Mac vs. PC: The Ultimate Lab Test for New Desktops & Laptops

Popular Mechanics ^ | May 2008 | By Glenn Derene

[Swordmaker]

This computer rivalry has been elevated to a cultural divide on par with Pepsi versus Coke. Taking it beyond personal taste, PM crunches the numbers—with some surprising results (and detailed benchmark scores).

We all know the stereotypes. Apple’s popular commercials have painted the picture in stark terms: There are two types of people, Mac people and PC people. And if the marketing is to be believed, the former is a hip, sport-coat-and-sneakers- wearing type of guy who uses his computer for video chatting, music mash-ups and other cool, creative pursuits that starchy, business-suited PC users could never really appreciate unless they tried them on the slick Apple interface. Then again, Windows PC enthusiasts probably think that Mac guy is a smug slacker with an overpriced toy that can’t do any serious computing anyway. Funny thing is, both stereotypes are wrong. With a 7.5 percent market share, Macs are no longer just the computer choice of artists and unemployed writers. (Apple is, in fact, the fourth largest computer manufacturer in the world.) And now, more than ever, the guts of both platforms are remarkably similar. Both types of machines use Intel proc­essors (although some PCs can be configured with processors from AMD). Both buy memory, hard drives and graphics cards from the same small pool of suppliers. The underlying operating systems have distinctly different flavors, but in terms of functionality, Microsoft Windows Vista and Mac OS X Leopard have surprisingly similar built-in multimedia, Internet and productivity applications.

Yet what makes the platforms feel so dissimilar is their approaches to these applications. Internet Explorer versus Safari, Windows Media Center versus Front Row, Photo Gallery versus iPhoto, Backup and Restore Center versus Time Machine—these system components from Microsoft and Apple are designed to accomplish essentially the same goals. To users, however, the position and movement of the virtual knobs and levers make all the difference.

These things are largely matters of preference and style, but you can still make a reasonable attempt to quantify them, and we did. We tested two all-in-one desktops and two laptops—one Mac and one PC per category—and assembled a panel of testers with a range of experience and preference that ran the gamut from expert users to my wife’s stepfather, who, by his own account, had never actually turned on a computer. Our testers were asked to set up the computers right out of the box and explore the machines through everyday tasks such as Web surfing, document creation, uploading photos, downloading Adobe Acrobat files and playing music and movies through Media Center and Front Row (the entertainment software suites integrated into Vista and Leopard, respectively). Our testers were instructed to divorce themselves as much as possible from their previous technological preferences and rate their experiences with each computer’s software and hardware.

Usability surveys are like taste tests—a useful look at the subjective appeal of a device. (Is it fun? Is it easy? Would I be happy to live with this thing?) But beneath their packaging, computers are data-crunching machines that can be run like racehorses. So the second component of our test regimen was about pure performance.

Our computers were closely matched, but in the interest of full disclosure, we’ll spit out the caveats: The Gateway One PC had a processor that runs 400 MHz slower than its iMac competitor (not a heck of a difference in this age of dual-core chips), but it also had two extra gigabytes of DDR2 memory. In the laptop category, our Asus M51 had a 2.2 GHz processor, compared to 2.4 GHz for our MacBook. But the Asus had a larger screen, a more sophisticated graphics card and an extra gig of RAM.

All that extra RAM may seem to give an advantage to the PCs. Vista, however, is a noted memory hog, so throwing more RAM into PC computers is probably less of a perform ance booster for manufacturers than it is a new baseline hardware specification.

Before we pulled out our stopwatches, we turned to two industry-standard, cross-platform benchmarking tools—Geekbench from Primate Labs and Cinebench from Maxon—to get third-party results. We ran both benchmarking programs on our Mac and PC desktop and laptop computers before our testers got their dirty little hands on the equipment to ensure that no confounding software could poison the results.

These benchmarks are reliable indicators of performance, but the numbers feel somewhat meaningless to ordinary users. Which is why we created our own suite of tests to meas ure the speed of everyday tasks. We logged boot-up and shutdown times, and launch times for the Internet browser and media player built into each operating system, as well as for common applications such as Microsoft Word and Adobe Photoshop. We tested how long it took for each computer to rip a CD and install a few big software suites. The laptops were forced to play the longest movie we could find (Saving Private Ryan—2 hours, 49 minutes) until they wheezed, sputtered and shut down. Finally, we put all four computers through a stress test. We ran three video sources (a YouTube clip, a DVD and an .avi file), DivX encoding, instant messaging, Word, Adobe Acrobat and a spyware scan simultaneously—then retimed our launch of Photoshop.

