Powerbook vs Inspiron - Page 2

that's been one of the criticism's i've seen in a few reviews...a fair amount of screen irregularity and backlight leakage.

tell you the truth, if your in it for gaming inspiron is best because you can't really tell the screen is bad when playing games, just everything else.

lolercopters!!

Here's some benchmarks:

http://barefeats.com/macvpc.html

http://www.digitalvideoediting.com/2...w_macvspc2.htm

http://www.digitalvideoediting.com/2...acvspciii2.htm

http://www.macsonly.com/arch0107.html#osxvswxp

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/columni.../steinberg.htm

In some of the benchmarks (which include Photoshop), the Apple is only slightly faster... the USAToday article gets around 8 seconds faster using Photoshop. Of course, the Mac doesn't win in all of them, nor does the Windows machine... all of the links are worth giving a look. If you're looking for a Photoshop machine, the Mac will be great for you... even a few seconds is worth it. But instead of listening to people argue about what's better, decide for yourself.

If you plan on doing any media editing, however, the PCs seem to win out... as for the old "Macs suck for gaming and PCs are great," the benchmarks show that the Mac can deliver decent performance as well. Just to play both sides of the ball...

I have an XPS Gen 2 that I've been using for 2 whole days now - so can't give you lots of info on performance with Adobe CS. I have also had a 15" PB and now use a 12" PB daily, so I'll give you a quick overview of my impressions:

This XPS 2 is a BIG BOY. True, it is only 8.6 lbs, and lighter than other desktop replacement notebooks - but it is heavy, compared to a PowerBook. One of the biggest differences I notice is the thickness. The WUXGA display, with a resolution of 1920X1200 is beautiful. I can comfortably use the XPS 2 on my lap, as long as I'm not doing serious gaming (heat being the issue there).

I absolutely love my PowerBook, and Mac OS X brought me back to using a computer for more than Microsoft Office and email. I'm biased, but there is just nothing as easy to use as OS X. I haven't even upgraded to Tiger yet, because Panther does all I want and more.

If you aren't a gamer, I would definitely recommend the PowerBook. Friends who have the 17" PB love it. I personally prefer the display on the PowerBooks, even with slightly lower resolution (text is a bit tiny on the XPS2 native res). The graphics card in the PowerBook is more than enough for Adobe CS and applications other than playing the latest games.

For me, it comes down to Mac OS X and style. The PowerBook would win hands down, if I wasn't into gaming. Fortunately, I have the XPS Gen 2 for fragging, and my trusty 12" PowerBook for all other times I need a notebook.

Good luck with the decision. Hopefully you will have a chance to actually look/hold one of each before buying.

No it isn't. I was jut reading a thread about the XPS Gen 2 at a gaming LAN, and his CPU was running constantly at like 54 deg C or something. The thermal cutoff poitn for the 6800 Ultra cards is in the 90's, iirc, and if your card hits that temperature, then it slows down, which is NOT good. So I don't think many XPS Gen 2's have their VIDEO CARD even reach those temperatures.

And the screen's seem to be more hyped up to be worse than they really are.

Anyways, in summary, I think I'd recommend the XPS Gen 2 or a similarly equipped i9300 if you want the extra screen real-estate that comes with the WUXGA (1920x1200). Also, if you get a good coupon deal, you can probably get them for a VERY, VERY good price. And call up a Dell CSR while you're at it, because they can give you even better deals on top of that (to some extent, because they work partially on comission).

i guess that's part of the issue w/ the screen. depending on the media (most from my experience), and what kind of production (pro?)he is doing, color correction/proofing and accuracy are crucial, hence the discussion of the screen quality. a graphic designer, multimedia designer, animator, etc. would be poorly served by choosing a raw horsepower system w/ an irregular screen. that said, any truly lengthy projects could simply be piped to an external monitor... i'll have my WUXGA on a 23-24" monitor thank u very much.

in any case, if the screen issues are overblown w/ the Dells then i'd say it comes down to screen res preference. i tend to agree that WUXGA is a bit of a squeeze on a 17" monitor, so it all depends on what one prefers and what kind of use they are planning. the WUXGA might be fine for gaming, but for long hours on projects it may be another issue. agreed, he/she needs to check out what they like and make the decision from there.

Um, sweetie, those temperatures I listed are in Fahrenheit. 140 degrees Celcius would literally burn through your clothes and melt the skin on your lap.

