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iWrite · Jul 30, 2003, 05:53 PM

So, this topic is about DISSATISFACTION.

What are you dissatisfied about with respect to your Powerbook? Of course you'll have to list the model and give specifics and BE HONEST, not speculative.

Some people might actually find this topic very useful if they're considering upgrading or buying another system -- especially if they have no experience with the system they're considering.

MindFad · Jul 30, 2003, 06:29 PM

Well, I must say, I'm pretty pissed that I can't afford one.

Honestly, though, I hope they get a good processor bump soon, be it 1.25 G4, or a 1.4 G5.

DVD Plaza · Jul 30, 2003, 06:41 PM

Only thing I don't like is the fact that Apple force a single button on us with the trackpads - with external mice we have the choice to simply not shop with Apple, since all their products are designed for morons who can only handle a single button, but with the damn trackpads we're stuck with the single button.

Or, at the very least, they could make "click and hold" operating systme wide, instead of just the dock - CTRL+CLICK is outright pathetic... whatever happened to the days when Steve thought one-handed mouse operation was so crucial he didn't want the Macintosh to have arrow keys?

That's my only gripe - the PowerBooks are awesome beasts!

icruise · Jul 30, 2003, 06:42 PM

My only major gripe (aside from some heat issues) is that the damn little rubber feet on every powerbook I've owned have come off. How hard is it to engineer a solution for this?

icruise · Jul 30, 2003, 06:47 PM

Originally posted by DVD Plaza:
Or, at the very least, they could make "click and hold" operating systme wide, instead of just the dock - CTRL+CLICK is outright pathetic...

Actually I find control clicking to be fine on powerbooks, but a bit of a pain if you are using a separate mouse and keyboard. With a powerbook the control key is right there next to the trackpad -- you can generally do it without even moving your hands from their position at the keyboard. But I don't really use "left clicking" much at all. Actually the fact that most applications don't *require* left clicks is one of the things that I like about Macs.

whatever happened to the days when Steve thought one-handed mouse operation was so crucial he didn't want the Macintosh to have arrow keys?

I don't think that had anything to do with "one-handed mouse operation" but rather with forcing people to use the mouse as much as possible (and thus get used to the new input device).

takai · Jul 30, 2003, 07:05 PM

Yeah, i have a gripe with the feet too. I was talking to one of the mac people at the AppleCenter at my local uni and he was saying that "apparently" they are impossible to remove and that because of that they dont provide replacements. What BS.

Why cant they provide replacements.
And also my battery doesnt sit flush with the casing. The centermost corner (to the laptop entire) sits out by about 1/2mm. Which is quite annoying.

djjava · Jul 30, 2003, 07:18 PM

My only gripe is that I didn't buy a Powerbook sooner....

Don't sweat the small stuff guys.

icruise · Jul 30, 2003, 07:20 PM

That's the great thing about Powerbooks -- the small stuff is all there is!

pete · Jul 30, 2003, 07:41 PM

1. Heat (although my new 1ghz is cool where it counts - on the keyboard)
2. Delicate construction (the one thing I like about the IBM thinkpads is their tank like construction)
3. Single button trackpad
4. undersized up/down keys
5.mediocre sound on pb g4s (old g3s were better)
6. Lack of detachable keyboard (the old Siemens mobile 800 had an infrared detachable keyboard five years ago!)
7. Lack of built in adapter (I know it wouldn't work because of the heat but still....Toshiba made one several years ago)

Having listed these gripes, this is the best computer I've ever owned. Simply wonderful.

iWrite · Jul 30, 2003, 08:36 PM

Pretty good posts.

DVD Plaza · Jul 30, 2003, 10:02 PM

Originally posted by Icruise:
But I don't really use "left clicking" much at all.[/B]

Don't you mean "right clicking" - OSX is very far from being independant from the mouse, without the ability to click your mouse you're pretty screwed

Originally posted by Icruise:
Actually the fact that most applications don't *require* left clicks is one of the things that I like about Macs.[/B]

Nothing should ever *require* a right click - right clicking is merely a shortcut, just like toolbars (you don't have to use toolbars, you can manually navigate through menus/dialogs to do exactly the same thing as clicking a toolbar button). Right clicking should do nothing more than popup a menu with items that specifically relate to what you are pointing at - nothing more what-so-ever.

spacedog · Jul 30, 2003, 10:29 PM

i hate the sound sleeping / waking issues on my pb17. i know you can run an app to keep the sound alive, but that seems unnecessary.

1. if the sound system goes to sleep, it should wake back up immediately.

