To iBook Or Not To iBook?

And a common question it is, considering that I have an old and faithful 500 MHz iBook G3, bought four years ago this month. Also, I have been bitten badly by the new computer bug (gotta have one!) – a most common ailment for MacWorld attendees.

I have gotten great use out of my rocksteady, trusty and faithful iBook G3, but those bright and shiny new G4 iBooks are a lot faster – 1.33 GHz to 1.42 GHz.

Of course I am talking about the latest iBook with a 12″ screen, and a real bargain at $999. It even comes with the latest Tiger OS X, iLife, and a slot loading ComboDrive (CD-RW/DVD).

There are no processor upgrades for my current iBook G3 since the processor is soldered to the motherboard, so selling it for $500 on eBay and spending the difference ($500) for the iBook G4 seems to be the best solution, since I could likely spend that much on an upgrade anyway, if there were one to buy.

You would think this is a no-brainer, right?

But the Question remains: To iBook or not to iBook?

Why? Because I have seen the new MacBook Pro – 1.67 GHz to 1.83 GHz Intel Dual Core, 15.4″ screen, with SuperDrive (CD/DVD-RW), iLife ’06, and a built-in iSight camera.

Of course, this new MacBook Pro Duo is $1999, at twice the price of the latest iBook G4, and three times what I have to spend on upgrading from my current iBook G3.

Ah, but Steve Jobs promised to upgrade the entire Mac line to Intel this year. He did. I personnally heard him say so last week at the Keynote at MacWorld, 2006.

That means that if i wait a bit longer, there will be a cheaper and faster MacBook waiting for me, instead of the newest and latest iBook G4.

In my opinion, at that time, there will be no more iBooks at all. That line of Mac laptops will be gone. Perhaps there will be no more PowerBooks either. And why should there be?

Instead, there will only be MacBooks.

The MacBook Solo that replaces the current iBook G4s will have Intel Core Solo CPUs, running at the same speed (1.67 GHz to 1.83 GHz) as the current MacBook Duos with the dual core processors, but the Intel Processor in the new MacBook Solo will be Core Solo instead of Core Duo. Yeah, it will be a bit faster than the current iBook G4s, but only a bit.

And perhaps it is all wishful thinking on my part, but I have the gut feeling that Apple will make it cheaper too. I am counting on the MacBook replacement for the iBook to cost around $800, sans an iSight and a SuperDrive.

Then, my choice will be obvious. Sell my trusty old iBook G3 and buy a new MacBook Solo for $799, with a 12″ screen, iLife ’06, and a ComboDrive.

Then, I will not be wringing my hands in lament over the fact that I quickly bought a new iBook G4, when I could have waited a few weeks (or months) for a much faster and cheaper new MacBook Solo.

(But, but, . . . what about the 14″ iBooks, and the 12″ and 17″ PowerBooks? Won’t there be MacBook replacements for those too? Sorry, I am not privey to Apple’s plans here. However, it stands to reason that there may also be appropriately priced and optioned 14″ MacBook Solos, and a 12′ and 17″ MacBook Duos, don’t you think? My fellow MyMac writers at MacWorld did note however, that everywhere they looked, 99% of the people at MacWorld who had laptops, had the 15″ PowerBooks – exactly the one Apple replaced with the new 15.4″ MacBook Pro.)