Welcome to the MacNN Forums.

iHanhauser · Sep 16, 2003, 04:42 PM

I am just going to wait until the G5 PowerBooks come out. I got a 17" PowerBooks now, and I don�t think it would be worth selling it to buy a 15" or an updated 17".

I�m sure you wouldn�t really notice an increase in performance from the first 17� release to the new 17�incher. At least I wouldn�t, but all I use it for is web design, school and messing around on the web,

I am just going to wait it out until the G5 arrives ��..

ihanhauser

cambro · Sep 16, 2003, 04:47 PM

Yup, me too.

Any guess as to how long we'll be waiting??

b11051973 · Sep 16, 2003, 05:12 PM

I've been thinking all day about selling my 12" Powerbook and getting one of the Superdrive 15 inchers. In the end, I think I'll wait till next year(hopefully) and get a G5 PB.

bobpensik · Sep 16, 2003, 05:19 PM

yea i just got my 12inch PB and was kinda worried if i had got it too soon but after seeing these updates i am gonna stick with my 12inch PB seeing as how it really isn't outdated yet :-) and wait for those wonderful G5 books :-)

iHanhauser · Sep 16, 2003, 05:46 PM

I would say none of the AL powerbooks are out dated. And wont be for a long time.

moki · Sep 16, 2003, 06:04 PM

Originally posted by cambro:
Yup, me too.

Any guess as to how long we'll be waiting??

I'd guess about a year or so. Clearly the G5 isn't ready to sit inside a portable enclosure, for both power and heat reasons. A die shrink to 9nm would fix the problem nicely, but I don't expect to see that in shipping products for a year or so.

JustinD · Sep 16, 2003, 06:26 PM

hey bobpensik, give credit where credit is due for your sig:

"Never ask a man what computer he uses. If it's a Mac, he'll tell you. If it's not, why embarrass him?"

That's Tom Clancy's sig.

nobitacu · Sep 17, 2003, 01:19 AM

Originally posted by iHanhauser:
I am just going to wait until the G5 PowerBooks come out. I got a 17" PowerBooks now, and I don�t think it would be worth selling it to buy a 15" or an updated 17".

I�m sure you wouldn�t really notice an increase in performance from the first 17� release to the new 17�incher. At least I wouldn�t, but all I use it for is web design, school and messing around on the web,

I am just going to wait it out until the G5 arrives ��..

ihanhauser

I 100 % agree with you.

Ming

iHanhauser · Sep 17, 2003, 01:31 AM

Thank you ..... Our current technology will still be good 1 year from now.

I always love updating my computer when a new one comes out, but this update does not seem worth it.

I think Apple could have sold more units, if they would have released the G5 yesterday. Just think ... Everyone on this forum, would have..... I would have.

Purchasing a new G4 is not a good choice if you have one now, and plan on buying a G5 in the future.

iHanhauser

Minty Fresh · Sep 17, 2003, 02:37 AM

Yup....that's what I'll be doing!

michaelb · Sep 17, 2003, 08:51 AM

Well, patience is a virtue.

I'd read Moki's post again to temper the G5 enthusiasm.

After all, he knew when the G5 was coming into desktops (and even the delayed shipping).

PBG4 User · Sep 17, 2003, 09:10 AM

I'm sticking with my Rev. A 500Ti until a G5 PowerBook comes out or the dual G5 PowerMacs come way down in price.

I know, I could be waiting for a long time, but if Panther is all that (Snappier

) then I'll be able to hold off for 12 - 18 months.

TC · Sep 17, 2003, 11:56 AM

When I bought my first G4 Titanium when they where first released they where in the unique position of being directly comparable to the desktop models available at the time.

The top desktop models around where single 733MHz or dual 533MHz with an OS and apps which weren't making as much use of duals as OS X will now.

It was a really good time to get a Powerbook as you weren't losing out on much power and getting all the benefits of mobile computing. Of course this was mainly due to Motorola's inability to increase the speed of the G4 processor. Even today over 2 1/2 years later they can only get desktop G4s up to 1.42.

Now that the G5 has come along Apple are reaping the benefits of the multiprocessor capabilities of their OS. But this means that the natural order has been restored and today a top of the range 2 x 2GHz G5 will wipe the floor with a 1.33GHz G4 laptop.

Will we ever get close to parity again? Hopefully we never will and IBM will be able to keep advancing their processor speeds. Unless they come up with something which allows them to do this without increasing power consumption and heat production then Powerbooks will have to continue with being a second class citizen.

Nobody likes to lose out by buying something only to see a better model come along but if it could be a year before we see a G5 laptop then just think of how much fun you can have with these latest models in that time.

bluejam · Sep 17, 2003, 01:53 PM

Originally posted by TC:
When I bought my first G4 Titanium when they where first released they where in the unique position of being directly comparable to the desktop models available at the time.

