12-inch versus 15-inch: More Better PowerBook

I just upgraded from a 12" iBook to a 15" PB G4. After 2 weeks, I went back to the iBook, and wondered why it TOOK SO LONG! Upgrade already. Do it.... I also use my 15" on my commute. 3 hours of train rides daily, and it only gets just in the way when it is really packed (right on peak hour). All other times are OK. The 12" was cutesy. The 15" breaths geek...

I edit a weekly 30-minute television program on my 12" Powerbook (1.5 GHz). I was torn between the 12" iBook and 15" Powerbook, but when I demoed the iBook at the Apple Store, its performance when using Final Cut Pro was significantly worse that the 12" Powerbook. The Powerbook could play realtime effects and colorcorrection with ease, while the iBook would constantly drop frames and refuse to even play back a simple realtime video dissolve. I too jack my PB into a 20" Dell 2005 flatpanel, normally, but I have actually completed many broadcast projects on it even without the aid of an external monitor. Youd be surprised how much you can adjust to the infetesimal screensize of the 12", even when using a screen-hungry app like FCP!

I have the Powerbook G4/1.5Ghz with 15" screen. I like it a lot. Don't use it for a lot of video editing or graphics stuff, so I dont' know about that. One previous post scoffed at playing games on the PB. I disagree. I play World of Warcraft all the time. I don't want to mess with a desktop because I like to sit in bed and play. The PB works great for WoW. Graphics are beautiful. Framerate is fairly good in most areas (no one gets good framerate in Ironforge). Also, since this is my primary computer, I lug it upstairs and downstairs all the time. Very handy. It does get quite hot, especially when you are taxing the graphics card, so get an iLap to set it on. Keeps the heat off of places that don't like that much heat.

I love my 17 but I rarely use it without a second monitor (at work and home I have the Dell 2005FPW which is so much brighter and clearer than my Powerbook's display). For the cost saving features and my lifestyle, I could definetly see going with a 15 or maybe even a 12. I guess picking the middle usually gives you the best of both worlds, so yeah... 15 sounds good to me!

"Upping the RAM to 2GBs makes this puppy scream." Rather gruesome mixed metaphor there. Does the TUAW staff torture young dogs in their spare time?

I own a 12" 1.33ghz w/ 1.25gb ram. Prior to this I had a 15" Titanium 500mhz. The 15" was simply too big for me to carry around efficiently. I know the new 15" Albooks have a better resolution, keyboard, blah, blah, blah, so if you are even considering 12" or 15" then you should go with the 15". The 12", in my opinion, is for those of us who do not have the luxury of working at a desk. I travel extensively and because of the type of work I do, I need to travel light... very rarely checking a bag. The 15" just takes up too much valuable space, plus trying to work on it from an airplane seat is something I will leave to those of you who do Yoga. It goes inside a the 12" Incase neoprene sleeve and then inside the front pocket of my backpack. So, if you are even seriously considering the 15, then you should go with it, because the 12 is not for you. Anyway, that is my 12 cents.

Not only is the 12" Powerbook's screen inferior to the 15" Powerbooks's--it's inferior to every other laptop screen on the market. Everytime I walk through a store that has the 12" Powerbook on display amongst a wide variety of other laptops, I'm just blown away by how bad it looks. I really can't believe that anyone at all finds it acceptable.

I bought my second 12" powerbook back in June (my first was a 867 MHz rev.A) and while I believe the iBook is a better value (almost the same hardware much cheaper), I would love it if Apple would make a serious Pro laptop in a small size. I work on this machine everyday, I connect a second display to it for screen real-estate and that doesn't bother me; what does bug me is the shitty old GF 5200 video card, the limited RAM expansion (Christ the iBook supports more RAM now, since it comes with a soldered 512 MB), and give it a better screen like a widescreen 13.3" (Vaio S series have a wonderful 1280x800 13.3" widescreen). The 12" PB still has only a slightly faster CPU, a better keyboard, and DVI output (the later two I wanted) for an unexplainable premium. I don't regret my purchase at all, but I don't understand Apple's lethargy these days; I assume the switch over to x86 is their main focus and we won't see anything of great interest (PPC-based or otherwise) until they're ready.

I have owned both a 12 and a 17 and I loved both. The 12 was easy to use in any location, and the level of portability made me use it more often. The 17, though, is a true powerhouse. It is just a stronger machine--especially the newest revision of 17, which I reviewed here: http://www.ndgold.com/?p=3

"... The only thing I would like an iBook to do is to be able to connect it to an external monitor and then close it (like a powerbook can). Posted at 6:16 AM ET on Sep 29, 2005 by Pedro" Pedro, as another reader mentioned, you can do this with your iBook. check out this site: http://www.rutemoeller.com/mp/ibook/ibook_e.html the "hack" allows clamshell mode, as well as desktop spanning. works great on my iBook G3 700.