Apple Power
Last week the dockable DVD/CD-RW combo drive in my laptop suddenly ejected itself, flew two metres through the air and went bang in the floor. Miraculously, it looked undamaged and I re-attached it to the computer. The light in the front blinked like it was supposed to and the drive appeared in Windows Explorer, so I figured everything was OK.
Wrong.
A couple of days ago I was going burn a CD with some network drivers - I’m still trying to salvage the remains of the living room computer I was going to “fix” - but the drive refused to spin up, meaning that it had gone FUBAR after all. So I had to order a new one, something that’s not a terrible hassle, but still a unforeseen expense and no one likes that. So, I thought that if I were to spend $150 on a new CD drive, I might as well go wild and buy myself a new computer. My trusty Dell is about two years old now, and it’s starting to lag behind.
And I want an Apple. Give the man a PowerBook G4! At least it was a good idea until I checked the price. Those things are fucking expensive! I can get a pretty hard-core laptop from Dell for the price of a 15-inch PowerBook. I was able to put together a PC with far better specs than the PowerBook, and it cost me $300 less. So I won’t be buying a computer from Apple any time soon.
Actually, I won’t be buying a new computer at all, instead I ordered a replacement drive from Dell. My current model should last for another year or so. I can’t play Half-Life 2 on it, but I’ll survive. The Xbox covers all my gaming needs at the moment.
Another gadget I’m really keen on is the Creative Zen Micro. It’s a bit smaller than the iPod Mini, maybe not as cool when it comes to design, but it has a larger hard drive, better battery life and it’s actually cheaper. I bought a new MP3 player about a year ago, a Jens of Sweden, and I’m very pleased with that one, but 256MB is a bit limited. My only concern is if I can jog with the Micro or not. After all, a hard drive means moving parts.
Feedback
Do you have any thoughts you want to share? A question, maybe? Or is something in this post just plainly wrong? Then please send an e-mail to vegard at vegard dot net with your input. You can also use any of the other points of contact listed on the About page.
Anonymous CowardI see. You buy computers on specs, not performance. (By the way - the iPod also uses a hard drive, and millions jog with it without incident. This mean you should be OK jogging with your Zen, unless it, too, is a product that sells itself to you with better specs on paper than in real world performance.)
Anonymous CowardHave you considered an iBook instead? Much cheaper than a powerbook and performant enough for most people.
BadpopIt’s called research. Check into it, huh?
BTW, a ‘DELL’ laptop spec’d the same as a PowerBook comes out costing more whenever I go to Dell - by about $300! Curious.
If you prefer WinDELL, fine - own it. And if you CHOOSE to change your mind and not buy a ’new’ laptop, fine - own that too! Just don’t ‘misinform’ your readers because of personal preferences or lack of finances, okay?
Finally, $300 of a $2000 purchase is 15%. Ask yourself what do you GET for 15% more money.
HallvardHehehe, you got the apple-geeks on your neck
ianI’m an Apple geek, or at least an Apple sucker. Whatever. Give Vegard a fucking break though, guys. It’s his call what he does with his money and, with all due respect to Vegard, let’s be honest. Nobody comes here for information. This is a fucking weblog. He’s not supposed to be accountable to his readership.
Say whatever the hell you like, Vegard.
RoarHaha, this was a funny read. I think its the first attempt at a flamewar i have seen here.
Go ‘misinformation’.
Klasapple-people: don’t listen to Ian. Vegard hates your guts, and he thinks that all of you sucks big time. go flamers go!!
:-D
Asbjørn UlsbergiPod Mini! Say no more.
