New intel iBooks - MAKE A PREDICTION

[OldCorpse]

Here's the question:

Do you think the new intel iBooks will be a SIGNIFICANT improvement over the current 1.33Ghz 12" PPC iBooks?

Make your prediction, and we'll see how good your call was... WARNING: I'll dig up this thread come April (when I expect the new iBooks to come out)...

I vote NO. I don't believe they'll have ANYTHING that'll make me go "I wish I had this new one rather than my current 1.33 12", especially that I paid only $785 for a brand new one.

1)I don't believe the new intels will be cheaper than $999
2)I don't believe the new intel iBooks will be much lighter - if they come in at 3.9 lb, I'd say - WOW. Anything less (say lighter by 0.5 lb), and it won't be all that significant to me. Actually I believe they'll weigh just about the same.
3)I don't believe the new iBooks will have better battery life - in fact, I have a sneaking suspicion they may even have a slightly shorter battery life, or at best equal
4)I don't believe they will be "screamers" - to me, if I very rarely see a pinwheel, well that would be significant - but any other speed improvement (never mind what Steve says) that in REAL LIFE does not translate into a near elimination of the pinwheel is NOT significant. And I don't believe the new ones will come even close to abolishing the pinwheel (though word has it that's the case for the new MacBook Pros). Yeah, they'll be faster, but not "screamers"
5)I don't believe they'll have any cool new features like built-in iSight, audio-in, more usb/firewire ports, backlit keyboard, monitor spanning without hack, better sound card or much better speakers
6) I don't believe they'll have a much better build quality - especially the keyboard

OK - I think there's only one area where they might be significantly better - a better screen (brighter), and more RAM on the GPU.

So, given this, I vote the new iBooks will not make me green with envy when I look at my current PPC iBook. I think I'll look at the new iBooks, and go: meh...

Who know, maybe I'll be eating crow, once the new iBooks come out ! And how about you?

 

[wako]

I believe there wont be an Intel iBook... i do believe there will be a Intel MacBook

 

[mdavey]

1)I don't believe the new intels will be cheaper than $999

Same price marks as current iBooks

2)I don't believe the new intel iBooks will be much lighter

Between 5.5lb and 5.9lb for the 14" or 15" model

3)I don't believe the new iBooks will have better battery life - in fact, I have a sneaking suspicion they may even have a slightly shorter battery life, or at best equal

Equal or better. The official figure will be between 6hrs and the official figure for the MacBook Pro 15".

4)I don't believe they will be "screamers"

Spec benchmarks will show these to be 3x faster than the iBook

5)I don't believe they'll have any cool new features like built-in iSight, audio-in, more usb/firewire ports, backlit keyboard, monitor spanning without hack, better sound card or much better speakers

I think they'll have iSight and IR remote, backlit keyboard, MagSafe, X1600 (but less VRAM than the MacBook Pro). No monitor spanning. The screen will be higher resolution than the iBook and brighter. The other thechnical features will be very similar to the existing iBook.

I'm hoping that they'll have swappable cases (like the way you can swap mobile 'phone covers), but probably not for issue A. Probably available in black or white.

 

[aswitcher]

Here's the question:

Do you think the new intel iBooks will be a SIGNIFICANT improvement over the current 1.33Ghz 12" PPC iBooks?

Make your prediction, and we'll see how good your call was... WARNING: I'll dig up this thread come April (when I expect the new iBooks to come out)...

I vote NO. I don't believe they'll have ANYTHING that'll make me go "I wish I had this new one rather than my current 1.33 12", especially that I paid only $785 for a brand new one.

1)I don't believe the new intels will be cheaper than $999

Agreed

2)I don't believe the new intel iBooks will be much lighter - if they come in at 3.9 lb, I'd say - WOW. Anything less (say lighter by 0.5 lb), and it won't be all that significant to me. Actually I believe they'll weigh just about the same.

Mmm. I think they will really try and keep it tough but try and lightened it up. I hope to see some drop in weight.

3)I don't believe the new iBooks will have better battery life - in fact, I have a sneaking suspicion they may even have a slightly shorter battery life, or at best equal

Mmm. I wonder if they go for a single core or lowly clocked dual core to not compete with the MacBook Pro line and to lengthen the battery life. I hope to see an hour ro two more...

