Dell XPS M1530 VS. Apple MacBook Pro

Hey everyone, I just wrote a comparison of the Dell XPS M1530 to the Apple MacBook Pro with a fairly detailed comparison chart. What do you guys think? I personally ended up going with a XPS M1530 over the Macbook Pro. Is there anything else I missed in the comparison. Or is there anything you feel did or didn't deserve a point. Please take a look and feel free to make comments.

I'll put the chart in an image here, however follow the link for the rest of the text.


http://skattertech.com/2008/03/dell-xps-m1530-vs-apple-macbook-pro/

 

The 8600GT in the M1530 is better than the card in the MBP. The 1530's is GDDR3, while the MBP's is only GDDR2. While the 8600GT in the MBP has more memory, the one in the XPS is much faster.

 

Apple MBP wins in dimensions (inches x inches x inches)

But price!
XPS 1530 wins by a landslide

 

I'm almost sure the MBP has GDDR3 as well. However, the extra memory IS negligible.

 

XPS, prettier and has far better Bang for Buck

 

That 512mb video card is really the only notable performance difference between the two. For gaming I would go with the Mac for that reason. But for media, the HDMI and Blu ray combo is nice. However I believe the Mac is more expensive no? I could be wrong.

 

But the mac may have the 512 which is not a big boost, it has HEAVY issues with gaming... It has heat issues to be more specific... many people are having issues with the GPU over heating and the system shutting down during gaming

 

It may have been that way previously, but in the recent upgrades during MacWorld it now has 512MB of GDDR3! So it might in fact be better

I wonder how gaming would be if you were running XP on the MBP, I remember reading some benchmarks which said the MBP was extremely good.

 

macpro wins for me because of the matte LED backlit screen

 

The memory does not matter. The 8600m GT is not powerful enough to effectively utilize 512 mb of VRAM.

 

Vote cast for Dell XPS M1530.... $700 on a 2GB RAM upgrade for a MBP is a total rip off! Doh! Oh and I don't wanna try Mac OS either... cus I'd be paying for that in the base price, and then I'd have to get windows separately.
Finally, the XPS looks better and has really good deals, just that a lotta people seem to have problems with it.... Not really a gamer's NB anyway..

 

I have had nothing but a positive experience with my MBP. I would recommend it, especially with the Penryn's out now.

Here is the bench on my comp, XP Pro. 575/770 Clocks 169.09 driver.



as for heat, I have had no problems, everest shows my gpu will stay around 80c during gaming, which is what the temp was before I oc'ed.

Dell's are decent computers though, I had no problems with the two desktop XPS systems ive owned, and the real question is do you need OSX or not.

 

@Magimagus

Thanks for the info, that's exactly what I wanted.
So if you do get a Macbook Pro, it would be an excelent platform to game on if you installed Windows XP Pro.

Since I went with the XPS, I'll probably just use Vista as my default OS and run Ubuntu as well since I need linux for my programing classes.

I've spent some time with both Vista and OS X Leopard and I have to say both have some neat features, however they both have MANY problems. I still feel that Win XP Pro with SP2 and the upcoming SP3 will be the most stable platform for at least another year.

 

you can`t compare MBP and xps 1530 becouse they are in different categories.but for me mbp is surely better!it has beautiful design,it is lighter and ,most important-OS X,which is way better then Vista!1.MBP has better screen then xps.2.it is lighter then xps.3.it has better video card.4.in hdd part they are equal!4.yes lack of blu-rey is a big con(especially this days).5. in hdmi part i agree!6.54 mm express card is not a big deal!7.mbp has better lan.8 xps`s web cam resolution is bigger,but mac. wins in video quality.9 mbp 's keyboard is a lot better then xps`s.10.lack of card reader is a con,but you can buy expresscard card reader.11.multi touch is a plus!.12.battery on mbp lasts about 4 hourse!and mac is not for every one!

 

@Xirurg
My personal needs happened to be slightly different than yours. I needed a Windows OS to run my programs. (I'll also be putting Ubuntu) I wanted the 1680x1050 screen since my 5 year old Sony Vaio had a 1400x1050 resolution and now I can't work with anything less. Blu-ray is awesome to hook up to HDTVs. I like the express card remote control and media keys as well. The WiFi antenna is pretty dam powerful so I can get signal for pretty far away. And yes HDMI is great to hook up to my TV or for HDMI to DVI for my dual monitor setup. I wish I had a nicer keyboard and especially with a backlight. I also love my finger print reader. Battery life sucks on the xps for sure. Apple says 5 hours for the MBP, but I spoke to a few friends and they all said they get average of 3 hours. Also like stuff that dell added in such as WiFi catcher so i can check for wifi before i boot up.

Either way both were very close in my comparison and I would have gone for the mac since I love the simplicity and since I could run both OSs, but I didn't since it was over my budget.

 

quite reasonable,everyone has his own opinion,for me mac. is better for others xps is better.btw how much was you budget?

 

when you put it in dell section, of course most people would vote fro m1530, put one in the apple section also to get a better idea,,
btw, you didn't put a major factor, PRICE>>>>

 

I ended up getting a 2.4 GHz, Vista Ultimate, 1680x1050, 3GB RAM, 160GB 7200RPM HDD, DVD+/-RW drive, NVIDIA 8600M GT, WiFi 802.11n, and Bluetooth. I got a good representative who let me combine a coupon and a student discount. I was able to get it for a whooping price of $1350. My budget was $1600, but I got more than I wanted at that price.

Are we allowed to cross reference posts? I thought it was against forum policy? If not, then I'll go a head and do it.

 

congratulations!but can you do me a favor?after using it for 2-3 weeks,take it to one who owns mbp,compare them,and tell us what you think!But you must be fair!

 

No, it is not allowed. I wish the mods would consider cross-posts individually, since sometimes they do belong in two or more threads.

 

Everyone's needs are different, but for me (a Windows desktop developer), the MBP is the best laptop on the market. I've got a XPS M1330 that I took on a trip to Las Vegas to attend a tax seminar so I can compare what an XPS laptop has to offer versus a MBP.

I took the M1330 because of the slight weight and size advantage, but I missed using the MBP the entire trip. Vista is just not ready for prime time yet. And even if it was, I'd still opt for running it on a MBP.

Currently, my work laptop is a MBP (new one with the Penryn processor) running Leopard and WinXP in Parallels. I do all my web surfing, photo and video editing, and ruby development on OS X, and all my Windows development on WinXP. Seems like the best of both worlds to me and one that others should really experience. I'm waiting for Vista SP1 and then I'll probably also install Vista (in Parallels) so that I can test our Windows software development in XP or Vista.

I think the XPS models have a lot to offer, just not for me. I may keep the XPS M1330 for a while - just for traveling - then again, if the Macbook Air gets upgraded to a larger hard drive, then that will be my next purchase.

 

Apple does make some very nice machines, but I didn't care much for OS X. I would go with the M1530 myself. However, I do think I'll own an Apple laptop again in the future just not as my primary machine like it was before.

 

In terms of specs they are almost the same...personally I would go with the MBP because I think it looks better and you can run both OSX and Windows plus I hear it has better battery life.

One question though why don't you wait for the Clevo M860TU? I know its a long time before its release but still...

 

How does one know if they "need" OSX or not?

(serious question, not trying to be sarcastic )

 

Got the xps for me, the mbp for my college daughter. We both think ours is the boss! Seriously, both good machines.

 

Nice! Any chance you can do a comparison for us?

 

u forgot to mention that MBP is extremely hot and expensive while XPS 1530 is not.

 

LOL...

If you don't know, then you don't need OS X.