[pete]

Well, as fate has it, I now sit here with a new powerbook G4 al 1ghz. After criticizing it last week based on the poor state of the demo units at the Apple Store ( I went there with a friend who wanted to buy one and advised her against it because of all the problems they exhibited), I feel slight embarassment to admit that this is one beautiful machine. My tibook�s LCD broke down and I made the spontaneous decision to get this one to replace it and then sell the old one when it comes back from repair. I bought from Amazon so that I could take advantage of their return policy if I ended up with a white spot unit or faulty latch unit. I highly recommend Amazon for these kind of large purchase. No hassles ever and excellent customer service. This powrbook was manufactured in mid-December so I was very worried when I opened the box!

Luckily, this powerbook, so far (touch wood), is simply perfect. Except for the slightly warped display - they all seem to do that. Also, when I installed the airport card, the antenna wire tore away from the little metal connector. the wire was too short to fit easily and I had to really pull it to get it in at all, and then it simply slipped out from the connector. I was very depressed about this - my one hour old powerbook!!! Was saved by Tekserve in NYC who fixed it the same day! Amazingly professional, friendly and efficient place.


Based on two days of usage, this is what I think

- I love the solid feel. The design seems much more durable than the tibook and you can really feel that when you handle the book .
- Hinge is vastly superior both in feel and, I�m convinced, durability. Never had problems with the tibook hinges, but they always felt delicate and I handled the LCD accordingly.
- The unpainted surface allows me to handle this one with a little less care and that makes me feel more at ease with it.
- The screen seems a tad brighter than the tibook, but only marginally so.
- It runs cooler and the fan doesn�t come on at all it seems. I reinstalled my whole tibook system (20gb of stuff) onto this and even after two hours of working and copying, the fan didn�t come on (the tibook would have after just a few minutes) and the machine was just moderately warm on top (on the bottom it was pretty toasty though, but more evenly so that the tibook). I LOVE THE SILENCE! WONDERFUL! ENJOYABLE!
- The sound is better: richer, more bass and a little louder I think
- Keyboard is great - good tactile feedback and depth
- The LCD doesn�t touch the keyboard so no marks. The hinge definitely makes the LCD lower which is NOT good for ergonomics and posture as you tend to lean forward and downward more.
- I really think it was a great idea to move the ram undeneath the powerbook - it never made sense to me to have it under the keyboard. I mean, how often do you change ram modules anyway? Never. This way, the keyboard is totally solid, unlike most of the laptops apple has produced since the g3 wallstreet. Nice. Why they had to use a Philips 00 is not clear though.
- Don�t really get why they couldn�t use an easier battery release mechanism. I guess having to use a coin is no big deal, but what if you don�t have one when your battery runs out?! How frustrating that would be!
- Ports on the side: I�m VERY mixed about this. On the one hand it�s nice to not have to bend over and look for ports (even though I still do, but to the side), BUT, it definitely ruins the previous lack of clutter. I have to see how it works in practice. Ideally, bluetooth mice and peripherals will make this a moot point. I like it better when laying in bed since there�s no back port door that pushes agains my legs. Hmmm, still haven�t decided what I feel on this one.
- All the powerbook G4s al I�ve seen have had slightly bent LCDs. I�ve noticed that they bend straight again, or almost straight, if you leave your powrbook upside down for a while, which makes me wonder how such a pliable LCD casing will hold up in the long run. Time will tell.
-best of all, I bought this thing with my VISA card and therefore can look forward to up to five years of �extended warranty� - one year for free, and then three more years for only $189 . It covers the same as the Apple warranty and I�d send it in to apple if something goes wrong. My recent powerbooks have been purchased cash locally. this feels better. My girlfriend�s pismo was purchased four years ago with a visa card and we were stupid to only extend it to four years instead of five. The DVD broke on the same day the contract expired and we weren�t able to call them for two days but they said that as long as it broke within the period of contract, it would be covered. you just send in the receipt and they reimburse within a week. Amazing service, no hassles. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!

So there you go. From hating the quality control problems, and thus also these powerbooks, to loving every minute of it. I wasn�t planning on getting a new powerbook now, but circumstances� forced �me to...hee hee. Let�s hope this honeymoon lasts!

[nagromme]

I was needlessly worried myself, based on early complainers--who may have had real problems, but were a minority that shouldn't have stopped me from getting what I needed.

Well I went ahead once Apple fixed the white spot issue, and I'm delighted with mine (1.25) too--I think I'll post my review from MacCentral forums here as well.

Enjoy your machine! Doesn't feel at ALL fragile, does it?

[pete]

No, it's very sturdy and feels extremely well-built. I'd say that in terms of fit and finish of a first generation product, this is as good as it gets. I think they should fix the warped LCDs though - how hard can that be?! Obviously, they fixed the original problems to get it here, but still. I'm much more impressed than I thought I would be - partly based on all the problems people have reported, and partly based on seeing the ones at the Apple Store (which I now understand were from the very early batch in September and OCtober).

Please post your review...

[dantley]

Which TiBooks did you have before you bought the AlBook?

I am tempted to get an AlBook 1.25 to replace my TiBook 1ghz, but I'm not certain there is a significant speed increase.

[pete]

I had the Tibook 1ghz Superdrive. I only have the 1ghz version so I wouldn't be able to say if the 1.25ghz is that much faster. i suspect it is not, but depends on what you need it for.