4)I don't believe they will be "screamers" - to me, if I very rarely see a pinwheel, well that would be significant - but any other speed improvement (never mind what Steve says) that in REAL LIFE does not translate into a near elimination of the pinwheel is NOT significant. And I don't believe the new ones will come even close to abolishing the pinwheel (though word has it that's the case for the new MacBook Pros). Yeah, they'll be faster, but not "screamers"

Agreed. But compared to the current line I think they will be about twice as fast.

5)I don't believe they'll have any cool new features like built-in iSight, audio-in, more usb/firewire ports, backlit keyboard, monitor spanning without hack, better sound card or much better speakers

Mmm. I disagree on new features. I think they will have the iSight. I think that will be a key selling point to distinguish them from Dells etc.

Monitor spanning is interesting, given the new Intel iMacs have it I do think we might see it. If they shoot for a 13" screen (replacing both 12" and 14") I think maybe one will have entry level, one mid and one high end. I think the high end will have a better graphics card and support spanning - at least I hope

So on that I expect a better graphics card - at least 64 meg in one verison.

Given the boost in Podcasting and iWeb etc, I think "Audio-In" is a real possibility. In fact I think it will occur.

Speakers and sound card, not too sure. I would expect some incremental improvement but I think Apple will push other products to do audio - like the rumoured boom box.

6) I don't believe they'll have a much better build quality - especially the keyboard

Not too sure. I would hope to see some improvements. Maybe a black option.

 

[Mord]

1.67GHz yonah solo
x1300 64MB
same ram config as before but ddr667
40GB HD
isight, IR no backlit keyboard
DVI out, same as the imac, allows spanning
same port config but with gige and no modem, maybe 5.1 out.

 

[yankeefan24]

I'm thinking that they will make a huge change in the iBook/MacBook. I DO think that they may make an ultra-portable 11" laptop of some sort. The new iBook/MacBook will have a core solo, 512 RAM, 60GB HDD (upgrade to 100), something unique for 30 anniversary like something ipod (built in dock). Available in white or black.

MacPortable will be something for the 30th. available in 5 colors (white, black, metallic black, platinum, and aluminium.) 11,13, or 15" widescreen, airport extreme, bluetooth, 802.11n maybe, wireless card (you choose between service like verizon/vodafone, cingular,etc.). It will be light(er) than the ibook and powerbook(MBP), 1" thin, switchable bay (like switch between superdrive, dl superdrive, and extra hdd, battery etc.) core duo available for 13 and standard on 15, core solo for 11 and 13 standard. It would NOT be a pro laptop so its not a MBP, but its more designed for travel then ibook (MB).

Now I'm probably going to get 100 PMs saying how that will never happen, but i think stevey could do it. he's done it before.

EDIT: the MacPortable would have 6 hours of battery plus the expandable bay to 15 hours. And will automatticly turn off what your not using (if no airports are available, it goes into low power standby, etc.)

 

[sunfast]

I reckon they'll

1 - lose the modem
2 - gain MagSafe
3 - DVI out
4 - More VRAM
5 - Bigger HD
6 - Intel CoreSolo
7 - Maybe lose FireWire?

 

[zap2]

Price-not less then 999
FW-Perhaps no FW to make up for the extra price of intel chips
iSight-Double it but would be cool
FrontRow-Hope so

 

[TsuaSai]

I have the same thoughts as you. Which is why I bought a iBook the day after Mac World. I thought I would rather have a iBook and a first gen MacBook. And I can't afford the MBP so I didn't see any reason to wait.. But I know plenty do which is fine with me. I picked up a 14" iBook for 900 shipped and I could not pass that up.

 

[whocares]

7 - Maybe lose FireWire?

That was my initial fear, but then I thought: iMovie needs FireWire!

 

[Laser47]

That was my initial fear, but then I thought: iMovie needs FireWire!

Thats exactly why they are not getting rid of it.

I think the ibooks (or macbooks) will have;
-MagSafe
-DVI Out
-More Vram
- A better screen (hopefully)
-Screen spanning
-A core duo processor running ~1.5ghz?
- Bigger hard drives standard
- iSight
- Front Row
- And of course, firewire

 

[DarkNetworks]

I'm pretty sure there's going to be some changes in the looks of the Intel iBooks for sure...

 

[madmaxmedia]

I think an iSight is iffy. It would be a very nice feature, but the $999 price point makes it tough. Margins are tight as is.

The keyboard won't be backlit and won't be ever as nice as the PB keyboards, to differentiate the 2. The screen will be brighter, the iBook is somewhat dim compared to even older PowerBook lines.

