[Outsider]

12 800 iBook

I promised a review of the new system, and here it is. Let me start by removing any suspense. This system is FATASTIC!!

FUD

My delay in buying a Mac was based almost entirely on FUD, fear, uncertainty and doubt. And most of that FUD came directly from the Mac community. There is an awful lot of complaining on Mac-centric bulletin boards. Independent performance tests dont make the Mac look very robust. And then there are the specs. Almost everything about the specs screams last generation, or older. They do not inspire confidence. Finally, Apples over hyping of its products is a real turn off. Some of the hype on their product pages is just embarrassing. It kind of makes you wonder what deficiencies for which they are trying to overcompensate

Performance

I was worried about performance. I didnt want to be stuck with a system that was going to make basic tasks seem slow and less productive. I was worried about the G3. Lets face it. Almost everyone in the Mac community believes it is past time to phase out that dinosaur. I was worried about OS X not running at its best because of the heavy optimization for technology not found in the iBook. In short, I was scared. $1300 is a lot of money for a working man with more important responsibilities.

Well, my fears were unfounded. The iBook performs like a champ. It the perfect tool for a writer on the go. Even before I maxed out the ram, I was shocked at how responsive things were with 128MB. I was expecting the machine to be practically unusable. In fact, the only thing that came close to slowing things down was MS office v X Test Drive. Even that tiny glitch eventually worked itself out.

Speaking of Office, I really prefer the Windows version a lot better. Thats just my personal preference. So, I took another leap of faith and bought VPC5 with Windows XP. Even the salesman tried to talk me out of this by citing poor performance on all but the fastest Macs. But I figured that since everything else I was led to fear about these fine machines was wrong, so might that be. It was. VPC runs beautifully on this machine. In fact, I am using it with Office XP right now to write this review with all options in Word turned on. The performance is not different on my iBook than it is on my PC. Grant it, VPC uses half my ram, but thats what its there for. Switching from XP to X is a snap. I would not have believed it possible if I were not experiencing it myself. Amazing!

Usability

Perhaps the most striking feature about this book is the screen. It is simply incredible. The brightness and clarity easily outpace almost everything else on the market. DVDs are a pleasure to watch. In dark settings, I actually have to turn the brightness down.

The light weight of the iBook makes it easy to carry with me everywhere I go. I wont even consider leaving home without it. It runs cool and quiet. After using one of these G3 notebooks, I now officially join the ranks of those who dont believe it a good idea to put a G4 inside. LONG LIVE THE G3!!!

Gaming

None for me thanks. The most intense game I play is chess. I have always enjoyed playing games such a Backgammon and Hearts on the Microsoft Gaming Network. I still enjoy this on the iBook with the help of VPC. I do not play first person shooters. I will not be running demos nor doing benchmarks. I dont care how many fps iTunes visualizations get. All I know is that this machine has taken everything I have thrown at it with style and grace. You will never get fps bragging rights with an iBook.

Conclusion

The 12 iBook 800 is an amazing machine. Apple has done itself proud. Apple makes it unnecessarily difficult for thinking PC users to feel comfortable with trying their products. I came very close to missing out on this experience. To the community at large, here is a word of wisdom. PC and Microsoft bashing wont get you very far. Such bashing seems small minded and petty. We have been using PCs all our lives. We know they dont crash every day and we know how to operate them. We are not confused by a two button mouse.

We are not going to switch based on your telling us how bad our experience is. We will not switch based on over hyping the Mac relative to its PC counterparts. The Mac will stand or fall based on its merits. It took me way too long to get at the truth of it. Religious zealotry for the platform doesnt help either. In the end, I bought in spite of the community and the company, not because of it.
If there are any skeptical PC users out there who want to give the Mac, in particular, the iBook a try, but are inundated with FUD from within and without, consider my testimonial in your decision. Just do it. If you approach the iBook with reasonable expectations and a purpose, (everything, living or inanimate needs a purpose), Then it will reward your faith ten fold. Message me if you have any specific questions I can answer. I am now officially a usable resource in the Mac community.

[Nobody]

Thanks for the very direct and frank review!

I agree, mac zealotry can easily cloud and prevent an objective appraisal. That said, having read this board now and again for 9 months, I think you'll find that there are plenty of reasoned and non-zealot like voices in this neighborhood. Don't let the dakine zealots getcha down images/icons/smile.gif

Do you find that the 12" display creates eye strain, say, vs. a larger display?

[Nobody]

quote:

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We are not going to switch based on your telling us how bad our experience is. We will not switch based on over hyping the Mac relative to its PC counterparts. The Mac will stand or fall based on its merits. It took me way too long to get at the truth of it. Religious zealotry for the platform doesnt help either. In the end, I bought in spite of the community and the company, not because of it.

