Which is better, Mac or Windows PC?

Forget that PCs are much more popular.  Forget that Macs are the "in"
computers used by universities, graphic artists.

What is the better value performance per dollar.  What operating
system is better?  Style should play a bit of a factor.  Which one is
more compatible with the other (networking together, etc.)  Looking
for an unbiased answer.

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Clarification of Question by gomblue-ga on 20 Sep 2004 10:29 PDT

FYI:

I would have been switching from a PC to a Mac.  I grew up around
Macs, and then used them at college.  I switched to PCs on the job,
and have since bought PCs.

With Mac OS X being a better product than previous Mac OS's, I decided
to ask the question before I bought another computer.  There is a lot
of interesting information out there.

I was in a position where I didn't need a new monitor.  A new flat
panel would have been nice, but I didn't NEED it because I had an
older 17" CRT.

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Clarification of Question by gomblue-ga on 20 Sep 2004 10:39 PDT

I think a Mac would have been more fun, but it would have been more
expensive.  I bought a Dell Dimension 3000.  I don't do video editing
and I don't use games.  I use MS Office, Internet/Email, Macromedia
Dreamweaver and Fireworks, and Quickbooks.

Cost:  $420 plus tax, no shipping.
2.8GHz Pentium
80GB Hard Drive
512MB Ram

An eMac with 80GB Hard Drive and 512MB Ram would have been over $900. 
It would have included a monitor, but I didn't need it.

I don't doubt now that the Mac OS is at least slightly better than
Widows XP.  It also appeared to be relatively easy to convert PC
documents to Mac, including my business Quickbooks file.  Maybe I'll
switch next time.  The Dell wasn't such a big investment that I can't
consider switching in another two years.

The documentation online is rather lopsided as far as whether pcs or
macs have a better value per dollar.  In fact, all sites I have found
have concluded that macs have a better value, despite popular ideas to
the contrary.

Here is a site that compares a current Apple and Dell desktop system
and laptop system.  The author concludes that macs have the highest
value per dollar.
http://gflpraxis.no-ip.com/mvp-price.html

Here is from a weblog on the O'Reilly Network
http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/wlg/4895

Article from znet about macs vs pcs in business
http://reviews-zdnet.com.com/4520-7297_16-4208000.html

Here is a nice analysis comparing the two
http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/22738.html

Here is a point by point analysis of OS X (Mac operating system) and
Windows XP (Home and Professional)
http://www.xvsxp.com/

The following site comes to the conclusion that macs are a better
investment, but in 115 pages!
http://forgetcomputers.com/~jdroz/

This site gives 10 reasons to prefer a mac over a pc.
http://macs.about.com/cs/faqs/f/better_than_pc.htm

As far as the question "Which one is more compatible with the other?" 
There is no possible answer to this question.  If macs are compatible
with pcs than by definition pcs are compatible with macs.  You see? 
If one is not compatible with the other, than the other one also must
not be compatible.

Also depends on what you have and what you're trying to do with it. 
It's a little more complicated than tornado's comment.  (I was
particularly amused by the web site that gave the following as a
reason -- "It doesn't crash (OS X is UNIX-based)" -- various Unixes
kernel panic too!)

Assuming you're trying to buy the *cheapest* thing possible, which is
suitable to some people out there, you can get a working PC for about
$350 if you're very careful (the amount I paid for the last one I
bought was $200, but it's running Linux -- cost difference is monitor
and Windows Home).  It'll be suitable for playing *some* games and
doing light office work.  It'll be pretty slow but you won't notice.

If you want a high performance business system (with multiple
processors, lots of memory, high bandwidth, etc) then MACs don't cut
it either.

If you're in the middle, like most people, then you need to think
about what *you* are going to do with it.  Compare not just some of
the factors the previous respondant's web sites mentioned but also
software availability for what you want to do, prior training, etc. 
For better or worse, for many years the Macs have consistently gotten
a fairly small market share.  PCs do dominate -- I haven't worked at a
place since the mid 1990s that produced Mac software, simply because
the market was too small.

Think about whether you'll need support from a workplace based IT
environment.  In my house I have Windows PCs and Linux PCs.  I have
Linux because I can get a fair bit of server software for free, and I
use it in the house.  Some of my workplaces have had Linux based
systems.  I have Windows because that's what my wife has at work and
knows, and, frankly, that's what most of my employers have had.  Since
I go for the least pain, having equipment that's *easily* compatible
with 90% of the other systems out there is important and worth a few
bucks.  Many of these employers have PC-specific software or
PC-specific IT people. If you say you have something other than what
they know about, they're more likely to flip you off if you have
trouble.

