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inprnt · Jun 13, 2005, 03:12 PM

I'm going to college this fall and want to get a powerbook. I was already to order a 12" but I heard the screen brightness was terrible. I'm not going to be a power user. probaly no movie making , some photoshop. Maily used for reports and etertainment (music and games, movie watching). Should I shell out the extra money for the 15" stay with the 12" OR should I wait a couple of monthes for prices to go down .

iREZ · Jun 13, 2005, 03:36 PM

i have the 12" and think it's a fantastic machine for college, but why not get an ibook for your uses? regardless why, i think the 12" is the ultimate portable Mac available and it should handle just fine. the screen is a lack luster in comparison with the 15" or 17" models but not enough to justify the price difference. now if you wanted other features in the 15" such as the better GPU, or FW 800...then i'd whole heartily tell ya to go with the 15", but i really think you're best gettin a suped up ibook (bt, max hd, max ram) for less.

inprnt · Jun 13, 2005, 05:22 PM

its kind of dumb my reason picking powerbook over ibook but the reason is I want is because of its looks. I don't really care for the white.

TypeMRT · Jun 13, 2005, 08:44 PM

I'd say if you don't need/want the SuperDrive then spring for the entry-level 15. The extra screen real estate is nice when you want Word, Safari, iChat, etc. all open at the same time. DVD movies will also benefit from the widescreen format. And when it's time to upgrade you should get most of the price difference back because of the higher resell value.

iREZ · Jun 13, 2005, 11:41 PM

well then...if $ isn't an issue, i'd go with a 15" personally. the screen, GPU, speakers, PC slot, FW 800, backlit keyboard and 2 RAM slots are all plus'. if you dont need any of these the 12" powerbook is no slouch and will do just fine. the screen of the 12" isn't horrendous, but only adaquate and i agree that these screens are ok for the iBook's but the pBook's should have a nicer screen. you wont be dissapointed with either machine you get.

Ryan1524 · Jun 14, 2005, 03:42 AM

i debated long and hard between the 12" and 15", but in the end, i went with the 15" and never looked back. the larger screen is more than enough justification to go with the model. it's really useful when working with multiple documents and multiple programs at once. you'll appreciate it much more than the very slight difference in weight and size. i carry my 15" all day long to all my classes, which can last for 6-7 hours a day. yes, i'm in engineering, and we have lots of classes, long labs, etc. i never felt burdened by it at all.

MacNZ · Jun 14, 2005, 09:14 PM

There is not a "very slight difference in weight and size." The 12" is MUCH easier to lug around college. I should know; I went from a PowerBook 100 -> 190 -> Pismo -> 12". My father has the 15" and I also have experience lugging that around. IF you want to be a true road warrior the smaller 'book is a godsend. I am doing an MA and BSc. and so use it for statistics programs, office, word, filemaker, endnote, photo editing and web production stuff. It is also my away from home music and photo center and does it all perfectly. If you can, do most of you're work on the PowerBook, and a Superdrive 12" is great for backing up, working on the go. You can get a great small case for it. If you can scrounge up enough extra cash then get an external LCD and you then have more real-estate. That's what I did. Don't mean to be rude but I walk between libraries, labs, archives and my apartment and from experience with my old man's 15" it is a bit of a drag. I probably walk at least an hour and a half a day, so judge by that. If you aren't cruisin' from place to place too much you might still think of the 15". Screen has never bothered me because I came from a dim old Pismo but go in look at demo machines and see what you think.

.tony. .riot. · Jun 14, 2005, 09:56 PM

For College, nothing beats a PowerBook. I love that it fits in ny bag I take, with my notebooks, books or whatever.

.tony. .riot. · Jun 14, 2005, 09:58 PM

I meant a 12" Powerbook.

tekno_geek911 · Jun 14, 2005, 10:46 PM

I have recently downgraded(actually upgraded kinda because the 12" is faster than the 15" I owned and it has more RAM) from a 15" PowerBook to the 12" PowerBook due to money situations...I do not regret the trade whatsover but I do miss the Backlit Keyboard and widescreen just a bit.
I used to believe the 12" was horrible in comparison when I owned a 15" but I dont really notice a difference in screen quality besides the viewing angle....I compared my 12" screen(calibrated with SuperCal) with my friends new 15" and I dont see a difference.
If you need the better GPU,FW800,Backlit Keyboard or PCMCIA Slot then get the 15" if you dont...Just get the 12",you wont be sorry it will go wherever you go without any trouble...It fits just about anywhere! After owning the 15" I forgot how much I used to love the 12" and how portable it was....When I owned the 15" I hardly carried it because it got kind of annoying to lug around,but it is still portable enough I guess....If I ever buy a bigger portable again it will be the 17".
The 12" also has much better battery life in my experience...With the 15" I would get 2.5-3 hours tops with display brightness set halfway, with the 12" I get 3.5-4.5 hours with almost full display brightness/Airport on/Bluetooth off. Whichever machine you pick will serve you well,both are great machines.

SassyPants · Jun 15, 2005, 12:13 AM

i hear the 12" runs a lot hotter than the 15" tho...

is that true/a problem?
also, i'm still apprehensive about getting such a small screen. i've never had anything less than 15" before, and i wonder how people survive on just 12"

brettcamp · Jun 15, 2005, 12:23 AM

Originally Posted by SassyPants

i hear the 12" runs a lot hotter than the 15" tho...

is that true/a problem?

My 12" has no heat problems. Some still report them, but they were most prevalent a couple of revisions ago. Since the 15" has more area to radiate heat, it might feel cooler, but I don't know.

Originally Posted by SassyPants

also, i'm still apprehensive about getting such a small screen. i've never had anything less than 15" before, and i wonder how people survive on just 12"

Many of us get an external display for desk use. If you get a 12" PB, you can enjoy an all digital connection to a DVI flat screen monitor. That's what I do. Best of both worlds: easily portable when necessary, plenty big at my desk. You can score an excellent 17" or 19" DVI monitor for $400 or under, less than the price difference between the 12" and 15" .

Ryan1524 · Jun 15, 2005, 04:30 AM

obviously there's a division between the 12" and 15" fans. i for one found the screen on the 12" too cramped on my dad's 12" iBook when i was using it even for just a little while. on the other hand, i didn't feel like the 15" was a drag at all. my schedule typically starts around 10.30AM and ends around 6.30PM, and htroughout the day, i'd be walking around campus, to classes, labs, libraries, etc. keep in mind the classes are one hour each, meaning there is a lot of moving involved.

i did consider using an external display with the 12" as opposed to going 15", but decided it's still not gonna be as comfortable as having a full fledged large screen on the laptop itself. however, i do use a 15" LCD now to augment my already large screen. you might think that means 15" is still not enough, but most of the time, the second screen handles the less travelled apps, like iTunes, or chat screens, while the main one is working on on more serious and involved stuff. of course you can totally reverse this and make the 12" screen handle the monitoring job, while the big screen, say a 23" Cinema Display, handle the heavy lifting.

i love my 15". but that's just me, of course. YMMV.