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I agree. Apple might want to start with its stores, which are supposedly intended for "switchers" rather than existing users.
Case in point. I overheard a salesperson at an Apple store this evening feed some misinformation about Windows XP (to the effect that when Windows crashes and you need to reinstall it, you need to "cry and beg" Microsoft to let you reinstall it. He obviously didn't have a clue product activation. I've reinstalled Windows XP twice in the past year (the first time when I did a clean install after an upgrade, the second time when I upgraded my hard drive) and didn't need to re-activate either time. SP1 now gives a 3-day grace period even after a major hardware change. And activation is anonymous. It is not the same as registration, which, as with Apple products, is entirely optional.

If Apple wants its store personnel to be better at "switching" people, it would be beneficial for them to educate their people on their competitor's products, especially since many people aren't "switching" so much as adding a Mac. This "Windows is junk" attitude might work well with disgruntled PC users (who probably don't need much motivation anyway), but it won't convince the intelligent comparison-shopper.

[Nobody]

quote:

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Speaking of Office, I really prefer the Windows version a lot better. Thats just my personal preference. So, I took another leap of faith and bought VPC5 with Windows XP. Even the salesman tried to talk me out of this by citing poor performance on all but the fastest Macs.

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This is another area where more education is needed. Connetix itself could be more helpful as well. It is my understanding that the NT-based OSes (2000 and XP) actually run more smoothly on VPC than the 95-based OSes (95, 98, Me) since 2000 and XP don't have any 16-bit code in them to slow down the emulation software. That would have been nice for me to know before I purchased VPC with Windows 98.

[Nobody]

You are telling me Microsoft is good about product activation? Let me tell you this: After what Microsoft has pulled over the last couple of years I do not give a f* about what they want me to do. I am not giving them ANY of my information. Period. If there was ever an untrustworthy company, Microsoft is it. From the beginning, when they sold DOS even though they did not have the rights to it, they have been lying stealing bastards. You may be fine with using their software, but I have a huge ethical dilemma just by accepting Word as the text editor of my choice. I really want Microsoft to be gone so there can be a real competition and innovation.
But then, I also have problems with eating meat and sleeping with people that are not my wife, so what do I know, right? images/icons/rolleyes.gif [/LIST]

[Nobody]

Outsider Excellent review. Great to hear you like the iBook so much. Sounds like after all your research you've bought something you're truly happy with. Keep us informed. Enjoy images/icons/smile.gif

[Jaoquin]

Outsider:
You sold me on getting one. I have been debating between 12inch, 14inch ibooks vs the Tibook. I like the TiBook but don't need the cost or all the speed. Thanks for putting all your time to your very informative post.

[MacGelpster]

Outsider...Great review it almost makes me want to buy the new 800 MHZ iBook even though I already the 700 mhz one. Man the iBook is the really the people's laptop very affordable and good quality.

[mike_cary]

I love my new 6 weekold ibook 800 (14inch) This is my first MAC after 10 yrs of Win Laptops. It fits my need perfectly I use it everyday on the train to edit Digital Images. Love the touchpad in comparison to ones I've had on Win MAC. The Only little tiny regret I have is that when I cancelled/changed my order from a 700-800MHZ I didn't bite the big bullet and get a powerbook. Well I guess that will just give me something extra to look forward to in a few years when I upgrage images/icons/grin.gif

[Nobody]

For those debating the 12 vs 14, please let me add my 2 cents. I used a 14 inch Pismo for two years, it was a great machine. The large screen was nice, but the weight is a concern. I fly a lot with athletic teams, and the added weight makes a difference. Especially in you bag is a couple of dvd's, ac adapter, etc. I almost forget I have the iBook in there because it is so light weight. The 12 inch screen doesnt bother my eyes, since I am looking at the same things, all be it smaller. I think the sharpness makes up for the size as their were times that the fuzziness of a 14 inch made things difficult to read.

I could not be happier with my purchase of the 12" 800.

But thats just me.

[Outsider]

If you have ever seen them side by side, you will notice that the 12" screen is so much brighter. They probably lowered the brightness potential on the larger screen to sqeeze out more battery life. For me, The extra brightness and sharpness made the difference. You have to see it to understand it.

[Nobody]

Yes, it's true about the iBook's 12" LCD. Even beside my Titanium Powerbook, the iBook's screen is far and away more rich in color, brighter, sharper. It's not something to be described to one who has not seen it, but using the 12" iBook screen, you feel as though you are somewhere much bigger than that.

[CrecenS]

I love to hear this kind of stuff. This is what owning a Mac is all about - the ease of use, functionality, and infatuation with a computer despite its shortcomings. I always equated these forums as places to go when people have problems and need help, so I expect to hear criticism, but this is cool too. Much better than people bashing the product or each other.

I remember thinking along the same lines when I took the plunge with my G4. At the time, Mac people could at least argue that the Macs were faster. It was a big decision since it required set costs regarding software, but I am eternally grateful that I got a Mac.

Now that I have an iBook to complement my tower, my love with the products Apple makes has been reaffirmed. Numbers and facts don't matter when you're having a good experience, and that is what my Macs provide in spades.

Apple offers a complete package with its software and hardware, and the fit and finish that results from this has made me a happy Mac owner and a better computer user.

[CrecenS]

Sweet, that was my 666th post! What a coincidence!