iMac G5 Called "a real pleasure, not a hassle, to use"
Wall Street Journal columnist Walter Mossberg raves about the iMac G5 in his column published today. He says that the computer is "essentially invisible" now that it's embedded in the rear of a 17-inch or 20-inch flat panel display. The iMac G5 is significantly faster than a PowerBook G4 that Mossberg also uses.
I like Walter Mossberg's reviews because he thinks about little things that matter to me. He points out an obvious shortcoming of the iMac G5: all models come with 256-Megabytes of RAM. But, he also points out this key fact: "About the only important feature the new iMac G5 lacks is a built-in reader for memory cards used in digital cameras, PDAs and smart phones, which is becoming common in better Windows desktops." I would want a memory card reader for any computer I used for day-to-day work, so I'd have to find one that worked well with the iMac G5 before I bought one.
Mossberg's review also includes a rather lengthy explanation of why the iMac G5 is not expensive when compared to Windows PCs. He says, "Consumers perceive Mac desktops as pricey, partly because the company doesn't play in the very cheapest segment of the PC market, and partly because Apple's prices include built-in monitors that are often unlisted extras in ads for bargain Windows machines." He goes on to compare the iMac G5 to the Gateway Profile 5, finding the Gateway lacking in terms of overall unit thickness and lack of dedicated graphics card. He also compares the iMac G5 to a Dell Dimension 4600, which comes slightly out more expensive when the best CPU is chosen and a high-end 17-inch flat panel monitor is added.
Walter Mossberg was also one of the first technology columnists to compare Mac OS X Panther to Windows XP and found Windows XP wanting. He takes the opportunity of a Mac G5 review to restate many of the reasons why he prefers OS X. Among other reasons, he says, "{Mac OS X} frees users from the worry and expense of battling viruses and spyware, because there has never been a successful virus targeting the Mac operating system, and there is little or no spyware for the Mac."
Microsoft fans love to bash Walter Mossberg when he writes a review of an Apple product that's this glowing, but he rarely makes so many good points about a product in one column. There's no way I'd buy a new desktop computer today without looking at an iMac G5.
Comments
Why are memory card readers so important? Every camera I've ever seen comes with a USB cable or other means to connect to a computer and download photos. Pulling cards out and reinserting them puts them at risk (e.g., like bent pins, dropping, etc.). If instead you leave your card in your camera and use your cable, you won't need to worry about having a card reader (saving problems and money) and you'll reduce your wear and tear on the cards and the card attachment in the camera itself. If the issue is that you have a hundred cards because they all have low capacity and you need to keep swapping them, well, I think you'll save time and trouble by buying larger-capacity cards, which are cheaper in the long run anyway.
Posted by: MH | September 24, 2004 6:41 PM
A big part of the appeal of the iMac (and to a lesser extent the other Apple machines) is the lack of ugly cables. With a wireless network and a bluetooth keyboard, the only cable an iMac really needs is a power cable, and even that is beautiful. Dangling a grotty grey camera wire out the back of it ruins that sense of elegance - if I had one, I would much rather pop the card out of my camera and slot it into the side of the iMac, perhaps just below the CD drive. This is not something that's occurred to me before, and it's hardly an important issue, but Walter may have a point in suggesting a card reader.
Posted by: Pete | December 28, 2004 11:09 AM