I've been wanting to switch, but should i get a pb now or wait for the mb revision?

[dumshiet]

I've been wanting to switch to an apple for about 5 months now, but i decided to wait until mwsf to see what new laptops they would introduce with the intel switch. Seeing how they only announced a 15" macbook, i'm wondering if i should just go ahead and buy a 12" powerbook now instead of waiting for apple to release a smaller version of the macbook, or whatever new line they're going to introduce in the near future. The built-in iSight on the macbooks is a nice addition, as well as the intel chipset and the frontrow application (that doesn't have to be hacked on to the system) with the remote, but those are the only good things about the new macbook, while the rest of the specs were kind of on the short end. I asked a member on another forum i visit who works at an apple retail store and he said to wait 6 more months and go from there, since if i buy the powerbook now, it'll just depreciate like hell. I'm only going to be using the computer for school, surfing the internet, checking emails, instant messaging, and using photoshop a few times a week. Would it be worth it to wait for the new revisions of the macbook or should i just get the powerbook now? Also, if i do get the powerbook now, should i go for a refurbished one? the rev. d's are going for $1199 with the student discount, which is $200 cheaper than a brand new one, but i've heard a few bad stories about the refurbished mac minis that had some severely damaged cases out of the box and im afraid of getting a powerbook in the same condition. Ok, well thanks for looking and any input would be greatly appreciated.

 

[jadekitty24]

I just received a refurbished Powerbook and it arrived in perfect condition. It looks brand new-it even had that new Apple smell. I paid $1090 for it and I think I got my moneys' worth. My personal advice would be to buy a refurb and wait a little until you can find a MacBook that has been proven to be dependable. It's too new for my comfort. The Powerbook model I chose is known as dependable. No questions.

 

[cnakeitaro]

if you need it now, buy it now

If you need it now, buy it now. I had my fingers on the order buttons for the MB Pro; I use an old iBook G3, but I also have a PC on my desk which I am currently writing to this thread. My personal advice would be to wait if you have an alternate. Of course it would be nice to have your own laptop at school, but would you rather get a Refurbished Powerbook, or a brand New Merom Powered MacBook Pro? The Merom processor which is 64-bit is slated for release in Q3 of this year, so its really not that far off. It also sports 4MB of L2 cache, which for lack of a better word, is very nice. So thats what I'm waiting for, and by that time Photoshop would definitely have a Universal Binary. If you need it now, I would try to get that Powerbook as cheap as I could, refurbed.

 

[wPod]

if you are worried about size, then don't worry. the 15" rocks!!! i was a die hard 12" fan for the longest time, i had the 12" iBook G3 then 12" PB. one day i decided to go for the 15" PB and have loved it ever since with no regrets about going larger! but if you really really want the 12" then id say go for the referb (my 15" is a referb as i plan on upgrading to the MB Pro a couple revisions from now) then keep the PB till rev B of the 12" MB and you should be happy! otherwise go for the 15" nothing can beat it in my opinion!!!

 

[FFTT]

I thinks it's just plain crazy to spend any serious money on a single processor G4 this late in the game.

A 12" 1.33 GHz iBook for $799 would be fine or even a 12" PB if you really want to use an external display, but beyond that, I'd get the new Intel iMac 17" and the refurbed 12" 1.33 iBook both for about the price of a well equipped 15" portable.

 

[dumshiet]

Ok. Thanks for the feedback. I guess i'll wait for the next revision (or two) of the mbp's and go from there. But feel free to leave more comments and suggestions though.

 

[QCassidy352]

Wait. The current 12" powerbook is really old... like over a year old. Even forgetting about the processor for a second - it needs a new graphics card (the 5200go was midrange when it was first put in the 12" powerbook, 2.5 years ago), and it badly needs a new screen. The current one is not that high res, and even more importantly to me, it's way too dim. Oh, and 256 RAM built in when even the ibook has 512 just isn't acceptable...

I'm in the same boat, needing a 12/13" laptop with DVI out. But the 12" powerbook is very old. Wait for the small macbook!

 

[yankeefan24]

DO NOT BUY A NEW APPLE LAPTOP UNLESS NECESSARY! Soon enough, probably april 1, the rest of the laptop line will switch over to intel, and in summer, the powerbook will switch to merom. Of course, i'm not totally sure, but i think that that could easily happen. No one has heard anything about the MBP, including battery life, so i would be hesitant to buy one. IMO, i think the current MBP was a "test" by apple to see how people would react to the intel in a laptop, and to get any bugs out of it. It is expensive and the same old design. That appeals to a limited market. The longer you can wait, the better. In the mean time, a refurb ibook could be a good option for what you need it for.

EDIT: Just so everyone is informed of the above, i heard intel said the merom was ahead of schedule and will be released in july. But as with the iMac, apple might get a special deal with intel. No one else has released a core duo yet except apple (i think).

 

[steve_hill4]

Wait until the 12" MacBook is Merom, if you can. If not, like me, get a 15" Yonah now. I could wait until the end of summer and see if Merom is out by then, and I know whenever it is, I will regret my purchase a little, but I'm willing to tke the plunge and get a rev a MacBook Pro.

The way I see it is in terms of design I wanted them to use a current PowerBook and stick the new hardware in there. That's close to what they've done, so rather than risk holding on for even longer, (which I feel I can't do anyway), and possibly getting better hardware, but maybe a new, lower quality casing, (however unlikely), I get what I was after now. In the future, I might try an 12" MacBookExpress/MacBook Pro to go along with an iMac, but I think the 15" is the right size for me now anyway. Most who want one size always end up also wanting the other size too.