PowerBook G4 v. 15" PIIIs

Subj: PowerBook G4 v. 15" PIIIs
Date: Saturday, January 20, 2001 10:20:20 AM
From: “MacBoy Pro” <macboypro@qmug.org>
  To: comp.sys.mac.portables

So Apple just released some new 15" laptops.  Where do they stand relative to 15" PC laptops?  Let’s find out!

By Price (in U.S. Dollars, as of Sat, Jan 20th, 2001)
By Weight (in Pounds)
By Thickness (in Inches)
By Maximum RAM (in MB)
By Battery Life (in Hours)
By Overall Score (in Points)
By Manufacturer (w/ URLs)

 

By Price (in U.S. Dollars, as of Sat, Jan 20th, 2001) --------------------+                                                                            V   1 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/ 64MB/12GB/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899                                                                         -----  2 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049  3 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419  4 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/128MB/10GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595  5 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678  6 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/128MB/10GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697  7 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709  8 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/ 64MB/20GB/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731                                                                         -----  9 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038 10 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297 11 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/256MB/20GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495 12 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/30GB/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596 13 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666 14 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/128MB/18GB/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696 15 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782 16 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897                                                                         ----- 17 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/128MB/32GB/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027 18 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/224MB/20GB/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130 19 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199 20 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358 21 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417

By Price Notes:  Sony is in a class unto itself here, a 15" laptop that’s less than $2000, but then look at its 7.30 lb weight and 2.1" thick case, and then it looks rather clunky.  Apple is both the third least expensive $2000 laptop and $3000 laptop.  And can you believe that some companies still charge more than $4000 for their laptops?  Ugh.  Most companies, like Apple, have at least one consumer laptop (i.e., iBook) and at least one professional laptop (i.e., PowerBook).  For this comparison, I chose the professional PC laptop (i.e., Pentium III) over its consumer cousin (i.e., Celeron).  I also tried to choose a lower configuration (i.e., 650-750 MHz, W98/WME) and a higher configuration (i.e., 850 MHz, W2K).  All configurations have 56K modems and DVD drives.  For from-manufacturer-only companies (Dell, Gateway, Micron), I added RAM, HD, DVD, and Ethernet as necessary to make their configurations as close to Apple’s as possible.  All prices are unique, so all rankings are unique.

 

By Weight (in Pounds) --------------------------------------------+                                                                            V           1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/128MB/10GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595  1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/256MB/20GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495                                                                  ----         3 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/128MB/18GB/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696  3 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199  5 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419  5 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297                                                                  ----         7 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038  7 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417  9 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/30GB/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596 10 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709 10 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782 10 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/ 64MB/20GB/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731 10 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049 14 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/ 64MB/12GB/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899 15 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358 16 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678 17 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/128MB/10GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697 17 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666 17 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/128MB/32GB/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027                                                                  ----        20 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897 21 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/224MB/20GB/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130

By Weight Notes:  Apple is in a league of its own here, a 15" laptop that’s less than six pounds.  W/ Apple’s laptops, the average weight here is 7.18 pounds.  W/o Apple’s laptops, the average weight here is 7.38 pounds.  Apple’s laptops are a full two pounds lighter than the average weight of these 15" PC laptops.  And can you believe that most of these 15" PC laptops still weigh more than seven pounds, and some of them weigh more than eight?  Ugh.  Some laptops here have the same weight, so they share the same ranking.

 

By Thickness (in Inches) ------------------------------------+                                                                             V                 1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/128MB/10GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595  1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/256MB/20GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495                                                             ----               3 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199  4 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/128MB/18GB/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696  5 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297  6 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/ 64MB/20GB/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731  6 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/128MB/32GB/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027                                                             ----               8 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038  8 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417 10 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678 10 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/224MB/20GB/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130 12 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709 12 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782 12 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049 15 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/128MB/10GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697 15 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666 17 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358 18 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419                                                             ----              19 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897 20 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/ 64MB/12GB/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899 20 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/30GB/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596

By Thickness Notes:  Apple is in a league of its own here, again, a 15" laptop that’s only one inch thick.  W/ Apple’s laptops, the average thickness here is 1.61 inches.  W/o Apple’s laptops, the average thickness here is 1.67 inches.  Apple’s laptops are a full two-thirds of an inch thinner than the average of these 15" PC laptops.  And can you believe some of these 15" PC laptops are still more than two inches thick?  Ugh.

 

By Maximum RAM (in MB) ------------------------+                                                                             V                               1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/  1GB/10GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595  1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/  1GB/20GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495                                              -----                             3 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/544MB/10GB/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678  3 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/544MB/20GB/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130                                              -----                             5 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297  5 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/512MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709  5 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782  5 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/512MB/10GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697  5 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666  5 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/512MB/18GB/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696  5 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199  5 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/512MB/20GB/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731  5 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/512MB/32GB/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027  5 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/512MB/10GB/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038  5 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417  5 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/512MB/12GB/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897  5 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/512MB/20GB/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358                                              -----                            18 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/320MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049                                              -----                            19 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/256MB/12GB/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419 19 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/256MB/12GB/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899 19 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/30GB/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596

By Maximum RAM Notes:  Apple is in a league of its own here, as well, a 15" laptop that supports 1GB of RAM.  Gateway’s Solo technical specifications say their maximum RAM is 512MB, but when you go to configure it, its site allows you to go up 544MB.  Apple’s laptops support a full two times as much as RAM as most of these 15" PC laptops.  And can you believe 256MB used to be considered respectable?  Ugh.