The top desktop models around where single 733MHz or dual 533MHz with an OS and apps which weren't making as much use of duals as OS X will now.

It was a really good time to get a Powerbook as you weren't losing out on much power and getting all the benefits of mobile computing. Of course this was mainly due to Motorola's inability to increase the speed of the G4 processor. Even today over 2 1/2 years later they can only get desktop G4s up to 1.42.

Now that the G5 has come along Apple are reaping the benefits of the multiprocessor capabilities of their OS. But this means that the natural order has been restored and today a top of the range 2 x 2GHz G5 will wipe the floor with a 1.33GHz G4 laptop.

What kind of statement is that? If we had parity between desktops and laptops, IBM would stop innovating? What's wrong with a portable as fast as a desktop? "The natural Order"...bonehead!

Will we ever get close to parity again? Hopefully we never will and IBM will be able to keep advancing their processor speeds. Unless they come up with something which allows them to do this without increasing power consumption and heat production then Powerbooks will have to continue with being a second class citizen.

Nobody likes to lose out by buying something only to see a better model come along but if it could be a year before we see a G5 laptop then just think of how much fun you can have with these latest models in that time.

bluejam · Sep 17, 2003, 01:58 PM

I don't know what happened there...

Anyway, what kind of statement is that? You think parity between notebooks and desktops would stop IBM from advancing? The "natural order" is one of the dumbest things I've read in this forum. Get a grip. A notebook as fast as the worlds fastest desktop IS advancement and innovation. And I can't wait!

thunderous_funker · Sep 17, 2003, 04:42 PM

Originally posted by moki:
I'd guess about a year or so. Clearly the G5 isn't ready to sit inside a portable enclosure, for both power and heat reasons. A die shrink to 9nm would fix the problem nicely, but I don't expect to see that in shipping products for a year or so.

Hmmm, are you certain? Got a link? That would surprise me (pleasantly).

From what i've seen concering the G5's heat and power stats, I wouldn't want to buy whatever 10lbs., liquid cooled, space heater "notebook" they managed to shoehorn it into.

Kind of like most of P4 laptops on the market.

But I'd be glad to be wrong.

neilw · Sep 17, 2003, 05:17 PM

I don't think any power numbers have been published for the 90nm G5. Safe to say, though, that it will be considerably cooler than the existing device (as will Apple's system controller chip, assuming they take that down to 90nm as well.)

The current chip is really not far off being suitable for a laptop, if clocked down far enough. Remember, lowering the clock frequency reduces power consumption significantly, and allows lower core voltage in the chip, which reduces power even more. I'd hope that the 90nm part could enable something like a 1.6 GHz PowerBook (higher would be nice, but 1.6 GHz would be fine.) At that point, the PowerBooks would say bye-bye to the G4 for good.

I would *definitely* expect to see G5 PowerBooks by next summer, with the possibility of a pleasant surprise sometime in the spring. At this point I'd be shocked to see them at MWSF, only four months after the latest rev.

TC · Sep 17, 2003, 06:08 PM

Originally posted by bluejam:
I don't know what happened there...

Anyway, what kind of statement is that? You think parity between notebooks and desktops would stop IBM from advancing? The "natural order" is one of the dumbest things I've read in this forum. Get a grip. A notebook as fast as the worlds fastest desktop IS advancement and innovation. And I can't wait!

Way to go on completely missing the point.
We only had something close to parity because Motorola didn't advance their processor speeds.

Please send me picture's of your dual 2GHz G5 Powerbook when you get it and don't forget those oven gloves.

"one of the dumbest things I've read in this forum" is great to hear from someone who can't even quote a post correctly.

milhous · Sep 17, 2003, 06:58 PM

On a sidenote, I'm betting that if a dual G5 PowerBook were to materialize, we'll also see fuel cell batteries with them. I don't think current battery technologies would be able to support such a powerful system along with bright screens, optical drive and logic board.

Eug · Sep 17, 2003, 07:01 PM

Originally posted by thunderous_funker:
Hmmm, are you certain? Got a link? That would surprise me (pleasantly).

From what i've seen concering the G5's heat and power stats, I wouldn't want to buy whatever 10lbs., liquid cooled, space heater "notebook" they managed to shoehorn it into.

The 1.2 GHz G5 at 0.13 um is 19 Watts typical. That's the same as the current 1.3 GHz G4 7447 which is supposedly also 0.13 um. (Or is it?)

IBM has plans to move to 0.09 um in 2004, to get the G5 to 3 GHz. I'm guessing they could theoretically get a 1.6 GHz part below 20 W typical.

And if they double the L2 cache as expected, that thing would absolutely fly. A 1.6 GHz G5 with 1 MB L2 cache would probably be faster than the current 1.8 GHz G5 (with 512 KB cache).

tkmd · Sep 17, 2003, 07:35 PM

Yes this update solidified it, I'm going to get the 900Mhz update for my Pismo 400 and wait fior the G5.