1 Week after switching (from a 12" to a 15")

[wPod]

If you are in the mood for a little nerdy story. . .

Not the typical switcher story. I have been a mac user for almost 4 years now. I have been a die-hard 12" fan. I started with a 12" iBook G3 then moved on to a 12" PB and have shunned anyone for owning anything larger because it isn't really portable. Then one magical day at work (IT technician at the university I go to) I was working on a 15" windows machine (you know cleaning off viruses, spyware, all that PC stuff mac users never have to deal with) and right next to the 15" PC was my nice little 12" PB. Going from one to the other I for the first time noticed that a PC looked better than my mac for some reason! I was shocked!! Everything on the screen just seemed easier on my eyes. Then I took a step back, opened my eyes and realized that the small screen of the 12" PB was the problem! But I questioned myself, how could the small, totally awesome portable being of the 12" PB possibly have something wrong with it!!! I spent a few weeks reeling the idea over and over in my head. I even stopped by the Apple store in town to check out the new 15" PBs. Then, one day I was checking out the refurbished PBs for a good deal. I stumbled upon a 1.3GHz 15" for a good price, and decided to go for it. If all else fails I can just sell it on e-bay and stick with my 12" PB that I already have! So My 1.3GHz 15" finally came last Monday. I was questioning it at first. It seemed HUGE compared to the 12". I wondered how I would ever be able to lug it to class and to work and back again without completely killing my back!! I've been using it apprehensively for the past week and finally decided I should e-bay one of my laptops b/c it is just absurd to have two laptops when one of them just sits in the corner charging. So I pulled out my good old 12" PB to see if there was any other data on it I needed. And I was shocked! it was SOOOOO SMALLL!!!! The portability is amazing (well come on I knew this already) but its so easy to handle, sitting on the couch and such (ok, not THAT big of a deal, but noticeable) but what shocked me more was how SMALL the screen was. Wow, within a week I have totally fallen in love with the 15" screen. So in the end I sit here shocked that I am actually moving away from my die-hard 12" lifestyle and into the beauty and amazement of the 15" PB. I still cant believe myself! But I actually wish I had the new 1.67 GHz PB with the better screen resolution. But honestly, I can't justify spending the extra money just for the screen resolution. Ill wait till the second rev intel PB comes out to get a new one Until then I will enjoy my new found love of the 15" PB!!! Not as small size wise as the 12" but weight wise it is just as portable and well the benefits of the large screen outweigh the couple of extra inches of width! Jut though I would let you know if you are considering one or the other.

 

[Bern]

Seems after next year all of us 12" die hards won't have a choice anyway and will have to upgrade to a larger screen eventually. I really love my 12" 1.5 Ghz Powerbook and when doing art I plug her into a 17" 16.7M colour LCD, but when it comes to a choice between the new sizes I'll probably just get the 15" in a few years.

 

[wPod]

Seems after next year all of us 12" die hards won't have a choice anyway and will have to upgrade to a larger screen eventually.

yeah, but to a 13" widescreen, which isnt really that much bigger.

 

[p0intblank]

I use a 17" PowerBook as my main computer. I do everything on here... Web surfing, instant messaging, e-mail, graphic design, digital photography, etc. etc. etc. It's an awesome machine, I love it! I would like a more "portable" notebook in the near future however. I'll always keep this PowerBook since it is my first Mac, but I will probably buy myself a 12" iBook when they get equipped with the Intel processors. It'll be nice to have a small notebook to just pick up and take on the road with me. But for now, I'm very happy with my 17". I sometimes take my PowerBook to work with me in a bag, so it isn't that bad to carry around... it does get heavy, though.

Anyway, I'm glad you like your new PowerBook. Baby it!

 

[risc]

Good God man use some punctuation!