2. when you click on the sound up / down buttons on the keyboard, the should should be adjusted immediately, no stupid lag to display the little translucent overlay.

other than that, i've been very happy with the system. for the amount of money i paid for the 17, i would have appreciated a 5400rpm drive, but this just gives me an excuse to get one of the new 7200rpm units and use my 4200rpm as an external backup drive.

art399 · Jul 30, 2003, 11:03 PM

Originally posted by Icruise:

But I don't really use "left clicking" much at all. Actually the fact that most applications don't *require* left clicks is one of the things that I like about Macs.
[/B]

Well, i suppose i can understand someone not really caring about the right-click, but what i don't understand it that you *like* that it's not as big a part of the OS as it could be. I guess i just don't see the downside to right-clicking, only the upside. Contextual menus being the main reason, to me make a whole lot of sense. Most games that i play would be very difficult without it(granted, i don't play many games anymore). And as for CTRL-Click, i'm not a fan of that either, at least on a desktop it's nice to just sit back sip a drink in my left hand and right-click my way to computing bliss

OK, i'm exaggerating a bit. I just ordered a tiBook 1ghz and i'm pretty sure i'm going to love it(my first notebook of any kind), but i'm also pretty sure i'm going to be annoyed at the single button for at least awhile

art399 · Jul 30, 2003, 11:16 PM

Oh, and one other thing relating to mice. Input devices over the years have progressed at a snails pace compared to the leaps and bounds in other areas, but the best thing since the mouse was invented has to be the scroll wheel

I'm not saying apple should put a scroll buttons on their laptops, i know they like the minimalist outer configuration, and i like it too, but man, put me on a computer with no scroll wheel and i'm like a beached whale whilst surfing the net. Forward and back buttons kick butt too. I can kind of see the point people make about them being distractions, and i suppose it's really just a matter of what you're used to, but once you become used to those small innovations you'll never go back. Chances are i'll just buy one of those cute little mini-mice with two buttons and a scroll wheel(macally i think?)

icruise · Jul 30, 2003, 11:27 PM

Originally posted by DVD Plaza:
Don't you mean "right clicking" - OSX is very far from being independant from the mouse, without the ability to click your mouse you're pretty screwed

Heh, yeah. Sorry about that.

icruise · Jul 30, 2003, 11:34 PM

Originally posted by art399:
Well, i suppose i can understand someone not really caring about the right-click, but what i don't understand it that you *like* that it's not as big a part of the OS as it could be. I guess i just don't see the downside to right-clicking, only the upside. Contextual menus being the main reason, to me make a whole lot of sense.

I'm not against contextual menus per se, but one of the problems with Windows' insistence on right clicking is that it leads to unnecessary complexity, and in many cases it isn't obvious to the user what options are available until you click somewhere. The Mac is built around the idea that things should work as you expect them to, and that they should be as simple as possible.

Cellery · Jul 31, 2003, 12:00 AM

I'm displeased with the chipping/flaking/bubbling paint on my 15" 1GHz TiBook, but I'm perfectly content with my 17" AlBook.

DigitalEl · Jul 31, 2003, 12:11 AM

I'm pissed Apple lowered the price of the 12" PB by $200 eight days after I bought mine... But it's great for those wanting to buy now.

Otherwise it's my favorite computer EVER!

djjava · Jul 31, 2003, 07:40 AM

Originally posted by DigitalEl:
I'm pissed Apple lowered the price of the 12" PB by $200 eight days after I bought mine... But it's great for those wanting to buy now.

Otherwise it's my favorite computer EVER!

30 day price protection man....... call 'em up.

iWrite · Jul 31, 2003, 08:28 AM

Cellery:

Call Apple Customer Relations. 800-APL-CARE and go to option #3 and ask for Apple Customer Relations and tell them what's going on. Apple WILL replace your case with one that doesn't bubble and flake. I've done it about 10 times over the last 18 months with various company Titaniums.

Good luck.

spirko · Jul 31, 2003, 01:46 PM

1ghz TiBook, 1G Ram, SD.
Great computer except ridiculously loud fan noise. Distracting from the next room.

george328 · Jul 31, 2003, 02:24 PM

Speaker balance keeps on nudging left and right!

buddy1065 · Jul 31, 2003, 04:50 PM

My 17" screen is just not big enough.

End of story.

Naz · Jul 31, 2003, 05:02 PM

I'm very irritated with the fact I don't have my 17" yet

jdhindes · Jul 31, 2003, 05:13 PM

I don't like the fact that my Airport Extreme Base Station signal doesn't come back when I wake the 12" Powerbook from sleep until I click on the signal indicator. This is a pain everytime I wake the computer from sleep.

Jim

clf8 · Jul 31, 2003, 05:27 PM

I'm speaking from iBook experience, but I'm pretty sure the Powerbook keyboards are the same. I wish the inverted T for the arrow keys was a block of 6 with page up and page down buttons. The function is all the way on the other side (on the iBook) so you can't page down with one hand.

