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Apple Vetern Decisions are favored....
- Thread starter mac000
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I'd get the iMac to go along with your iBook. Have to love power when you need it, and portability when you don't. mmm.
If I were in your position, I'd keep the iBook and buy an iMac Core Duo. That way you'll have two computers, a desktop and a portable, a PPC machine and an Intel machine. The iMac is as powerful, if not more powerful than the MacBook Pro, yet it's cheaper. You'll still be able to use your iBook for portable use, and for more intensive stuff where you need power and screen space, you'll have the iMac.
I agree with the other posters. A laptop is always nice to have and I'm waiting for my 13" iBook so I can have one along with my 20" iMac right now.
I, too, agree that you should keep your iBook and buy the iMac. I recently sold my PowerBook in order to buy a MacBook Pro, but haven't gotten around to buying yet. I really miss having my portable to go along with my iMac. Once you have combination, you will always want it, I promise!
Always buy more gear! 
Keeping the iBook and getting the 17" or 20" WS Core Duo iMac
will pay off in both performance, convenience and versatility.
Once the applications become updated beyond the iBooks useful life, then see what new offering is available in a laptop.
Keeping the iBook and getting the 17" or 20" WS Core Duo iMac
will pay off in both performance, convenience and versatility.
Once the applications become updated beyond the iBooks useful life, then see what new offering is available in a laptop.
Just to provide an alternate viewpoint...
Since you have the latest iBook G4 rev. (you do, right?) and you've put some RAM into it, you'll get a decent resale value, which will probably be about (if not a little more) than what you'd have to pay for an iMac. With one computer (the MacBook Pro in this case), you dont have to worry about syncing your data between two computers or anything like that, and you'll always have the power with you. Personally, I think you should sell your iBook G4 and go with the MacBook Pro. If doing so makes you nervous, give yourself the option to sell it (start a "feeler" thread in the Marketplace or post on eBay with a very high reserve), and if you would end up getting more than the cost of an Intel iMac, then go for the MacBook Pro. Offer peripherals that you won't need if you have them, that'll obviously increase the resale value of the iBook.
Also, be sure to take your needs into consideration. Do you need a big HDD and a dual-layer SuperDrive? If so, go with the iMac. If not, do what I suggested above.
Since you have the latest iBook G4 rev. (you do, right?) and you've put some RAM into it, you'll get a decent resale value, which will probably be about (if not a little more) than what you'd have to pay for an iMac. With one computer (the MacBook Pro in this case), you dont have to worry about syncing your data between two computers or anything like that, and you'll always have the power with you. Personally, I think you should sell your iBook G4 and go with the MacBook Pro. If doing so makes you nervous, give yourself the option to sell it (start a "feeler" thread in the Marketplace or post on eBay with a very high reserve), and if you would end up getting more than the cost of an Intel iMac, then go for the MacBook Pro. Offer peripherals that you won't need if you have them, that'll obviously increase the resale value of the iBook.
Also, be sure to take your needs into consideration. Do you need a big HDD and a dual-layer SuperDrive? If so, go with the iMac. If not, do what I suggested above.
Let's see. You can probably get around $800-900 for your iBook (with the RAM upgrade). That is more than the difference between an 17" iMac and the 1.83 MacBook Pro. So, choose #1 and have some extra money for accessories or to contribute to an external monitor or ipod or whatever ...
Things to consider:
1. Performance-wise, the MBP is about the same as the iMac.
2. As soon as the switch to Intel is complete, the non-Intel machines will lose a significant amount of value. Your iBook is a soon-to-be dinosaur.
3. Legal wise, you'd need to buy 2 sets of software all the time
4. I think switching between two computers with the performance difference that an iBook and an iMac would have, I would quickly get annoyed.
Of course, a good compromise would be to sell your iBook now (to get max value), buy an Intel iMac now (because you need a computer) and patiently wait to buy the Intel iBook (MacBook?) when it comes out.
My 2 cents.
Things to consider:
1. Performance-wise, the MBP is about the same as the iMac.
2. As soon as the switch to Intel is complete, the non-Intel machines will lose a significant amount of value. Your iBook is a soon-to-be dinosaur.
3. Legal wise, you'd need to buy 2 sets of software all the time
4. I think switching between two computers with the performance difference that an iBook and an iMac would have, I would quickly get annoyed.
Of course, a good compromise would be to sell your iBook now (to get max value), buy an Intel iMac now (because you need a computer) and patiently wait to buy the Intel iBook (MacBook?) when it comes out.
My 2 cents.
A problem with deciding what you need is what applications you are using and when they will be Universal. What apps do you currently use on a daily basis?
It really depends on your needs. Think about the following first:
1. Do you need power and performance while you're on the go?
If yes, then consider a MacBook Pro.
If no and you just want a casual computer to surf the web with, keep the iBook.
2. Do you mind syncing two computers?
If yes, buy the MacBook Pro.
If no, buy the iMac.
3. Would you mind lugging around a bigger laptop? 12" to 15" may not seem like much, but you'll notice an astronomical difference when you start travelling with a 15" laptop instead of a 12" one.
I just sold my iBook (same model as yours - with 1GB RAM and a 60GB HDD) a few days ago for $825 on Craigslist - and I must admit, I miss having that little wireless wonder. I sold it because I'm hoping for a 13" MacBook Pro come April, or a might hold out for the next revision of the 15" MacBook Pro as well. I'm currently using a 2GHz iMac G5 (which I purchased before my iBook, oddly enough), but I knew I'd get more life out of this than an aging laptop with a G4 processor. It will be strange when I get my new laptop, though - because it'll probably be considerably faster than this machine! Oh well. I'll deal with it somehow
1. Do you need power and performance while you're on the go?
If yes, then consider a MacBook Pro.
