iMac Beats Dell XPS One on Price and Features
- From: Chance Furlong <t-bone@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Wed, 06 Aug 2008 17:58:26 -0500
From Low End Mac:
http://www.lowendmac.com/ed/kitchens/08kk/imac-vs-dell-xps-one.html
Cuss and discuss.
iMac Beats Dell XPS One on Price and Features
Kev Kitchens - 2008.08.06
In the past, Apple's mainstream desktop model, the iMac, has been
denigrated by the PC community as more expensive than models from
companies such as Dell with comparable specs. However, none of these
comparisons were really fair, as only Apple offered a model that
combined the LCD panel with the computer, a design that Apple has used
since the inception of the iMac G5.
Now one of the top desktop vendors worldwide, Dell, offers an all-in-one
similar in design and specifications to the iMac. After analyzing the
product selection, I have reached an interesting conclusion: Apple
offers more value and a more diverse line up than Dell if you compare
(no pun intended) apples to apples.
Dude, You're Overpaying for a Dell!
Dell's all in one desktop is known as the XPS One. The base model costs
$1,299, $100 more than the base iMac, and it lacks in several areas. For
instance, Dell, oddly enough, has chosen not to reveal the speed of the
processors in this line up. Some people might be fine with this lack of
information, but many users are not willing to play Russian roulette
with their hardware specs.
A quick search reveals that the E4500 used in the base model runs at 2.2
GHz on an 800 MHz system bus with a 667 MHz memory bus. Since the memory
bus speed is the same in all the models, I would conjecture that the
E6550 is just a faster version of the E4500. Also, these bus speeds fall
short, since they are the same as the previous iMac revision, which was
discontinued in April.
The graphics systems also fall short compared to the iMac's. The lower
two models come with vampire graphics, the same chipset used on the
MacBook. The upper two selections almost match the base iMac's graphics,
but they are the slower non XT model (the iMac's Mobility Radeon HD 2400
XT graphics are equivalent to the desktop HD 2400). The only way to lose
the speed suckers is to pay at least $1,439 (after $300 of instant
discounts).
Semi-related to the graphics is the screen size. No matter how much you
pay, you get a 20" screen.
I must give the advantage to the XPS One in a few areas though. All
selections come with a wireless keyboard and mouse, an integrated
analog/digital TV tuner, and 2 GB of RAM. Also, the most expensive model
includes a Blu-ray drive, something that no Mac currently offers.
One area that I believe matters almost as much as the specifications of
the computer is the purchase process. Dell requires you to click through
several pages of "customization," most of which have one choice that
can't be changed. The pages that can be changed have large numbers of
extra products that you can opt to tack on to your order.
Also, the operating system offerings are chosen quite strangely. The
cheapest and the two more expensive models are stuck with Vista Home
Premium. The second most expensive model is the only one that comes with
Vista Ultimate, a strange omission for the higher-ups. It seems to be
related to the fact that it is also the only (PRODUCT) RED branded model.
Simplicity and Selection Beat Confusion
Apple's iMac line not only starts at a lower price, but it offers
powerful features that are only found on the more expensive of Dell's
offerings.
But the one thing a price and features analysis completely ignores and
that completely tips the scale in the iMac's favor is Apple itself. By
buying a Mac, the user gets a much more secure, stable, and
user-friendly operating system. Additionally, when problems crop up, the
user can rely on the Genius Bar, Apple's online support database, and
telephone support people who speak with an accent you can actually
understand. (I once had a Dell support person with a heavy accent try to
tell me his name was John Smith. When I expressed my doubt as to the
veracity of this statement, he admitted I had caught him in a lie.) Macs
also depreciate more slowly due to their longer life span, and when
parts do break, it is usually easy to find a replacement.
.
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