Godzilla · Jul 31, 2003, 06:28 PM

Rubber feet, still in tact after I glued them on.

Left piece of rubber that's supposed to stop the LCD when closed shut, gone.

6 verticle pixel columns, 3-14 pixel wide, multicolored.

"Y", "Option", "fn" key popped out.

Latch broken, won't close shut.

Paint chippage.

Annoying fan.

Expensive.

Fragile.

Ugh.

400 Mhz TiBook G4. Yeah, the first one.

Oh, I also hate the speakers, the mouse, and I could have purchased a Quicksilver or something, but I guess I was drawn to the laptop that looked so awesome at the time.

At least it's still working...right?

neutrino23 · Jul 31, 2003, 06:44 PM

The biggest problem is that the 15" Al PB is not out yet.

The rubber feet coming off is a minor annoyance.

The heat build up is annoying also.

---
Regarding mouse buttons, I like the one button mouse. It makes life simple. If you want more you can add it. OS X will support it.

Control-clicking works fine when I choose to use it.

DVD Plaza · Jul 31, 2003, 07:31 PM

Originally posted by jdhindes:
I don't like the fact that my Airport Extreme Base Station signal doesn't come back when I wake the 12" Powerbook from sleep until I click on the signal indicator. This is a pain everytime I wake the computer from sleep.

Boy am I glad to hear I'm not alone with this. In the past two weeks I've suddenly been having this problem - wake up 17" from sleep and the airport stays dim. I either have to turn airport off then back on, or put my 17" to sleep again and wake it. VERY annoying, and it only just started two weeks ago - after months of never having the problem?

Originally posted by george328:
Speaker balance keeps on nudging left and right!

Another quirk I thought was just me - I've occasionally had to rebalance my speaker output as well (infact just the other night!).

daniel999 · Jul 31, 2003, 07:56 PM

The keyboard of 12"....
Does anyone notice there is a big gap at the bottom of the keyboard? Although my 12" is only 1 month old, but I know that someday the gap there will be full of hair, dust or some tiny particles. It would be great if they can seal that big gap.

One more thing... can they include a free carrying bag when u purchase a PB? It is always expensive to purchase one yourself.

David Hagan · Jul 31, 2003, 09:02 PM

Okay, I saw this thread earlier, but am now posting because I am about throw my PowerBook out the window.

I have a Ti867 with Airport.

The reason I am so pissed at the moment is because of the airport reception. Totally awful.

Some days it's better than others, but tonight it's cutting out my signal simply if my arm in next to the antenna. I'm trying to listen to iTunes from another Mac in the house and the friggin' thing keeps cutting out. iChat is disrupted. Web pages start to load and then stall. And I can get it to do it when I pass my hand in front of the antenna. Pathetic

Nevermind the aforementioned fragility aspect. A buddy of mine has the 17-inch and I'm seriously considering getting that becuase it feels much more sturdy and the airport reception is much better. Also, I like to write and the keyboard on the Ti is horrible compared to the 12/17.

I guess I'm about to be a switcher ...an upstream switcher

neutrino23 · Aug 1, 2003, 12:01 AM

Originally posted by David Hagan:
Okay, I saw this thread earlier, but am now posting because I am about throw my PowerBook out the window.

I have a Ti867 with Airport.

The reason I am so pissed at the moment is because of the airport reception. Totally awful. Some days it's better than others, but tonight it's cutting out my signal simply if my arm in next to the antenna. I'm trying to listen to iTunes from another Mac in the house and the friggin' thing keeps cutting out. iChat is disrupted. Web pages start to load and then stall. And I can get it to do it when I pass my hand in front of the antenna. Pathetic .....

Did you consider an external antenna? I did a quick google search and came up with QuickerTek.com which makes an external airport antenna just for the Ti G4 PB. Maybe there are others.

tritonus · Aug 1, 2003, 12:29 AM

Only two complaints with my decent machine:

1. pixel artifacts when watching DVDs (dark scenes)

2. "grease" stains at the left and right lower edge (where the display closes)

mrmister · Aug 1, 2003, 02:50 AM

battery, battery, battery, battery.

nayr x · Aug 1, 2003, 02:52 AM

My Ti500 makes a constant computer hum (which has only really developed in the past year or so) that is noisy enough that I have to close the lid @ night because it keeps me up... along those same lines, I think my comp has a sleeping disorder... probably because of all the programs I always have running in the background, but it never calms down until it is in full REM sleep (with the pulsating white light)... As soon as the hard disc spins down it spins right back up, which is both bad for the disc and annoying. So I turned that off (spin down HD) which leads me to my original sentence.

