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by Charles Gaba
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Visit Charle Gaba's new System Shootout site for the latest shootouts!
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Dell Dimension 4600
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Design/Styling:
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White
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Black Minitower
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Mobility:
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All-in-one design; 50 lbs. total
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appx. 65 lbs. w/ tower, flat-panel CRT, & speakers
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Component Access?
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Quick access to memory & wireless cards
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thumb-screws; relatively easy component access
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Cords/Cables:
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4 cables/cords
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appx. 10 cables/cords (Tower, Display, Web, Speakers, Keyboard, Mouse, Microphone)
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Desk Space Used:
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270 sq. inches
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appx. 350 sq. inches including tower, CRT & speakers
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Noise Volume:
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Nearly silent (ultraquiet fan)
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Loud (full-size cooling fans)
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Energy Use:
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170 Watts total; appx. $30 / year
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appx. 350 watts total; ; appx. $60/year
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Processor:
Notes |
 1.5 GHz Pentium 4 |
2.8 GHz Pentium 4
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L1 Cache:
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64k
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8k
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L2 Cache:
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256K
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512K
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RAM Type:
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SDRAM PC133
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DDR PC3200
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Front Side Bus:
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133 MHz bus
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533 MHz bus
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RAM Amount:
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384 MB (2 DIMM)
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512 MB (2 DIMM)
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Max. RAM:
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1.0 GB (2 slots)
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2.0 GB (4 slots)
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Hard Drive Capacity:
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80 GB
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Hard Drive Type:
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Ultra ATA 66
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Ultra ATA 100
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Hard Drive Speed:
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5400 RPM
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7200 RPM
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CD-ROM:
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32x CD
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40x CD
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CD-RW:
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16x8x CD-RW
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32x16x CD-RW
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DVD-ROM:
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8x DVD
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12x DVD
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DVD-/+RW:
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4x2x DVD-RW
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8x4x DVD+RW
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Floppy/Other Drive:
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--
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--
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PCI/AGP Slots:
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0 available / 1 total
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1 / 4
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Internal Bays:
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0 available / 1 total
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0 / 1
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External Bays:
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0 available / 1 total
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2 / 3
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Mouse:
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USB Optical
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USB Optical 2-button scroll
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USB Ports:
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3 on CPU side + 2 on keybd = 5 total
3 USB 1.1 available |
6 on CPU back + 2 on front = 8 total
7 USB 2.0 available |
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FireWire Ports:
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2 @ 400 Mbps
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--
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Legacy Ports:
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Legacy-free
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1 Ser, 1 Par, 1 PS/2
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Video Card:
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ATI Radeon 7500
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NVIDIA GeForce FX5200
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Video RAM:
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32 MB DDR
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128 MB DDR
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VGA Out:
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Yes
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Yes
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DVI/ADC Out:
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--
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DVI
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RCA-Out:
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yes, via optional adapter
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--
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S-Video Out:
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yes, via optional adapter
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Yes
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Dual Display Support?
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Yes, Mirroring
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--
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Display:
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integrated 16" viewable flat-panel CRT
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16" viewable flat-panel CRT
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Max. Resolution:
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1280x960
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1600x1200
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Audio In:
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Built-in microphone; Line-in
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Line-in
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Audio Out:
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Headphone jack, Line-out jack
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Headphone jack; SoundBlaster Live 5.1 soundcard
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Speakers:
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Harman Kardon (Integrated)
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"stereo speakers"
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Ethernet:
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10/100
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56k Modem:
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Yes
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Wi-Fi Card?
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optional 802.11g (54 Mbps)
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optional 802.11b (11 Mbps)
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Bluetooth Card?
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optional
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optional
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Hardware Extras:
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Epson Stylus C84 Printer (free after rebate)
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--
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Included OS:
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Mac OS X 10.3 Panther; Mac OS 9.2;
BSD Unix; Apache Web Server |
Windows XP Home Edition
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Windows Support:
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DOS/95/98/ME/2000/XP (via Virtual PC)
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DOS/95/98/ME/2000/NT/XP (Native)
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Mac Support:
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Mac OS 9 (Classic Environment),
Mac OS X (Native) |
Mac OS 8 only (via emulation)
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Linux Support:
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Various flavors (Native)
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Unix Support:
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Various flavors (Native)
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Java 2 Support:
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Native
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(must be downloaded)
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Save-as PDF:
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Native (any file)
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(requires 3rd-party app.)
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Handwriting Recognition:
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Inkwell
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--
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Word Processor:
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AppleWorks 6.2 (Word compatible)
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MS Word XP
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Spreadsheet:
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AppleWorks 6.2 (Excel compatible)
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MS Works 7.0
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Presentation:
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AppleWorks 6.2
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--
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Database:
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AppleWorks 6.2
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MS Works 7.0
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Drawing/Painting:
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AppleWorks 6.2
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--
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Projects/Planning:
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--
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--
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Web Browser
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Safari 1.2; IE 5.2; Sherlock 3.0
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IE 6
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E-Mail/PIM/Address Book:
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OS X Mail/Address Book; iCal, iSync, iChat AV
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Outlook Express; Works 7.0
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Media Players:
*free download |
QuickTime 6; Media Player 9.0*
RealOne Player 9.0 *; DVD Player |
QuickTime 6*; Media Player 8
RealOne; DVD Player |
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Financial:
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Quicken 2004 Deluxe
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Money 2003; TurboTax Basic
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Reference:
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World Book OS X
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Encarta 2003; Streets & Trips
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Digital Photography:
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iPhoto 4.0
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Image Expert Premium; PaintShop Pro
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Digital Video Editing:
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iMovie 4.0
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MyDVD Deluxe
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CD Burning/Music:
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iTunes 4.2; Disk Burner
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MusicMatch 6.0; RecordNow Deluxe
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Audio Engineering:
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GarageBand 1.0; Sound Studio
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DVD Burning/Authoring:
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iDVD 4.0, Disk Burner
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MyDVD Deluxe
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Games Included:
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Chess; Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4; Deimos Rising
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Mine Sweeper, Asstd. classic games
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Additional Software:
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Asstd. system software
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Free Services:
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1 month Earthlink; 2 month .Mac trial
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6 months Earthlink
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Viruses/Security:
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No known viruses effect Mac OS X.
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Firewall:
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Built-in
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Warranty:
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3 yr. ltd./mail-in; 3 yrs. phone
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2 yr. ltd./at-home; 2 yr. phone
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Customer Service:
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Subotal:
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$1,417
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$1,366
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- Rebates if any:
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- $99 printer rebate
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- $150 system rebate
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+ Ground Shipping:
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n/c
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+ $99
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Total Price
as configured: (tax not included) |
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$1,315
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The information above is as accurate as I could make it based on a reasonable time studying the respective companies' Web sites. There is no guarantee that these configurations, prices, and features are the best that one could come up with; assorted bundles, free internet access, free extra memory, and so on can most likely be found for any of the above systems. The point of this chart is to demonstrate that Apple's lineup holds its own against any brand-name computer, even in areas in which it has traditionally had resistance. In short, do not base your purchasing decisions solely on this chart or information. Neither I, nor The Mac Observer will be held responsible or liable for any purchase decisions you make based on this presentation. Charles Gaba started the AAPLTalk System Shootouts at AAPLTalk.com, and has brought them to TMO. Charles is the creative talent behind Brainwrap Web Design. AAPLTalk System Shootouts Archives Back to The Mac Observer For More Mac News! |
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