Dumb to buy a 15" PB now?

[mgcapplegirl]

Did you already make a purchase?

Hi there, I just bought a 15"Powerbook about a year ago. I use it only for school, Word, e-mail checking, the basics. I want to get a Macbook Pro becaues I like the integrated camera on the screen and I use this a lot, so I want to sell my 15" PB. It is in like new shape, if you are interested, contact me.

beleza@berkeley.edu

 

[jamesi]

yes, VERY dumb

 

[jadekitty24]

Hello people, please read the original post before making the wrong suggestions, IT ISN"T THAT HARD. The op stated:

I don't want an MBP because the glitches scare me and because most of my time is spent on CS which won't be available for a while. I figured whatever I do, I'll upgrade in about a year or so.

So do I spend the $250 (edu discount) on applecare or spend the cash to upgrade to the 15"?

Very clear...doesn't want a MBP, uses CS a lot, only wanted to know whether to spend his money on Applecare or a newer bigger PB,(hmm...yeah, I could see where that gets complicated ) followed by this,

Honestly, it would be dumb. Especially because the MBPs are out. I'd don't know what to do though, if your PB isn't working out for you. I'd say wait for a Rev. B, but you need something now. Did you consider a desktop?

and this,

Absolutely.

If you can't afford the MBP, seriously, MacOS or not a Core Duo from Dell at ~ $1200 will handle all the anti spyware/anti virus applications you need to make Windows a comfy experience even!

and this.

MBP......may cost you more now, but it will save you in the long run

These posts made suggestions that the OP stated were not options. And yet the OP is accused of being rude when he/she shows his/her frustration over not getting the answer to the question originally asked? I wonder if there isn't a certain percentage of posters here who work for Apple, trying to push products the way you guys sound sometime. To those of you claiming the OP was unjustly rude, just give the guy a break and/or pull the sticks out of your *sses. Seriously.

 

[maverick808]

Aaaaah, I see this again and again. After going from a 1.67GHz 15" PowerBook to a MBP I can tell you that Photoshop and the whole CS2 suite runs faster under Rosetta on the MBP than it does natively on the PowerBook.

I keep hearing people saying "oh but I'll have to run Photoshop and it won't be native so it's just not an option". If you are happy with the Photoshop performance under a PowerBook then why wouldn't you get a MacBook when the performance WILL BE BETTER!?!?!?!?!?

Ugh.

 

[Twinkie]

words, words, words, words...

Uh oh, guys. Now you've made mom really upset. No dessert for us tonight

 

[jhu]

Here's my situation. I have a maxed out 12" PB that I've had for about a month. It does what I need it to, but I still manage to run it hard enough to get beach balls, etc. I also find the screen space pretty small when I'm on the road. The warranty is up soon, and I'm debating between spending the money on the applecare or selling the 12" and upgrading to a 15"

I figure the 15" will cost about $1700 with 1.5gb of ram (newest revision with a full warranty).

I don't want an MBP because the glitches scare me and because most of my time is spent on CS which won't be available for a while. I figured whatever I do, I'll upgrade in about a year or so.

So do I spend the $250 (edu discount) on applecare or spend the cash to upgrade to the 15"?

save your money

 

[sushi]

I can think of a number of reasons why someone would want a PB vice a MBP. Some reasons that come to mind:

- Cheaper/Save money

- Run Classic Applications

- Prefer the external iSight camera and don't want one built in.

- Want PCIMCIA standard slot vice PCI Express slot.

The new MBP are nice, but the PBs are great as well depending on your needs.

 

[sushi]

If I was certain of the answer, I wouldn't have bothered posting. I was looking for opinions from a group of people who could understand my quandry.

I wasn't trying to be rude at all, I was simply trying to get my question answered, which was a simple a or b choice. Sorry if it came across as rude, but I didn't intend to. Perhaps a little frustrated, but we've all been there.

If you'll take a moment to look at my other posts since joining this forum, I think you'll find that I'm a less than arguementative person who tries to help when I can.

Looking back, I may have been a little harsh. And I can see your frustration in your posts.

Sometimes we all get in a hurry and fail to really read the post(s) that we are replying to.

Unfortunately, there are some zealots who are touting the MBP as the only solution because it is the newest. While a fine system, not everyone needs one right now.

 

[discoforce]

Aaaaah, I see this again and again. After going from a 1.67GHz 15" PowerBook to a MBP I can tell you that Photoshop and the whole CS2 suite runs faster under Rosetta on the MBP than it does natively on the PowerBook.

Now THIS is an interesting point because it goes against reviews I've read. For example:

The other major application that many MacBook Pro users will want to run is Adobe Photoshop CS2, and it may be a while before a Universal version arrives. In the interim, the MacBook Pro will run Photoshop via Rosetta. We found Photoshop to be quite usable on the MacBook Pro, but it doesn't run nearly as fast as it does on the most recent top-of-the-line PowerBook. The 1.67-GHz PowerBook G4 performed our suite of 14 scripted Photoshop tasks 1.7 times faster than the 2-GHz MacBook Pro. As a result, it's hard for us to recommend the MacBook Pro to heavy Photoshop users until Adobe ships a Universal version. However, casual Photoshop users should be fine.

