The Mac Observer: AAPLTalk System Shootouts - US$3,000 Laptop System Shootout

	DATES CONFIGURED: 11/01/02 - 11/06/02 Must include 15"+ Display, DVD, CD-RW, 802.11b Wireless Card Note: Read the AAPLTalk System Shootout FAQ before procededing!!! All images and logos are copyright to the respective companies listed.
Total must be within $50 of $3,000 INCLUDING SHIPPING!

Company

Apple

Dell

HP/Compaq

Gateway

Sony

Toshiba

BOLD

= Best of Field

PowerBook G4

Inspirion 8200

Pavilion ze5000

600XL

VAIO PCG-GRX690

Satellite 1955-S803

Dimensions:

127 cubic in.
1" x 13.4" x 9.5"

246 cubic in.
1.75" x13.0" x12.8"

250 cubic in.
1.8" x 13.0" x 10.7"

285 cubic in.
13.9" x 11.4" x 1.8"

290 cubic in.
1.8" X 14" X 11.5"

386 cubic in.
13.6"x12.9"x2.2"

Weight:
(all bays filled)

5.4 lbs

7.9 lbs

7.5 lbs

8.7 lbs

8.4 lbs.

9.6 lbs

Battery Life:

5 hrs.

2-3 hrs.

2.5 hrs (?)

1.5 - 4.5 hrs.

2.5 hrs.

Processor:
Rating Notes

1.5 GHz P4
1.0 GHz PowerPC G4

2.0 GHz
2.0 GHz M Pentium 4

2.6 GHz
2.6 GHz (!) M Pentium 4

2.2 GHz
2.2 GHz M Pentium 4

1.9 GHz
1.9 GHz M Pentium 4

2.5 GHz
2.5 GHz (!) Pentium 4

L1 Cache:

64k

32k

L2 Cache:

256K on-chip

512K on-chip

L3 Cache:

1 MB DDR

Memory Type:

SDRAM PC133

DDR PC2100

Frontside Bus:

133 MHz bus

400 MHz bus

400 MHz

Memory Amount:

1.0 GB (2 DIMM)

512 MB (2 DIMM)

1.0 GB (2 DIMM)

512 MB (2 DIMM)

512 MB (2 DIMMs)

512 MB (2 DIMM)

Max RAM:

1.0 GB (2 slots)

Hard Drive Capacity:

60 GB

40 GB

60 GB

Hard Drive Type:

Ultra ATA 66

Ultra ATA 100

Ultra ATA ??

Ultra ATA 100

Hard Drive Speed:

4200 rpm

5400 rpm

???? rpm

CD-Rom:

24x

CD-RW:

8x4x CD-RW

24x10x CD-RW

8x8x CD-RW

24x10x CD-RW

16x10x CD-RW

?x?x CD-RW

DVD-Rom:

DVD-/+RW:

1x1x DVD-RW
(can burn w/out being plugged into AC outlet)

4x1x DVD-RW
(must be plugged into AC outlet to burn)

Floppy Drive:

Yes

Zip/Other Drive:

16 MB USB KeyDrive

Memory stick port

PC Card Slots:

1 + 1 802.11b slot

Yes

Type of Bays:

Fixed

Swappable

Fixed

Swappable

USB Ports:

Firewire Ports:

Legacy Ports:

1 Par, 1 Ser, 1 PS/2

1 Par.

1 Par, 1 Ser, 1 PS/2

1 Par.

Graphics Card:
Rating Notes

ATI Mobility
Radeon 9000

ATI Mobility
Radeon ???

ATI Mobility
Radeon 7500

nVIDIA
GeForce4 420 Go

Video RAM:

64 MB DDR

32 MB DDR

64 MB DDR

32 MB DDR

64 MB DDR

VGA Out:

Yes

DVI Out:

Yes

S-Video Out:

Yes

Composite Out:

Yes

Display:

15.2" TFT XGA

15" TFT UltraSharp

15" TFT SXGA

15.7" TFT SXGA

16.1" TFT UXGA

16" TFT SXGA

Max. display resolution:

1280x854

1600x1200

1400x1050

1600x1200

1280x1024

Microphone:

Line-in port
Built-in microphone

Line-in port
Digital audio-ready

Headphone/
Line Out:

Yes
Digital audio-ready

Stereo speakers:

Yes

10/100 Ethernet?

