Computer Review: Is the Sony Vaio JS190J Better Than the Apple iMac?

Apple iMac computer sales are on the rise. Computer and technology industry insiders report that Apple's computers have grown by 38%, with the computer manufacturers computer sales far outpacing the rest of the computer and technology industry. "Apple was able to achieve significant market share gains throughout the year," says the Mac Observer, which makes it the "#3 computer maker with 9.5% market share in the U.S. according to data released by Gartner Research" (source).

However, many people who want the power of Apple's iMac desktop computers and MacBook laptop computers are unable to purchase these computers due to their relative high price. Thus, some shoppers may choose to cheaper PC alternatives. In this computer and technology product comparison review, I will compare the hardware specs between the Sony Vaio JS190J computer and the Apple Intel iMac computer. If they're the same, would you be better off buying the Sony computer instead of the Apple computer? Keep reading!

Introduction

The new Sony Vaio JS190J which is currently priced at $1,499.99 in the United States is the smallest in Sony's all-in-one desktop lines. It looks just like an Apple iMac computer, down to the Sony computer's shiny, aluminum keyboard. The difference is just that, it's a Sony and it's a PC, not a Mac which is from Apple.

Hardware Specs

Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3.0 GHz with 6 MB L2 Cache

Memory: 4 GB pre installed DDR2 SDRAM 800 MHz

Chipset: Intel G45 express

Graphics Controller: Intel GMA X4500HD Dynamic Video Memory Technology 5.0

HDD: 500 GB Serial ATA-150

Optical drive: DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM / BD-ROM

Monitor: LCD display - TFT active matrix

20.1" diagonal in

1680 x 1050 max resolution

OS: Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit version

Others: Integrated sound, Bluetooth wireless technology, Wireless LAN, Integrated Network adapter, memory card reader

Judging by the specs, seeing an Intel Core 2 duo E8400 3.0 GHz with 6 MB L2 cache with the Sony Vaio JS190J, I already thought that this can be a good entertainment pc already if paired with a good graphics card. By also seeing 4 GB of pre installed memory, it proved to be a little powerful. But after seeing an Intel GMA X4500HD, it all boils down that this PC is only good for watching HD videos and a bit of decoding HD's and stuff but not really that good when playing games with it. The big monitor is already good showing that is has a 1680 x 1050 max resolution and a widescreen. But take note, that's still my idea of it without using it yet. When comparing it with Apple's 20 in Mac, it clearly shows that it is really much better than the Mac seeing that the Mac counterpart only has 320 GB of Hard disk capacity, a 2.66 GHz processor and a smaller 2 GB of memory. Sony's Vaio JS190J has also surpassed other all-in-one PC's at the same price range including dell's XPS one which only has 2 GB of system memory and a 2.66 GHz processor.

Tests

Judging by the specs, it can be a powerful entertainment PC but without a powerful graphics card? It can't be called powerful but rather just an entertainment pc or a mainstream PC. As you can see, it doesn't have a powerful graphics card port like tower PC's which has a PCI-e 16x slot for a graphics card. It's somewhat powerful but not that powerful because its specs cannot be modified. You will just be using it built-in specs like its integrated graphics card from Intel which is really not that powerful compared to Nvidia's or ATI's. Even though we knew that this cannot be used for 3D gaming, still we tried to let it play one. We managed to get a copy Call of duty 4 so we installed it and played it. As what we have expected, it won't be much of an experience when you use it for playing 3D games. Well, it doesn't have a powerful graphics card but it doesn't mean that it's a good pc. It still has a powerful processor and a big system memory. It can still be good with basic applications and watching HD movies.

Conclusion:

This PC still rocks disregarding its incapability of an upgrade. But still considering its portability (because it's an all-in-one PC) it already good. It has a powerful processor, a big hard disk capacity and a huge amount of system memory. Even though it can't be good in games, still it has the ability to give you much of an experience in watching HD movies in blu-ray or HD DVD.