I think it looks like crap. A side/front USB port would be welcome, though...

It looks OK, not that good but I like the black more than the aluminum iMac. Reminds me of a ViewSonic LCD.

I would disagree for one reason. Any Windows system is designed by someone to use someone elses OS. Macs are designed from the ground up alongside the OS. The two are intigrated and function better together than any computer with someone elses OS scabbed on. That seems to me to be a critical factor of industrial design for computers. Mossberg even seems to suggest this when he prefers Apple's software over "your standard Windows fare". OS-X is the flagship of Apple Software after all.

Meh. It's a nice effort, but for sheer aesthetics it still looks kludgy to me. Personally I think Gateway's One is nicer looking. I have to give Dell points for including some features that can't be had on an iMac like the built in TV tuner and memory card reader. The backlit media controls seems like a nice touch, but looks poorly implemented: I wouldn't like having everything set up in one long line. Not my bag, baby.

They really should include the power brick in the photo, just to show everything you're getting for your money. I guess then it would be called POS 2.

heh, anybody remember how annoyed we all were a few months ago when the new iMacs came out and the video card options were underwhelming? The best video card you can get for this thing is a Mobility Radeon HD 2400. It makes the ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO in my iMac almost respectable by comparison for 3D tasks (I'm sure video playback performance is close enough). Add in a TV tuner with a completely unspecified feature set (what ports does it capture from, is it single or dual, is it ATSC/NTSC-is that what they mean by hybrid?-,etc) and I don't see the point. I'd much rather build a tower and pair it with a sleek new 24inch widescreen LCD if I wanted a new PC, and I could probably spec it similar to this for the same money or less, possibly better. You could make that argument about the iMac sure, but as Walt makes a point of noting in the last several paragraphs of this column there are reasons to own the iMac that have nothing to do with hardware.

Also, to anybody who uses a machine with built in SD/CF/etc slots, do you find you actually use them often? Pretty much all modern cameras connect via USB and are practically finished transferring in the same amount of time or less than it takes to fumble with removing the card from them and inserting into the computer, in my experience. The only thing I've ever needed a card reader for is my GBA Flash device, certainly not a very common item, and since over 50% of the population uses iPods (and many of the rest very basic non-expandable flash MP3 players) to play music you don't need them for that either. I know Walt has even more gadgets than I, given what he does for a living, so maybe he sees it differently, but I wonder if anybody here feels that way too.

All in all, this and the XPS towers do look like a major aesthetic step forward for Dell computers, which seems only natural since they did buy the only PC maker that ever did cooler looking machines than Apple on a semi-regular basis, Alienware. Maybe this will work better than the Daimler-Chrysler relationship did after all

The button to turn off the screen is HUGE. I have always wished my macs had one because it's royal PITA to not be able to do that.

I use my own speakers, the ones shown are ugly. Also, the all black thing is depressing and out of date.

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geoduck wrote:
It looks OK, not that good but I like the black more than the aluminum iMac. Reminds me of a ViewSonic LCD.

I would disagree for one reason. Any Windows system is designed by someone to use someone elses OS. Macs are designed from the ground up alongside the OS. The two are intigrated and function better together than any computer with someone elses OS scabbed on. That seems to me to be a critical factor of industrial design for computers. Mossberg even seems to suggest this when he prefers Apple's software over "your standard Windows fare". OS-X is the flagship of Apple Software after all.

Dell tends to sell Windows along with their computers, and I bet the Dell One was designed with that in mind. But Mossberg was specifically calling attention to the hardware, stating that the XPS One "matches or exceeds the iMac in hardware design." I'd have to see one up close before evaluating it in that sense.

Lipstick on a pig. The pig being Windows.

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DaiMac wrote:
Also, to anybody who uses a machine with built in SD/CF/etc slots, do you find you actually use them often?

All in all, this and the XPS towers do look like a major aesthetic step forward for Dell computers, which seems only natural since they did buy the only PC maker that ever did cooler looking machines than Apple on a semi-regular basis, Alienware.

A better question about the card reader might be, are there any real benefits for one of these? I'm not pining for one since I don't really use my camera that often, but I have to keep it turned on while I upload photos to my computer and it eats the hell out of the batteries. So having one built into the computer would amount to a nice little bonus, to me.

I have to disagree about Alienware computers. I've always thought those things were ridiculously tacky looking.

You've got a point about the graphics card.

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DaiMac wrote:
Also, to anybody who uses a machine with built in SD/CF/etc slots, do you find you actually use them often? Pretty much all modern cameras connect via USB and are practically finished transferring in the same amount of time or less than it takes to fumble with removing the card from them and inserting into the computer, in my experience. The only thing I've ever needed a card reader for is my GBA Flash device, certainly not a very common item, and since over 50% of the population uses iPods (and many of the rest very basic non-expandable flash MP3 players) to play music you don't need them for that either. I know Walt has even more gadgets than I, given what he does for a living, so maybe he sees it differently, but I wonder if anybody here feels that way too.