Yes, you can run PC-specific software on a simulator such as Soft PC,
but, frankly, I've had trouble with the various simulators.  Yes, you
can get freeware replacements for much of Office (like OpenOffice),
but having used them in business environments, they're not always
compatible.  When your customers have Office and you have something
"Office Compatible" there are occasional complaints that files you
ship them don't work, in which you ultimately discover that the file
only works in OpenOffice.  (note MS Office is available for the MAC)

In the end, carefully figure out what you need and what you
realistically think you'll need and buy that.

gomblue-ga:

The bottom line comes to a personal preference and how you use it and
what you want to spend - and don't forget a learning time, depending
on what you are used to now.  I use both Macs and PCs (with OS X,
Windows and Linux), both at home and at work.

The following are somewhat subjective:

1. What is the better value performance per dollar?
Macs are thought of as more expensive, but you do get a lot with it,
and arguably, they are better performers at the top end, generally
with higher quality components and higher customer satisfaction.  No
significant difference in performance in the top end Macs and PCs but
it depends on your application.  If you use it for normal
home/business use (not specialized), either would be more than
sufficient.  If you use it heavily for specialized applications, do
spend time looking up benchmarks.  Value for the money - somewhat
depends on you, but if you want a mid-range system, the PCs of
equivalent performance are somewhat less expensive (see comment on
quality above).

2. What operating system is better?
Here, I'd say the MacOSX is clearly better in terms of usability
(caveat: some learnign time is required, so plan on it).  They
software design is much more focussed on the user, rather than the
designer's ease/schedule.  Do consider getting a multi-button mouse if
you are used to them in the past! (They work out of the box, no
special drivers needed in most cases).

3. Style should play a bit of a factor.
Macs are nice and stylish - their laptops are in fact VERY stylish. 
You do have more of a choice on the PC world (from Dell/Gateway to
noname to IBM/Sony for the high end, high style machines, esp.
laptops).

4. Which one is more compatible with the other (networking together, etc.)?
mbkirk-ga made a good point on it (and several other good ones).  If
you are doing Mac to Mac networking, it is very easy. PC to PC is
reasonably easy (and Mac<->PC is only slightly less easy).  Software
availability is a consideration for the Macs, so look into it with
your use in mind.  If you are getting a Mac, consider VirtualPC (from
Microsoft) where you can run Windows on the Mac simultaneously with
MacOSX, which will give you the best of both worlds.  (VirtualPC
doesn't run on G5 machines yet, but the updated version that will run
on G5 machines should be out in a few weeks).

I addition to a lot of material on the web (lot of it biased), the
following thread here might be of interest:
http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview?id=375679

--
I am not an official GA researcher.

Used 'em both for 20 years.  Mac is  better. The 2 reasons to consider
a PC are: (1) you have PC-specific software that will not run
adequately on a Mac running an emulation Windows OS; (2) for some
reason you can not comfortably share files with co-workers, clients
and other who run only PCs.  If you don't have these issues, get a
Mac.

Ok i have been using computers for about 15 years now. And trust me
you want to go with a personal computer not a mac. You want to know
why, i will tell you. For starters Macs are limited in software and
sofware development. On a Mac you can only find a handful of apps to
complete certain taska where as on a pc you can find hundreds of apps.
So what does this do for you well not only will the apps be cheaper
becuse there is a larger market but you will be able to find the app
that suits your needs, instead of like on a Mac were you get suck with
whatever they have. Becuse there is so much software choices out there
for pc's you will find the software cheaper and it gets improved
faster becuse there is a much bigger demand for ibm compaqtable
software. Now some people may try and say that a Mac is better becuse
they cost more. Ok these people are so wrong and yes i have heard this
argument before. They will try and tell you why it cost so much more.
But the truth is that it cost more becuse the demand is lower. It is
like when dvd players came out the higher the demand got the cheaper
the prices were. And guess what you can get a good pc for next to
nothing these days. And no for the hardware. There is such a large
customer database in the pc department and there are so many companies
behind it, that you can pick out the hardware you want you don't have
to settle and once again becuse of this you get cheaper prices. So why
would someone want a Mac, maybe to say i have a Mac and if there
friend's don't know any better maybe it will impress them. You need a
overpriced under supported computer. You want less options in hardware
and software. Almost every app that has hit the market id ibm
compatable. The companies will even make Mac software for Ibm's.
becuse pc compatable is a better market. Where as you just don't see
alot of companies making Ibm software compatable for Macs. I remeber a
while back Music Match had made a compatable version for Mac's well it
didn't pan out and they ended up making it a free download on there
website.Ok i could go on about this but i do think i have hit many of
the finer points.If you have any questins pleas post.

So many biased views (especially from Davids77, who has clearly never used a Mac)!

Now for my biased view:

I used to work for Apple, but have spent most of my working life using a PC!

I own a Mac and would never consider buying a PC. Macs are more
expensive, but they're worth it!

I have never had any problems getting software for my Mac! True your
options are more limited as to what's available, but that's because
there is less crap on the market! Even the Mac version of Office
(never had any problems with files from PC's) is meant to be better
than the PC version (Entourage instead of Outlook, etc.).

It'll be very difficult for you to get an un biased opinion. Do you
have any friends with a PC/Mac that you could try out for yourself?

All the best and I hope you are happy with your choice!