[MallyMal]

I'm sure this an obvious statement but I really think Apple needs a dedicated mobile chip. Everyone seems to be lusting for a PB G5 but wouldn't it be better if Apple could somehow get a mobile chip like the Pentium M? Think about it, if Apple is already having trouble getting a G5 chip into a notebook how long will it be before they hit the ceiling again once they figure out a way to get the G5 in a laptop in the first place?

Unfortunately, there doesn't seem to be anyone out there that is building dedicated mobile PPC chips. So, where does this leave Apple for the future of their laptops? The G5 will be good for the desktops but what about the laptops?

Apple can't just lag behind in mobile hardware and hope that everyone is going to switch because of the look of the hardware and the OS. They have to be better in both software AND hardware. And as it stands, the G4 is slower than the Pentium M and gets worse battery life.

So, what do you folks think?

[Eug Wanker]

I think the 970FX is supposed to be that mobile chip at least initially. Who knows what's coming down the line.

Remember, a 1.4 GHz G5 970FX is actually probably slightly cooler than a G4 1.5 7447A.

[RooneyX]

Originally posted by Eug Wanker:
I think the 970FX is supposed to be that mobile chip at least initially. Who knows what's coming down the line.

Remember, a 1.4 GHz G5 970FX is actually probably slightly cooler than a G4 1.5 7447A.

But no faster. Mhz per Mhz there isn't much between them. G5 only does well at higher speeds and with optimized apps.

[TampaDeveloper]

Considering that the battery life on the Apple notebooks is some of the best in the industry, I don't see that they've done anything wrong so far. I'm sure that Apple is keeping power consumption in mind for the future, considering that notebooks now account for quite a chunk of their overall computer sales.

[Eug Wanker]

Originally posted by RooneyX:
But no faster. Mhz per Mhz there isn't much between them. G5 only does well at higher speeds and with optimized apps.

For int the G5 may be no faster or even slightly slower if the apps haven't been G5 optimized. However, for FP, the G5 will destroy the G4. FP is so crappy on the G4, that Motorola refuses to publishes any numbers for it (even though they'll happily publish int numbers).

Originally posted by TampaDeveloper:
Considering that the battery life on the Apple notebooks is some of the best in the industry, I don't see that they've done anything wrong so far. I'm sure that Apple is keeping power consumption in mind for the future, considering that notebooks now account for quite a chunk of their overall computer sales.

Mac laptop battery life lags quite a bit behind the Pentium M machines.

[MallyMal]

It would be nice if IBM was working on a mobile PPC chip that they were going to use in both their own Linux laptops and also were willing to sell to Apple and other folks.

[Link]

Thing is, IIRC the average laptop consumes maybe 20-25 watts of power.

The g5, EVEN in the FX series can consume that much by itself, and we're not even talking max here. Oops?

[RooneyX]

Dualcore Dothans would be nice!

[chabig]

Mac laptop battery life lags quite a bit behind the Pentium M machines.

Yes. But that has only been true for the past year or so. Apple led the industry in battery life for the previous 15 years. I prefer to think the Pentium M advantage will only be blip.

Chris

[sbc]

Originally posted by chabig:
Yes. But that has only been true for the past year or so. Apple led the industry in battery life for the previous 15 years. I prefer to think the Pentium M advantage will only be blip.

Chris

I think 2.5 to three hours of battery life in the PC world is what is expected or desired from powerhouse units and definitely not the Pentinum M line. I still do not see how this is relevant to the fact that Apple has not done or created other options for longer batter life : via use of extended batteries, higher wattage batteries, et al.