Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

beachmark · Aug 11, 2004, 08:53 AM

For just over a year I am now working with my 1ghz 17inch powerbook. Due to good results at work some extra money is coming my way. Shall I use it to upgrade to a new 1.5ghz powerbook built to order?

Pleae give me some feedback why I should or should not do it.

In advance thanks for your input which is highly appreciated.

TheIceMan · Aug 11, 2004, 09:15 AM

I would wait. There is not such a dramatic difference between the two specs. Besides, you never know what macworld has up its sleeve.

d.fine · Aug 11, 2004, 09:31 AM

As long as your current PB can do all you need for it to do, I would wait. As TheIceMan said, you never know ...

Keiretsu · Aug 11, 2004, 09:40 AM

Originally posted by TheIceMan:
I would wait. There is not such a dramatic difference between the two specs. Besides, you never know what macworld has up its sleeve.

IMHO there was a dramatic effect in going from a Rev A 15" 1.25 to a Rev C 17" 1.5 5400 RPM 128MB VRAM ... and I do _NOT_ count the screen but sheer speed!

I would upgrade asap BTO 5400 RPM disk and the VRAM upgrade!

Look at this:

You will want a speedy machine!

Randman · Aug 11, 2004, 11:46 AM

Well, if you're going to use Motion. If not, then the specs don't mean a thing.

You have a pretty nice machine already. How much ram do you have? A bump in ram could make things speedier, and if not, the 17s have pretty good resale value.

I was actually hoping this would a list of 10 reasons to upgrade. I have a G4 iBook, 1Ghz 14-inch with 1.12 GB of ram. It's usually enough for what I need (and with an external hard drive and external Pioneer DVD burner), I can make do.
Still, I've really been considering an upgrade to the PowerBook line to have a little more punch at home. Therein, lies the problem. I love portables at home, but for the life of me, I can't decide which PB to get, the 17 for it's extra screen size, the 12 for its portability, the 15 as a compromise, or do I hold onto the iBook and get a G5 iMac?

Snake · Aug 11, 2004, 11:57 AM

Didn't the 1.33Ghz and up Powerbooks get a bump in L2 cache to 512?

Keiretsu · Aug 11, 2004, 12:24 PM

Originally posted by Snake:
Didn't the 1.33Ghz and up Powerbooks get a bump in L2 cache to 512?

Right, they all use the 7447A now! The last rev had already 512 caches, but Rev a only 256 if I remember right.

simonjames · Aug 11, 2004, 05:59 PM

here is another option :- invest in your future - buy some shares or put the money in a term deposit. Save up for an overseas vacation or car.

you have a good powerbook already - you don't need an upgrade (IMO)

cszar2001 · Aug 12, 2004, 04:25 PM

I�d upgrade the HD and wait for the G5 PB`s.

Randman · Aug 26, 2004, 07:25 AM

I took the plunge and got a 17 last week (at 15 prices) and I must say that it is far faster than the 1GHz iBook G4 I had. I was running 1.12GB of ram of on the iBook and have 1GB on my Alu17 and it's still not even close.
Plus, the machine runs considerably cooler. After a few hours of heavy use, the iBook would creep past the 150 F mark, while I haven't seen the Alu pass 125 yet (both on an iCurve or or my lap).
It's also much quiter and the battery life is quite good. I do turn off bluetooth unless I need it, which seems to help.

The size does take a little getting use to but it's a superb machine and the screen real estate is wonderful.

urrl78 · Aug 26, 2004, 08:03 AM

I had a problem with my 17" 1 Ghz screen and they upgraded it for free to a 1.5 Ghz when they could not fix it after three tries. Is it faster? Yes, but not that much.

I would definitely wait for the next version. You have a marvelous Powerbook right now. The new one could have some blown pixels or other problems. If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Maflynn · Aug 26, 2004, 09:41 AM

I'd hold off, the performance difference isn't that great and if your current configurtion is working fine, why mess with success. Put the money towards a large hard drive more memory, or stick it in the bank for a rainy day and/or G5 PB.

Mike

nate_02 · Aug 26, 2004, 09:46 AM

I would wait to see if anything else is coming out soon.

StevenWRX · Aug 26, 2004, 11:30 AM

i would wait. yours is fine just fine right now.

good luck

teknopimp · Aug 26, 2004, 11:42 PM

you really need just one good reason

i try to wait until i've gotten the most out of my computer (there are several ways that can happen) to upgrade. unfortunately there won't be a revision anytime soon, probably not until at least the end of the year, so you'll need to wait. then there's the G5 PB in '05. it's all about what you need and when you need it.