The results gave us a clear winner in the performance categories, but the big surprise was how little difference we found in user preferences. Turns out, both platforms are capable and easy to use, but only one was the victor.

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iMac | $1499

SPECS
Hardware	20-in. screen, 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 1 GB DDR2 RAM, 320 GB hard drive, built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, 8x CD/DVD burner, remote control, ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphics card.
Software	OS X Leopard, iLife '08 (iTunes, iPhoto, GarageBand, etc.), Front Row, iWork (30-day trial).
USER RATING
Design
Ergonomics
Internet surfing
Digital photo management
iWork
Front Row (movies, music, etc.)
Overall

SPEED TEST | Click here for detailed benchmark scores
Boot	Average startup	28.7 sec.
	Average shutdown	4.0 sec.
Install	Microsoft Office	4 min. 17 sec.
	Adobe Creative Suite 3	31 min. 44 sec.
Program Launch	Safari (Internet browser)	3.3 sec.
	Microsoft Word	4.2 sec.
	Adobe Photoshop	4.0 sec.
	Stress-launch Photoshop (w/ 8 apps running)	21.36 sec.
	CD rip	3 min. 35 sec.

Gateway One | $1800

SPECS
Hardware	19-in. screen, 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 3 GB DDR2 RAM, 500 GB hard drive, built-in Wi-Fi, 8x CD/DVD burner, remote control, ATI Radeon HD 2600 graphics card.
Software	Windows Vista Home Premium, Microsoft Works 8.5, Media Center, Microsoft Office (60-day trial).
USER RATING
Design
Ergonomics
Internet surfing
Digital photo management
Works
Media Center (movies, music, etc.)
Overall

SPEED TEST | Click here for detailed benchmark scores
Boot	Average startup	1 min. 13 sec.
	Average shutdown	44.3 sec.
Install	Microsoft Office	6 min. 25 sec.
	Adobe Creative Suite 3	25 min. 45 sec.
Program Launch	Internet Explorer	6.3 sec.
	Microsoft Word	5.2 sec.
	Adobe Photoshop	5.5 sec.
	Stress-launch Photoshop (w/ 8 apps running)	40.0 sec.
	CD rip	3 min. 35 sec.

---

MacBook* | $1299

* As tested on an Apple MacBook containing an Intel Penryn processor. Because the new Penryn version of the MacBook was not available at press time for the May 2008 print edition of PM, the test results appearing in the magazine reflect the previous version of the MacBook. to see the non-Penryn MacBook results that appeared in the magazine.

SPECS
Hardware	13.3-in. screen, 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo (Penryn); 3GB DDR2 RAM, 160 GB hard drive, 8x CD/DVD burner, built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
Software	OS X Leopard, iLife '08 (iTunes, iPhoto, GarageBand, etc.), Front Row, iWork (30-day trial).
Weight	5 pounds
BATTERY TEST
With the DVD drive spinning and screen at full brightness, the MacBook made it through our movie, but fell short of Apple's stated 6-hour battery life: 3 hr. 34 min.
USER RATING
Design
Ergonomics
Internet surfing
Digital photo management
iWork
Media Center (movies, music, etc.)
Overall

SPEED TEST | Click here for detailed benchmark scores
Boot	Average startup	41.6 sec.
	Average shutdown	3.9 sec.
Install	Microsoft Office	2 min. 57 sec.
	Adobe Creative Suite 3	34 min. 54 sec.
Program Launch	Microsoft Word	5.3 sec.
	Adobe Photoshop	4.1 sec.
	Stress-launch Photoshop (w/ 8 apps running)	16.2 sec.
	CD rip	5 min. 49 sec.

Asus M51SR | $1299

SPECS
Hardware	15.4-in. screen, 2.2 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor, 2 GB DDR2 RAM, 250 GB hard drive, ATI Radeon HD 2400 graphics card, 8x CD/DVD burner, built-in Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.
Software	Microsoft Vista Home Premium, Works, Media Center, Office (30-day trial).
Weight	6.5 pounds
BATTERY TEST
Many users liked the Asus’s 15.4-in. screen, but that large display is a drain on the battery. The Asus couldn’t make it through our 2-hour, 49-minute movie: 1 hr. 30 min.
USER RATING
Design
Ergonomics
Internet surfing
Digital photo management
Works
Media Center (movies, music, etc.)
Overall

SPEED TEST | Click here for detailed benchmark scores
Boot	Average startup	1 min. 51 sec.
	Average shutdown	25.4 sec.
Install	Microsoft Office	4 min. 46 sec.
	Adobe Creative Suite 3	21 min.
Program Launch	Microsoft Word	6.2 sec.
	Adobe Photoshop	5.2 sec.
	Stress-launch Photoshop (w/ 8 apps running)	25.5 sec.
	CD rip	3 min. 9 sec.