Performance might not be that different, especially with Rosetta. But the Intel iBook might last longer in terms of usable power. OTOH, a 700MHz Mac will still do your everyday-type tasks just fine, and will continue to do so for years.

What I want to know is, how'd you get a brand new 12" PB for under $800?

 

[buffalo]

MacPortable will be something for the 30th. available in 5 colors (white, black, metallic black, platinum, and aluminium.) 11,13, or 15" widescreen, airport extreme, bluetooth, 802.11n maybe, wireless card (you choose between service like verizon/vodafone, cingular,etc.). It will be light(er) than the ibook and powerbook(MBP), 1" thin, switchable bay (like switch between superdrive, dl superdrive, and extra hdd, battery etc.) core duo available for 13 and standard on 15, core solo for 11 and 13 standard. It would NOT be a pro laptop so its not a MBP, but its more designed for travel then ibook (MB).

if they came out with something like that, i would really, really consider buying it. i'd want one very small, (11" would suite me), and around $700 (or less since I'm in high school and don't have much $)

 

[AvSRoCkCO1067]

Yeah, we need to remember than even the Core Solo is a heck of a lot more than the G4 chip they were putting into the iBooks...therefore, I think making it any cheaper will be near-to-impossible, especially if they do considering adding an iSight.

Anyway, computers today that are sold for 5-600 bucks are typically using fairly outdated or flat-out slow processors. Apple, on the other hand, usually likes to have everything as new and capable as possible - it will be difficult for them to lower margins if they won't, for example, use a processor from Intel that's been out for a while, i.e. a Dothan processor.

Finally, I do think we'll see moniter spanning (as someone above noted, even the iMac, which parallels the iBook in purpose, has it now!). Additionally, I think we'll see slightly higher hard drives - 40 GB makes an external harddrive almost necessary to put any amount of media on your computer. My iPod should not have more GB than my entire laptop.

 

[OldCorpse]

What I want to know is, how'd you get a brand new 12" PB for under $800?

I didn't. See my sig. I got the latest 12" iBook for $785 from Amazon AR (still waiting on the $100 rebate)... plus I got a free-after-rebate Mighty Mouse, that I've grown to like very much

 

[yankeefan24]

if they came out with something like that, i would really, really consider buying it. i'd want one very small, (11" would suite me), and around $700 (or less since I'm in high school and don't have much $)

exactly. i would buy it. I need portability, and am growing sick of the laptop looks. They have barely changed the iBooks for 4 or 5 years (i think). The powerbook i am also growing sick of. thinner is not necessary for me, but i need something that i can travel with.

 

[jiggie2g]

1.67GHz yonah solo
x1300 64MB
same ram config as before but ddr667
40GB HD
isight, IR no backlit keyboard
DVI out, same as the imac, allows spanning
same port config but with gige and no modem, maybe 5.1 out.

I have to agree with this spec for the most part. However I believe the X1300 Mobility will have 128MB vram. Apple would look really bad if they still went with 64MB plus you need atleast 128MB just for core image. An

$1199
13in Wide Screen
1.67ghz Core Solo
Radeon X1300 Mobility 128MB
512MB DDR2 667
60GB HD(40 seems too low in this age with 120 gig already available)
iSight , Magplug , 1280x720 screen , 6hr battery , no express slot , Mini DVI sould be standard but won't. Gigabit ethernet , USB 2.0 , no firewire.

$1499
15.4in wide screen (apple needs a screen this big to compete at this price)
1.83ghz Core Solo (with Pro books being Core Duo the clock speed should not be an issue)
Radeon X1300 Mobility 128MB
512MB DDR2 667
80GB HD(no upgrade)
iSight , Magplug , 1440x900 screen , 6hr battery , no express slot , Mini DVI sould be standard but won't. Gigabit ethernet , USB 2.0 , no firewire.


Sorry but judging by the prices of the Macbook Pro models the days of the $999 apple notebook are over. Apple will go back to thier Low cost / High Margin Mentality. Instead of taking a dive on the price and increase market share. It's not like they can't afford to take a loss for a short bit since thier sales really did not get hit after the announcement at WWDC '05. Besides if the not books are less costly , consumers will mot likly spend the extra money on accessories like a notebook case , an iPod , speakers , software, Applecare. The console market is a perfect example of this.


When will Apple ever learn?

