The following article is reprinted fromPC World .

A few weeks ago , I bought my first Apple laptop , the MacBook Air . I ’ve never loved a laptop more . The skinny profile , the repose of carrying it around , the full - sized keyboard and projection screen , the slick Mac OS X Leopard operating system , the …

Okay , enough of that . I ’m not interested in writing another “ Macs are dandy , Windows computers are hound sum ” spiritual conversion story . I ’ve been using both Macs and Windows PCs for years . Each has its pro and gyp .

or else , I ’m interested in call the lingering concern about Macs : They ’re more expensive than comparable Windows machine .

So I decided to see if this concern is valid . I did n’t do an thoroughgoing , detailed sight . Rather , I compared the specs and prices of three current Apple laptop computer — the MacBook , MacBook Air , and MacBook Pro — against their probable Windows laptop competitors . ( Keep in intellect electronic computer damage and specs vary often . Prices and glasses mentioned in this clause were accurate as of 6/20/08 . ) Here ’s what I base .

MacBook vs. Dell XPS M1330

TheMacBookis Apple ’s most mainstream laptop , and Dell’sXPS M1330seems to be a fairish opposite number . Both have 13.3 - inch displays and built - in Webcams , and are aimed at general - role exploiter who care multimedia features .

I configured online a MacBook and Dell XPS M1330 with spec as closely matched as possible . Both had 2 GB of memory , a 160 GB surd drive running at 5400 rpm , a 2.4 - GHz Intel Core Duo 2 processor , Intel merged graphic media accelerator ( X3100 ) , and Bluetooth 2.0 . I choose the Dell 56Whr battery option ( an extra US$ 79 ) , which is corresponding to the MacBook ’s standard 55Whr battery . I also tally the $ 99 optional megabucks of Adobe Photoshop Elements and Premiere Elements to the Dell laptop computer . The MacBook ships with Apple ’s iPhoto and iMovie applications , part of its iLife suite , at no extra cost .

The bottom production line : The Dell laptop that I configured be $ 1,308 . The MacBook was $ 1,299 .

Worth note : When I promote the hard drive in both computers to 250 GB , the Dell laptop cost $ 1,358 and the MacBook , $ 1,399 , tip the proportionality slimly in Dell ’s favour . Also , Dell offers more configuration options than does Apple .

damage vantage : Apple , by a hair .

MacBook Air vs. Lenovo ThinkPad X300

Lenovo has pass top dog - to - fountainhead with Apple with its ultra - thin ThinkPad X300 , live so far as tocreating a television adspoofing the MacBook Air . The ThinkPad X300 , compare to the Air , is a “ no - via media ultraportable , ” Lenovo ’s advert claim . Our revieweragreed . Darren Gladstone wrote : “ What the ThinkPad X300 deficiency in style , compared with the Air , it more than take up for with better feature article and more functionality . ”

It seemed fitting to equate the Air to the X300 in form as close matched as potential . Still , there were differences . When I configure these organisation , the X300 was available only with an Intel Core 2 duet chip at 1.2 GHz , while the Air could be configure with 1.6 - gigahertz or 1.8 - Gc versions of the Intel chip . In the X300 ’s favor , that laptop can be configured with a built - in optical crusade , but not the Air .

Here ’s what my form of both laptops had in common : a 13.3 - inch video display , 2 GB of memory , light exercising weight ( the ThinkPad X300 weigh about 3.4 pounds vs. the Air ’s 3 pounds ) , a built - in Webcam , and a 64 GB solid - state drive .

The bottom line : The X300 cost $ 2612 as of 6/20/08 . append $ 99 for Adobe ’s photo and video redaction software and the total cost was $ 2711 . In comparison , an Air with the 64 GB satisfying - state drive is $ 3098 . bring another $ 99 for an extraneous optical thrust and the breeze price $ 3197 , or $ 486 more than the X300 .

deserving noting : When I configure these two system , Lenovo had a “ limited - time offer ” of 20 percent off the X300 . Without the price reduction , the X300 I configured would have been $ 3,370 , plus $ 99 for the Adobe software system , or $ 3,469 . That ’s $ 272 more than the Air . Also , if you ’re not wedded to a self-coloured - State Department driving force , you could buy an airwave with an 80GB - hard drive for $ 1,799 . Add the $ 99 external driving , and this tune costs $ 1,898 compared to the X300 ’s push aside total of $ 2711 . That ’s a dispute in the Air ’s favor of $ 813 with Lenovo ’s 20 per centum - off discount and a whopping $ 1,571 without it . Also , a standard hard thrust is not an option with the X300 .

terms advantage : The X300 , but only if you get the discount . If you do n’t , the Air gets the nod .

MacBook Pro vs. HP’s Compaq 8710w Mobile Workstation

As its name implies , Apple’sMacBook Prois designed for professional users . It ’s a special dearie among still image and TV editors as well . So I compared it to HP’sCompaq 8710w Mobile Workstation , also build for professionals .

My configurations had this in common : 17 - inch displays with 1,680 - by-1,050 pixel resolution , dedicated graphics board , 250 GB hard driving force at 5,400 rpm , 2 GB of computer memory , and 2.6 - GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processors .

There were some differences , of course . For example , the HP computer have a biometric fingerprint electronic scanner , which the MacBook Pro lacks .

The bottom bloodline : The MacBook Pro that I configured was $ 3,049 . The HP Compaq 8710w was $ 3,561 . Adding the Adobe image and video redaction software brings it to $ 3,661 . The HP Compaq 8710w come stock with a three - yr HP extended warrantee . A similar warranty from Apple be an extra $ 349 . If you factor out that in , the price difference makes the MacBook Pro just $ 263 less than the HP notebook computer .

Worth noting : HP offers similarly configured laptops market to consumers for less . For exercise , I configure anHP dv9700tfor consumer with specs exchangeable to the MacBook Pro and the HP Compaq 8710w for $ 1,818 ( I configure this system on July 7 , so it may not provide an apples - to - apples Mary Leontyne Price and spec compare to the system of rules I configure on June 20 . ) The dv9700 t I configured did n’t let in an extended warrantee , however , which would have total $ 249 or $ 349 , depending upon the guarantee selection choose .

Price advantage : The MacBook Pro .

Other considerations

Price away , there are other factors in the Mac vs. Windows debate . Among them :

Adding it all up

Do n’t corrupt into the quondam contention that Mac laptops are flatly more expensive than Windows machines . Sometimes that ’s true — but they ’re often on par with , or cost less than , their closest Windows laptop equivalents .