Dave Hagan · Aug 1, 2003, 07:16 AM

Originally posted by neutrino23:
Did you consider an external antenna?

Yeah, but why when Airport should just work!?!?!

Bring on the aluminum 15-inch, I'm ready. Or the 17-inch. Bring on something new...PALEEZE!

alisonc · Aug 1, 2003, 07:29 AM

I have a 17" PB

1. The fan (which does come on much less often than my Ti 1 gig) makes a ridiculous cycling/revving sound. It sounds like an old car trying to start up. VERY distracting.
2. The latch is hard to press (strong fingernails needed)

Besides this, I have no complaints. I'm lucky not to have the airport-gone-on-wakeup problem. Overall I don't regret upgarding from my Ti.

P.S. The screen is AWE-SOME

Powaqqatsi · Aug 1, 2003, 10:07 AM

Yeah, I have a complaint: when "sucking" in a cd it makes too much noise for my taste

(when the computer is on a hard surface like my wooden table).

But actually only the heat bothers me sometimes when I have it on my lap.

Jan Van Boghout · Aug 1, 2003, 10:35 AM

My complaint is that the 15" is still not available in aluminium, the design and feel of those is just so much better. And I waaaant one

jaxxe · Aug 1, 2003, 12:04 PM

Here here!! I was one to think all the other people whose feet fell off where losers...

then it happened to me!! I still have one left...

cpac · Aug 1, 2003, 01:14 PM

For rubber feet people:

You *can* get replacement rubber feet - I just called my local Apple retailer (in Salt Lake City) and they said they could get them - they'd have to order and it'd cost something stupid like $20, but they said they could get them.

Might be worth doing if it bugs you (and this time you could use some super-glue).

NYCFarmboy · Aug 1, 2003, 01:18 PM

slow chip on the 12" model.

If you ask me the 12" Powerbook is the best portable notebook. But the chip is slow and you do get that spinning rainbow ball thingie quite a bit. I don't own one myself, but use one on occasion and its a joy to use design wise, other than it being sluggish.

If they put a 1.25 mhz g4 chip in the 12" powerbook I'd buy one in a heartbeat...until then my own 500 mhz g3 12" ibook is doing just fine and not that much sluggish than the current slow g4 12" powerbook.

phabfive · Aug 1, 2003, 02:03 PM

Fingerprints all over the place. What's a good way to clean it?

Camali · Aug 1, 2003, 02:19 PM

The one thing that irks me the most is that 3 feet from my 12" PB have fallen and its not so much that they've fallen off, but that the whole machine has to be sent off to Apple to replace them!

I don't care if it comes back the following day! I've had one bad experience with my old PB 3400 where they took out my 10gb HD and put in the original 2gb HD!!!!!!

But the rubber feet issue aside even at 867 and NO L3 cache I still love my little 12" PB!

badtz · Aug 1, 2003, 08:44 PM

it's very hot when you have it on your lap and you do processor-intensive work
the arrow keys are slightly small [still okay though I guess?]
The speakers are a not that great, could be a lot better.
rubber feets can fall off

AlbertWu · Aug 3, 2003, 05:02 AM

pbg4 12inch

not enough slots for memory. 640 doesn't cut it.
dents too easily. there should be a plasma shield around it at all times.

1024x768 is so 1999
better video card would be nice
l3 cache!

otherwise it's a really solid machine.

Powerbook · Aug 3, 2003, 01:18 PM

- F'ed up hinges
- Cheap (constructed) keyboard, hence
- "marks" (Raaah) on screen
- lousy HD quality (maybe not Apples fault)

PB.

jon_hh_68 · Aug 3, 2003, 01:33 PM

I thought this problem would be solved with the aluminum design, but there are still keyboard marks on the screen. I noticed them the other day and tried to clean them off with a damp cloth. It helped, but not enough. I wish I knew how to clean them off but I am afraid to try any cleaners on the screen.

Also, the damn feet fell off.

Also, it is a little hot on the lap. The iBreeze works well though when using at the desk.

These are all generlly minor annoyances and I think the computer overall is great and easy to use for long periods of time.

alisonc · Aug 4, 2003, 05:52 AM

I've owned every version of PB since the Wallstreet and the feet have never fallen off. This is probably because I make sure to NEVER slide the PB across surfaces. If you want to get it from point A to point B, pick it up and move it. The rubber feet are rubber to keep the PB from slipping around. I suspect all these footless PBs have been slid around by their owners...

iWrite · Aug 4, 2003, 06:59 AM

I don't think so. I received a Powerbook that had one foot that had fallen off and was trapped inside the plastic bag it comes in (sealed Apple bag). It hadn't been slid across any desk or surface because it was brand new and never used.