You can buy a lot of stuff from Dell using coupons.. but in the end, it is still just a Dell. It still cannot run Mac OS X... so it is still not worth it. :-)

you can check out Dell for yourselves, but here's the scoop: the Inspiron E1705 STARTS at $2,221.

Hmmm.....

The notebook compared is the equivalent of an iBook. The Inspiron is Dell's low-end line consumer line. A more accurate comparison (if you can compare OS X to Windows, which is the real comparison, to me) will be capable when Dell releases their Core Duo Latitude line.

They are subsidized with "free" lite versions installed on the machines to entice people into buying the full version. They also get money from the stickers on their boxes. Tacky boxes, tacky coupons.

That's your biggest complaint about the Dell, there were icons on the desktop. Did you tell him he could just drag them to the freakin' trash?

And you can complain all you want, the point is true that Apple's products are going to cost more then comparable Dells (and I say comparable as in 'basically the same', not the lame "Let's load up the dell with a bunch of c*** no one wants so that it matches all the c*** no one wants in the mac but are stuck with it because apple doesn't believe in lowering prices, just adding c*** like built-in cameras".

BTW, if you look at the Macworld comparison, you'll see all they customized on the dell to "match" the mac. Can you imagine if you could customize the macbook the same way? Instead, we get "upgrade memory" and "upgrade harddrive". Ooohhhh. (oh, and for some reason, they went high-end on the 17" display, probably just to push the price higher).

The MacBook Pro isn't even shipping yet - how can people draw comparisons with non-existant hardware?

don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll. don't feed the troll.

+ he can't afford a dell either, so why is he in this debate?

MacNN, at least do your homework before posting such vile, unless your objective is just to drum up traffic. Either way it's pretty pathetic.

OK, here are the flaws (done after 5 minutes of investigation)

1. The coupon code is bogus. There is no $650 rebate coupon. (And think about it for a second, Dell has razor thin margins...how would they give 30% of a hot, new product...and WHY would they.

2. Price the Dell yourself. It is $2,105. A few hundred dollars cheaper.

Now factor in:

Better GPU iSight iLife Illuminated Keyboard, Firewire

etc, etc.

It is at BEST a square deal.

Again, MacNN is getting pittiful nowadays, and this site is one more article like this away from being dumped from my bookmarks. It basically is a link aggregator nowadays anyhow...

other, small details.

4" thick.

9 pounds.

Yeah, they're the same.

Great article MacNN. Get your act together and stop helping the PC guys by spreading false stories.

On the question of the OS/X premium:

The Mac Mini also comes with OS/X and iLife. OS/X typically sells for less than a Windows XP Upgrade. It is about 50% of full Windows XP (retail not OEM). Apple also own it.

While it is certainly the source of part of the premium for purchasers, I've always found it a hard one to justify. I can't understand why it becomes a percentage on top of the machines price - you would expect the higher end machines to be better value than MacMini and iBook - instead, it feels the other way.

(It is possible, of course, that the OEM Windows price for Dell is actually lower than the cost of OS/X for Apple).

The real value, of course, comes in the industrial design - I need only compare the USB ports on the Mac Mini with the ones on a far more expensive Acer laptop.

Or read an interview with Jonathan Ives where he talks about the effort put into creating the base for the cinema display and G5 (a single piece of metal, yet also making sure it wouldn't slip on a smooth surface).

Of course that puts the price up, but to an extent I think people are crazy to buy 23 and 30" displays that are in ugly cheap casing - it's like buying a cashmere jumper and saying it's about the wool and if it keeps you warm, rather than how it fits.

"Can you imagine if you could customize the macbook the same way?"

It's true: Dell offers more configuration options, including the ability to remove features you don't need in order to save money.

"(oh, and for some reason, they went high-end on the 17" display, probably just to push the price higher)."

No, we upgraded the screen because the MacBook Pro is a "pro" machine with a higher-quality screen built into the price. In order to get comparable color accuracy and brightness on the Dell, you need the UltraSharp display. When there's an Intel-based "consumer" laptop from Apple, we'll configure the Dell with the stock "budget" screen :-)

P.S. Yes, MacNN is in my RSS reader :-) Dan Frakes, Macworld

http://www.macworld.com/news/2006/02/13/pricecomparison/index.php

when all the items are included, dual DVI, 30% less weight, illuminated keyboard, optical digital audio, microphone, builtin isight the cost looks like:

$2500 MacBook and $2700 Dell. Note for a real sharp shopper discounts may be found to discount this by $100s of dollars for the Dell and Dell can be configured.