But your experience has been that it's faster?

 

[maverick808]

Now THIS is an interesting point because it goes against reviews I've read. For example:

But your experience has been that it's faster?

Definitely. I too have read review comparisons and the general consensus seems to be that it's around 25% slower. However, for my use it is definitely faster.

I'm not a graphics designer so I'm not pushing CS2 to it's limits but I do use it at least a few times a week to design posters, website graphics and various other small things. Most of the stuff I do involves just pasting stuff in, touching stuff up, cutting out sections, recolouring and adding a few filters and effects. On average I use about 20 layers on the Photoshop files I work on.

For all this stuff the MacBook is definitely faster than the PowerBook. The only disadvantage is that it takes Photoshop a bit longer to start up initially but I don't think it's that different. It takes 13 seconds to start up on my MacBook... I can't recall how long it took on the PowerBook but I don't think it was much faster than that.

I do have Photoshop installed on Windows inside Parallels so I can easily run that to get Photoshop at full native speed but there's simply no point as Photoshop on the MBP is snappy as can be.

 

[chaosbunny]

I'd recomend getting a 15" pb if the 12" screen of your current machine really feels way to small on the go. An external monitor won't really help you on the road. I know what I'm talking about, before getting the pb in my sig I had a rev A 12 incher and for serious Adobe CS work it is just too small after some time. I'm a freelancer too and work with my machine a lot at different agencies. But the 15" pb should be a rather cheap (used) one. 1,5 or 1,67 ghz version for I'd guess no more than 1500 €. I believe you might find something like this on ebay.

To some of the others: Buying a macbook pro right now is imo a waste of money if the machines main task is Adobe Creative Suite. Ok, it might run just about as fast under rosetta as it runs on a 1,67 ghz pb, but why pay premium if you don't really notice the difference? It is better to save the money now and get a macbook pro by the time Adobe CS 3 is out and is universal, which is in about one year+. Then the mbps will be 2,5 ghz+ or merom or whatever and it is better to pay premium then to get more performance that you actually notice.

 

[generik]

And the funny thing also is that people used to be knee deep in the dead defending G4s on why they were just as good/fast as Intels but since Intel chips have been put into Macs, everyone is calling the G4 a **** chip when really you were all defending it before the switch (even making threads about people to stay calm and buy PPC macs still after the intel announcement was made...)

just an astute observation

It is known in marketing circles as post purchase dissonance. Deep down inside everyone knew that they shelled out twice as much money for half the computer they should be getting. While the MBP still is still priced at the same price point at the very least it is more than twice the computer the PB G4 could ever dream of becoming

 

[maverick808]

To some of the others: Buying a macbook pro right now is imo a waste of money if the machines main task is Adobe Creative Suite. Ok, it might run just about as fast under rosetta as it runs on a 1,67 ghz pb, but why pay premium if you don't really notice the difference?

I'd agree if using CS2 is the ONLY thing the user does... in that case get a 1.67GHz PB. However, if the user is sitting on the fence because they think Photoshop will run like a dog then the MacBook is what to get since Photoshop runs speedily on it.

The choice is...
PB with okay CS2 performance and awful performance on everything else
OR
MBP with okay CS2 performance and amazingly fast performance on everything else.

I don't see why anyone would pick a PB giving that choice other than that it's a bit cheaper. The saving is not worth the awful performance on the other apps as far as I'm concerned.

 

[munckee]

The choice is...
PB with okay CS2 performance and awful performance on everything else
OR
MBP with okay CS2 performance and amazingly fast performance on everything else.

Aweful? For running firefox, itunes, ichat, word, and all the other day to day stuff? How would you define aweful?

 

[chaosbunny]

I'd agree if using CS2 is the ONLY thing the user does... in that case get a 1.67GHz PB. However, if the user is sitting on the fence because they think Photoshop will run like a dog then the MacBook is what to get since Photoshop runs speedily on it.

The choice is...
PB with okay CS2 performance and awful performance on everything else
OR
MBP with okay CS2 performance and amazingly fast performance on everything else.

I don't see why anyone would pick a PB giving that choice other than that it's a bit cheaper. The saving is not worth the awful performance on the other apps as far as I'm concerned.

You did not bother reading my 2 little paragraphs before quoting me, am I right?

Apart from that 1500 € for a used or refurb pb versus 2500 € for a 2 ghz mbp is not what I would consider "a bit cheaper".

 

[maverick808]

Aweful? For running firefox, itunes, ichat, word, and all the other day to day stuff? How would you define aweful?

I wouldn't say it was awful for those particular apps since all the apps you mention hardly utilise any resources. I would say it was awful, dreadful and unbearable for iMovie, GarageBand, iPhoto, Pages, Keynote, Final Cut, Aperture, QuickTime (for editing or for viewing HD content) and many other apps.

