Mac Users? 23" display and laptop question

[AlexanderR]

Hello.

I shoot with a VC Bessa R3A and an old Minolat XG-1 in addition to some DSLR gear. I have a question regarding the use of a 23" Cinema Display with a Mac Powerbook G4 (17" 1.33Ghz) or a MacBook Core 2 Duo 2.0Ghz. I already own both of these laptops, so this isn't a question of which to buy.

Are any of you using that setup and which do you think would run better. I'm thinking of using dual display setup with external keyboard and a Wacom tablet (which I already have).

I'd really like a larger display, but I don't want to buy another computer or Mac Pro to go with it.

Thanks.

 

[Edward Felcher]

I believe that the internal video memory of those laptops is not enough to drive the 23" Cinema Display. You better check the Apple website for specs.

 

[colyn]

Both should work fine but since the Mac Book has more ram it stands to reason it will handle large files better. I would however max it out with ram if you plan to work with very large files.

My personal favorite though is the Power Mac with 20inch.

 

[AlexanderR]

I've checked the specs and both computers are capable of driving the 23" Cinema Display--according to Apple. The G4 Powerbook needs a DVI adapter, but that's it.

Both Machines max out at 2GB of Ram and I think the G4 has 128MB of video ram while the MacBook has shared video memory...

Just wondering if anyones got 'real world experience' with a set up like this.

thanks.

 

[colyn]

Just wondering if anyones got 'real world experience' with a set up like this.

thanks.

I've not tried it on my Mac Book Pro but the local Apple seller here has a Mac Book Pro set up with the cinema display and it looks like it works fine to me..

 

[AlexanderR]

There's an Apple store in town. I think I might just have to take my MacBook and/or Powerbook up there and see how well they do with the 23" hooked up to them. It won't really tell me how much the fan will run or how taxed the computers will be after two or three hours "in the darkroom"...

My film scans (16bit on an Epson 5400) are about 200MB at max resolution. The powerbook handles them fine with just its own display. Although it does slow down some.

I'll post findings if I go that route.

 

[Revelatio]

I'm using a Core Duo 2.16Ghz, 2GB Ram MBP, X1600 256MB with the 23' ACD. Works superb.

 

[JuJu]

I am running exactly the same setup.
The 23" display doesn't slow it down.
All you need is the mini DVI to DVI adapter. ( oh, and the display, too )
If you use aperture, you can setup split screens, pretty cool!

There's 1.33 ghz PowerBook in a briefcase under the desk.
It's sad that a $3000 laptop is not as fast as my cheapo MacBook.
One more thing, max your memory to 2GB, it helps.

Cheers.

Ju

 

[AlexanderR]

Thanks! The picture helps.

I'll definitely max my Ram on the MacBook. I thought it would work, but I really want some assurance from someone with a similar set up before I dropped nearly a grand on the display.

Sadly enough, the Powerbook G4, which has been my main machine for 4 years will probably get relegated to internet/music station. Still works like a champ though!

 

[JuJu]

No problem.
Yeah, I still love my 17" PowerBook although I am not using it much these days.
It paid for itself already and also my rent, m7, food, coffee and some lenses 😀

do you think Intel MacBook's display is bright? (comparing to PowerBook)
Wait til you turn up your 23" display's brightness... It'll burn your retina.
I'm always on 1/3 of brightness with 23" and max on my PowerBook.

Oh, I got my 2gb rams from Cricial for $95 (including tax and shipping)
Thought you might in the market for that...

 

[AlexanderR]

I went to the Apple store today and hooked the MacBook up to a 23" ACD. Stunning. I opened PSCS2 and some film scans in the 200MB file size range and was very impressed with the looks on the 23" ACD. I wasn't impressed with how slow my machine was running with dual displays and huge files.

Granted, I only have 1GB of ram right now, but I don't think an extra 1GB will make a huge difference. Unfortunately, all of my film scans will probably be over 100MB in size and that's just a huge memory hog--wait until there are a couple of layers in the working file!

I think I'll just wait a while and buy a Mac Pro tower and a display later this year or sometime next year.

Thanks for all the info.