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McFab · Jan 16, 2006, 02:49 AM

Hi,

Im a student starting at university this year and as a result my folks have allowed me to buy any laptop of my choice (how lucky i am!) so cost is not an issue.

I've never owned a mac but used them regularly in high school and deffinately want to make the move to using a mac permanently.

Question though, I've noticed the new MacBooks and have also been looking at the powerbooks. I will be using the laptop for all my work and multimedia kind of stuff, i want to get away from my windows PC as much as possible.

Can anyone help me decide on what kind of model i should be considering? I would like it to be able to last a couple years without upgrading because after this purchase i am on my own financially.

Thanks in anticipation.

uicandrew · Jan 16, 2006, 03:11 AM

if university starts in the fall, i would wait until the late summer to get your laptop. i would get the next revision of the macbook 15. the first set of macbooks will have problems. i think that is inevitable. hopefully, it is something really really minor. 12inch powerbook is too small, and 17 is too large, especially in dorm rooms with small desks. When typing on it for papers or whatnot, you'll run out of desk space for books, notes, etc.

McFab · Jan 16, 2006, 03:23 AM

Thanks, yeh i was thinking about going along the lines of a 15".

Im in Australia and university for us starts in March so i only have a few months to decide.

The possibility of bugs is a big turn off in regards to the MacBook but are such concerns outweighed by its improvements over the current powerbooks?

uicandrew · Jan 16, 2006, 03:48 AM

i would start reading the forums about people's opinions of the macbook when they get it in mid feb. i think this forum will provide you the truth (if not unbearably nit-picky; but hey, people make the argument that they have the "right" to be nitpicky when they shell out 2000+ bucks for a laptop).

if you are really concerned about bugs, then i recommend that you get an external harddrive (get usb not firewire) and store all your important files on it. in case it needs to go back to apple, you can lug your external hard drive to the computer labs on campus and access your files there. (i say get a usb one because it is FAR more prevalent than firewire)

There is such a huge improvement in the new laptops, that I have already set my mind on the first batch. one of my friends is very detail oriented and cautious and refuses to get a first revision of an apple product. he'll be waiting for the next 15" update.

applecare would be wise (especially with the educational discount bringing it down by $100) with a first revision.

wuzup101 · Jan 16, 2006, 05:40 AM

As a college student here in the states I would have no problems recomending the current powerbook. However, since there is a MacBook Pro, and the cost is about the same, if I were personally buying a new machine that's what I would get. There will be problems, as there is with any first gen release - so get yourself applecare at the student discounted rate. The 15" form factor is the perfect size for me. It offers enough screen space when I'm on the go, and isn't too big as to stop me from bringing it to class. I would definitely look into getting an external drive for backups. You'll also find that it will make swapping files, using computer labs much easier. I've now had my 15" powerbook for a year and a half while at school, and I love it - great machine!

Jean-Loup · Jan 16, 2006, 05:56 AM

The new MacBook is basically the same laptop you could get from Acer or Dell and is therefore not a new model. This is why I am not as worried as I was in the past about a buggy Rev A. It has been tested out quie a bit and Intel has had a chance to correct most of the problems that could have occured. That's why I will be an early adopter for the first time in my life. I have never been confident enough in a product to get a rev A but the MacBook pro is adifferent story....plus the fact that it is SUCH a big upgrade compared to the PowerBook, means I could never bring myself to get a PowerBook.

threestain · Jan 16, 2006, 09:23 AM

well what about me?

I'm a final year med student with a rapidly aging 2003 TiBook. Should I take advantage of the £500 off I get over here in the UK, or just wait till I really need it?

hanxu · Jan 16, 2006, 10:47 AM

Originally Posted by threestain

well what about me?

I'm a final year med student with a rapidly aging 2003 TiBook. Should I take advantage of the £500 off I get over here in the UK, or just wait till I really need it?

I will wait until u needed, unless you need to use some software and ur Tibook won't be able to run.

Wait til later this year, when Merom mac book comes out

christ · Jan 16, 2006, 11:37 AM

Originally Posted by threestain

well what about me?

I'm a final year med student with a rapidly aging 2003 TiBook. Should I take advantage of the £500 off I get over here in the UK, or just wait till I really need it?

I would advise waiting, as the AluBook and MBP form factor is not as good as the TiPB form factor (IMHO) and with a bit of luck the later MBPs (or MBs) may be nicer and recoup some of the lost ground.

Troll · Jan 16, 2006, 12:20 PM

Originally Posted by uicandrew

i would get the next revision of the macbook 15. the first set of macbooks will have problems.

I don't know about this advice. I bought the 867MHz Titanium PowerBook. It was, I think the fourth or fifth revision of the Titanium PowerBook. They had problems with the fans that run almost constantly. I don't think you can hope to guess which computers are going to have problems. Your only option if you want to be sure that the paint isn't going to flake, or the hinges break (problems that take a while to surface) is to buy an old one ... and even then, you might buy a Monday morning computer. I think you just have to buy when you need one and know that something else may come out the next day.

Timetheus · Jan 16, 2006, 08:47 PM

I posed this same question in the official forum, and the response leaned heavily toward the MacBook Pro. It's a far superior machine, and the idea that all Rev. A machines are inherently buggy, from what I've heard, is blown a bit out of proportion. All revision have occasional bugs, most of which many of us will never notice. And as Jean-Loup pointed out, this is well tested Intel Technology running a far superior, well-tested Operating system. To be honest I'm hardly worried.