Ask prospective computer buyers whether they’re considering a Mac and many will tell you “they’re just too expensive”. My reply? No. Absolutely not. Prove it, you say. I shall, but before we expose the “dirty little secrets” of computer pricing, here’s an interesting tidbit about “the world’s cheapest world-class supercomputer”.

Virginia Tech is building a supercomputer that will be in the top five in the world in raw computing power. They’re doing it by stringing together 1,100 of Apple’s new PowerMac G5 computers. Why? Because the G5 delivers workstation power at a desktop price. Oh, and, yes, cost was a factor in Virginia Tech’s decision to go with the G5. The computers will cost Virginia Tech about one million dollars a year. But last year, even before assembling this world-class system, Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering attracted over 100 million dollars in research funding. The new number-cruncher should attract even more research dollars. Not a bad return on investment, considering they chose computers that are “just too expensive”.

Or are they? I did a little web research, comparing prices on Apple’s online store with those of the power/price/satisfaction leader of the Windows-based PC world – Dell Computers. I selected four desktops and two notebook computers from each company’s catalog, across the spectrum of performance and price. I configured them with equivalent hardware, monitors, and software packages, with an emphasis on digital media and wireless connectivity. Where capable, I equipped all machines with 1 GB of RAM. I applied the double (or half, if you prefer) method of comparing processors. In other words, a 1.25 GHz G4 chip would be roughly equivalent to a 2.5 GHz Pentium.

Entry-level desktop. Contenders here: Apple’s eMac vs. Dell’s Dimension 4600. Both with 17” CRT monitors and DVD/CD burners. The eMac? $1698. The Dimension? $1602.

Mid-level desktop. The iMac vs. the slimline Dimension 4600C, both with 17” flat-panel LCD monitors. iMac: $2298. Dimension 4600C: $2112.

Mid-range pro box. The single-processor 1.8GHz PowerMac G5 vs. the Dimension XPS with 3.2 GHz Pentium 4. XPS with 40 GB smaller hard drive. G5? $3797. XPS? $3500.

The final desktop – high end pro. Dual 2 GHz PowerMac G5 vs. Dell PWS 450 with dual 3 GHz Xeon. Two loaded powerhouses. Dell with 40 GB smaller hard drive. G5: $4397. Dell: $4990.

What about laptops? This was a big surprise to me. First, consumer models. 14” iBook (weight 5.9 pounds) vs. 14” Inspiron 600m (weight 5 pounds). iBook: $1778. Inspiron: $2010.

Pro notebooks. 15” PowerBook G4 (5.6 pounds) vs. Precision M60 (“starting at” 7.0 pounds). PowerBook: $2999. Precision: $3763.

So, there they are. If you tally up all the prices across the surveyed machines, you’ll find that you’d actually spend more, by a slim margin, to buy all the Dells than all the Macs. ($17977 vs $16967). How can this be? After all, Macs are “just too expensive”.

There are many obvious upgrades, like monitors, RAM, hard drive size, and video cards, available from both makers. However, as I was building the various machines, I noticed that some things that come “standard” on the Macs were actually options on the Dells, options that insidiously drove the price up. For example - FireWire jacks to connect digital video cameras to the PC; software upgrades to bring the PC up to Apple’s iMovie, iPhoto, iTunes, and iDVD standards; and, wireless networking cards to support the emerging 802.11g standards.

Regardless of the system you buy, you can almost always get RAM cheaper from a third party than from the manufacturer at time of purchase. If you can install it yourself, and get a good guarantee, you can save some more $$$.

© 2003 Peter F. Zimowski