Skip to main content

Apple Unveils New PowerBook G4s

Apple today, in yet another press conference focused on new products, unveiled updates to their PowerBook G4 line of notebook computers. Three models – a 12” screen ($1,499), a 15” screen ($1,999) and a 17” screen ($2,499) – are available now through Apple’s website, Apple stores and resellers.

Chief among the features on these new PowerBook G4s are higher resolution displays and longer battery life. The 17-inch PowerBook comes with a 1680-by-1050 pixel resolution — 36 percent more than the previous generation — and the 15-inch PowerBook with a 1440-by-960 pixel resolution — 26 percent more than the previous generation. The 15 and 17 inch models also have brighter displays. The 17 inch for example, said Apple, is up to 46 percent brighter then previous models.

As far as battery life goes, Apple said the 15 and 17 inch PowerBooks each provide up to an additional hour of rechargeable battery life. Other features include ATI Mobility Radeon 9700 graphics with 128MB DDR dedicated video memory (15 and 17 inch models), built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR (Enhanced Data Rate), integrated 802.11g WiFi wireless networking, a scrolling track pad, Mac OS X version 10.4 “Tiger” and iLife ’05, a suite of digital lifestyle applications.

“The Apple PowerBook continues to deliver the ultimate in portability, performance and innovative features,” said Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. “Our mobile customers are going to love working on the new high-resolution PowerBook displays and appreciate the added productivity that one more hour of battery life delivers.”

Topics
Digital Trends Staff
Digital Trends has a simple mission: to help readers easily understand how tech affects the way they live. We are your…
There’s great news if you want to buy Apple’s 15-inch MacBook Air
Apple's John Ternus stands next to an image of the 15-inch MacBook Air at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in June 2023.

When Apple launched the 15-inch MacBook Air at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), it seemed like there wasn’t too much separating it from its 13-inch sibling. Yet a new set of tests has shown that the larger model pulls ahead in some key ways, making it a much more attractive purchase if you want maximum performance in a slimline laptop.

The testing was conducted by YouTuber Max Tech, who pitted the 15-inch MacBook Air against Apple’s smaller 13-inch version. Both laptops had the M2 chip and 256GB of storage, so you might think the only difference would be found in the size of the displays. Yet that’s not how the testing played out at all.

Read more
The 15-inch MacBook Air repeats one of Apple’s worst mistakes
15-inch MacBook Air shown at WWDC 2023.

The 15-inch MacBook Air may be a new chapter for Apple’s thin and light laptop, but it seems to be repeating a disappointing mistake that we’ve seen way too often in the company’s products. If you want to configure it with the fastest SSD possible without breaking the bank, we’ve got some bad news.

According to a video posted by the tech YouTubers at Max Tech, the base model of the 15-inch MacBook Air only comes with a single NAND chip for its onboard SSD storage, rather than the two chips used in the past. It’s a regrettable decision that nevertheless mirrors practically every other Mac that Apple has released recently.

Read more
Apple’s next MacBook Air could be a huge step forward
Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air on a desk, with macOS Sonoma running on its display.

Before Apple revealed the 15-inch MacBook Air at its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), there was plenty of speculation over what chip would power the device. Unfortunately, we now know it won’t come with a next-generation chip -- but we might not have to wait long before that changes.

That’s because Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman claims Apple is already working on a new version of the 15-inch MacBook Air that will be kitted out with an M3 chip. We could see this new model as soon as 2024, Gurman’s report says.

Read more