A ndy Ihnatko has penned a piece for the Chicago Sun-Times that offers the readers of that newspaper a very positive look at Appleis new 12" and 17" PowerBook lines. Andy Ihnatko has been covering the Mac industry since their was a Mac industry, so a positive review of the PowerBook is no surprise, but the message to the large mainstream audience of the Sun-Times is what we are interested in. Included in that message is the fact that Appleis PowerBooks pack a lot more power. From the review:
It also has plenty of processing oomph: a 1 GHz G4 featuring 256K of backside and 1M of L3 cache. Itis got enough horsepower to be an eminently credible replacement for your desktop Mac, or even most desktop Pentiums. And it had better be: A minimally configured 17-inch PowerBook will run you $3,299.
But what about the size? A unit wasnit available for long-term review, so my comments come from the hour I spent manhandling one during my briefing. Still, holy cats, its physical form makes me wonder if the 17-inch PowerBook isnit actually too big: Itis 15.4 inches x 10.2 inches. But itis just an inch thick and weighs a shade under 7 pounds, which is an impressive achievement. Windows laptops in this class are built like Politburo members: chunky and utterly devoid of style.
The rest of the review is also delivered in Mr. Ihnatkois characteristic humor, and is an entertaining read.