Yes

Gigabit Ethernet?

Yes

56k Internal Modem?

Yes

802.11b Wi-Fi Card?

Yes

802.11b Antennae?

Yes (integrated)

Bluetooth Card?

Hardware Extras Included:

HP DeskJet 3820

Spare battery

Epson Stylus C42UX
64 MB Memory Stick

FireWire Cable

Included OS:

Mac OS X 10.2;
Mac OS 9.2;
BSD Unix;
Apache Web Server

Windows XP
Home Edition

Windows XP Professional

Windows/DOS Support:

DOS/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)

Rendezvous Zero-Config Networking:

Yes

Word Processor Included:

MSFT Word XP

WordPerfect 9

MSFT Word XP

MSFT Works 6.0

Save-as PDF:

Native (any file)

(requires 3rd-party app.)

Spreadsheet Software Included:

MSFT Excel XP

Quattro Pro 9

MSFT Excel XP

MSFT Works 6.0

Presentation Software Included:

Database Software Included:

MSFT Works 6.0

Drawing/Painting Software Included:

Art Directors Toolkit
Graphic Converter
PixelNhance
OmniGraffle

Handwriting Recognition:

Inkwell

Calendar/PIM Software Included:

iCal, iSync
Address Book

MSFT Outlook XP

MSFT Works 6.0

Planning/Project Software Included:

OmniOutliner

MSFT Publisher XP

Web Browser Included:

Internet Explorer 5.2

Internet Explorer 6

E-Mail/Address Book Included:

OS X Mail
OS X Address Book

Outlook XP

Outlook Express 6

MSFT Outlook XP

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.

Financial Software Included:

Money 2002

Quicken New Users

Quicken 2002

Quicken 2001

Reference
Software Included:

Encyclopedia Brittanica

Digital Photo Management:

iPhoto 1.1
Graphic Converter
Snapz Pro X

Image Expert Premium
PaintShop Pro

Arcsoft Funhouse
Photo impressions4
Greeting Cards

Photoshop Elements
SmartCapture
Sony PictureGear

Digital Video
Editing:

iMovie 2

MGI VideoWave 4

CyberLink® Power Director Pro VE

MovieMaker 2

Sony MovieShaker
Sony DVgate
Premiere LE

MovieMaker 2

Music Software/
CD Burning Software:

iTunes 3
Disc Burner

MusicMatch 6.0
Adaptec EasyCD

MusicMatch 7.0
RecordNow

Unknown (?)

SonicStage
Screenblast Acid
Sound Forge

DVD Burning/
Authoring Software:

iDVD
Disc Burner

Click To DVD

Games
Included:

Chess

Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games

Mine Sweeper, WildTangent MyGames, Asstd. classic games

Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games

Additional
Software
Included

Palm Desktop
PCalc
Asstd. system software

Asstd. system software

Asstd. system software
"Two software titles" (?)

Free ISP/
Other Services

1 month EarthLink

6 months Earthlink

1 year AOL

3 months AOL

Virus Susceptibility/
Security Issues

45 known viruses

50,000+ viruses

50,000+ viruses
Norton AntiVirus

Built-in Firewall?

Yes

Warranty:

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

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

3 yrs ltd./mail-in
3 yrs. phone

2 yrs. ltd./mail-in
2 yrs. phone

3 yr. ltd./mail-in
3 yrs. phone

Quality of Products & Service:
Consumer Affairs

"Good Guys"

"Rogues Gallery"

"Poor"

Navigation?

Easy

Fair

Easy

Fair

Poor

Customization Allowed?

Some

Full

Some

Little

None

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

$3,039

$2,958

$3,007

$2,947

$2,990

$2,987

+ Ground Shipping:

No Charge

$45

$50

$49

No Charge

$10

Total Price
as configured:

$3,039
tax not included

$3,003
tax not included

$3,027
tax not included

$2,996
tax not included

$2,990
tax not included

$3,007
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.

AAPLTalk System Shootouts Archives

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