 

[hopejr]

I have a similar story, so here's the short version:
I bought a 12" iBook G4 last year, after having a 15" PC laptop. I didn't really bother me coz there was about a month between selling the 15" and getting the 12". The 12" was fine for me, until recently when I got a 17" iMac G5. The screen on that is nice and big, and when I go back to the iBook, I feel constrained. Now that I'm graduating, and don't need such a small notebook, I think I'll sell my iBook and get a 15" PB (latest model if they fix the line issue) with a similar res to my iMac. For 300g extra weight, it doesn't really worry me (2.5kg as opposed to 2.2kg). The other problem with the iBook screen is that it is really dim. Can't use the thing outside.

 

[wheezy]

I have to say this is something that is bouncing around in my head. My brother in law has the 15" and it seems big, but not really that big. And now, they have a better battery life, the backlit keyboard, a bigger screen, basically everything better, I don't see much a reason to hold on to my 1Ghz 12". Sometime I might take the leap and switch to 15". I love how small it is, but that screen gets too cramped.

 

[AJ Muni]

Wow..interesting story...i dunno im just in love with my 12"...and i dont see myself switching anytime soon to a 15", i just love how small and portable my 12" is...

 

[ericssonboi]

Similiar story with me..
I switched over when i found a good deal on a 12" 1.33.
After using it.. i was hooked.
But i always wanted the 15" with the backlit keyboard.
So, with some more searching.. i found a rough condition 15" 1Ghz and sold the 12". I missed the 12"'s size for the first little bit.. but i eventauly got used to luggin the 15" around.

The scratches on the 15" 1Ghz eventaully got to me, and i sold that and got a brand new 1.67 15" Pb (not high res scren) ... so before they got updated.

Havn't looked back since... it would be nice to have a 13" or 14" Widescreen.. something in between..

 

[wPod]

Wow..interesting story...i dunno im just in love with my 12"...and i dont see myself switching anytime soon to a 15", i just love how small and portable my 12" is...

i totally was as well. until seeing a 15" PC sparked my interest. so i completely understand how you enjoy the 12". im not trying to get anyone to move up, im just commenting on how unusual it is that i actually switched to 15"!!! but i also dont think the 15" is PERFECT for everyone. you have to find an aspect of each computer that works best for you!

 

[SummerBreeze]

I guess I'm weird, because I love my 12". Before I bought the PowerBook, I had an HP laptop with a huge 17" display and I hated it. I couldn't carry it around anywhere, and it hurt my back like all hell. I just plug my PowerBook into a larger monitor when I need to do design work at home, works like a charm.

 

[Seasought]

I realize that the 12/13 inch screens are all about portability (hence the point of a 'portable laptop') but I still, no matter how hard to try, cannot stand anything below 15". The 17" however is too big to lug around; the 15" is the perfect compromise .

 

[Some_Big_Spoon]

My gripe for a while has been that Apple seems to bill the 12" as a "lesser" pro-sumer laptop, and not a small, professional machine. They hobble it, and now seem to be phasing it out, instead of realizing that some people actually travel with their "pro" mac laptops for a living. 17" -15" is nice for page layouts and such, but try taking 2 flights a day, 4 days a week, 40 weeks a year and you'll appreciate the half-the-size proportions of the 12".

I wish that they'd give it the attention it deserves instead of classifying it as the laptop that's not quite good enough to get the best features, like we're buying on price.. ugh.

Anyway, I'm waiting till they have a true professional laptop with the upcoming transition. My maxed out rev. C 12" is a dog, and so's my maxed out rev. B G5 imac for that matter. I tinker with windows graphics apps at times and i come back to my macs happy with the UI, but I'm taken aback by how slow everything is in comparison. Well, I suppose we'll see soon enough.

 

[tekmoe]

the 12" really is great. the size of it is mind blowing. throw it in a bag and your on your way. my gf loves it.

 

[puckhead193]

i'm borrowing my brother's 12" ibook an i want my 15 PB back. This screen is way to small i have a headache looking at it.

 

[wako]

I use to have a 15'' PC Laptop, was rather nice to have a larger screen and a higher resolution. However I managed to cope with the smaller screen and resolution of the 12'' PB. Thank god for the trackpad. Had there not been the trackpad i probably would have went crazy.

