RIP: 15-inch PowerBook G4

Close a Window and open the door. The 15-inch PowerBook G4 is vanishing from the online Apple store, leaving behind its 12 and 17-inch brethren and thus making room for its apparent successor, the new Intel based 15-inch MacBook Pro that began shipping last week.

Upon announcement of the MacBook Pro, Apple had answered that the 15” PowerBook G4 would still remain available through its online store, while supplies last.  Well, they have apparently reached the last of the last. This begs the question of just how long the 15-inch will remain available at retail locations, as they clear the way for the MacBook Pro. 

Oh how we hardly knew ye…
Introduced just a little over 5 years ago on January 9, 2001 at the MacWorld Expo, The PowerBook G4 was smaller (1” thick), lighter (weighing 5.3 pounds), tougher (constructed out of titanium and carbon fibers), and stronger (up to five and a half hours of field battery life) than its G3 predecessors. The 15.2 diagonal screen was touted as “mega-wide” while the sleek casing was as alluring as a Victoria’s Secrets catalog.  All in all, performance-wise, it was touted by critics as somewhat better than the G3, but by no means revolutionary, and still lagging behind its Apple desktop counterparts.

Onto bigger and better things?
While the MacBook Pro may look suspiciously similar to the PowerBook G4, the difference is on the inside. While the verdict may still be out on the new laptops, as new or perspective owners ‘ooh’ and ‘ahh’ over their coveted treasures, the initial specs tell quite a tale. Intel’s Core Duo Processor, the first dual processor laptop ever produced by Apple is held within a Capulet/Montague marriage that may be dazzling at first, but seems bound for trouble. 

Additional new toys include
•A 67% brighter screen
•An iSight camera built-in
•Front Row to showcase your work to client, friend and family, used with an Apple remote
•iLife for creating postcards, websites, podcasts, calendars, DVDs and more
•Built-in AirPort Extreme (802.11g), Bluetooth 2.0+EDR, and Gigabit Ethernet
Just to name a few…

Nah nah… my optical drive is better than your optical drive
If there are those 15-inch PowerBook owners currently stroking their little chrome casings and cooing, “There, there baby. It’ll be all right. I’m here for you,” they do have a couple of bragging points with which to defend their computer-darlings. 

The PowerBook does offer a faster optical drive (8x vs. the MacBook Pro 4x).

The PowerBook has an S-Video port that is missing on the MacBook Pro (though attainable by adapter). 

And, the MacBook Pro lives without a modem in its belly. Be that as it may, if you are dropping upwards of $2000 on a new laptop, chances are you aren’t still stuck on dial-up or faxing. Though, MacBook Pro Users can add these features with an external modem available.

Parting is such sweet sorrow
If you have had your heart set on a PowerBook you haven’t picked up yet, and are not wooed by the buff insides of MacBook Pro, there is still hope to find your coveted 15-inch PowerBook G4.

The following sites still have the 15-inch PowerBook G4 up for sale:

Amazon.com is currently offering a $200 mail-in rebate for those purchased prior to 02/28/2006.

CompUSA

Deals of the week

Then again, there’s always e-bay for the “lightly-used” option. 

You have served us well dear 15-inch Powerbook G4.  You may soon be gone, in your prime—shiny and new, but never forgotten.