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The Verdict: Apple

Mac: In both the laptop and desktop showdowns, Apple’s computers were the winners. Oddly, the big difference didn’t come in our user ratings, where we expected the famously friendly Mac interface to shine. Our respondents liked the look and feel of both operating systems but had a slight preference toward OS X. In our speed trials, however, Leopard OS trounced Vista in all-important tasks such as boot-up, shutdown and program-launch times. We even tested Vista on the Macs using Apple’s platform-switching Boot Camp software—and found that both Apple computers ran Vista faster than our PCs did.

PC: Simply put, Vista proved to be a more sluggish operating system than Leopard. Our PCs installed some software faster, but in general they were slower in our time trials. Plus, both PCs showed weaker performance on third-party benchmarks than the Macs. Our biggest surprise, however, was that PCs were not the relative bargains we expected them to be. The Asus M51sr costs the same as a MacBook, while the Gateway One actually costs $300 more than an iMac. That means for the price of the Gateway you could buy an iMac, boost its hard drive to match the Gateway’s, purchase a copy of Vista to boot—and still save $100.

Detailed Benchmark Scores: Desktops

Benchmark Test	iMac 20-in screen; 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo; 1GB DDR2	Gateway One 2.0GHz Core 2 Duo; 3GB DDR2
Geekbench
Overall	3180 (2651)	1903
Integer	2766 (3398)	2324
Floating Point	4460 (2675)	1713
Memory	2299 (1720)	1597
Stream	1916 (1819)	1707
Cinebench
1 CPU	2619 (2429)	1979
2 CPUs	4840 (4641)	3739
Graphics	4819 (3834)	2913

*Scores in parentheses are for Macs running Vista in Boot Camp.

Detailed Benchmark Scores: Laptops

Benchmark Test	MacBook 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo; 1GB DDR2 (Out of production)	MacBook 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo (Penryn); 3GB DDR2	Asus M51 2.2 GHz Core 2 Duo; 2GB DDR2
Geekbench
Overall	2885 (2465)	3156 (2657)	2445
Integer	2536 (3099)	2734 (3421)	3102
Floating Point	3959 (2429)	4395 (2660)	2444
Memory	2156 (1730)	2378 (1785)	1636
Stream	1809 (1850)	1853 (1717)	1772
Cinebench
1 CPU	2409	2741 (2561)	2214
2 CPUs	4468	5216 (4838)	4198
Graphics	2027	2040 (835)	2495

*Scores in parentheses are for Macs running Vista in Boot Camp.

[word_warrior_bob]

As a support person for both systems and some other things, my only beef with the Macs is the users. They really don’t know how to *do* anything when it is not as expected. They don’t know how to troubleshoot and just throw their hands up. I had one tell me it was just a tool. Fine, but don’t pretend it is a crisis when you don’t even try.

—

I DON’T WANT to troubleshoot a computer, I’ve got an imac and a macbook now and curse a lot less now. I also do not want to ever learn to fix my car.

Why in the world does microsoft windows send you out to the mean streets of the internet with nothing but a rusty pocket knife to protect you against an advancing army of trojan horses, viruses, malware, etc., ad infinitum??? And why do I have to be the one to pay/figure out my defense strategy?

It’s insulting/bordenline disdainful to the consumer, OK gladiator here’s your wooden stick go fight those lions.

Doesn’t microsoft realize this is their biggest disadvantage against apple and why they’ve lost me forever as a cusomer. The OS SHOULD protect you for FREE or it’s worthless.

[RightOnTheLeftCoast]

"Windows users who switched and are so happy they want to let others know there's a better way."

That's the case here. I'm forced to use Windows on my work laptop (so I run a Linux virtual machine for my "personal" use when traveling). My wife refused to switch, so she uses a late-model Vaio. My two sons both had Windows laptops, too. Now, I have to clean my wife's machine of malware about every three months despite a costly antivirus program and firewall. My sons' machines were such malware magnets that I'd have to wipe their hard disks clean and reinstall everything every few months. Finally I got them Mac notebooks. It's been more than three years, and not a single "support incident". Not one. My wife's Vaio continues to get infected, though. Nothing seems to stop it.

[SunkenCiv]

I saw that the other night... hmm... I think I bought that issue... PM didn’t punch it up much on the cover.

[SunkenCiv]

It’s very possible that you may be the only one, even here on FR, where the bashing of Macs, Apple, and people who use Apple products is considered okay.

