Mactel Sweeps the World!!!

Now that Apple has switched from PowerPC processors to Intel processors, we can look forward to lower cost, more energy efficient and faster Mac products. Affectionately known as "Mactels" (an amalgam of "Mac" and "Intel"), these new computers promise to be even more competitive with Wintel PCs. Let's look at what Dell has to offer against the mighty iMac.

As of January 30, 2006 in Canada...

Dell Dimension 9150
20" Widescreen LCD display
256 MB NVIDIA GeForce 6800 graphics
2.8 GHz dual-core Pentium D
1 GB 667 MHz memory
250 GB hard disk
16x Double Layer DVD burner
Separate DVD-ROM drive
Logitech Fusion webcam
Wireless network (but no Bluetooth)
Windows XP Professional
$2,246

Apple iMac
20” Widescreen LCD display
256 MB ATI Radeon X1600 graphics
2.0 GHz Core Duo
1 GB 667 MHz memory
250 GB hard disk
8x Double Layer DVD burner
Built-in iSight webcam
Wireless networking, including Bluetooth
OS X
$2,209


It’s important to note that with the Intel Core Duo processor (which is a mobile technology), the iMac consumes much less power and runs much cooler than the Dell PC. And according to systemshootouts.org, the iMac is quite a bit faster than the Dell. The X1600 graphics is also superior to the GeForce 6800.

The only thing in Dell’s favour is their better optical drive capabilities. And for this, they charge $37 more than the iMac.

There has never been a better time to switch to the Apple Mac. Forget Windows, it sucks camel piss. (In case you’re interested, we may expect the new Mactels to run Windows natively someday. <groan> It’s largely a matter of working around the firmware issue.)