The Mac Observer: AAPLTalk System Shootouts - US$1,800 Desktop System Shootout

	DATES CONFIGURED: 2/04/03 - 2/08/03 Must include: CD-RW, DVD-/+RW, and 17"+ digital LCD READ THESE IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERS & EXPLANATIONS BEFORE PROCEEDING!!!
All images and logos are copyright 2001 to the respective companies listed.

Company

Apple

Dell

HP/Compaq

Gateway

Sony

17" iMac Flat-Panel

Dimension 8250

Presario 8000

700S

VAIO RZ-22G

Design/ Styling:

"Lamp"-style / White

Black Tower

Platinum Tower

VAIO Styling Tower

Mobility:

All-in-one design
23 lbs. total

(all PC systems listed range from appx. 40-50 lbs. including tower + flat-panel display + speakers)

Component Access?

Quick access to memory & wireless cards

(all PC systems listed have thumb-screw or other relatively easy access for panel removal & component access)

Cords/Cables:

6 cables/cords

(all PC systems listed require appx. 10 cables/cords total,
including tower, display, modem, speakers, keyboard, mouse & microphone)

Desk space Used:

88 sq. inches

(all PC systems range from appx. 260 - 300 square inches
including tower + flat-panel display + speakers)

Noise Volume:

Ultraquiet Fan

Loud (full-size cooling fans)

Energy Use:

130 Watts total
appx. $24 / year

(all PC systems range from appx. 300 - 400 watts of electricity total
including tower + flat-panel display + speakers; appx. $50-70/year in electric bills)

Processor:
Rating Notes

1.5 GHz P4
1.0 GHz G4

2.4 GHz P4
2.4 GHz Pentium 4

2.53 GHz P4
2.53 GHz Pentium 4

2.4 GHz P4
2.4 GHz Pentium 4

L1 Cache:

64k

32k

L2 Cache:

256K on-chip

512K on-chip

L3 Cache:

Memory Type:

DDR PC2100

RDRAM PC1066

DDR PC2700

RDRAM PC800

DDR PC2700

Frontside Bus:

133 MHz bus

533 MHz bus

Memory Amount:

256 MB (1 DIMM)

256 MB (2 DIMM)

256 MB (1 DIMM)

512 MB (2 DIMM)

Max RAM:

1.0 GB (2 slots)

1.5 GB (3 slots)

1.0 GB (2 slots)

2.0 GB (4 slots)

1.0 GB (2 slots)

Hard Drive Capacity:

80 GB

120 GB

60 GB

120 GB

80 GB

Hard Drive Type:

Ultra ATA 100

Hard Drive Speed:

7200 RPM

CD-ROM:

32x CD

40x CD

48x CD

24x CD (?)

40x CD

CD-RW:

16x8x CD-RW

16x10x CD-RW

12x10x CD-RW

8x4x CD-RW (?)

16x10x CD-RW

DVD-ROM:

8x DVD

16x DVD

8x DVD

6x DVD (?)

2x DVD

DVD-/+RW:

4x2x DVD-RW

4x2.4x DVD+RW

2.4x2.4x DVD+RW

2x1x DVD-RW (?)

4x2x DVD-/+RW

Floppy Drive:

Yes

Zip/Other Drive:

Memory stick port

PCI/AGP Slots:

0 available / 1 total

2 / 5

2 / 6

3 / 6

1 / 4

Internal Bays:

0 available / 1 total

1 / 2 (?)

1 / 2

External Bays:

0 available / 1 total

1 / 4

1 / 3

3 / 4

0 / 3

Mouse Included:

USB Optical

USB Optical 2-button scroll wheel

PS/2 2-button
scroll wheel

USB Ports:
available = after keyboard & mouse

3 on CPU back
+ 2 on keyboard = 5 total
3 USB 1.1 available

6 on CPU back
+ 2 on front = 8 total
7 USB 2.0 available

4 on CPU back
+ 2 on front = 6 total
5 USB 2.0 available

4 on back (2 are USB2)
+ 2 on front = 6 total
5 available
(1 USB 1.1; 4 USB 2.0)

4 on CPU back
+ 2 on front = 6 total
6 USB 2.0 available

FireWire Ports:

2 @ 400 Mbps

2 @ 400 Mbps

1 @ 400 Mbps

2 @ 400 Mbps

Legacy Ports:

Legacy-free

1 Ser, 1 Par, 1 PS/2

Unknown (?)

1 Ser, 1 Par, 1 PS/2

1 Par.

Graphics Card:

nVIDIA
GeForce4 MX 440

nVIDIA
GeForce4 MX 420

ATI Radeon 9000

nVIDIA
GeForce4 MX 440

Video RAM:

64 MB DDR

128 MB DDR

64 MB DDR

VGA Out:

Yes

DVI/ADC Out:

DVI

DVI

S-Video Out:

Yes

Yes; TV-in (TV tuner)

TV-Out:

Yes

Yes; TV-in (TV tuner)

Dual Display Support?

(Mirroring)

No (?)

Display:

17" view. digital
widescreen LCD;
180° swing arm

17" viewable LCD
(digital but card only supports analog ?)

17" viewable LCD
digital

15" v. digital LCD
*(see below)

Native display res:

1440x900

1280x1024

1024x768
*(see below)

*Note: system configured with smaller LCD instead of reduction in RAM/lhard drive size/etc. due to
lack of customizable options on SonyStyle Web site; next tower down would have been inappropriate for this comparison.