A 17 inch pb will run hotter than any 9300 and you can quote me on that!

If you like to pay more and get less or equal preformance then go for it. A 17 inch pb is how much $2,700 You could totally deck out a 9300 and get a 40% off coupon or $750 off coupon from www.fatwallet.com and pay under 2 gs!

Just my $.02

Yeah, maybe comparing spec sheets. But how do the two operate? You're looking at a system that will use Windows, vs. one with OSX. Usability goes a lot further than simply bigger numbers.


I just did.

So that means you agree! I hate all this osx is easier to use; unless the op is a monkey he or she can use windows just as well as they could use osx!

Im not trying to hate on apple or anything; (I have had some really horrible experiences with Apple Desktops) I just like to get the most out of what I pay for, as far as specs go.

Have you actually seen the screen in person? I bet you havent, last I heard apple screens were not that great either. Or is that just speculation on my part just like it was yours. If you don't get the true life screen (Which is the screen everyone bitches about) they are very pretty, almost up to my Vaio standards.

done.

i haven't worked on a 17" for anything intensive so i can't speak to it. fwiw, slice .6" off the dell and i'm quite sure u could roast a turkey on it.

i just decked out a Dell w/ basic media editing software like nero & photoshop elements (comparable to iLife suite), added quickbooks (comes w/ PBs), added adobe acrobat elements to give it the basic pdf support that comes w/ Macs in OS X, downgraded the 4 year premium warranty to 3 years, downgraded to 512MB of RAM from 1GB, and added a few other things to make it equitable to a stock 17" PB, and took $750 off... the price before tax? $2647 hmm, don't know if i've seen any firewire 800 pcmcia adapters yet... um, just found one...here and of course u'll need the power adapter, cuz the PBs ports are powered, so that'll be an extra $90 +s/h. btw, i'm assuming that the premium warranty allows for non-outsourced tech support. hmm, k that's all that comes to mind now... so that's $2737 all together before any potential taxes? (last i checked dell charges in CA, FL, GA, ID, IL, KY, MI, MN, MS, MO, NV, NJ, NC, NY, OH, OK, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA, and WI). for me in NY it'd be ~$225 on top of the mentioned price. $2962. ouch.

a stock 17" from amazon will run u $2500 flat after rebate, and assuming u live in a state that they don't charge tax in (KS, ND, and WA qualify for sales tax via amazon). applecare for 3 years can be had for ~$260. total price? ~$2760. not too far off from the dell price eh?

more bang for the buck w/ the dell? perhaps. would i buy a $2900 laptop to game on? u mean so i can plug in a mouse and keyboard to give me any degree of playability, hence degrading the point of having mobility? FvCK NO, that's one hell of a desktop gaming rig i could build for that $, and yes i would likely get a dell 20 or 24" widescreen LCD to go w/ it.

sorry...to much caffein tonight...

I think you did that with an xps2 not a 9300! Your trying to tell me you got a 9300 with a few software titles after the $750 off to be almosts $2700! Give me a link and I will believe it. No link no substance to your writing! And with dell you get accidential damage coverage, which includes drops and spills for $95, do you get that with your apple care for ummmm $260? Let me ask you this, why do you need a firewire 800 port? my usb 2.0 and normal firewire work just fine. xfered over 2,500 songs onto my ipod very quickly! I think fw 800 is overkill, please correct me if im wrong!

Here is your 17inch pb maxed out and 3 year apple care from apple is $350
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...3.0.11.1.0.6.3 $3900, (the backlit keyboard is cool though) Compared to what you say for a maxed out dell at $2700. But hey, its just money.

I don't believe I agreed with you, unless all you plan to do is benchmark all day on raw computer power. My point was usability, in which the Apple tops it. You might hate the "osx is easier" stuff, but it's said for a reason. Agree or disagree all you want, there's a valid reason why it's said: it's true.

Why do so many Apple vs. Windows discussion always end with Windows people talking about numbers, speed, numbers, and speed, while the Apple people focus on usability and efficiency of product output?