I wouldn't bother defining aweful but I will define awful as not pleasent and actually frustrating to use due to generally slow response in most operations and extremely slow response for larger operations. Basically, using those apps just became frustrating on my 1.67GHz PowerBook. I mean, can anyone with even a maxed out PowerBook honestly say that Final Cut or other pro apps are useable for serious work on their machine?

 

[maverick808]

You did not bother reading my 2 little paragraphs before quoting me, am I right?

Apart from that 1500 € for a used or refurb pb versus 2500 € for a 2 ghz mbp is not what I would consider "a bit cheaper".

Yeah but you are comparing a second-hand machine to a brand new one so that's a bit unfair. You'd have to compare a refurb PB to a refurb MBP (which I think are starting to turn up now).

 

[ImAlex]

Depends on the portability of course. But if you would like a bigger screen size and gonna update to Intel later then go for it! If you need it, there is no doubt just buy it. There are great prices you can get one for.

Another great thing with PowerPC Macs is that you can run Mac OS Classic on them which is great. That is what I miss (or wanna try) on my Mac.

Take your PowerBook 12 " and a PowerBook 15 " and put them beside eachother. Then you look on them and feels which one of them that has the best feeling. Then ask yourself, Do I need this? If you answer Yes buy it, if you answer no, then keep your nice PowerBook 12 ".

 

[danny_w]

I don't run cs2, and I still bought a 15" pb a few weeks ago over the mbp. Why? Partly because of all of the problems with the mbp, but mainly because I could get the pb for less than half of the cost of a mbp, and for the money it seems like a big step up from what I had been using (somewhat better performance and mobility too). And I love it! I have seen the mbp's but was not all that impressed with them for what I do with a computer. Sure they are fast, but I don't really need that much speed right now, nor do I want to deal with the issues of a mbp right now.

So my conclusion here is that a 15" pb for the right price (mine was under $1000) is certainly not dumb, and could be a very good choice depending on your needs.

 

[munckee]

I don't run cs2, and I still bought a 15" pb a few weeks ago over the mbp. Why? Partly because of all of the problems with the mbp, but mainly because I could get the pb for less than half of the cost of a mbp, and for the money it seems like a big step up from what I had been using (somewhat better performance and mobility too). And I love it! I have seen the mbp's but was not all that impressed with them for what I do with a computer. Sure they are fast, but I don't really need that much speed right now, nor do I want to deal with the issues of a mbp right now.

So my conclusion here is that a 15" pb for the right price (mine was under $1000) is certainly not dumb, and could be a very good choice depending on your needs.

Where'd you find that powerbook (I'm assuming its the one in your sig) for under a grand?? If I could find that, I'd probably jump on it.

 

[ManchesterTrix]

I would definetly go with the "Just get the Applecare" camp. It makes much more sense to me to spend 250 on Applecare, keep the 12" PowerBook for another year and then put the additional money saved towards an Intel laptop a year or so from now. I've used CS2 on a Core Duo Windows laptop and it's just so much nicer than using it on a PPC Mac and I imagine(and hope) that the Intel Native version of CS3 will be as nice of an experience. The larger screen of the 15" PowerBook would be nice, but I don't see it being worth the additional investment.

 

[ImAlex]

I don't run cs2, and I still bought a 15" pb a few weeks ago over the mbp. Why? Partly because of all of the problems with the mbp, but mainly because I could get the pb for less than half of the cost of a mbp, and for the money it seems like a big step up from what I had been using (somewhat better performance and mobility too). And I love it! I have seen the mbp's but was not all that impressed with them for what I do with a computer. Sure they are fast, but I don't really need that much speed right now, nor do I want to deal with the issues of a mbp right now.

So my conclusion here is that a 15" pb for the right price (mine was under $1000) is certainly not dumb, and could be a very good choice depending on your needs.

That's a great price! Where did you buy it?

 

[danny_w]

Where'd you find that powerbook (I'm assuming its the one in your sig) for under a grand?? If I could find that, I'd probably jump on it.

I found it on craigslist in Austin where I live. It was just out of warranty, and MBP refurbs had just shown up that day on the Apple store, so the seller had dropped his previous asking price to what I considered a ridiculous price. Needless to say I jumped on it. It is impeccable!

 

[jefhatfield]

yes, VERY dumb

read the first post

 

[jefhatfield]

Aaaaah, I see this again and again. After going from a 1.67GHz 15" PowerBook to a MBP I can tell you that Photoshop and the whole CS2 suite runs faster under Rosetta on the MBP than it does natively on the PowerBook.

Ugh.

and you have seen nessie on a daily basis?

i here in california live in hollywood, the only city in the state

i have the intel mac, and my only real option to run cs reasonably is to get boot camp, which is free, windows xp which is not free, and then put a windows version of cs...or wait 9-18 months or longer for cs to go osx/intel native...adobe has been slow to keep up with apple's changes in the past

i guess all graphic designers who would have intel macs like me can take up another vocation for awhile, maybe get a college degree, or start a family, or lose a lot of weight and become a world famous personal trainer...while the world waits for a "working", relatively bug free version of cs osx/intel