FYI: since your post began with the statement that Mac users think we’re god’s gift to humanity, and equating us with Obama supporters, you are a bigot.

[SunkenCiv]

You won’t even have to call tech support to get the answer to that one:

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/by:swordmaker/index?tab=comments;brevity=full;options=no-change

[Locomotive Breath]

it is all blackbox to them

That's exactly how a good technology should be. If the engineers do it right even the most brainless person should be able to use a technology and get the right result. IMO Macs are a lot closer to that than PCs.

Mac at home. PC at work. At work I spend a lot of time trying to figure out "why the h*ll did my computer do that?" At home, not so much.

[discostu]

If mechanics had to hear the kind of stuff computer support people hear they’d bitch. There’s a lot of assumed helplessness in computer users, a lot of people that sit down in front of a computer and decide they don’t know how it works and they don’t want to so support should tell them what to do. Nobody ever calls up their mechanic to find out how they adjust their seat, people do call support to find out how to change their screen saver.

We used to have a joke in the business that if your VCR is blinking 12:00 and there hasn’t been a power outage you have no business sitting in front a computer. Then they got rid of clocks on VCRs, tells you something about the masses and their relationship with “high” tech.

[Billthedrill]

Am I the only one who sees a close similarity between vocal Mac users and Obama supporters?

They act as if they are God’s gift to humanity.

Not most of them, but plenty who do turn up on these threads. It's profoundly silly, actually. I was just at a conference on the Microsoft campus in Redmond and there were Macs all over the place. I will go out on a limb (and probably offend somebody here) and state that the more passionate an evangelist about the matter, the less he or she actually knows about it, and that goes for both sides.

[discostu]

And if you had done what MS recommends then the OS would have protected you. Don’t run as admin, use the free firewall that comes with the OS, get automatic updates and Windows boxes can be quite secure. Don’t do those things and no OS will protect you.

[discostu]

Sounds like your costly AV and firewall weren’t worth the money and your kids were hanging out in the dark corners of the internet and were running as admin. AVG and other free packages are really the best of breed when it comes to AV and firewall. I run free stuff and scan my computer a couple times a year just out of habit (when it’s on and I’m not doing anything with it) and rarely find anything of significance.

[jpsb]

"Good for you! I'd sooner die than to buy a new PC and end up running Vista."

I have a really nice PC running vista, Vista SUCKS! Vista would turn me into a Mac user but for Apache Software. I run lots of Apache Software apps.

[word_warrior_bob]

I had XP and did those things and more and it only took one misstep somewhere for the freeze, crash, restart process to begin. Not to mention the endless alerts of all the times I had been “protected”, hours of scans, defrags, etc, it never ended. I have none of these annoyances with apple.

If I wanted to be computer savvy, I would, I have no interest. I want to be able to use the applications of the computer, not understand the inner workings, etc. I understand these things are very easy for a lot of experienced PC people, but not for ME.

It is very easy for ME to shoot in the 70’s from the back tees of any golf course in the world, I don’t expect that from everyone I play with though.

[discostu]

Sounds like a bad install or bad drivers. I’ve had multiple XP machines running since the OS came out and never gone through a freeze, crash restart.

If you don’t want to be computer savvy then you shouldn’t buy one. If you got in your car turned off the airbag and didn’t put on the seatbelt would you blame the manufacturer when “one misstep” put your head through the windshield. There are smart ways and not smart ways to use ANY tool. Nobody is suggesting you need to know the inner workings, but you should at least read the message that comes up immediately after an install that tells you running as admin is dangerous and not to do it.

It’s not like they hid this information, if you set yourself up as admin it told you that was a bad idea, if you turned off automatic updates it told you that was a bad idea, if you chose not to run the protection suite that comes with the OS it told you that was a bad idea. If you chose to ignore ALL those warning, then why is that MS’s fault? Nobody is expecting you to shoot in the 70s from the back tees, you’re just being expected not to blame the caddy when you ignored his club recommendation and the shot went where you didn’t want.

[antiRepublicrat]

I run lots of Apache Software apps.

I think that's all available for OS X. The http server definitely is, as that's included in OS X Server. Or is there another Apache I don't know of?

[Spktyr]

“It’s not like they hid this information, if you set yourself up as admin it told you that was a bad idea”

Really? Installed XP Home or Pro lately?

First it makes you set up the Administrator account password.

Then it creates your accounts for you.

And hey, look, by *default*, they’re set to admin. How about that?

[discostu]

Yeah, just a couple of weeks ago, and no by default it isn’t admin, in fact before you setup that account you’re told you shouldn’t make them admin.