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http://www.insanely-great.com/news.php?id=1196
AppleStore: The Wait Extends to iBooks
By Remy Davison, Insanely Great Mac
October 31st 2002
We've heard all the TiBook rumors, but what about a rev for the all-important Consumer
Portable?
Following IGM's report yesterday on increases in the AppleStore's TiBook waiting
period, the last 24 hours have also seen the iBook shift from a usual 1-2 day to a 3-5
or 5-7 day wait, depending on the model.
This points to the growing likelihood that both the TiBook and iBook will be revised
simultaneously. PowerBook Central's/A> report yesterday that the AppleStore was "out
of stock" due to the extended wait may be stretching it a little, however. There is
sure to be inventory of the existing 'Books, but the well is probably running dry as
current model production was likely stopped some weeks ago.
A good indication of this is the 'Uitimate' PowerBook G4/800 specification, which
denoted a longer (5-7 day) waiting time. While these 'Books are more 'BTO' than
off-the-shelf 667s and 800s, it's probably the case that Apple is no longer filling
these orders.
Soecs of the rumored new Books are anyone's guess, but it's likely that Apple will
stop short of endowing the iBook with a G3 CPU with a higher clock speed than any PB
G4 (although it's worth noting that when Apple put a 466MHz CPU in the iBook alongside
the 400MHz Pismo, relativelu few of the 'Paris iBooks' actually sold. All Apple sales
tanked in the final two quarters of 2000).
The point is, there's no evidence that buyers don't understand the difference between
the G3 and G4, just as people know there's 'some' difference between the
heavily-marketed Pentium and its lesser cousin, the Celeron. A 900MHz or 1GHz G3 in
the iBook wouldn't hurt at all, so long as there's a 1GHz G4 PowerBook as well. After
all, Apple sold the 500MHz G3 iBook alongside the 500MHz TiBook for quite some months.
An iBook update is arguably more important than the TiBook for season sales, as iBook
has proven a mainstay in Apple's lineup, as iMac LCDs have peaked and troughed, and
Power Mac and TiBook sales have tanked. While not wanting to cannibalize PowerBook
sales, Apple needs to make the iBook a bit quicker and rev the spec: 1GB memory
capacity would be good; a 16x CDRW should be the minimum speed (8x doesn't cut it
anymore); and DVD (not CD, except on BTO as a delete option) should be stock standard.
The much-rumored 13" display - which should just fit inside the 12" iBook's bezel (but
add to weight, probably) - would also be a smart move.
Can you hold on 'til Tuesday? All will be revealed (or not).
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