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DECEMBER 18, 2002 Apple PowerBook 1 GHz G4
Disappointments No piece of hardware is perfect, and the PowerBook is no exception to this. I have a few issues with it, none of which are particularly major, but certainly worth noting.[an error occurred while processing this directive]First, memory. This is the first thing anybody buying a PowerBook will need to swap out, at least if you need vast amounts of RAM. And 512 MB of RAM spread out over the only two available slots isn't particularly user-friendly. First, 512 MB doesn't cut it for anybody doing professional graphics work. And, second, when you upgrade the memory, you automatically lose the 256 MB already installed. Fortunately, at the moment, Apple is offering a discount of $260 on memory upgrades from the Apple Store. But, after that, you're on your own. Second, there is no reason in the universe in this day and age for a computer to have a single mouse button. I don't know of an application that doesn't support contextual menus, and even the Mac OS itself natively supports multiple buttons, including a scroll wheel. So let's make at least a second button stock on future releases--especially on the PowerBook. And third, while I like some things about the built-in LCD display, I'm not a fan of its limited vertical viewing angle or somewhat uneven color near the bottom of the screen. In the common positions in which you might place the screen, there's really no problem. But if, for example, you have a client standing over your shoulder, you'll need to tip the screen back considerably. Now, I've seen this problem of vertical viewing angle on a number of LCD displays--including desktop displays--but I've also seen displays without this problem. This is something you'll have to decide for yourself by walking into a store and checking it out. The bottom line The Titanium PowerBook G4 is the first notebook computer that could be considered a serious alternative to a desktop machine. It's powerful. It has all the functionality you could want. And it's attractive. At $2,999, it might seem pricey, but consider what you get. The SuperDrive/iDVD combo alone pushes it outside the league of anything else on the market, and it costs $200 less than the previous-generation top of the line PowerBook. If you're a mobile creative professional who needs to buy a new system, the 1 GHz G4 PowerBook Titanium is a Must Buy--our first Must Buy recommendation for a computer of any kind. The Apple 1 GHz G4 PowerBook Titanium with SuperDrive is available now for $2,999. Other configurations are also available. For more information, visit http://www.apple.com. Contact the author: Dave Nagel is the producer of Creative Mac and Digital Media Designer; host of several World Wide User Groups, including Synthetik Studio Artist, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign, Adobe LiveMotion, Creative Mac and Digital Media Designer; and executive producer of the Digital Media Net family of publications. You can reach him at dnagel@digitalmedianet.com. Prev 1 2 3 4 Related sites: • Animation Artist • AV Video • Creative Mac • Digital Animators • Digital Media Designer • Digital Post Production • Digital Pro Sound • Digital Producer • Digital Video Editing • DV Format • DVD Creation • Film and Video Magazine • Media Workstation • Presentation Master • The WWUG Related forums: [an error occurred while processing this directive] 
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