If no and you just want a casual computer to surf the web with, keep the iBook.
2. Do you mind syncing two computers?
If yes, buy the MacBook Pro.
If no, buy the iMac.
3. Would you mind lugging around a bigger laptop? 12" to 15" may not seem like much, but you'll notice an astronomical difference when you start travelling with a 15" laptop instead of a 12" one.
I just sold my iBook (same model as yours - with 1GB RAM and a 60GB HDD) a few days ago for $825 on Craigslist - and I must admit, I miss having that little wireless wonder. I sold it because I'm hoping for a 13" MacBook Pro come April, or a might hold out for the next revision of the 15" MacBook Pro as well. I'm currently using a 2GHz iMac G5 (which I purchased before my iBook, oddly enough), but I knew I'd get more life out of this than an aging laptop with a G4 processor. It will be strange when I get my new laptop, though - because it'll probably be considerably faster than this machine! Oh well. I'll deal with it somehow
I'd go with #2. I have an iMac and an iBook .. I don't sync files, although that would be nice, I use my iBook during the day, and my iMac when I get back from classes. It's a good setup. The iMac will need more RAM, so factor that in.
I think I am going to get the iMac.
1) there seems to be hardly any issues with them as opposed to the Macbook Pro
2) I really like having a 12" and traveling with it, If i get a 15" that might just be cumbersome.
I'm gonna go to the Apple store this weekend to just take a look for myself. I am hoping to pick up the 17" intel iMac, hopefully it won't look too small for my taste and have to save up some more money for the 20".
For the person who has the 17" imac with the external monitor, hows that working out for ya?
1) there seems to be hardly any issues with them as opposed to the Macbook Pro
2) I really like having a 12" and traveling with it, If i get a 15" that might just be cumbersome.
I'm gonna go to the Apple store this weekend to just take a look for myself. I am hoping to pick up the 17" intel iMac, hopefully it won't look too small for my taste and have to save up some more money for the 20".
For the person who has the 17" imac with the external monitor, hows that working out for ya?
w8ing4intelmacs said:
No, not really. Most (expensive) software includes a provision for installing a copy on a laptop and desktop machine, provided they're not being used at the same time and are both yours. For example, I've got CS2 on my PowerBook and my Power Mac, and that's perfectly legal.
I don't know if you were referring to me, but I do have an external monitor with my iMac. It works great, I have a samsung 910mp, and it's roughly the same size and height as my iMac, so it looks great.mac000 said:
You can see it in action here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/shrimpdesign/94447481/
Koodauw said:
Same. I had a laptop and a desktop for a while, and I didn't like it. I either wouldn't know where files were, or would have to be syncing the machines all the time. As for the portability argument... the difference in weight between the ibook and MBP is really quite small.
Option one: get the MBP.
Oh, and just wondering... how can you have a 12" ibook @ 1.33 Ghz and 1.25 GB RAM? I have the same model, and it's either 1 GB or 1.5 because there's 512 built in. Or you could have a 14" 1.33 Ghz ibook with 1.25 GB RAM...
this is a no brainer to me....go with option 1...sell ur ibook and get a maxed out macbook pro...its an amazing machine that offers desktop like performance...if u want, u could buy an external screen to hook it up to at home...and maybe even a external hard drive...that way it will actually be like having 2 computers
I essentially did Option 2, except that I got a used 17" Rev. B iMac G5.
The "where are my files" things are annoying.
Here are my inputs...
1) Figure out if you can live with a larger notebook. I don't think I would. I'm not interested in an Intel-based Mac notebook until it comes in a form factor close to the 12" size.
2) Think about your usage profile... if you are constantly on the go, you might be really annoyed at having the more powerful iMac at home, and not see much benefit, since you'll still be using your iBook.
I started with saying what I did, but a big part of my purchase decision was that, although I really don't like desktop computers very much, I have always been in love with the iMac (G5/Core Duo) design, and I've always wanted one. So when someone I trust and respect here on MR wanted to get rid of his, I snapped it up.
The "where are my files" things are annoying.
Here are my inputs...
1) Figure out if you can live with a larger notebook. I don't think I would. I'm not interested in an Intel-based Mac notebook until it comes in a form factor close to the 12" size.
2) Think about your usage profile... if you are constantly on the go, you might be really annoyed at having the more powerful iMac at home, and not see much benefit, since you'll still be using your iBook.
I started with saying what I did, but a big part of my purchase decision was that, although I really don't like desktop computers very much, I have always been in love with the iMac (G5/Core Duo) design, and I've always wanted one. So when someone I trust and respect here on MR wanted to get rid of his, I snapped it up.
I have a PowerMac and an iBook and I love having two computers. Right now I'm at my dad's house and I'm able to use the iBook to work on some projects along with cruise MR
I have FTP enabled on both so I can FTP files from one machine to the other anytime to keep them synced.
I definately recommend the iBook and iMac combo. It is just much more convenient to have both blazing speed and portability accessible.
I have FTP enabled on both so I can FTP files from one machine to the other anytime to keep them synced.
I definately recommend the iBook and iMac combo. It is just much more convenient to have both blazing speed and portability accessible.