http://www.geardigest.com/2007/09/ [...] index.html
 
I use both Windows and Macintosh computers. I'm ready to make an investment in a high-end machine this year, and what I see in the new Macs will be the single most-important factor in deciding what to buy.

Whats up with the windows vista bash?
 
Whats wrong with vista's memory mangement? instead of having the ram just sitting around doing nothing, vista preloads applications you use, and when you run them they load nearly instantly. I see no problems with the way it manages memory

This has got to be the best article on THG ever! Even besting out the classic mind-bogglers back in the day when THG's rocket scientists were the only upright non-commies on the net fighting for the truth about the superiority of the Pentium 4.
 
The author of this article is a true hero who belongs into that very same band of brothers.
 
I too hate 1x Gig RAM configurations. I want 2x 512 MB configs to make use of the raw power that is dual channel. No way am I gonna miss out on 3% performance just because Apple is cheap. And if you want to upgrade to 2 gig, just buy TWO new 1-Gig-sticks and make a fortune selling the 512-MB-sticks on ebay!!!
 
And what's up with the soldered on graphics in the iMac, not to speak of the Mini using integrated graphics. Given the abundant space in both these machines, I think Apple should just equip them with a standard PCI-Express slot and give the consumer the choice! If they used a standard ATX-board and cut the proprietary bull we could even use SLI!
But while they're using cheap-*** notebook technology, the least they could do is offer both ATI and nVidia! The easiest way to do this is have the robot solder on a Radeon and a GeForce chip alternatingly. This gives the tech savvy consumer back the power of choice he has come to love in his Macs.
 
The biggest insult of them all of course is the single optical drive in the Mac Pro. Only girls get by with one, everybody knows that. At a price of almost 2.000$, no-one should be forced to shell out another whopping 35$ for that inevitable second dvd-burner to achieve basic funtionality.
 
I'm not gonna buy a Mac either!
 
Tomorrow, I'm gonna take a long hard look at the product line-ups of Dell or Sony, and I'm gonna write a long hard essay about what's wrong with these companies, because that's what it's all about, isn't it? Being a monster bitch.  
I don't wanna spoil anything beforehand, but it goes unsaid that I'm not pleased how Sony locks you in with these tiny 11.1"-screens in their 11.1"-laptops.

Remember that mac pro is over a year old and the 7300 did not look that bad back then and apple may be waiting for the next Intel chip set to update the mac pro.
 
 
Also the new imacs use MXM cards with a EFI bios.

I just ordered a new computer on newegg for 2300, 2x2gigs ocz ddr800, q6600, 8800gtx + 2x320gig 7200rpm, 1x150 10000rpm.  I'm going to install linux on one of the 320 gig drives before I even build the thing and just stick the drive in and boot all the way in to a working install.  My performance will toast the mac that costs the same price.  Heck it would probably compete with a mac system twice its price once I OC it....
 
Mac is failing bigtime.  Sure, they are used mostly in schools, but even that is changing.  Their window manager is pants and despite jobs apparent dislike for buttons his OS supports an extremely sloppy and cluttered work environment.  They look sleek and stylish on the outside and that is what their owners want to look like too, but once you take the cover off you find a mess.

From the article...

 
Well yeah….  Ya think maybe that’s why they changed the company name from Apple Computer Inc. to Apple Inc.?

The title of this article implies that a comparison in performance between the 3 different models of apple computers will be included.  Which apple should you buy?  Instead, it points out various flaws and strengths of each model and doesn't do an apples to apples comparison (for example:  How quickly the Mac Mini, iMac or Mac Pro can render the same 20 minute video).  
 
In the conclusion, the article states a PC should be purchased instead.  This conclusion does not include any reference as to the ease of use of a Mac for various Sound or Video editing compared to a PC, or the cost of buying editing software for a PC compared to the included iLife software on the Mac. It only focuses on the cost of the rather outdated hardware on the Mac.  Boo on this article!    
 
The title should just read "Why Apple Computers Suck. Buy PC."

 
hmm... I just read it and it DOES reference the very nice mac OS. I thought he did very well saying that the software is worth something. I just felt his point was that for the price on the default configs that sweet software might just tank the system if you use it like a pro, as the "pro" in the name suggests you should.
 
also, with the HUGE premium on that old hardware, I could buy full versions of photoshop and other apps after my beefier PC purchase and STILL have cash leftover.
 
but maybe that was the point?
 
 
 
I thought it was a very well conceived and thought-out argument without getting too technical for the apple-ites that simply don't know or care about benchmarks as much as "hey, I have a mac".
 
oh, and I loved the object lesson on how far the have fallen. That chart is perfect. lol.

