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Updated PowerBook G4's: More Reader Impressions
November 21, 2001
by Stephen Hildreth
Editor-in-Chief
Readers continue to be pleased with their new PowerBook G4's. It looks as if Apple has hit a home run with this model update:
"As an avid reader of PBCentral since I first laid hands on a "frankensteined" 140/145/170 back in 96, your site has been a great resource to me. I've had several Powerbooks since, including a 180c, 190, 1400c/117 and Lombard 400. I just recently upgraded to an Onyx 667, and I'm well pleased. I'd like to say that most of Stephen's observations about upgrading from a Lombard to an Onyx are dead on. This thing is incredible. I too considered a larger display, the need for more RAM, the need for an even larger HD and to somehow get faster graphics for 2D and 3D. The Onyx filled all of these requirements.
I'd applied and been approved for an Apple loan, but after ordering from Apple, then calling them, i was disappointed that my order was "6-10 business days" away. This was a 550 model with an upgraded hard disk and Airport card. I'd even chosen a DVD instead of CDRW in hopes that it would be filled faster. Dismayed, i looked into options and found that a few online retailers could easily handle the loan. I contacted ClubMac and MacConnection, both of whom I'd heard good things about, and did a price comparison. To my suprise, a 550 model from MacConnection was actually $100 cheaper when outfitted the same as compared to the Apple store. MacConnection doesn't charge out-of-state tax while the Apple Store does. $150 goes a long way towards add-ins and accessories! Finally, on Tuesday night I believe, you'd posted that MacConnection had a number of refurbished 667 models that were $300 off. This was too much, so I contacted Eric at MacConnection again to cancel my 550 order and instead, place the 667 on it. It was the last one left! This was done very quickly and easily, as was arrangements for Saturday delivery. I received it on Saturday afternoon via Airborne Express and was very pleased at the condition and appearance. I'm not sure why it was a refurbished model, but it looked as good as new.
Having test-driven a Mercury for a week or so, I was still impressed by the speed of the 667, especially after installing the Quake 3 Demo. I could run at higher resolutions with much higher framerates than before. The Radeon Mobility may not be as fast as it should, but it's a big step up from the Rage Pro PCI in my Lombard! iMovie is smokin' fast, iTunes rips cds 2-3 times faster, and I can finally play DivX movies smoothly. I'm in heaven!
I have only a very few problems with the unit. The fan does come on frequently under load. Oh well, it's the price we pay for speed. Since I'm almost never in a silent environment, this is not much of a concern. When I am, I'm usually wearing headphones, so any sound is kept out with those. The unit does get hot, but again, this is a trade-off I'm willing to accept. Finally, I just found out today that my relatively new Capsure PCMCIA card from IREZ will not work on the Onyx. Why? Maybe this quote from the IREZ site explains it:
'CapSure for Mac 9.2 New PowerBook Titanium 550Mhz and above Notebook computers This device will not function on these computers. Zoomed Video support has been removed from the computer itself'
Has Apple really removed Zoomed Video? I guess they want everyone to get the Sony DVMC-DA2 or the equivalent FireWire device. It's a shame, really, I was just getting to use it and now I have to sell it off. All in all, this is one fast unit. For anyone considering upgrading from a Wallstreet or Lombard, it's a no-brainer. Pismo users, especially the 500MHz ones, should make sure they really need it. Mercury users, well, it's your money!"
"Hi Stephen - just read your first impressions of your new TiPB 667. I bought one two weeks ago and am in still in awe at the improvements over my aged PB1400c with a 233mhz G3 card and 56kRAM. This portable is rapidly becoming my primary computer and I'm ignoring my desktop - a 7500 with a G4 400mhz card but a 50mhz bus speed. At work I tie into a LAN dominated by IBM but am ignoring my desktop PC with a 433 Pentium 3 also because it's so slow on the web and other tasks. At home my wife has a brand new Pentium 4 1.4 mhz from Gateway. Now she seems to have one slight advantage. We both access the Internet at home via 56k modems. (Still debatingv whether to go cable or DSL.) I have the impression that her screen updates on the Web occur quicker than mine while surfing. But of course large file downloads are slow on either platform. She has CD-RW which I don't but I can use her platform for occasional CD burning. I like the DVD player and iTunes - when we travel we will have music with us and can watch DVDs at the cottage or wherever easily. Along with the new computer comes a reborn interest in all things Mac and having to upgrade programs and add-ons. I still print at home to a LW IIf and and had to go looking for a cheap IIg card to get Ethernet connectivity to the new PB. Isn't eBay wonderful for finding such things? And I have rediscovered your site for info on everything to do with my new Mac. Thanks for a great informative site."
"Ordered mine from apple education - build time was only about 8 days and then it was shipped from taiwan to San francisco in 2 days - that was normal mail (i.e., free)! The computer is absolutely stunning. Two things especially impressed me, moving from a g4 tower to a laptop - I anticipated having to do all kinds of stuff to get this to work correctly with A) my 21 in CRT monitor and B) my television - wrong on both counts. I plugged it in, it worked right off the bat. Monitor doubling, etc., was totally intuitive, and the powerbook550 could run my large monitor at a better resolution than my old G4 350 tower could (in addition to the LCD!) TV was easy as pie. And what blew me away - I just noticed that our laser printer in the department had an infared connection. The other imacs have a bear of a time printing to this beast for some reason - require special software, etc. I got within 3ft, the infared control panel told me a printer was within ranger - I clicked on the help button, and exactly 30 seconds and no manuals later, I was printing postscript without attaching any cables, looking anything up, or installing any software. This is intuitive design at its best. One of my keys was a little loose - I called apple expecting a replacement key to be sent out - they sent out a whole new keyboard, free of charge, 1 day air. Unbelievable. Three cheers for apple!"
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Stephen Hildreth has been the Editor-in-Chief of PowerBook Central since its inception in 1996. When not working on his Mac, he shares his love of the outdoors with his family and can be found biking, snow skiing, or educating students on the internal & external processes of our planet.
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