Switching in grand style.
Written: Aug 15 '02 (Updated Aug 15 '02)
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Pros: Simply the MOST BEAUTIFUL Laptop made...EVER!
Cons: Runs a bit hotter than previous Powerbooks and Costly...but worth every penny.
The Bottom Line: Beautiful hardware and OS = usable Linux-like godliness. The best computer I've EVER owned. Period.
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| DrDaveC's Full Review: Apple PowerBook G4 15.2 in. (M8591LL/A) Mac Notebo... |
I was sick and tired of PC's. I have been using PC's and working as a computer/network consultant since 1985 (Remember the Leading Edge IBM PC/AT Compatible with 640K of RAM? That was my first computer). For some reason, despite all the aggravation and headaches, I just seemed to keep sticking with them. I suppose inertia has a great deal to do with it (I know, I sound like one of Apple's "Switch" ad's).
For years, I've always tried to steer any novice computer buyers towards Apples/Macs since I was convinced that they were better made, less crash prone, more ergonomic and just a better/easier user experience. However, I myself held off...probably mainly because of the limited software selection and their lonely proprietary Mac OS. That and I was a cheapskate.
Then...the Unix based OS X came out and I tried it out on a friend's iBook (which I had recommended to them) for a couple of hours and I was hooked. Even a crusty old PC/Power User could see the light!
My birthday was in May and upon seeing and touching the Titanium Powerbook in the store, I knew I was hooked. Sure it was a bit pricy, but consider what you're getting:
1) A Beautiful Laptop with a drop dead gorgeous Wide Screen aspect ratio display and a visually stunning Operating System (OS X) that is as rock solid and stable as it is aesthetic.
2) 1" thick, weighing in at 5.4 lbs (including its single battery) with a 3-5 hour battery life. This is a laptop which is actually truly totable and has a usable battery life.
3) Built in WiFi/802.11b Wireless Networking with INTERNAL antennas so as not to ruin it's pretty lines. Also, no antennas sticking out to snag on stuff and break off.
4) In my opinion the most complete laptop you could get at $2200. 512 MB RAM, 30 GB HD, Hardware 3D Graphics Acceleration, PCMCIA Slot, Firewire Port, 2 USB Ports, 56K Internal Modem, 10/100/Gigabit Ethernet Port, External Display Port, S-Video Output, IR Port and a slick internal slot loading DVD/CD-RW Drive/Burner to boot.
5) Heck, even the Power Adapter is cleverly thought out and beautiful in it's own right.
6) Most USB printers work with it out of the box and MANY PC USB peripherals are instantly and painlessly recognized and work without any user configuration.
7) Internet networking is easy to set up and more adaptive than with any PC OS I've used to date. For you AOL'ers, there is an OS X AOL and AOL Messenger available that is supposed to be quite nice.
Sure, it's CPU sounds slow at 667Mhz. But honestly, the stratospheric inflation of computer clock speeds is probably more of a marketing device than anything that truly effects the user's experience/productivity anyways. Suffice to say, that if Micro$oft would attempt to write good lean code and execute proper quality control instead of the ever creeping bloatware that is known as Windows and MS Office, we wouldn't all need 3-4 Giga Hertz CPU's running at egg fryingly hot temperatures just to write a simple letter.
Yeah, I'm sounding like a "Switch" ad, but I am truly sold.
What about Software you ask? Yeah, what about it? There is truly a great deal more software for the PC than the Mac, especially if you're a gamer. But most of it though free or cheap, just plain SUCKS and is ridiculously crash prone in my long experience (or was that the OS making that awful choking sound?). Watch out, much of the "free" PC stuff out there is loaded with Spy-ware/Ad-ware. Office for OS X is expensive ($400 retail, $250-300 street).
Nonetheless, I have been able to find a software equivalent for the Mac/OS X for ANY program I'd previously used on the PC without difficulty. Many of them also free and often much more usable and higher quality than what I was using on the PC. The fact that many Linux programs compile directly or convert easily to OS X will no doubt continue to add rapidly to the library of OS X software now available.
The free software from Apple (iTunes, iMovie, iDVD, iPhoto and soon with OS 10.2 iChat, iCalendar) are some of the best I've ever used within their own genres. All these and other 3rd party software programs have been running flawlessly and smoothly. My PC's never ever multitasked this well or cleanly.
The number of crashes I've had since switching over in May? Exactly ZERO. Reboots have occurred voluntarily after installing the various system updates (which have been timely and relevant). I close the screen and it's sleeping within 1 second. And surprise, when I open the screen, the sucker is ready to run by the time I have the screen open!! Good Bye Shutdowns and Reboots!!! Why should I be waiting on my computer, it is supposed to be serving me!!!! I love this OS, it is clean, stable and it just works.
Can I also add that there are NO VIRUSES native to OS X? Yes, there may one day be some viruses and trojans written for OS X, but ultimately, the damage they could cause is VERY limited owing to the nature of the protected Unix style file system that is used by OS X.
I get the power of Unix/command line interface with the ease of use of a truly well designed Graphical User Interface on a computer that is truly a desktop killer. I have used my PC Desktop literally twice since May.
Downsides are few for me: Fewer Games (no big deal, I'm supposed to be getting real work done), OS X native web browsers are a bit sluggish but getting better, improved multi-session CD Burning support needs to be added, the slot loading optical drive does not accept mini-CD/CD-R/CD-RW's or any irregularly shaped discs, a bit warm on the lap with extended use (but not nearly as hot as a PC laptop), mediocre WiFi range due to the Titanium case, the paint on the case apparently can scratch real easily. Oh, yeah, and I'm constantly worried that it'll be stolen cuz it looks so dammed nice and my girlfriend is REALLY jealous of all the time I spend tinkering with it.
My only regret? Though this thing isn't exactly a slouch, I wish I could have scraped up the extra money for the 800 MHz model... :)
P.S. Sorry for the long review, but I'm really hooked as you see.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 2200
Operating System: Macintosh
Processor: PowerPC G4
Processor speed: 601-700
Screen Size: 15
RAM: More than 256
Internal Storage: CD-RW and DVD
Hard Drive (GB): 21-30
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Epinions.com ID:
DrDaveC
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Member: David Chen
Reviews written: 16
Trusted by: 1 member
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