 

By Battery Life (in Hours) -------------------------+                                                                            V                         1 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/128MB/5.0H/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419  1 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/128MB/5.0H/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297  1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/128MB/5.0H/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595  1 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/256MB/5.0H/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495                                                    ----                       5 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/128MB/4.0H/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696  5 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/128MB/4.0H/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199  5 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/128MB/4.0H/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027                                                    ----                       8 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/3.5H/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709  8 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/3.5H/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782  8 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/ 64MB/3.5H/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731                                                    ----                      11 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/128MB/3.0H/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897 11 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/128MB/3.0H/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358 11 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/ 64MB/3.0H/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899                                                    ----                      14 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/2.5H/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596 14 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/2.5H/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049                                                    ----                      16 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/128MB/?.?H/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697 16 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/?.?H/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666 16 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/128MB/?.?H/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678 16 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/224MB/?.?H/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130 16 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/128MB/?.?H/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038 16 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/256MB/?.?H/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417

By Battery Life Notes:  Acer and Apple get to share the limelight here, 15" laptops that run up to five hours.  “Battery Life” can be a bit subjective, so we have to assume (trust) that these companies have run tests on their laptops more than once to prove they can run as long as they say.  Dell, Gateway and Micron do not post expected battery life.  And can you believe some of these 15" PC laptops expect you to get only 2.5 hours worth of work done?  Ugh.

 

+- By Overall Score (in Points)                                              V                                                                             8 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-400/128MB/10GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $2595 15 Apple PowerBook G4 <-------- 15.2"/G4-500/256MB/20GB/9.1/1.00/5.30   $3495 --                                                                            26 Acer TravelMate 739TLV       15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.42/6.98   $3297 31 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-700/128MB/18GB/W2K/1.26/6.50   $3696 35 HP OmniBook 6000             15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.25/6.50   $4199 37 IBM ThinkPad A21m            15.0"/P3-750/ 64MB/20GB/W98/1.50/7.20   $2731 42 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2709 --                                                                            45 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/W98/1.60/7.00   $3038 46 Acer TravelMate 735TLV       15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/1.81/6.98   $2419 50 Compaq Armada E500           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.70/7.20   $3782 50 Gateway Solo 9300ls          15.0"/P3-650/128MB/10GB/WME/1.62/7.76   $2678 50 IBM ThinkPad A21p            15.0"/P3-850/128MB/32GB/W2K/1.50/7.90   $4027 56 Toshiba Satellite Pro 4300   15.0"/P3-700/ 64MB/12GB/W98/1.70/7.20   $2049 57 Micron TransPort GX+         15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/W2K/1.60/7.00   $4417 59 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-700/128MB/10GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $2697 --                                                                            65 Sony VAIO PCG-F580           15.0"/P3-650/ 64MB/12GB/W98/2.10/7.30   $1899 66 Dell Inspiron 8000           15.0"/P3-850/256MB/20GB/WME/1.75/7.90   $3666 68 Gateway Solo 9300xl          15.7"/P3-850/224MB/20GB/W2K/1.62/8.61   $4130 68 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-850/128MB/20GB/W2K/1.80/7.40   $4358 71 NEC Versa LXi                15.0"/P3-650/128MB/12GB/W98/2.00/8.60   $3897 74 Sony VAIO PCG-F690           15.0"/P3-850/128MB/30GB/WME/2.10/7.10   $3596

By Overall Points Notes:  Apple is in a league of its own here, period.  Where do these laptops stand relative to each other based on price, weight, thickness, maximum RAM and battery life (in an overall score range of 5 points to 105 points)?  The lower the point-total, the better that laptop’s standing.  Perhaps Dell, Gateway, NEC and Sony should re-evaluate what they’re doing, w/ their 7.10+ pound, $3596+ offerings...

 

+- By Manufacturer (w/ URLs)                                                  V                                                                              Acer 650    <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=218411>          Acer 850    <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=252554>          Apple 400   <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=267777>          Apple 500   <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=267778>          Com 700     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=220121>          Com 850     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=251612>          Dell 8000   <http://www.dell.com/html/us/segments/bsd/choose_inspn_8000.htm>  Gate 650    <http://www.gatewayatwork.com/prod/sb_s9300ls_ProdInfo.shtml>      Gate 850    <http://www.gatewayatwork.com/prod/sb_s9300xl_ProdInfo.shtml>      HP 700      <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=216957>          HP 850      <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=258467>          IBM 750     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=247315>          IBM 850     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=242766>          Mic GX+     <http://micronpc.com/smallbiz/store/notebooks/build_your_own.html> NEC 650     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=233695>          NEC 850     <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=262791>          Sony 650    <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=219900>          Sony 850    <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=241605>          Tosh 700    <http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.asp?EDC=223592>

By Manufacturer Notes:  CDW is in a class unto itself when it comes to searching for and finding what you want.  I neither shop there nor work there, but compared to where I normally do shop -- Mac/PCWarehouse, Mac/PCZone, Outpost -- their search engines and results pale to CDW’s whose results are accurate, well-organized and easy to read and whose URLs are relatively short.  For from-manufacturer-only companies (Dell, Gateway, Micron), add RAM, HD, DVD and Ethernet as necessary to make their configurations as close to Apple’s as possible.

So Apple just released some new 15" laptops, and they stand heads-and-shoulders above their 15" PC laptop peers.  You can buy PC laptops w/ smaller screens (i.e., 14", 13", 12", 10", etc.) and less powerful processors (i.e., Celeron, etc.) that cost less, weigh less, and are not as thick as the average of these 15" PC laptops, but when it comes to professional PC laptops w/ 15" screens, Pentium III processors, comparable RAM, HD, DVD and ethernet, Apple is in a league of its own w/ its overall combination of price, weight, thickness, maximum RAM, and battery life.