By the way, why NOT have firewire 800? If it was on your future computer, would you specify that you didn't want it, even if it was included in the base model? On my computer, I have two firewire ports, and neither is of the small iLink persuasion. Not too shabby when adding in external devices.

try again. it was initially ~$2150 w/o software and warranty, so not too far a stretch when u start tacking things on. i've done my homework. yer damn skippy it was the 9300, and now you seem to be spouting in reactionary fashion.

btw, your link to the applestore will expire shortly, at which point your writing will apparently have no substance, according to your thinking...despite your and my ability to simply log back in and click a few links. based on this, your comment is pretty childish and basically antagonistic. lay off.

ok, add $40 a year for 3rd party accidental damage coverage, which u can continue for the life of the notebook. applecare doesn't have to be bought directly from apple, hence the $260.

assuming that Fro uses photoshop regularly because he/she bc they r working in a professional environment disk speed is a huge plus. i'm guessing you've never worked with professional digital images, that are just a wee bit bigger than what, say for instance, you could scan on your home computer. so...wait, first it's get the biggest specs for equal or less money, and now just plain 'ole fw 400 will cut it? please be consistant. fw800 also gives u performance close to ATA and IDE performance. if u know what u r doing u can take your operating system, applications, and files from PB to PB or PowerMac, and if u need to skimp by on a slower standard like fw400, u can do all the same on an iBook, iMac, etc, perhaps at home. (my external 4200rpm firewire 400 drive BOOTS a bit slower than my internal drive, 55 seconds vs. 40). u see, EVERY Mac can boot an external OS/drive via USB2 or firewire 400/800, not just the ones that happen to have BIOS support for it (not an option in most stock brand name machines and usually an option in 3rd party desktop mobos). if i could carry my OS, applications, and files on a drive between machines, work, school, and home, why wouldn't i? in any case, that's off the point. in WORKING w/ digital media, having swift access to external storage is a must, even if you're parked at a desktop workstation. for you and your itunes, fw400 will be just peachy. for anyone who works/edits digital media, it will get them by, and fw800 will deliver the goods. (i belive they're working on a fw1600 spec too). oh yeah, and since it's overkill, there would be no point in 3rd party desktop mobo makers starting to integrate it into their boards, like they're starting to do, right?

i was quite clear about how one would go about getting the price i mentioned for the PB, so why would u link to Apple retail? seems like u r reaching here.

by decking out, i went for the mentioned hi res dell ROXORRZZZ!!!!one!1one! screen, top end CPU. (the 17" PB, IS the hi end screen and CPU for the PB line). i stuck w/ the 100GB drive as it's the same as the PB and as noted, DID NOT stick in as much RAM as i could on either machine. as noted i dropped it down to 512MB on the dell, apparently u didn't read that part. feel free to add the extra RAM and money if u like to the dell. IMO, if one didn't price shop for RAM from 3rd party vendors before adding onto ANY brand's notebook they'd be a moron or ill-informed, or both.

i won't link to the dell product, simply bc i think it would be more constructive to the thread to continue via PMs rather than congesting the discourse here. if u'd care for me to give u a list of everything i configured w/ the dell, feel free to PM me. my initial response to your comments was on a lark, and driven out of curiosity, not a need to diss dell or your comments' legitimacy, links or not. if u say something along the lines of what u did re: price i think it's fair to give it a go and test it out, and that was the spirit of my investigation. google a bit, most comparisons between platforms tend to factor in hidden costs of PCs and the Macs usually come out the same, at times cheaper, or marginally more expensive. as noted by others, it seems to come down to preference, needs, and usability moreso than just numbers. then again, this time next year there will be plenty of intel horses under the hoods of the Macs.

That's because we're working on our computers while they're playing counter-strike.

Correct me if im wrong, but doesn't SPEED equate to effiency? Thats why we talk about speed and numbers so much, most apple users don't like to because they get blown out of the water by a system that cost half as much. Don't hate us windows users because we can play modern games and use photo shop cs or other "work" related programs, we get the best of both worlds.

No, speed is only one of many factors that equate to efficiency. Otherwise, the number game of Pentium 4 and Pentium-M would have been different.

Funny how you answered this, but ignored triadone's post that shut your rebuttal completely down.

To answer part of triadones post didn't they have digital SLRs before fw 800? those are pretty big pictures right (A 13 mp camera with full res is a very big picture)? Fw 800 is over kill, that shouldn't be a persons deciding factor!

I think it was triadones that was talking about buying accidential insurance through a 3rd party!!! If something were to happen your comp would be gone for weeks on end. Dell over night ships to and from repair, no one can compare. But good luck with what ever you get, im done and going back to my forum.