ibook vs powerbook

[jeffhoppe]

ok experts. longtime pc user here, ready to buy a mac laptop. i'm looking at a 14.1 inch ibook vs a 15.2 inch powerbook. the major difference i can find is between the ram upgrade possiblities. am i gonna have a problem with ibooks only able to upgrade to 640mb?

is a powerbook worth that much more?

thanks everyone
-j

[kingnimrod]

I would recommend looking at the 12 inch powerbook - I've been very happy with mine.

powerbook is more suited to running pro-level apps

[spiral]

Depends on what you want to do. Firstly, why are you getting a laptop? What features are important etc... What will you be doing on it? They are both powerful machines, but there are quite alot of small differences between them. Though they may not be differences you'd miss depending on your use.

I have used both and they are great. Post back with some details.

[logancircle]

I use the 12" iBook G4 and running DP4 (Digital Performer 4) I'm happy with it. I use it for my mobile studio projects, and it's great for that. I also use the powermac G4 (tower), which is much faster, but not portable, so you gotta think about that. In general Powerbooks are superior to iBooks, but the G4 iBooks are fine as long as you're not using stereo reverb on 16 seperate tracks and shit.

[JES]

Yeah, I would imagine the main thing is plugin count, though on a powerbook you can also get a 7200rpm drive, thoguh you should record to an external firewire drive regardless IMO.

--JES

[jeffhoppe]

thanks for the advice. i'm getting a laptop really only because that is what insurance will cover. but at this point i'm just happy to get away from the crappy pc I have. I ended up buying a refurb 15" powerbook from Apple.com. it does seem like the powerbook and ibook are getting closer to comparable...anyways, thanks!


-j

[cfMC]

I heard a rumour that the ibooks are more rugged than the powerbooks. i.e. if you are getting a laptop for portability options in recording, then maybe the ibbok would be the better way to go. can anyone confirm or discount this?

[ryan_c]

I've heard the same thing about iBooks being sturdier. My (G3, unfortunately) iBook is built like a tank (as they all are). My first-hand experience with Powerbooks is too limited to be able to draw a comparison in durability, though.

That being said, I run ProTools LE on it just fine. It has an 800 mhz G3 chip and 256 megs of ram. I desperately need more ram, but I'm very rarely using too many plug-ins so I haven't had any problems.

I second the motion to get an external firewire drive. The only problem I've had recording on my iBook was when I tried to do a whole bunch of tracks to the internal drive, and eventually it couldn't keep up.

[spiral]

I think the iBook feels more rugged. It is also lighter. I had to buy a powerbook because it is what i work on when im at a client's site, but i truly wanted an iBook because they are cheaper, smaller and lighter, and i would have no worries about tossing it into a packpack. The powerbook is pretty heavy and im always really worried about scratching the metal top. It is also 3x's the price. Wish i could get an iBook.

[tony moore]

hmmm, i owned a g3 23" ibook for a couple years and upgraded to a 12" powerbook a few months ago. it doesn't feel any heavier than the ibook to me! and it also feels just as rugged! i can tell you that my clear ibook casing got mightly scratched up in my back pack. i'd much rather the metal casing... also, i really dig the slot load cdrw/dvd drive. and you can find great deals on the 12" powerbook. i sold my used g3 600 ibook for just $150 less than i bought my new 12" powerbook. the biggest bigger bummer about the 12" powerbook is the ram limitation, same as ibooks...

don't hate powerbooks just because they're beautiful

tony

[spiral]

I have the 15" powerbook. Its heavy. For the price difference between the 12" PB and iBook, id rather have the iBook.

[little doodler]

ibook doesn't compare to powerbook as far as buildwise. ibook seems like a plastic toy compared to the powerbook: the aluminum is solid, flawless.

[chikkenguy]

my experience is that the powerbooks are more reliable in general. they are less prone to shit breaking down. i think that quite a few ibooks have problems with screens having problems(ie not working when you open them all the way and other things). my friend has one that has this problem. my old one after about a year had a hard drive problem. and what the hell, you cant even open them up to replace the hd. its like a riddle trying to figure out how to open them up(even with instructions on a slightly older but similar model).

[andrewfoshee]

I'm trying to decide between an ibook and powerbook myself ... I plan on getting an Mbox, and will probably only need 10 tracks MAX with a couple plug-ins on each (but mostly 3-4 tracks) ... that being said, is it worth the extra dough right now to upgrade to the powerbook? i was thinking of getting an ibook and maxing out the ram ... what if i decide in the future to move up to an 002 rack? anyone using mbox or 002 rack with an ibook that has some horror stories (or tales of bliss?)

[chikkenguy]

an ibook should be fine. if you get one though, i would buy the applecare. they seem to be not as well built as the powerbooks. i had the g3 700 ibook and was mixing projects with 20+ tracks with plugins. osx is a bit slower, but the newer ibooks should handle it just fine.