iMac vs. VAIO Showdown

paradesign writes "Citing both Apple and Sony's intentions to become the hub of the digital lifestyle, Popular Science has pitted an $1,800 800MHz flat-panel iMac up against a $3,400 1.7GHz Sony Vaio PCV-MXS10 to see which really comes out on top. The bottom line is that the Sony PC -- almost twice as expensive as the iMac -- just narrowly edged out the iMac, with an overall score of 42 to 40."

Comments

Not only...

[ivan256]

Not only does the PC cost twice as much in this case, but the iMac will be worth twice as much as the PC when the owners go to resell them for an upgrade.

Re:Not only...

[PoiBoy]

What's even more interesting is that they are comparing a top of the line Sony with (arguably) an entry-level iMac.

They should have compared that overpriced Sony with a PowerMac costing about the same amount of money.

It depends on the reveiwer

[faust2097]

The reviewer in this case put a lot of emphasis on the bundled software than what I'm used to. It's nice that the Sony includes Photoshop Elements, there's no OS X equivalent for that out right now [yes, I know about Graphic Converter].

And if you're really into expandability, the base-model G4 is cheaper than the iMac. The iMac has never been and probably never will be for people who upgrade anything besides maybe the RAM. Keep in mind that over 90% of all PCs never have a single hardware upgrade in their lifetime.

Re:It depends on the reveiwer

[daviddennis]

I have to agree with this; strike out the bundled software and the Mac probably would have won.

The VAIO has no less than three video editing programs: Microsoft MovieMaker, Sony MovieShaker and Premiere (I think LE). I've never liked Premiere, and MovieMaker is dismal. MovieShaker struck me as the best of the lot, but that only after about ten minutes playing with it in the store.

None of it was nearly as well done as iMovie, so I think the Mac wins video editing. I would have been interested in their evaluation of that category, which for some reason they didn't print.

D

iMovie

[Erchamion]

From my experience with digital editing, I can say that it is quite unlikely that you would use input from anything other than analog or DV.

Moreover, some things about iMovie that weren't mentioned was how very easy it was to learn--even my sister could do it! I created my first movie in less than an hour knowing nothing. New plugins are available on the net for those feeling cramped with the original package, some of which are free (from Apple). iMovie also seamlessly integrates with Quicktime, iDVD, and even iTunes (for tracks). The few windows digital programs I've seen are all right, but not nearly as intuitive.

iMovie could use another star, though probably not the full five because there isn't yet a feature to automatically arrange tracks.

Re:Which one can you upgrade?

[Dephex Twin]

You might be fooling yourself into believing that upgrades = better deal.

Why not buy a new computer when you want to upgrade?

First of all, the price difference alone is $1600. So right there you have $1600 going towards a new computer. Couple that with the fact that you could sell the iMac for almost the same price as new (very common with Macs).

Sounds like an even better deal to me.

mark

With the mac, I can afford accessories!

[mobydobius]

Of course, what the article fails to consider is that I can order an iPod, an additional 256MB RAM, and a top of the line Palm for my new iMac, and still stay $400 under the Sony. For someone actually looking to use one of these machines alongside digital toys, that makes a difference.

$3400?

[Space Coyote]

For the amount of money they spent on the Vaio, they could have bought themselves quite a nice piece of G4 Tower goodness. The Vaio wouldn't stand a chance in that showdown :)