[msuper69]

First off, I think the new Powerbooks are all great Macs and I will eventually get one. The only thing holding me back is lack of a job.

I checked out the new Powerbooks at MicroCenter here in Columbus. They are certainly faster than my measly 500mhz.

However, I personally don't care for the new keyboard design. I like the font used on the old keyboard and the white on black color scheme. Just don't care much for the new font they've gone to nor do I like the keys colored the same as the body.

The new Powerbooks also don't have the same solid feel to them as the old TiBooks. I thought the same thing when I checked out the 12" previously. The body seems plastic-like.

No flaming please. I'm not knocking the new machines and anybody who has one should be proud of their choice. Just some personal observations.

What do you other TiBook users think of the new 15"ers vis-à-vis the old ones?

I also checked out a dual G5. Oh my God!

[schk]

While I didn't go from a TiBook to 15" AlBook, I did go to a 12" AlBook. I feel the case is much more sturdier than the TiBook and does not have a plasticy feel like you said. I could cause the case to flex on the TiBook easily just by picking it up. The TiBook's casing is also held together with weak plastic clips, and there's a more secure fit with screws on the side on the AlBooks holding the case together.

As far as the keyboard looks, those are purely aesthetic opinions. I personally like the all aluminum look. I think the black keys went well with the TiBook because there were also a combination of white colored areas and it went well together. The actual keyboard on the AlBooks are far superior to the spongey keyboard of the TiBook, much more solid feel.

[arekkusu]

I have a 1.25 GHz 15" AlBook, upgraded from an 800Mhz TiBook (from a 667 TiBook... from a 233 G3 Wallstreet... from a 3400...) here's my opinions after only two days of use:

AlBook pros:
Perceptibly faster (obviously, cpu/bus/gpu all upgraded)
Much quieter than TiBook (fan comes on much less, still runs cool, drive is silent)
Better overall case design (screen hinge, no painted border, no port lid)
Brighter display.
Sturdier keyboard (feels fine typing, TiBook keycaps were slightly flimsy)
Useful new features (DVD-RW, 24 bit line in, pixel/vertex shaders)
Whiz-bang features (backlit keyboard, USB2, FW800, Bluetooth, Airport Extreme, third speaker, ambient light sensor)
Slightly sturdier AC adapter cable
Separate F12/eject keys

AlBook cons:
Slight white speckling on display (white spots problem)
Some case design flaws (latch leaves 1mm gap with lid closed, screen pads aren't big enough, right hand USB connector is too far forward)
Slightly bigger/heavier (bevel increase is disappointing)
Lower Battery capacity (~2.5 hrs real world)
Airport reception is barely improved, if at all (still terrible reception in my house)
Speakers don't sound balanced (left speaker is under grill, right speaker is around the "\" key, center speaker is around the "x" key)
I don't like the keyboard's lack of bevels on left/right edges, or the font. (aesthetics)
I don't like the "use a coin to open the battery" lock.
Radeon 9600 does not support antialiased polygons (this makes many applications, including ones I am developing, look terrible)
Can't boot into OS 9 (for those old music applications that don't work under Classic)

I've listed more cons than pros here, but overall the AlBook is still the best laptop from Apple yet.

Very disappointing about the Radeon 9600 though. Somebody at ATI needs to have their family tortured.

[offbalance]

my speakers aren't balanced either and i thought it was a software issue. is it really the fact that the speakers are physically not balanced? that would suck!! can anyone confirm?

[wanderlust]

Interesting assessments. I have the 17" and believe that it is superior in everyday to the Ti500 (and I loved that thing). Apple did good.

By the way, the gap created when the lid closes is intentional, not a flaw; notice the little rubber nubs close to your latch, it's to help keep the screen off the keyboard. Perpetual and permanent screen marks was a frustrating flaw in the TiBook design.

[arekkusu]

speakers: you can see in this photo that the center speaker is just above the battery corner, offset to the left. The speakers are not centered.

gap: I appreciate the effort at reducing the screen marks from keyboard grease, however on my AlBook the rubber pads are not tall enough to touch the wristpad area when the display is closed. There is an additional 1mm gap, which makes the lid wobble when closed. Either the latch tolerance is off, or the rubber pads need to be bigger. It's also too early for me to tell if I won't still get marks on the screen.

[Dr.Michael]

I own a Ti500 since Jan/2001. And I use Mac portables since 1999.

My impression is: Don't buy Rev A Powerbooks! They all have ugly and expensive flaws.

This seems to be different with the iBooks since they use older (and thus more reliable) technology.

I would have liked to buy the Rev A 12 inch Powerbook. But the problems (wobble, heat, bad screen fit) are really things you don't want to have.
The Rev. B is alright now (I ordered one last Friday).

That has always been like this. Remember the USB problems on the Lombard (fixed with the Pismo)? The dying DVD drive of the Rev A TiBooks? I replaced my drive already twice and it crackles and desn't accept some dvds again.

If you don't have a lot of money, buy a Ti1000 or (better) a Ti887 for the sales price. These machines won't make you feel you have the latest hight tech/design, but you get well proven technology that will serve you well.

Thats what everybody wants, right?

The best Powerbook (and Notebook Computer) I ever owened was the Pismo. Last Rev of the G3 series.

[RufusRyker]

arekkusu,

My airport reception has been fairly good--roughly equivalent to my Pismo (which I still own). I wonder why your experience is so different?

I do agree with you about the lack of bevel on the front of an otherwise wonderful keyboard. Aesthetics aside, I'm worried something is going to get jammed in there and break off some keys.

Other than that, I'm loving this 'book.