“For the past few weeks, I’ve been using one of the new 12-in. PowerBooks, loaned out by Apple for review purposes, and I’ve found it to be almost everything I’d want in a portable computer. This iteration comes with a 1.5-GHz G4 processor, the now-standard 512MB of RAM, a 5,400-rpm 80GB hard drive, an 8X SuperDrive (which burns and plays CDs and DVDs), Bluetooth 2.0, an 802.11g wireless card, Apple’s new two-finger scrolling trackpad and its Sudden Motion Sensor technology. Price out the door: $1,699 plus tax. (The model with a Combo drive that only burns CDs is $200 less.),” Ken Mingis writes for Computerworld.
“In all other respects save one, I’ve found Apple’s smallest laptop to be a champ when it comes to portable computing… I believe it was Walt Mossberg at The Wall Street Journal who best summed up the 12-in. PowerBook. It’s like one of those all-metal Leica cameras that just reeks of quality,” Mingis writes. “…The screen just doesn’t compare to those offered in the 15-in. and 17-in. models. It’s certainly sharp, and the color saturation is good. But it’s dull compared with the almost-too-bright screens used in the bigger PowerBooks. In a brightly lit office, or a medium- to low-light room at home, it’s perfectly adequate. But adequate isn’t really good enough for Apple’s professional lineup… Having said that, I wouldn’t let the screen alone be a deal-breaker… the wealth of features offered — including Apple’s superb operating system — are reasons enough to snag this most portable of PowerBooks.”
Full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: We’ve found the 12-inch PowerBook’s screen to be just a bit too small (negated when attached to a larger monitor in a desktop situation, of course) – the 15-inch models hit the sweet spot for us.
Related MacDailyNews articles:
Apple offers special deals on Apple Certified Power Mac G5, PowerBook, iBook, iMac G5 – May 29, 2005
PC Magazine review gives Apple PowerBook 15-inch 4 stars out of 5 – April 22, 2005
Apple 12-inch PowerBook a great on-the-go machine, offers firm punch in a little package – March 25, 2005
How to run a Mac OS X PowerBook or iBook; no shut downs, restarts, or quitting applications – March 16, 2005
Apple’s newest PowerBooks still ‘the Rolls-Royce of laptops’ – March 03, 2005
Apple unveils faster PowerBooks starting at $1499 with ‘scrolling TrackPad, Sudden Motion Sensor’ – January 31, 2005
funny – i never equated something “reeking” as a good thing
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i’ve been a fan of the 12″ for its pure small size, solid construction, and feature set.
The 15″ is a good desktop replacement feature/size-wise, but I can’t afford to use a lowly-powered Powerbook for anything more than surfing/email/iChat. Which is why i have a Powerbook 12″ and a G5 desktop for working on FCP.
There isn’t a more perfect airline-traveller laptop on the planet than the 12″ powerbook. Its even perfect for when i get to my destination, if i have to present something on a projector, i can even put it on a DVI-based projector and have a crystal-clear, hassle free video playback or Keynote.
the ONE thing it misses is the wonderful backlit keyboard. That is a Godsend on an airplane and you’re trying to do some minor editing (so your hand is not natively on the home keys, where you can touch type)
I want a widesreen version of the 12″ That wuld be sweet. Same number of pixels tall, but more across. Maybe 13″, something like that. That way you keep the really nice portability, but gain that extra biit of real estate that I want.
For college, you NEED a small computer.
Portablitiy is supreme.
The desks that they provide us (a bed on top, desk on bottom) couldn’t really fit a 15″ or a 17″ comfortably.
My roomate has a Dell Inspiron XPS Gen2 Notebook. Its around 8-9 pounds and is about 2″ thick. Not to mention it has a 17″ screen. The whole bundle set him back $3,000.
And my God does he hate the thing.
It’s too big to have his books AND computer on his desk, to big for his sidebag (wonder why Dell gives you a backpack?), and only has 2 hours of battery life!
He always eyes my PowerBook. Slim, light, small.
Too bad he’ll be stuck w/ it for 2-3 years…
“Reeks of quality” sounds like something a staunch socialist might say — and not as a compliment.
I love my 12″. I have a 14″ iBook and a 17″ PowerBook too as i repair them and my favorite is this silly 12″ PowerBook. I can’t help but come back to it. The 17″ has a beautiful screen and it is enough all by itself for Web design, word processing, Photoshop, etc. The 14″ iBook has a bigger screen than the 12″, obviously, and is better when showing sharing the screen.
For walking around the house, commuting to work, and in-flight/in-car (passengers) the 12″ Powerbook it the best. The 12″ iBook is a close second. I don’t worry so much about damaging an iBook, but it is heavier and bulkier.
The small form-factor of the 12″ is simply wonderful. I’ve used smaller PC notebooks and tablets and widescreen 13″ PC notebooks, but they are flimsy and the pixels are usually just too small. They are painful to use in comparison to the perfectly-sized PowerBook 12″.
Of course you wouldn’t want to use Dreamweaver or Photoshop on just 1024×768, but that’s what external monitors are for. When people talk about how great it would be if Apple had a PDA, I just shake my head. They already have one! It’s the 12″ PowerBook: the ultimate travel companion, family entertainer, and workhorse.
Yes I’m THIS happy about my PowerBook, and guess what, even after being “spoiled with a PowerBook 17 (1.5GHz/1.5GB RAM/80GB@5400RPM/128MB VRAM) my 867MHz Rev A (80GB@4200RPM/1.125GB/SuperDrive) PowerBook 12 is still my favorite. Although I do miss the backlit KB of the 17.
Now stop staring and go buy one.
For most portable situations I would actually prefer a smaller screen than 12inches. I would like a laptop with the same footprint as a Mac Mini so I could take it to work everyday on my motorcycle. I want 12 hour battery life to. The lowest power G4 will do. I want portability. I don’t want to run FCP on it. I want to check my friggin email wirelessly and do basic tasks. I don’t even need full size keys. I need small.
I have a RevA 12″ PB G4 and used it daily for everything. Then I got a RevB 20″ iMac G5 and now I have a hard time going back to the 12″ PB. I like the overall size of the 12″ but the screen is just too small and dim. You end up using expose a lot. I agree with MDN, my next PB will be a 15″ or 17″ (when the Intel PBs are released).
Some guys in my lab ask me which one to get, the 12 or 15. I just don’t see the advantage of the 15. It’s got a bigger screen, yeah, but it weighs more and is larger to carry around. It’s not that much faster and it seems overpriced when compared to the 12. I just tell them if they want a bigger screen, use the extra space to buy a monitor at home. Our lab has a few extra monitors that they can use here. If portability isn’t the big issue, then, maybe, I’d go with the 15. The 17 is more of a portable desktop – useful for leaving it in one spot for most of the time and occasionally moving it.
i thank the loan officer at my bank everyday for approving the loan for my 12in pb. i love it!!!
“Reeks of quality” means that the ‘smell’ of quality is extremely potent,and in no way reflects something bad. Something that ‘reeks’ is normally associated with a bad smell, but in this case is great -imaginative- use of English to exagerate the notion of quality. Spot on. My TiBook also reeks, but no doubt not as much as a newer one would!
A friend recently stayed with us -from Bali- and he had a 17″. Surprising how quickly you get used to the size. And then enjoy all that real estate!
I love my 15″ SuperDrive PowerBook, I had a 12″ iBook before but I prefer the bigger screen, faster CPU and larger Hard Drive.
The 12″ PowerBook is nice, would be even nicer if it had a backlit keyboard…