[Pilot]

Hey Folks, I'm putting together a PB for myself for the summer, and here's what it's coming out to be:
PowerBook 15" 1.67GHz SuperDrive
Part Number: Z0B6
Combo Drive (DVD-ROM/CD-RW)
Backlit Keyboard/Mac OS - U.S. English
1GB DDR333 SDRAM - 2x512 SO-DIMMs
AirPort Extreme Card
1.67GHz PowerPC G4 w/128MB VRAM dual
80GB Ultra ATA drive @ 5400 rpm
Estimated Ship: 1-3 business days
You'll note that even though the model says SuperDrive, I've dropped it to a Combo and used the money I saved to up the 64MB VRAM to 128MB VRAM. What kind of performance increase will I see for games like World of Warcraft? I've also upped the memory to a full gigabyte because I've heard it really makes a big difference. I'm also pushing for the 1.67GHz model, because the 1.5 does not offer the 128MB VRAM.
However, if the performance increase with the extra VRAM will be "minimal" then I may just screw it and go with the 1.5... or there's always the possibility of the new iBooks having better video graphics. Decisions, decisions.
How much memory does the iBook's ATI Radeon 9200 have? 32? I simply need 64 for World of Warcraft, don't I?

[maflynn]

I'd first post a question as how well do today's PBs handle's world of warcraft.
I've found that powerbooks for the most part shouldn't be considered game machines. They have slower memory, hard drives and video cards.
I think the only benefit the 128meg card will see is a better performance when running higher colors/resolutions. Not sure how the memory would translate into game performance but then I'm not a true gamer.
Mike

[B_Martens]

I went with almost the exact same setup as you have, and I have to say to go with the 128MB. It will improve any graphics work that you do, as well as allow you to use any of the Apple Cinema displays and also will make it better able to handle dual monitor setups. I would say, if you can, swing it, just because it is something that cannot be upgraded in the future ... and you can easily add an external burner for those pesky DVDs, and that one will even be dual layer!

[Pilot]

Well, I've found that most PowerBooks can handle World of Warcraft, which is one of the more intense games out there. I'm not interested in playing Doom 3 or anything crazy like that... But I do have my sights set on Age of Empires III, which will be released for the PC platform in Novemeber and hopefully soon thereafter for OSX.
I will never be using dual-monitor support.

[B_Martens]

I would just say go for the 128MB if you can swing it, much like my above post. I've seen a little of AOE III, and it looks like you might need the 128MB to load the textures that the game uses. Just my $.02 ... and I could be completely off-base here too.

[Pilot]

Thanks, I agree. As I am looking to make this my primary machine from my old AMD/PC that I built about 18 months ago, I want it to be as "future proof" as possible, though that doesn't mean much in today's industry!

[B_Martens]

Good idea, I hope that you like your new PB, whatever you ultimately decide on.

[orsino4]

I play World of Warcraft on my 12" PowerBook (1.33GHz and 64MB VRAM). It runs fine (well as fine as one would expect given all the problems server side). I've played on an 800MHz/32MB VRAM FP iMac as well, and for the most part, the game runs okay on that as well. The only problem are areas with lots of players like Ironforge where the frame rate screeches to a halt. The PowerBook, however, is fine in Ironforge. There are times when the PB drops a few frames and control becomes an issue in Ironforge, but my understanding is that this is a problem everyone has, regardless of hardware. I'm not even sure if video RAM is the limiting factor in this case.
64 MB = fine
128 MB = more than fine

[DaGiftnDaKers]

I did alot of research and actually, the 64mb video card is more than enough to run World of Warcraft. My roomate currently runs it on his powerbook g4 1.5 with 512mb of ram and has had absolutely no slowdown with the game compared to his p4 2.5ghz PC with 512mb of DDR also (also surfing on an 802.11b Lan with 128bit encryption)... I went on to research about the hardware of my portable and I had this dilemma at one point to. I chose the superdrive with applecare over the 128mb of ram because I didn't want to game much at all on this system. Be aware however that 128mb of VRAM on the video card vs. 64mb will increase video performance only slightly on the system. The bus is too slow to run games like DOOM 3 and not to mention, the code isn't really optimized enough to take advantage of the hardware. I think the problem is many of the games out there run with DirectX alot smoother in comparison. I don't know enough about gaming to really get into it but I know hardware enough to know that 167mhz bus is less than half the speed you'll find in WinTel architectures these days. However, with your case if you absolutely don't need a dvd burner now and can wait for one down the road...128mb vram would be ideal as long as you also have enough to get Applecare!!!! Its piece of mind for $2000 bucks...

[DaGiftnDaKers]

I'm sorry, i should have also told you. I ordered a 15" powerbook with 512 mb of ram. Apple does a good job of overpricing memory so instead, I ordered 512mb of ram specifically for this system at www.crucial.com. I installed it with no problems and easily saved myself 60 bucks with shipping. If you are going to do alot of video editing, i'd recommend 128mb of Vram if you want to hook up to apples external display. Also, If you still arent' sure, google the 128mb of vram vs. 64mb of vram to see some interesting feedback.

[Dakman2000]

World Of Warcraft run beautifull on my Powerbook. What a great game!

[macnuke]

In reply to:

---

Hey Folks, I'm putting together a PB for myself for the summer

---

Hi
I am not a real gamer, but as always, more is better when it comes to RAM of any kind. system OR video.
R cubed law = R^3 = RRR = Real RAM Rules.
but as you stated it's a "summer project", you have the benefit of waiting until after the June WWDC.
so your new book will have Tiger at a minimum.
and it's anyones guess on upgrades to the PB line.
sometimes, patience has it's rewards.
m /forums/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif