2003-02-04 09:37 ☼ post
I’ve had my heart set on a 12.1″ PowerBook G4 since it was announced. Unfortunately for me our budget is fairly tight at the moment with a new puppy (this morning I learned just how expensive a simple bladder infection can be when it requires a trip to the emergency vetrinary clinic) so I’ve been constantly adjusting the various build to order options at the apple store and weighing my options as part of that process. I’ve swayed back on forth on RAM, storage space, and wireless networking, but I was always pretty sure that I wanted to get the SuperDrive enabled model.
Today John Manzione wrote a helpful column on the state of DVD-R/CD-R technology and convinced me to save the extra $200. Here’s the kicker for me: the Super Drive in the 12.1″ G4 is 1x for DVD burning and 8x for CD-R burning, while the Combo Drive in 12.1″ doesn’t have DVD burning, but is 24X for CD-R burning. Considering that I burn CDs far more frequently than I will ever burn DVDs and faster external DVD burners are likely to show up within the next year or two at the $200 price point anyway it seems logical to save my money now.