However, the Dell comes with little to no software, the Mac with iChat, iLife, etc. which there is not real comparison on PC side, but might be replaced with $100s of dollars worth of software.

In general, article points out price are similar. Also for my buy at work the price is much closer to $2500 than the lots of hunting discount reported in the BLOG

i don't care to hear 'reporting' on worthless blogs from idiots

Yes it is true that BMW is charging a premium over Ford for a similarly equipped model.

as someone who had owned both BMW and Ford, Dell and Mac I can tell you either compairson is nonsense. Drive a BMW or work on a mac and the difference is clear, just like any premium product you get what you pay for.

I could go on and on about the car/computer comparisons, but I'll just say you CANNOT compare a Ford to a BMW in any class because BMW does not make a sub-$25,000 car BRAND NEW. If you want to compare a car company with apple, pick one that also stabs it's loyalists in the back: volkswagen.

note: i own and operate both apple and volkswagen machines, don't hate on me because you know it's true.

While BMW Makes great driving machines, the Ford and BMW will be about as reliable. The VW will have a reliability rating worse than a Hyundai. Source: JD Power 2005 Dependability survey.

Doesn't matter to me - I drive an Infiniti - a driving machine that's every bit as good as a BMW, is a great value, and will be more reliable than a BMW, Mercedes, or a Toyota.

Did anyone even bother to check his coupon code?!? It's completely invalid!!!

I will give him the benefit of the doubt and assume that it was valid for a couple hours on the day he posted the article, or that it was valid for the X hundred purchases that day. But as soon as the fire-sale was over, his article ceased to be true, and must be removed.

The accurate comparison for my residence (CA) is:

Dell E1705: 1.83 Ghz/512 MB/80 GB/DVD-RW/BT/7800Go/Remote $1911 + 157.66 tax - $250 mail-in rebate = $1818.66 (Dell.com)

MBP 1.83 ($1999 model, just upgraded today!) 1.83 Ghz/512 MB/80 GB/DVD-RW/BT/X1600/Remote $1999 + $0 tax - $200 mail-in rebate = $1799 (Amazon.com)

Wow, turns out they are within $20 of each other, not $1000! What an idiot that guy is.

Of course, the Dell has a larger screen and faster video card, but the MBP is 30% lighter, has faster memory, much better build quality (Latitude is ok, but Inspiron is awful), OS X, and a host of features not even available from Dell (backlit keyboard, SMS, MagSafe, scrolling trackpad).

Personally, I'd take the Apple, but I guess if you really love bulky, heavy laptops and want the extra 1.5" of screen you might take the Dell.

Heck, even if I wanted to run Windows I'd still take the Apple and just wait for someone to come out with a hack to install XP (or, if that never happens, Vista).

I have to echo sentiments of a couple of the posts so far. MacNN needs to be clear on whether they post stories without vouching for their accuracy. I have read, enjoyed, and trusted the stories on MacNN for a number of years now.

I can use Google and get daily junk.

Go to maccentral.com and you will see the other side of the story and how the Macbook Pro is actually way cheaper than Dell! No applications included with the Dell versus Apple includes the OS and iLife apps, plus all of the standard software that apple includes with the OSX. And still a few extras on top of that. With the Dell you get a dull box and that's it.

and my supermarket charges a premium for steak over hamburger.. this is news ?

I can't believe this guy. "Apart from the screen, the Mac is a better computer". Wake up, man, at least half the cost of any laptop is in the screen, to the print where we simply don't bother repairing laptops with broken screens unless they're under warranty... it's always more cost effective to buy a new computer.

Its very disappointing that MacNN would post something like this without doing ANY fact checking. The comparison is flawed on its face because its a special discounted price of the Dell vs the max published price at the Apple store. Second, as has been mentioned, once you configure the Dell to match the MacBook its a little MORE. Yes, you get a larger screen on the Dell but at a cost of more than 2 pounds. I don't mind news that makes Apple look bad as it keeps them in line, but posting pro Dell propaganda is disgusting.