My Apple 30″ monitor is dying so I decided to go ahead and replace it (additional business expense in 2008 FTW). I was surprised at what I found when looking up the Apple and Dell 30″ offerings.
Apple offers (for $1799 retail):
- An elegant cosmetic design.
Dell offers (for $1399 retail):
- Faster response time.
- Higher contrast.
- Three times the support level (3 years to 1).
- Card reader built in.
- Adjustable height.
- Does not have a big power brick.
I buy much of my gear refurbished, so let’s compare the refurbished prices as well. Apple: $1499, Dell: $750. Literally half the price. The Apple display refurbished is more expensive than the Dell new.
Sorry, this is a no-brainer.
(Hopefully the Dell arrives in good working order and there is no postscript to this post needed.)
$750 for a 30″ display is amazing. I bought the original 22″ Apple Cinema Display in 1999 and my Apple 30″ monitor in 2004. I think both were in the $3k range at the time.
As Rands says, you’ve got to have room for big ideas.
UPDATE 2008-12-24: It arrived today and seems to work beautifully (card reader works too). I’ve added “height adjustable” and “no big power dongle adapter” to the Dell list.