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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Notebooks > PB Buying Advice (667 DVI vs 12")

PB Buying Advice (667 DVI vs 12")
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infiniti
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May 3, 2003, 08:38 PM
 
Hello everyone. I'm a long time reader, but haven't really had much of a need to post in this forum until now. Anyway, I need to get a laptop within the next week because I won't be home for the summer, and I thought I'd get some other opinions before I go and make a purchase. I'm a university student (computer engineering), so I can get educational pricing, but I don't want to use my ADC discount at this time.

I've got two options as I see it: I can get a new 12" Powerbook with combo drive for $2499 (Canadian dollars here), and when maxed out with RAM and Applecare, it would come out to around $3219 before taxes. On the other hand, I can get a trade-in Powerbook 667 DVI, currently in its stock configuration and approximately 2 remaining years of Applecare for $2600 before taxes. I'm not really considering any of Apple's other current offerings because I don't desperately need a nice machine, and would be happy to wait for an upgraded 15" or perhaps something else.

Anyway, I've made a list of the good points of each machine as compared to the other, and I'd be happy to hear any others. They are as follows.

12": smaller size, bluetooth, airport extreme, ddr ram, 200MHz faster CPU, no paint to scratch, better airport reception, 10GB larger HD (ATA/100 too), faster CD-R (24x vs 8x)

667: cheaper (with applecare, etc), larger screen, dvi out, gigabit ethernet, 1MB L3 cache, PC card slot, 3rd generation product

They also have different video cards (Radeon 7500 vs Geforce 420 Go), but I'm not really sure which is better.

Anyway, I've tried them both for a bit, and liked them both (didn't really get to test the speed difference) but don't know quite what to do now. I'd likely be using the machine for web and application development and graphics work in addition to watching DVDs, listening to music and using Office, etc. I'm also not really much of a gamer. Things like bluetooth are features that would be trivial to me, but cost, possibly screen size, hard drive capacity and everyday speed and usability are more important.

So now that you know all of the details, please give me your opinions and share your experiences. If you could also let me know of anything else that would be valuable in making my decision but have not acknowledged (fan noise, fit and finish, etc.) I would be very appreciative.

Thanks very much in advance,
Steve
     
wanderlust
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May 3, 2003, 08:55 PM
 
I really would steer you away from the current 15" design. Although it looks nice, it is seriously flawed. Both of my hinges broke after two years of normal wear, not to mention the butt-ugly paint flaking that appears to be inevitable (There's a mini-industry out there just for fixing your TiBook).

Also, the CD/DVD player quit on me about 8 months ago, so I've been doing without. After reading through macfixit forums, this issue appears not to have been isolated one.

One issue that was, and I still have not figured it out, was the darned PCI card slot. It just quit accepting anything. I used it often to bring photos in from my camera's CF card. One day, it just stopped working.

Needless to say, I had not purchased Apple Care with the computer and although mine was a lemon, others have complained about components time and again as well. I personally know 6 other TiBook users who have ALL had problems with their TiBook. And I was in the Apple Store several weeks ago and passed on a bunch of URLs to a fellow who's TiHinge had broke as well. I kid you not, Apple wants nearly $1500 to fix those hinges. I didn't even ask about the CD/DVD and PCI and God-aweful paint problems. I certainly will never buy a product from Apple ever again without Apple Care (I really think this is very very very bad policy on Apple's part. Their hardware should already have at least a 3 year built-in warranty, especially considering their users pay a premium for their stuff. We shouldn't have to pay over $300 extra for covering THEIR flawed design). You can tell I'm a little passionate about this issue. But as I am a designer and detest Windows, I have little choice.

Plus it's given me a justification to upgrade to a BigAl, which feels much more solid and well put together.

That all said, if you want the 15", wait for a redesign because the potential hassles you'll avoid will be well worth it.

I hope this info helps you make your decision a little easier.
( Last edited by wanderlust; May 3, 2003 at 09:02 PM. )
     
urrl5201
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May 3, 2003, 09:38 PM
 
Oddly, even though I now presently have a 17" and sold my 667 DVI, if I were you I might go for the least expensive 667 DVI at this time. My 667 was arguably the coolest running and quietest of the Ti series, and I certainly felt mine was. That 15" screen can come in handy; take it from a civil engineer, yours truly, although I used it mainly for video editing. The only way I would consider the 12" might be next revision time when hopefully there will be less reports of bugs. My 667 hinges worked great . I sold it mainly because I wanted internal DVD-R and the paint began flaking after 8 months. The 667 was one sweet machine and I don't see why anyone would want to ridicule it.

This post is in memory of my beloved 667 DVI

Now, back to playing with my 17", WOO-HOO!
     
ujeni
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Join Date: Aug 2002
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May 3, 2003, 10:11 PM
 
I have had both of the computers that you are looking at. I sold my ti667dvi for my 12"sd.

Here are a few things I noticed:

They are equally hot. Don't beleive everyone about the heat...it's no worse than that 667dvi.

The 12" is faster.

The 12" is better built.

The 12" has more features.

The 15" has a bigger screen with more pixels.

The 12" will have a better resale value.

I would go for the 12" (with the SD if you can get it). I'm very happy with mine.
     
infiniti  (op)
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May 3, 2003, 11:12 PM
 
Thanks very much to everyone who has responded so far. It seems this decision will not be easy.

Perhaps I should explain that I probably won't keep this machine for an overly long time... I DO need a laptop, but ideally I think I'd like to wait until Apple releases something appetizing enough for me to use my ADC discount. So if I did go for the 667, I'd probably have Applecare long enough to take care of any issues that arise.

Hope to hear from some more people on this!

Thanks again,
Steve
     
   
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