 

[Some_Big_Spoon]

I felt the same when I moved from a 12"PB to a 20" imac.. I was literally dizzy for the first day.

i'm borrowing my brother's 12" ibook an i want my 15 PB back. This screen is way to small i have a headache looking at it.

 

[California]

Yes this worries me about the 12" books. But I do have to say, when traveling, the 15" powerbook and the 14" ibook are really luggy. I just sold my 1.33ghz 14"' ibook because it was too much trouble on a trip. I also just sold my 1ghz PB 15" because the screen is too wide for a writer who needs to see more of the page top to bottom, and so my solution is to get the newest 14" ibook with the sudden motion sensor to protect the hd (i had an incident with the hd on the 1.33ghz ibook w/out the sensor -- wouldn't power up at first after plane trip) -- and I'm getting a 12" ibook as well. No need for a powerbook anymore unless I change careers and become a video editor or a web/graphic designer. The lower res doesn't bother me on the 14". The small type may bother me on the 12 ibook but it's only for trips.

 

[munkle]

I've come to the same conclusion myself. I love my 12" (PB that is ) but after getting the 20" iMac the screen is beginning to feel extremely cramped, especially when dealing with graphics and the like. Exposé and cmd-tab hid the deficiencies well but I yearn for that bigger screen real estate. The fact that the 12" is obviously being left behind by the other models makes the decision easier.

My next laptop will be the Rev B Intel 15". But I'll always have a soft spot for the 12" PB"s

 

[Sic]

Good God man use some punctuation!

if i wasnt half way through switching from 12" to 15", i'd never have read that! you're in college dude, write in paragraphs!!

 

[QCassidy352]

Same story here. I was using a 12" ibook and a powermac w/ 20" display, but I had to sell the powermac (long story).

Well, I can't really get used to using a 12" screen all the time (ibooks can't connect to an apple cinema, even with the hack, unless you buy a $400 adapter), so I'm selling the ibook too and getting a 15" powerbook. It's only .7 more lbs than the ibook, so I don't think I'm losing too much in terms of portability, either...

 

[johnnyjibbs]

I do love my 12" PB and couldn't imagine getting anything bigger. That said, I really wished they'd give it a few more features and better distinguish it from the iBook. It's about time they gave it a better graphics card (with 128MB VRAM), the illuminated keyboard (I'm a sucker for that sort of stuff) and a sharper, brighter display.

Having a rev B (Sept 2003) model with only 32MB VRAM, I was pleased that core image works on my machine and I even get all the Dashboard ripple effects and the like (the iBooks don't) but I recently played with a new iMac in the Apple Store London and the effects were like silk. The screen res was a beauty too, but then you can't carry that around with you, can you?

For me, the 15" is still too big and too expensive. But I really think it is time they gave the 12" a bit more stuff.

That said, I still find it hard to believe they are phasing it out. If I recall, the 12" PowerBook is the most popular/best-selling PowerBook and about 3rd best-selling Mac or something.

 

[chaosbunny]

Gratulations! I switched from a rev A 12" to a 15" pb back in april and can understand how you feel. I originally bought the 12" because it was cheaper 2 1/2 years ago and while I really loved it the 15" is simply the better choice, at least for a graphic designer like me. My old little baby is now proudly used by my father.

 

[MRU]

Just sold my 12" for a 15", I loved the portability and didn't mind the resolution. It was the dullness of the screen, especially if you had to be outdoors at any point that finally made me switch.

What I find perculiar though is that Apple seem to promote the 12" as the cheaper laptop, whereas all pc makers like Dell, Sony charge more for their smaller laptops as they are more portable.

Even dell's small latitude 12.1" screens only use 1.1ghz processors and cost more that the Apple.

For once Apple represent good value.

 

[xli_ne]

yeah, but to a 13" widescreen, which isnt really that much bigger.

i hoping that they do. I love my 12" PB right now, but will sell it quickly if a 13" widescreen came out. The sony models that are this size are just awesome and already have a built-in webcam