head was moving like a cat chasing a fly in the window. Also at certain typing angles (in bed) my fingers would cover the bottom of the screen. It's a bit picky but basic input is important.

Now, if the 15"ers come out alone I'll probably hop on one. If they do a new release of all three in September with Panther (Yikes) I'll have to re-eval and buy the best fit. I've set Sept 11 as my deadline as that is my birthday.

What can I do to distract myself from longing for a new powerbook?

spotze23 · May 13, 2003, 06:58 AM

hm

craigthomas · May 13, 2003, 11:44 AM

If your 500Ti keeps you productive without bogging you down, wait. If you are seeing that clock too much, and need more power right now, get a 1GHz Tibook. I love mine. Personally, I'm waiting for the hopeful 970 chip before I upgrade to AI. There's nothing in the current AIbooks that would convince me to move away from the Ti1Ghz (more processing power, faster HDs, faster video, more ram). If the AIbooks come out soon, it probably wont have the stuff I want, so I'd wait for rev b of the AI15's anyway. For you, if you need the power, I'd buy now, there's alway eBay if you want to upgrade sooner.

squish · May 13, 2003, 06:57 PM

I was in your seat before. Then about 5 weeks ago, i cracked and bought 15" 1ghz. It's amazing. really. I love watching movies on my TV using the thing. i'm glad i made this choice.

- - e r i k - - · May 14, 2003, 05:34 AM

Heck. A friend of me bought the 17" PowerBook for me almost two weeks ago on a holiday and yet the wait until when he returns with it on friday is killing me.

And I have good macs at work and at home.

Do yourself a favor and buy whatever feels right this instance. You won't regret it.

Crusoe · May 14, 2003, 02:54 PM

In a rush this morning I tripped over the powerbook cord which was attached to my powerbook. The powercable didn't detach from the wall nor from the powerbook sending it flying 2 feet out and down from my coffee table. I come home and open up my powerbook and it awakes and works fine. After about an hour I noticed it was on battery power while plugged in.
I got out my multimeter and test the cable from the wall to the yoyo and it works but from the yoyo to the nipple plug in I get nothing, though I'm not sure how to get a reading from the nipple. The female plug in to the powerbook seems fine and not loose on any axis. I'm praying it's just the skinny cord from the yoyo to the powerbook got hyper extended.

First does anyone know how to get a reading off the nipple? What settings on the multi meter and where to make contact?

Second I have a universal power adapter with tons of changeable connectors one of which is identical to the yoyo's. The problem is it pushes only 9V while the yoyo pushes 24V. I plugged it in and it didn't show power input while on but what I'm curious is if at 9V it'll atleast charge the battery when powered down.

I'm going to take it to a computer store tomorrow and see if I just need a new yoyo. There's really only one decent store here in Milan that I've found that has an apple section so hopefully the guy will let me hook it up to test it out. Problem is I don't remember them having an TiBooks on display anymore. Will the 12" or 17" AC adapter work?

I shouldn't have said I had the luxury to wait till september to replace my powerbook. I may be picking up a 17" soon if I damaged the internal connector in the powerbook.

MusicalTone · May 14, 2003, 05:01 PM

I wouldnt hold your breath. All indications from Apple are that they are not planning on updating the Ti book any time soon. If you want a PB go out a by one for Christ's sake. The 15 SD is an excellent machine and the latest ones have no paint issues or noisy fans, which were very minor blemishies anyway.

Crusoe · May 15, 2003, 05:40 AM

The current 1GHz TiBooks have 2 of the 3 problems that will be fixed with the revision.

Spongy Keyboard
Horrid Airport Range.

I was ready to buy a 867Mhz in Jan but compare $275 to either $1795 or $2295 it wasn't a tough choice. Now that I've eval'd the design I would like the new changes before I upgrade. My current TiBook is fast enough (though I have nothing to compare it too) just has the aforementioned problems and vid ram limitation. It's scratched to hell and has tons of cracks in the plastic but those problems don't bother me. Assuming I just need a new power adapter since I flung it across the room, I still have the luxury to wait till Sept.

Mountain Biking, Fencing and work will take up 70% of my time I suppose the rest I can think wishfully hehe.

marselen · May 15, 2003, 09:15 AM

How on earth did you get that powerbook for 275? I would jump at a similar price in a heartbeat. Good luck with the power adaptor.

Crusoe · May 15, 2003, 10:51 AM

Originally posted by marselen:
How on earth did you get that powerbook for 275? I would jump at a similar price in a heartbeat. Good luck with the power adaptor.

I went by my old work, who layed off me and about 75% of the company a year ago to eat lunch with one of my friends (IT Manager) that still works (resides) there. I asked if they were selling inventory and if they had any Macs. They had the TiBook 500, a cube (which he was keeping), and 2 powermacs (one with a dead power supply other was sold). I booted up the powerbook and checked it's condition and was expecting a reponse of $1000ish. When he said $275 I ran to the bank and back. I added 256MB ram, airport and bought Jaguar pushing it to $500 but still a steal.

mcs37 · May 15, 2003, 03:34 PM

Originally posted by MusicalTone:
I wouldnt hold your breath. All indications from Apple are that they are not planning on updating the Ti book any time soon. If you want a PB go out a by one for Christ's sake.

Word around the campfire is a possible release of the 15" AlBook in summer with a 1.2/1.4 GHz PPC970 processor. The rumors that indicate this are from numerous sites along with a pretty strong confirmation that the 15" Albooks underwent a pretty significant motherboard redesign in January.

All indicators point to the PowerPC 970 shipping on PowerMacs come July. I'd wait until the WWDC and see what Jobs has to say. I'm sure your 500 Mhz TiBook will hold you over until then!

Personally I am thinking of throwing down $450 to up my PC from 850 Mhz to 2.53 GHz with a new case, a new motherboard and a half a gig of RAM. That should hold me over until the 15" AlBooks are released.

rhull89040 · May 15, 2003, 04:08 PM

I was going to wait for the new 15", but I got a deal on a 1 ghz TiBook that I couldn't pass up. I picked up the TiBook with superdrive, a 3 year AppleCare agreement and a free HP printer for $2199. This was through my employer which is a university.

mcs37 · May 15, 2003, 04:19 PM

Originally posted by rhull89040:
I was going to wait for the new 15", but I got a deal on a 1 ghz TiBook that I couldn't pass up. I picked up the TiBook with superdrive, a 3 year AppleCare agreement and a free HP printer for $2199. This was through my employer which is a university.

Which university? That's a sweet deal!

rhull89040 · May 16, 2003, 10:27 AM

Originally posted by mcs37:
Which university? That's a sweet deal!

The University of Missouri. It was part of a graduation sale our campus computer store was having. The unit is brand new, not a refurb. I figured I would never get as much for the money with the revision.