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Firstly, I would just like to say that this might be a bit biased towards Mac OS X but then again I’m pointing out why a Mac is a better choice.

With the recent release of Microsoft’s latest operating system Vista, most of the world will bow to the “Big G’s” wishes and buy, buy, buy.
However, before you do here are some things to consider.

• Vista will be very buggy still. Wait for a service pack or two.
• Your computer specs will need to be fairly good (see below)
• It might corrupt your iPod. Wait for the next iTunes update

Or better yet: buy a Mac.

Firstly, I’ll show you some facts about Vista and then about Mac OS X.

Let’s go.

VISTA

Minimum System Requirements:

• 1 GHz 32-bit (x86) or 64-bit (x64) processor
• 512 MB of system memory
• 20 GB hard drive with at least 15 GB of available space
• Support for DirectX 9 graphics and 32 MB of graphics memory
• DVD-ROM drive
• Audio Output
• Internet access (fees may apply)

(Source: Microsoft.com)

However, be aware…

If you purchased a PC in the last two years, chances are good that you can run Windows Vista

(Source: Microsoft.com)

That quote is no promise. You might be lucky… or you might not… People have gotten the latest Mac OS X to run on 8 year old machines! And “The G” only says “chances are good”?

Prices
Home Premium Upgrade Academic: $176 AUD
Home Basic Upgrade: $199 AUD
Home Premium Upgrade: $299 AUD
Business Upgrade: $379 AUD
Home Basic: $385 AUD
Home Premium: $455 AUD
Ultimate Upgrade: $495 AUD
Business: $565 AUD
Ultimate: $754 AUD
(Source: Dick Smith Electronics)
Security vulnerabilities thrown in at no extra charge.

Confused by all the different versions?

Even the critics have bad things to say about Vista and its “new” features.

Nearly all of the major, visible new features in Vista are already available in Apple’s operating system, called Mac OS X

(Source: WSJ.com)

Mac OS X comes with everything anyone could want from a computer. From gaming to business. Film making or book writing. A Mac will get the job done and do it great.

Just remember, even if you buy a computer with Windows already installed, you can follow this smart gentleman’s example:

A Sheffield man has won a refund from Dell for not installing Microsoft’s Windows XP on a laptop he bought from the PC giant.

Freelance programmer Dave Mitchell ordered a Dell laptop on 21 October, and the machine was delivered a few days later.

As Mr Mitchell was planning to run the Linux open source operating system on the machine, he had no need for the copy of Windows XP Home that had been pre-installed.

When he started it for the first time, he clicked the box that said “no” on the Windows licence agreement that asked him to agree to its terms. The text of this agreement states users can get a refund for the “unused products” on their new computer if they get in touch with the machine’s manufacturer.

(Source: BBC.co.uk)

MAC OS X
Price
Tiger: $199 AUD
Tiger (5 User): $299 AUD
(Source: Apple.com.au)

Minimum System Requirements:

• Macintosh computer with a PowerPC G3, G4 or G5 processor
• Built-in FireWire
• DVD drive for installation
• 256MB of RAM
• 3GB of available hard disk space (4GB if you install the developer tools)

(Source: Apple.com)

When you buy a Mac these days, they are already equipped with the latest OS X (Tiger at the moment) and so the system requirements aren’t really too important, but they are nice to know anyway.

In The Box
When you buy a new iMac you get

• iMac
• Power cord
• Apple Remote
• Apple Keyboard
• Mighty Mouse
• Install/restore DVDs
• Printed and electronic documentation

(Source: Apple.com.au)

With Vista, its pretty much just BYOC (Bring Your Own Computer).