Is the Dell XPS One Better than the Apple iMac?

An anonymous reader writes "The Apple iMac is probably the standard all-in-one desktop computer. Great operating system, built-in software and design around solid, but pretty normal, hardware guts. According to Walter Mossberg, there's a new kid in town that not only matches it but is 'sightly ahead': the Dell XPS One. His latest review is already causing the usual suspects to weigh in. Mossberg says it is a better machine, but Vista and its built-in software make it inferior than Apple iMac's Leopard and iLife suite. Would you choose the better hardware of the Dell XPS One -which is more expensive- or the elegant design and software of the Apple iMac?"

Comments

Personally?

[the_humeister]

If I could only choose between the 2 of them, I'd go with the cheaper one. If I could choose anything else, I'd never get an all-in-one computer. I just hate having to part with a good LCD monitor every time I want to upgrade or switch computers.

Re:Personally?

[orclevegam]

It's funny, I find myself in the exact opposite situation. My monitors tend to last a rather long time, but I need to upgrade my PC fairly regularly. Of course I also spend a load of money to get a really nice monitor when I do replace it (usually close to or more then the cost of my current computer).

Buy a Mac.

[LWATCDR]

I hate to say it but I think that the Mac is a better solution for most people.
I just told my father to get a Mac.
He is tired of the security problems with his PCs. He has 3 PCs right now. One at his home here, one at his place in North Georgia, and a Laptop.
All he uses his computer for is Email, digital pictures, and paying bills on line.
I could set him up with Ubuntu but where would he find support for it when I am not around? I don't know how good Dell is at Ubuntu support and frankly he isn't the most technical person on the planet.
Apple has figured out what most people want to do with a PC at home and produce a nice bundle that just works.

Hardware?

[truthsearch]

No one buys a computer just for the hardware. Hardware is pretty useless without software. If someone is only choosing the Dell over a Mac because the hardware is slightly better, then they deserve Vista.

Choose the best tool for the job. If you'll be more productive with OS X, and you're only choosing between these two systems, then obviously choose the iMac.

Re:"Standard all-in-one desktop computer?"

[orclevegam]

That may be 3.1416% for Apple's share of the entire market. But the iMac has got something like 90% of the all-in-one market. Yep, nothing like lies, damn lies, and statistics to prop up arguments one way or another. Until fairly recent Apple had 100% of the all-in-one market, because they created it (the market that is, not the concept). It's only just now that some of the others (Dell, Sony, etc.) are starting to put out credible all-in-one systems to compete with the iMac.

Re:My Choice

[TheWanderingHermit]

Interesting comparison to cars. That also brings into point my first consideration. I remember back in the 70's or 80's when a lot of the American car companies were having trouble because of the new Japanese models. American companies kept putting out more and more of what they wanted the public to buy and the Japanese companies were finding out what sold and focusing on that. It was only when American companies began to realize what was going on that they started listening to customers instead of telling them what was good or desirable.

In this case, Dell has proven they care what the customer says, but if it comes down to the OS, I'll go with Apple. They have been known to listen to the customer at least once in a while. Microsoft? Vista was all about telling customers what they wanted instead of listening to them and the rest of the world (which explains the YouTube videos of Gates showing off features and being asked if they weren't the same as what Mac had already and Gates not realizing it).

Personally, I hope MS ends up having as many problems as the American car makers did back in the 70's and 80's. Then they'll either end up as a has been or learn to listen to customers instead of telling customers what they should want.

are Macs or PC cheaper?

[falconwolf]

On a side note, I can't believe I just made an argument that a Mac was cheaper from a hardware standpoint.
*head asplode*

Depending on what the configuration is some Macs are cheaper than equivalent Windows PC. this has been true for a few years. The key though is that you have to start with a Mac then configure a Windows PC to the same specs as Apple doesn't offer nearly as many configurations as PC OEMs.

Falcon

Re:My Choice

[Shag]

the only people who upgrade all the time are gamers. Fixed that for you. I spent years as a sysadmin, and believe me, anyone who's been a sysadmin for a few years does not upgrade all the time. That entails actual (and quite possibly unnecessary) work, which is anathema to sysadmins. We get it built, get it stable, automate as much as possible with shell scripts, and then leave it alone unless it breaks or misbehaves. Although our tinkering skills are probably far superior to yours, tinkering to us is nothing but a means to an end, not a raison d'etre - and worse yet, it's something that cuts into time we could be spending doing other things, like playing games, reading slashdot, watching movies, eating, or sleeping.

Oh, and this goes double for our own machines. If I've just spent 8+ hours making sure some company's computers work, the last thing I want to do when i get home is tinker with my own.

Please don't group us with gamers. :)