I used to have some respect for Apple, however as has been stated, they've fallen very far from their primary technology base and instead focus mainly on IPod glitter .  Their laptops are still very well built if they could just get the underlaying hardware up to speed.  Their primary focus on IPod may be their death toll if they don't refocus their efforts back on Mac or some new platform technology.

honestly, I don't think this is a funeral dirge at all. Apple will not die b/c of this, they just won't expand their computer market share at all... and may even shrink it... but they won't die.
 
There has always been a massive premium for inferior hardware with a mac. That is par for the course. In the past however, while the video card may be a gen behind it is still near the top. Or The subsystems are still solid even if a tick or two slower. Single channel ram and a sub-mainstream past-gen card is NOT just a tick or two slower.
 
but they are snooty and elitist enough to still believe that it is better no matter what the charts say...
 
...plus, that ipod will continue to make them boatloads of cash. They are not gonna die any time soon.
 

 
I wonder if the author knows that Apple recently officially dropped the word "Computers" from their corporate name (ie going from Apple Computers to just Apple)
 
That says it all.

funny thing that I'm planning to buy a Mac in the near future, then I saw this article.  I played with a few Linux distros and my main machine is a PC (Windows Vista) because of gaming. I never used a Mac in my life except when poking around on apple stores. Im not gonna buy a Mac Pro because its too much money, I came down with the Mac Mini and the iMac what should I buy? and Should I wait for Leopard? thanks.

I just can't believe that they charge $600 for a 20" monitor.

a 20" monitor that has no adjustments w/o the proprietary mac controls no less.

 
And YOU don't think that that had alot to do with their lawsuit with APPLE music (aka Apple Corps), and the agreement of what they could call themselves before they settled it once again with a ton of coin? They probably weren't allowed to call themselves Apple Inc, prior to the Feb 2007 agreement.
 
Who wants to be ABC widgets Inc, when they can just be the one and only ABC inc and not have to create divisions for each target market/segment/industry?
 
It just so happens that Apple is doing a little more outside the computer realm, but it's not like they're becoming IKEA or CVS pharmacy or something, in addition to their PC market, they are selling small portable computers to play music/videos, and a slightly larger computer with phone features, and then computer software to run all those and that acts as a storefront for other people's music.
 
When and if Apple produces it's own music/video or goes beyond the realms of electronics, then I would agree, but pretty much everything they produce right now either is, or requires/supports a computer.

 
Exactly, and as for ease of use, ease of use for whom? the Luddites, I betcha they'd be happier with quick and easy LViewPro for 'ease of use', but then again it's limited compared to iphoto, which is limited compared to apperture, which is limited compared to photoshop. But those of us who grew up with both and used Adobe software on both know that 'ease of use' isn't the only focus for people here who may have been doing it for years.
 

 
Yes and as much as I agree with the article, and the reality-distortion field aspect of alot of its (the article)'s critics as you point out, though I also see a role for many of apple's products and recommend them to others, but not because their hardware is any good, but because their software (OSX or iTunes) is what really makes their hardware worth anything to the people who really see a PC as another appliance in their home like a VCR or Microwave, where matching the other stainless steel appliances or silver / black HIFI components matters as much as the utility. This is just a reality of their market and not a laudable aspect though.
 
I think Apples are perfect for all my friends at work who barely know enough about computers to do their daily job, but for most people here they aren't worth the additonal cost.

 
 
The cost falls out of the equation. While iLife is 'free' the basic hardware cost compared to an equivalent PC is higher, so you are still paying for that 'free' software. Add this - I don't know anyone who professionally edits video, sound, or pictures using the basic iLife apps - they get the professional grade tools. So you either have the cost of pro tools on top of an already over the top hardware cost, or you pay just over the top hardware prices for basic iLife functionality - useful consumer grade tools true, but ones not hard to acquire for a small cost on a Windows or Linux platform.
 
So what it boils down to is either you treat these as remarkably overpriced consumer grade systems or woefully inadequate professional systems.

 
So the iLife software is how expensive, and then compare it to the $99 copy of Phtoshop and Premier Elements you could've bought 1-2 years ago? Each time you buy the MAC that 'free' software is added, whereas I've had some software tools like Cool-edit (and it's free Audition replacement/upgrade) for about almost a decade. And if I buy another PC I don't need to pay the full price each time.
 
And that doesn't begin to compare the number of freeware and shareware apps/plugins which far outnumber those for MAC.