iBook Performance With CS2

TH
Posted By
Tom_Hanser
Feb 4, 2007
Views
276
Replies
7
Status
Closed
I’m considering the purchase of a used Apple iBook G4 1.0GHz 512MB, but I’m wondering how this machine will perform with PhotoShop CS2.

I primarily want to use this laptop on location to capture from a digital camera, and occasionally open RAW files in PhotoShop. The main drive is 30 Gb, so it’s plenty big enough to hold the camera files.

My concern is not enough RAM, and I’m not sure you can add all that much RAM to this machine – the Apple site indicates 640 Mb maximum.

If I launch PS CS2 on my Mac G4 desktop running OS X 10.4 Tiger, I’m using up 408 Mb of RAM, with no files open (I’m looking at the OS X Activity Monitor). That doesn’t leave much RAM for images.

Can anyone comment on how this particular machine might handle digital image capture, and opening up one or two files at a time in PS CS2?

I don’t want to regret making the wrong purchase, and of course I don’t have the budget for a newer PowerBook.

I see a lot of used 1 Ghz iBooks advertised, and many of them only come with 256 Mb of RAM. What can you do with that little RAM? I can’t see how the OS will even launch with 256 Mb RAM.

Any comments? Any experience with running PS CS2 on a Mac laptop?

Thanks!
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R
Ram
Feb 4, 2007
Any comments?

Forget that machine.

Photoshop CS2 can be run on an adequate laptop. But the one you mention will do you no good.
B
Buko
Feb 4, 2007
I have a 14" ibook G4 1.33MHz with 756MB RAM.

Its OK. I mainly use it for surfing and email. I also take it on shoots and use it to download my flash cards and browse images in Bridge.

if I had to work in Photoshop on it I would go crazy.
TH
Tom_Hanser
Feb 4, 2007
Hmm…

Not exactly optimistic responses, but this is what I wanted!

A 1 Ghz or better processor, with 756 Mb RAM? What do people use for laptops anymore, to shoot tethered to a camera?

Thanks!
AW
Allen_Wicks
Feb 4, 2007
A 1 GHz or better processor, with 756 Mb RAM?

Laptops have always been limiting and low end laptops very limiting. G4 technology was superseded by G5 and then by MacIntel. You are suggesting using a way outdated low end laptop for usage with modern heavy graphics workflow. Bad idea.

What do people use for laptops anymore, to shoot tethered to a camera?

Folks use fully loaded modern Macbook Pros. Mine is a 17" C2Duo with 3 GB RAM.

PSCS2 ran adequately on my 1.67 GHz G4 PB with 1.5 GB of RAM and the optional VRAM upgrade. Personally I would not want to run PSCS on much less than that.
R
Ram
Feb 4, 2007
fully loaded modern Macbook Pros. Mine is a 17" C2Duo with 3 GB RAM.

Now you’re talking! 🙂
AW
Allen_Wicks
Feb 4, 2007
I would also disagree with:

The main drive is 30 Gb, so it’s plenty big enough to hold the camera files.

In additon to the (IMO critical) unresolvable flaw of limited RAM in an old laptop, just having 30 GB of mass storage available will very likely prove untenable. Images fill hard drives really fast, and you need hard drive space for PS Scratch and OS SWAP files as well as simple storage. And the hard drive slows as it fills past half full.
KJ
Kathryn_Jenkins
Feb 7, 2007
Another vote to forget about that old iBook. Not enough RAM, tiny hard drive: even very limited use of Photoshop would be very painful. If it is a dinky 12" model, don’t consider it for even a single second.

I see a lot of used 1 Ghz iBooks advertised, and many of them only come with 256 Mb of RAM. What can you do with that little RAM? I can’t see how the OS will even launch with 256 Mb RAM.

256MB is about enough to let you boot up. Forget about doing any work with it. Also, given that laptops are a lot more fragile than desktop models, I personally would not buy a used laptop unless I knew the seller very well and completely trusted him or her (meaning that they could be trusted to behave ethically and honestly and that they could be trusted to take proper care of a laptop).

If you must have a G4 iBook (it does have a much better keyboard than the disappointing MacBooks), consider getting the refurb 1.42 GHz 14" refurb at the Apple Store. However, in my opinion, they are severely overpriced at $999.

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