 

[geeman]

I predict that they'll be announced on a Tuesday...

 

[paulman]

I think they'll do a £699 13.3" screen version (maybe a 12" too, 14" def no)

- Magsafe
- Black or white colour options (or special 30th anniversary version with steve job's sig and photo )
- Core Duos (lower clock though)
- No isight (or only as option - price is too much of an issue)
- Better graphics (64 or 128MB cards x1300 probably)
- still 512MB RAM
- Frontrow with remote (although I'm not 100% on this, how much is a remote to produce?)
- No modem
- 1 firewire and 2 USB ports
- Superdrive across the line (as in from this day combo is dead blah blah blah keynote stuff)
- 60GB HDD as standard (everyone upgrades anyway!)
- Windows XP Mac edition

One of these is a joke BTW!

 

[jholzner]

I reckon they'll

1 - lose the modem
2 - gain MagSafe
3 - DVI out
4 - More VRAM
5 - Bigger HD
6 - Intel CoreSolo
7 - Maybe lose FireWire?

I doubt they will remove firewire. If it isn't there it makes iMovie pretty useless since most camcorders use it to transfer video.

 

[jholzner]

I have to agree with this spec for the most part. However I believe the X1300 Mobility will have 128MB vram. Apple would look really bad if they still went with 64MB plus you need atleast 128MB just for core image. An

$1199
13in Wide Screen
1.67ghz Core Solo
Radeon X1300 Mobility 128MB
512MB DDR2 667
60GB HD(40 seems too low in this age with 120 gig already available)
iSight , Magplug , 1280x720 screen , 6hr battery , no express slot , Mini DVI sould be standard but won't. Gigabit ethernet , USB 2.0 , no firewire.

$1499
15.4in wide screen (apple needs a screen this big to compete at this price)
1.83ghz Core Solo (with Pro books being Core Duo the clock speed should not be an issue)
Radeon X1300 Mobility 128MB
512MB DDR2 667
80GB HD(no upgrade)
iSight , Magplug , 1440x900 screen , 6hr battery , no express slot , Mini DVI sould be standard but won't. Gigabit ethernet , USB 2.0 , no firewire.


Sorry but judging by the prices of the Macbook Pro models the days of the $999 apple notebook are over. Apple will go back to thier Low cost / High Margin Mentality. Instead of taking a dive on the price and increase market share. It's not like they can't afford to take a loss for a short bit since thier sales really did not get hit after the announcement at WWDC '05. Besides if the not books are less costly , consumers will mot likly spend the extra money on accessories like a notebook case , an iPod , speakers , software, Applecare. The console market is a perfect example of this.


When will Apple ever learn?

I don't understand what you are saying. The new MacBook Pro is the exact same price as the 15" PowerBook it replaced. By that logic the new iBook will retain the same price point.

 

[robbieduncan]

I predict that no matter what Apple release some people will complain that it is:

1) Too expensive
2) Too slow
3) Does not have enough video RAM (especially by people who use video RAM as the only judge of graphics ability)
5) That it is too big and/or heavy
6) That it is missing feature X where X is an expensive pro option.

 

[Beck446]

I don't understand what you are saying. The new MacBook Pro is the exact same price as the 15" PowerBook it replaced. By that logic the new iBook will retain the same price point.

I agree. Apple has to have a sub-$1000 laptop (at least one!). We might not see a price drop, but we will on Rev B. I tend to think that you will see isight in the iBooks simply because I think Apple is really trying to reach critical mass w/ iChatAV. If they could open standards on that (in combo w/ Google), you might see users leave AIM and Apple would be at the forefront w/ video chat. I think that's what they're trying for...

Most laptop makers have 3 lineups: (1) ultralight, (2) cheap and (3) desktop replacements. I think that Apple might move in this direction by making the new iBooks (Macbooks?) ultralight but having one model that could be cheap - likely cheaper than $999.

 

[MRU]

I'm hoping for

a 12" or 13.1" widescreen display 1280x768 or better resolution.
Single Yonah processor 1.5 or 1.67ghz
64mb X1300 or X1600 GPU

512mb Ram as standard
40gb HD as standard (I'd hope for at least 60 as standard but doubt they'd do that to keep price down)
Wifi & Bluetooth as standard

$995, €995, £699 price point

I'd like them to be in similar design as current ibooks but maybe a tad thinner
and also available in black would be great....

I'd also like one delivered before April