A Tale of Two Macs

August 25, 2012

Latest Post The Hound of the Baskervilles by Owen Soule

I've been stewing about the speed and age of my home computer, a 2008 iMac, for quite some time and last weekend I finally pulled the trigger and bought a new Mac.   Let me start by saying I am typically opposed to purchasing Apple laptops as they are usually way too expensive when compared to their PC counterparts.  Luckily, I found a local store running a great discount on a few late 2011 models, due to the release of the new retina models no doubt, so I picked one up for less than a comparable Lenovo W520.  That's no random comparison either, I've been using a Lenovo W520 daily for over a year as a development machine and it is a beast - so I figured it was a pretty good bar to compare against. But wait - that sounds like the making of a Mac and PC comparison, not a tale of two Macs?  Right you are - that's all just back story - the real comparison is between the new (late 2011) MacBook Pro 15" and ye olde first generation aluminum Powerbook G4 12".  


Here are the "About this Mac" specifics of the two:

And yes, the Macbook Pro = beastmode.    The wee-est Powerbook was purchased right after their release in January of 2003.   If I recall there was a marketing blitz by Apple to trumpet the 12" Powerbook as the smallest laptop Apple ever produced. This really shows off the size difference between the new and old Macs:

In the background is my 2008 iMac who has a sad since I don't use it anymore.   Yes, that Powerbook is tiny and actually still looks very striking.  The aluminum keys were abandoned by Apple some time ago, but I'm stil a big fan, and they show now signs of age unlike my Lenovo which has at least 5 keys that have lost their printed on character due to use.  Here is a blurry side shot

The MacBook Pro on the left is much thinner, almost the size of a desktop keyboard, whereas the G4 is a bit chunkier.So that about sums up my comparison, more like a few pictures than a full comparison, but honestly performance comparisons between these two machines would be no comparison at all.   As for the Powerbook, it is now nearing its 10th anniversary, that's like 120 in computer years, and still viable for web surfing or creating word docs.  Hopefully the new MacBook Pro lasts that long!

Owen Soule

Published August 25, 2012