Originally Posted by Patrick Bryant

I don't know, Larry. Yes, the cost of "brand-name" PCs are moving into parity with Macs somewhat.
I don't think a Dell desktop with accessible PCI-E slots and room for a second internal disk drive vs. the integrated iMac that's not really user-upgradeable is quite a valid comparison.

I recently bought my daughter a custom-built PC system from PC Club. Pretty much like the Dell you quoted with Core2Duo, 20" monitor, etc. etc., the only difference being it has two 250GB drives. I paid $1282 for it.
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...and that's been the problem with comparing PCs to Macs all along: There aren't any "bargain basement" or "non-brand-name" Macs. They're all brand name, and none have Celerons, cheap cases, cheap RAM chips, flimsy USB ports, or cheap anything. They're built with quality parts and therefore tend to cost more.

Since you correctly point out iMacs don't have expansion slots, we could go back and forth on this since the Dell has no firewire ports at all, and some of the best audio interfaces are now using 2nd generation firewire at 800Mbps. I would bet that 90% of audio cards sold are either Firewire or USB, so the need for expansion slots isn't very high compared to computers a few years ago. There's also a factor of noise. How noisy are these PCs if you want to use them to record your acoustic guitar 5 feet away? iMacs are whisper quiet and if you look at one of the built-in displays, you'll see that they are really nice to look at: truly beautiful contrast, resolution, and brightness - not a bargain basement monitor there at all.

I will bet your PC Club PC will work just fine for a number of years. The question (which I posed above as well) remains as to how happy will you be overall with that system? Mac users tend to be more satisfied with their machines. Many people are perfectly happy with a low-end Kia car and it serves them well. They're emminently practical.

And that's part of the point...it's hard to describe, but I feel it's the little quality touches like the above that differentiate the whole philosophy of Mac vs PC. Mac's are built from the ground up with an artistic bent, not a business-use "what's the bottom-line" bent. A week after I first got my dual G5 tower, I opened it up and in about 2 minutes added a 2nd hard drive with no tools and had to review one page in the manual. I remember simply admiring the engineering quality inside the case. I haven't opened it since: I haven't needed to. I've never seen a desktop PC with the quality of the air flow components and duct work, the fans, the quality harness wiring, the fit of the internal components. It's simply engineered and manufactured well.

PCs will probably always be cheaper than Macs. Toyotas or Kia's will probably always be cheaper than BMWs. There is a market for both and satisfied customers of both, but I think you'll find BMW owners more likely to be proud of their cars' engineering... (no, I don't own a BMW...yet) wink

Hey...I gotta go eat some turkey. Enjoy the rest of your day! smile


Larry
http://www.audibleresponse.com
http://www.myspace.com/larrywilliamsproductions
...now writing/producing with Natascha: http://www.myspace.com/nataschacorrigan