Ultra-thin iBooks/PowerBook G5s?

Randman

Randman

HA! HA! HA!
As the rumor of the ultra-thin iBooks is making the rounds, I thought we could start our own discussion on it. Personally, the thing that caught my eye in the story was the mention of the PB G5s shipping alongside the ultra-thins. If the two rumored speed increases in the current iBook line (going to 1.25 and 1.5 Ghz) are true, that would be next year at the earliest.
Which means it's unlikely that the G5 PBs will see the light of the day in 2004.
That said, if the rumors are true, it would surely give a third round of life to the venerable iBook line, and truly make it attractive to students and a viable alternative to the PowerBooks, especially since the G5s are likely to be a hot thing (pun hopefully not intended).
I would hope Apple would keep a basic iBook at a bargain price as an option for those on a budget (I'm thinking older folks who aren't that tech savvy as well).
Thoughts?
 
Totally agree - entry level kit isnt something Apple seem bothered about, they have their niche markets and do very well, but I agree that it would be nice to give people a basic laptop option - I know I'd snap one up in no time. For instance the iPod Mini is intended as a smaller, cooler, pricier iPod, not a cheaper iPod for those who can't go the full whack on a 15Gb.
I guess its just not in their business plan - theres enough people knocking out bargain basement consumer electronics, going cheap wouldnt really benefit them in market share as even a 'cheap' iBook would be considerably more than an average spec PC laptop.
 
The 12" ibook is a basic entry level laptop option. You can't find a single laptop worth spending money on for less then $1k in the PC world. Sure you can find some for less then $1k, but see how long they last you before their cases start cracking and the screen starts losing pixels. Hell, count how many dead pixels you have on the $600 PC laptop when you get it home.

Brian
 
But if you could get a pared-down iBook for less than a $1,000, wouldn't there be some market for it?
 
I think apple has to increase its student/educator discounts. The $50 discount doesn't really do anything for me, its like taking off the shipping and handling. At least at student discounted software sites you are able to get half off the MSRP. A 1GHz G4 iBook at around $750 to $800 would be nice, instead of $1500.
 
Software is very different from hardware! The cost of distributing software basically boils down to the CDs and printed media. That's why companies like Mathworks can sell the student version of their products at a cheap price. It doesn't cost them much, and they can recoup the loss in revenue from the commercial licenses.

A physical computer can't see such a drastic price decrease, because there is cost associated with producing it.
 
A think a base level laptop is critical for Apple. I have the 12" iBook because I only needed basic functionality from a portable. I put the money into the desktops. Nonetheless, I love the little bugger. For a student, it's a great machine (though not for gaming really).

Ultrathin is nice I guess, but I don't really care that much either way. I guess in five years I'll laugh at this huge monstrosity iBook I've got, but for now it seems quite small, light and portable.
 
One of the things that annoy me about Apple's line of notebooks is that the faster processors are only available in the LARGER laptops. Ideally, I'd like to see the 12" Powerbook having the option to have the same processor as a highend 17".

Why? I'm getting a laptop for portability. That doesn't mean that I don't need the CPU power! The 12" is the right form factor for me, but the CPU speed leaves a little to be desired. A 2 Ghz G4 (not G5) chip in the 12" would be sweet. A 2 GHz G5 would be sweeter, but I doubt it'll happen soon.
 
While the 17" may not be all that portable, a 15" model is. If you need the latest or fastest possible processor, you probably also need enough screen real estate to do any kind of work on.

A 12" screen is just too small to do any real work on IMHO. The 14" one on my iBook is cutting it close really. If all you do is play on it, that might be the case. But for someone who actually works on one, it's not.
 
Hey, I work mainly on my Powerbook. I don't need much screen space, since I mainly code and run simulations in MATLAB. The think I need most is processing power, followed by portability and battery life.

The 15" looks nice, but I still think the 12" is more suitable for me. I'm not that big or strong, so lugging around a 14" book doesn't quite appeal to me.
 
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