P2 Card and Mac Compatibility

David Saraceno

David Saraceno

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Staff member
Jan has indicated elsewhere that p2 cards can plug into the PCMCIA/PC Card slot of Mac PowerBooks to transfer files.

However, can you follow a similar process for a USB/Firewire reader of some sort for a Macintosh desktop G5?

I know there are SD, CF, etc. readers for the Macintosh, but do the 4 Gb P2 cards fit into any other those slots?

Any card readers that will work for the G5s Macs?
 
What powerbook do you have?

I have the new powerbook 12" and I don't think they have a PCMCIA/PC slot...I can be wrong. Is there one on the 15" and the 17"?
 
Yes. Apparently the 15" and 17" powerbooks do have PCMCIA. I have run across the same problem as I myself own a 12". I think I'll wait till after the new intel chip selection is announced before thinking about upgrading. I'll rely on hard drive dump off in the meantime.


I don't know of any PCMCIA readers for the G5 although I'm sure there are some out there. And its a standard so it should work with any PCMCIA device/reader.
 
Thanks guys....I guess I'll just patiently wait.

I just purchased the 12" powerbook for the Andromeda...so in your opinion, would you return it and get a 15" or 17" powerbook?

I bought if from apple...so I will have to cover the restocking fee....10%. However...the 15" and 17" powerbook doesn't seem to be any faster...1.67...is it worth it?

The only reason I would want it is for the PCMCIA slot....for the P2 card in the FUTURE. So having it upgradeable with newer features would be great...but is it worth it?

I guess maybe waiting for the MacTel powerbook would be better since I'll wait until the HVX200B comes out with flip LCD or whatever new features. To me...the HVX is great....just the P2 cards are expensive regarding $/storage ratio. I've finally caught up on my knowledge with the Firestore...but the FAT32 doesn't sound like a great option either. 40Gigs for $700 is expensive.

I'll wait again...for Firestore with other format options, HVX with flip LCD, Cheaper P2 cards with more storage (you know there will be a faster cheaper P2)...and the MacTel powerbook with more bells and whistles.

Let me know what you think....
 
i was set to purchase the 12" powerbook but upon further investigation, i realized it had no pcmcia slot. that convinced me the the 15" was the way to go. there maybe some external option of a usb pcmcia slot reader but nothing beats one that is already built in. there will be a lot of stuff i'll be carrying around already so the less i need to bring, the better. my $.02...
 
Jun
Although you could stream directly to the 12 inch Yes?

I was thinking of mounting a 12 to the front of my steadicam vest to stream to
(plus you have a monitor)

I wonder if you could flip the image as you were Capturing?

...maybe I am just going nuts waiting
 
Hey Benton,

were those questions or suggestions...?

Streaming footage from the andromeda to the 12" works.

Mounting it on front of steadicam will make it very difficult to operate both...I think.

Can you flip the image when capturing....in Sculptor you can. If you are referring to a 35mm adapter.
 
Ah Yes.
andromeda & sculptor ...I am not to familiar with them.
You can stream from the HVX into the Powerbook just using Final Cut
(I wondered about flipping the image - for the 35 mm- in the Log & Capture)

The Vest with a 12 PB (or a smaller intel Powerbook) is actually quite nice, believe it or not. I have to do some more tests
J
 
Also a good thing to remember is that the 15-inch Powerbook has a 1440x960 display (excellent btw), so it shows 720p in native resolution. The 12-inch has only 1024x768 which forces resizing.

I got the new 15-inch PB back in october when they released the new ones with better displays, and I couldn't be happier with it. With 2 gigs of memory it edits DVCPRO-HD in both 720p and 1080i as fast as DV. So it's also good for editing in the field.
 
make sure you change the drive from 120gig standard to the 100gig faster 7200rpm option
 
Barra said:
make sure you change the drive from 120gig standard to the 100gig faster 7200rpm option
Click to expand...

I plan on getting a mac lap top. My question is, which is the best (either bang 4 the buck, or simply 'the best') right now?

Also, when are the new mac lap tops going to hit the street?

Thanks everyone... And Merry Christmas!

john
 
As far as I know there is no official announcement been made on their release or specs. However I have heard rumbling that they may be on the streets sometime this spring or early summer. Once again no official info. that I know of at least so anything is else is probably speculation.
 
The Machinist said:
As far as I know there is no official announcement been made on their release or specs. However I have heard rumbling that they may be on the streets sometime this spring or early summer. Once again no official info. that I know of at least so anything is else is probably speculation.
Click to expand...

So waiting for the new mac laptop is probably not needed (assuming I can get my hands on the HVX)?

Am I right thinking that there only a couple of Mac lap tops that have a 7200 rpm hard drive?

I've never owned a lap top, and really don't know much about them. What's a fair price for a 17" 7200 lap top?
Thanks again, John
 
Every rumor I've heard is that the new Intel-based powerbooks are due to be introduced in January. If I were in the market for a PowerBook, there's no way I'd buy one right now, until after the January announcements.
 
Barry_Green said:
Every rumor I've heard is that the new Intel-based powerbooks are due to be introduced in January. If I were in the market for a PowerBook, there's no way I'd buy one right now, until after the January announcements.
Click to expand...

Thanks Barry! john
 
As I understand it, Apple has just posted FCP 5.0.4 available through Software Update with compatibility for the HVX200 and P2.
 
jdv said:
Am I right thinking that there only a couple of Mac lap tops that have a 7200 rpm hard drive?

I've never owned a lap top, and really don't know much about them. What's a fair price for a 17" 7200 lap top?
Thanks again, John
Click to expand...

John:

Only the 15" and 17" PowerBooks have a 7200 rpm hard drive, which is an upgrade. The standard hard drive is 5400 rpm.

Here's a website that might shed some light on the new lap tops. http://www.macrumors.com/

According to the website, only the iBooks are coming out with new specs. New PowerBooks are speculated to come out later.
 
jdv said:
I've never owned a lap top, and really don't know much about them. What's a fair price for a 17" 7200 lap top?
Thanks again, John
Click to expand...

If you go to Apple's website http://www.apple.com/ then the "store" link. In the bottom right hand corner, there's a link called "Special Deals". They're selling refurbished 17" PowerBooks for $1799. However, the link doesn't indicate if the hard drive is 7200 rpm or not. Perhaps, you can call Apple and find out. Hope it helps.
 
Filmcrazy -

Thanks man... Never had a powerbook, so a litttle skittish about spending so much money - BUT, it does look a like a practical workaround to the high P2 card prices...

John
 
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