I've never had a computer with a built-in media card reader (being a lifelong Mac user), but I wish I had one every time I hook up a digital camera (which I've done many times over the recent holidays). Fumbling with USB cables is a hassle, especially when the only USB ports are inconveniently located at the back of the machine (I'm on a Mac Mini; I'm not sure where they are on iMacs).

I always feel like something's going to break when I do it. It would be MUCH simpler to just take out the card and pop it in a slot. And if you're on the go, a USB cable is just one more thing you need to carry. It's a hassle.


I'm honestly not a huge fan of the iMac. I haven't been since they moved to the "monolith" design with the G5. I just don't find it appealing, either the shape or the color.

I've always thought the iMac's "chin" was a bit odd, so kudos to Dell for avoiding it. Too bad they had to give it big "ears" instead. :p (If the speakers are good, I'd forgive them, but I am always skeptical of built-in speakers, and Mossberg did not mention the sound quality.)

They always bung these speakers on the side and they look like $#!%.

Pretty nice, actually. But I too haven't been a fan of the iMac style ever since the G5 configuration replaced the G4 design - the best all in one design ever made. Question though: how come Dell can get all the works into that shape WITHOUT having the "chin", and Apple cannot? I am not accustomed to someone (least of all Dell) out-designing Apple! Esp. when it comes to making things smaller and thinner. Is it the power brick (does the iMac have one?)

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Guest wrote:
Pretty nice, actually. But I too haven't been a fan of the iMac style ever since the G5 configuration replaced the G4 design - the best all in one design ever made. Question though: how come Dell can get all the works into that shape WITHOUT having the "chin", and Apple cannot? I am not accustomed to someone (least of all Dell) out-designing Apple! Esp. when it comes to making things smaller and thinner. Is it the power brick (does the iMac have one?)

Probably because many of the connectors are housed in the power brick. It is a new engineering trick that offloads much of what would have been housed in the main chassis.

Don't get me wrong, this is a good attempt by Dell. As Windows PCs go, it is a nice unit. Like was posted before, the GPU is a bit weak and the media card reader is extraneous, but over all not a bad design. I remember when the G5 iMacs came out. there was a small but vocal group of people clamoring for a black model for use in the living room. For many in the Windows world, this would be THEIR black iMac.

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DaiMac wrote:
All in all, this and the XPS towers do look like a major aesthetic step forward for Dell computers, which seems only natural since they did buy the only PC maker that ever did cooler looking machines than Apple on a semi-regular basis, Alienware.

If by "cooler looking" you mean "gaudy," then I agree.

And no, I never use card readers. A friend of mine did, when he accidentally fried his camera, but that's about it.

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acdc1174 wrote:

Probably because many of the connectors are housed in the power brick. It is a new engineering trick that offloads much of what would have been housed in the main chassis.

Not a bad design because it reduces the cable clutter and you can run a USB cable from the brick to a USB hub. However, I assume that there is now some special cable from the brick to the computer, you can't replace it with a standard power cable.

Dell is taking a step in the right direction - away from their crappy boring same same design to a kinda pleasing design. I don't get the TV tuner in the computer idea. I see that alot and I always wonder who wants to watch TV on their computer. I think the Apple TV devise is the right approach. Allowing you to watch computer content on your tv.

Anyway, its good that Dell is trying to evolve into a design driven company - this computer sounds like a start...

Ok, just to point out, I wasn't actually saying I liked Alienware better than Apple for design (though I see why it looks like I'm saying that), but that they are the reason Dell has suddenly stopped turning out what were previously the fugliest machines of all major computer manufacturers. I'm in the "just build a PC" camp if I needed a Windows machine, so I've never bought their products either, just basing my admiration mostly on pics of their more daring cases I've seen online.

I think it must be acknowledged though that This was the coolest looking computer case of 2007, hands down. The thing is 7 feet tall, for one thing. If only it could be mass produced and run Leopard, I'd buy it in an instant

Re: card readers, plugging in cameras.

If you have an iMac and don't like having to reach around to the back to plug in the camera, you have several options:

1. Leave the cable plugged into the iMac.
2. Get an USB hub. iRocks makes a hub with a card reader built in. (It does work with Macs, even though the page doesn't say so.)

Re: Ports on the side. While that makes them more accessible, notice that the photo doesn't show anything connected to them, for good reason: it would look terrible, with the cables hanging down beside the screen. I have a small HDTV that has the same feature, though its screen extends a bit beyond the ports.

The Dell XPS One is also a lot wider than the iMac. I couldn't fit one on my desk, as it has a hutch that the 20-inch iMac barely fits. It's interesting that someone would make a disparaging remark about the iMac's "chin" but not notice the XPS One's width.