If my tibook hadn;t had serious LCD problems, I probably wouldn't have purchased this one. Now that I have it, I love it. And I'll end up spending about 300 for it once I sell the old one - the same amount as I'd pay for applecare extension.

So I'm happy. I do hope this thing keeps working like this. No reasons why not, but given all teh reports I'm still nervous.

[dantley]

I'm glad to hear you are enjoying your AlBook. I want a AlBook for the integrated usb 2.0, faster graphics processor, and most importantly, the durability. My TiBook is so delicate that I handle it like it is made of glass (which has kept it in prestine condition).

have you noticed any speed gains in your 1ghz Albook compared to the TiBook you owned? I've seen synthetic benchmarks that show the 1ghz AlBook is faster.

[pete]

I haven;'t really had the time to test it more objectively, but I'd say that subjectively there is little difference between the two.

I think durability is a really important issue that Apple has overlooked for a while. I have handled my tibook with extreme care to keep it beautiful (I know I'm crazy...) but I really don't want to be forced to do that. the albook is obviously not immune to scratches either, but at least it won't peel.

the other thing that I realize now is that my old tibook was quite noisy with the fan. I've used this one constantly for two days and not once has the fan come on.

If you get a good one, and it does seem that fewer people are having problems now, I'm sure you'll feel it's a worthy upgrade. Of course the good thing about the tibook is that we really know all its faults. The albook has not yet proven itself...so far so great though.

[mrmister]

Sounds good. I'm a happy TiBook owner of the 1Ghz variety, and I'm waiting for the next rev to upgrade. Increased durability is a big plus, but I personally need more of a speed incentive to upgrade.

[jindrich]

hey can you comment on this VISA warranty thing? i paid mine with VISA as well (hoping if anything went wrong i'd covered), but didnt know i could buy warranty as well.

who should i contact to? i bought mine in november.

cheers

[Peorth]

After having my Al PB for the last 2 months, I can say that I'm very happy with it. No white spots, no darkened area of the LCD.

The only thing I would complain about at all would the battery life. 2 to 2 1/2 hours is somewhat small I would think. That is however the only thing wrong with it thankfully.

[pete]

Ok, I'm sorry. I should have qualified that. You need a VISA gold or platinum. The Apple warranty is automatically doubled when you buy with the visa. You need to go to visa's website and register your purchase and they will send you an offer to extend for a further three years (total five) at the end of your second year after purchase. For my laptop worth 2000 it would cost me $189 to extend for five years from purchase.

If you have a problem you call VISA give them brief information about the problem and they send you a claim form. You then take it anywhere you want for repair, send in the receipt and they reimburse you within a week. Always excellent service and fast reimbursement.

go to

http://www.usa.visa.com/personal/car..._benefits.html


for more info.

[jindrich]

Originally posted by pete:
Ok, I'm sorry. I should have qualified that. You need a VISA gold or platinum. The Apple warranty is automatically doubled when you buy with the visa. You need to go to visa's website and register your purchase and they will send you an offer to extend for a further three years (total five) at the end of your second year after purchase. For my laptop worth 2000 it would cost me $189 to extend for five years from purchase.

If you have a problem you call VISA give them brief information about the problem and they send you a claim form. You then take it anywhere you want for repair, send in the receipt and they reimburse you within a week. Always excellent service and fast reimbursement.

go to

http://www.usa.visa.com/personal/car..._benefits.html


for more info.

ok, great, thanx a lot for the reply. I paid with VISA gold. I'm in europe, so maybe we already have the 2 year warranty (by law).
I hope VISA gives the same service here in the old continent.

[normr]

Pete,

Can you tell me more about the Visa warranty? i'm in florida and apple won't sell consumers applecare.

[ibulldog]

You know--this is why you folks on these boards rock the house. I just visited the VISA warranty site and registered my 12 inch Powerbook (purchased in October) and my Eliptical Trainer (purchased in January). Bingo--one year warranty coverage extended to two. Awesome stuff. What's more, I have the option of purchasing additional coverages at what appear to be very reasonable one-time rates. Some of these coverages last five years.

Thanks. Truly.

[pete]

normr,

I'm not sure if there's anything else to say, except that you should go to the link above and check it out. I've had terrific experience with it. It basically extends the warranty of the manufacturer - everything Apple covers will be covered and probably more. I'm not sure if it will work in Florida - give them a call!

It give me tremendous satisfaction to bypass applecare and basically pay $200 for four additional years or warranty instead of $350 for two extra years! Of course I've never tried using this for tech support -not sure if it applies but that's what these forums are for so it doesn't really matter to me.

[cambro]

The VISA extended warranty service is great. It is the main reason to buy things with my VISA.

I made one claim once...my sister's iBook power adpater crapped out after 1.5 years. I bought the thing on my VISA, so I called them up, they told me what to do, I bought a new power adapter on my VISA and a week later a check showed up in the mail.

TELL VISA THAT THIS SERVICE MAKES YOU USE YOUR CARD!!!! If they know it is important, they will keep beefing up the service.

[pete]

Even better is that as long as it was purchased on a visa, it doesn't matter who owns it. So when/if I sell my powerbook, it will be covered for the next person too. And if I buy the extension it is also transferable for a$10 fee.

I can't recommend this service enough! And the price for the extension is what Applecare SHOULD be.