Microphone/Line in:

Built-in microphone
Line-in jack

Line in jack / Microphone jack

Headphone/Line out:

Headphone jack; Line-out jack; Digital-audio ready

Speakers:

Harman Kardon stereo speakers

Harman Kardon HK-395 w/ Subwoofer

Platinum 2.0 stereo speakers

Boston Acoustics BA745 w/subwoofer

Stereo Speakers

10/100 Ethernet?

Yes

Gigabit Ethernet?

56k Modem?

Yes

Wi-Fi Card?

optional 802.11g
(54 Mbps)

optional 802.11b
(11 Mbps)

Bluetooth Card?

optional

Hardware Extras Included:

HP DeskJet 3820 printer
w/promotion

Included OS:

Mac OS X 10.2;
Mac OS 9 (via classic);
BSD Unix;
Apache Web Server

Windows XP
Home Edition

Windows/DOS Support:

DOS/95/98/ME/
2000/XP
(via Virtual PC)

DOS/95/98/ME/2000/NT/XP (Native)

Mac OS Support:

Mac OS 8,9,X
(Native)

Mac OS 8 only (via emulation)

Linux OS Support:

Various flavors (Native)

Unix OS Support:

Various flavors (Native)

Java 2 Support:

Native

(must be downloaded)

Save-as PDF Support:

Native (any file)

(requires 3rd-party app.)

Word Processor Included:

AppleWorks 6.2
(Word compatible)

Word XP

Works 6.0

Word XP

Works 7.0

Spreadsheet Software Included:

AppleWorks 6.2
(Excel compatible)

Works 6.0

Works 7.0

Presentation Software Included:

AppleWorks 6.2

Database Software Included:

AppleWorks 6.2

Works 6.0

Works 7.0

Drawing/Painting Software Included:

AppleWorks 6.2

Calendar/PIM Software Included:

iCal, iSync

Works 6.0

Works 7.0

Planning/Project Software Included:

Web Browser Included:

Internet Explorer 5.2

Internet Explorer 6

E-Mail/Address Book Included:

OS X Mail, OS X Address Book

Outlook Express 6

Media Player Included:

QuickTime 6
DVD Player
Media Player 7 avail.
RealOne Player avail.

Media Player 8;DVD Player;
QuickTime 6 avail.; RealOne Player avail.

QuickTime 6
Media Player 8
PowerDVD
RealOne Player

Financial Software Included:

Quicken 2003 Deluxe

Money 2002
TaxCut Deluxe

Money 2002
Quicken New Users

Money 2003
TurboTax Deluxe

Quicken 2002
Money 2003

Reference Software Included:

World Book OS X

Encarta 2002 Std.
Streets & Trips 2002

Encarta Online

Encarta 2003
Streets & Trips

Encarta Online

Digital Photo Management:

iPhoto 2

Image Expert
PictureIt! 2002

ArcSoft MyPhotoCenter

Picture It!

Photoshop Elements
Picture Gear

Digital Video Editing:

iMovie 3

Roxio Movie Creator

MovieMaker 2

Pinnacle Studio 8
Hollywood FX

DVGate
Adobe Premiere LE
MovieShaker

Music Software/
CD Burning Software:

iTunes 3, Disc Burner, Sound Studio

MusicMatch 6.0
EasyCD 5.0

Veritas RecordNow

EasyCD Creator

SonicStage
Veritas RecordNow

DVD Burning Software:

iDVD 3
Disc Burner

Roxio Movie Creator

Sonic MyDVD
Veritas RecordNow

EasyCD Creator
Pinnacle Studio 8

Click to DVD

Games Included:

Chess
Otto Matic
Deimos Rising

Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games

Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games
The Sims!

Age of Empires
Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games

Additional Software Included

FaxSTF
Palm Desktop
Asstd. system software

Asstd. system software

Smart Capture
Asstd. system software

Free ISP/Services:

1 month EarthLink

6 months Earthlink

1 year AOL

Virus/Security Issues:

45 known viruses

50,000+ known viruses (see FBI warning)

Built-in Firewall?

Yes

Warranty:

1 yr. ltd./mail-in
90 days phone

1 yr. ltd./at-home
1 yr. phone

1 yr. ltd./at-home
90 days phone

1 yr. ltd./at-home
1 yr. phone

1 yr. ltd./mail-in
90 days phone

Quality of Products & Service:
Consumer Affairs

"Good Guys"

"Rogues Gallery"

Navigation?

Easy

Fair

Easy

Fair

Customization Allowed?

Some

Full

None

Subotal:
(includes rebates, add-ons, etc.)

$1,799

$1,704

$1,140

$1,714

$1,800

+ Ground Shipping:

No Charge

$105

$70

$99

Free (ltd. time)

Total Price
as configured:
(Includes cost of all add-ons, rebates, etc.)

$1,799
tax not included

$1,809
tax not included

$1,810
tax not included

$1,813
tax not included

$1,800
tax not included

The information above is as accurate as I could make it based on a reasonable time studying the respective companies' Web sites. There is no guarantee that these configurations, prices, and features are the best that one could come up with; assorted bundles, free internet access, free extra memory, and so on can most likely be found for any of the above systems. The point of this chart is to demonstrate that Apple's lineup holds its own against any brand-name computer, even in areas in which it has traditionally had resistance. In short, do not base your purchasing decisions solely on this chart or information. Neither I, nor The Mac Observer will be held responsible or liable for any purchase decisions you make based on this presentation.

Charles Gaba started the AAPLTalk System Shootouts at AAPLTalk.com, and has brought them to TMO. Charles is the creative talent behind Brainwrap Web Design.

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