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DATE CONFIGURED: 08/07/07
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| NOTE: It was my intention to use $600 as the price point for this Shootout. However, the Shuttle XPC systems are the closest major SFF to the Mac mini available, and the lowest-priced Shuttle system runs about $700 including shipping, so I've gone with $700 as the price point instead. |
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Best of Field
(in my opinion)
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Apple Mac mini
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Shuttle XPC G2 3000 H
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Design/Styling:
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"White Lunchbox"
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"Black Cube"
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Mobility:
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2.9 lbs.
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(10 lbs??)
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Component Access?
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access difficult
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fairly easy access
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Cords/Cables:
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n/a
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n/a
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Desk Space Used:
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appx. 42 sq. in.
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appx. 85 sq. in.
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Fairly quiet
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Fairly quiet
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Max. Energy Use:
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110 Watts (maximum)
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250 Watts (maximum)
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 |
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1.83 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
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1.6 GHz Intel Core Duo
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L2 Cache:
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2.0 MB L2 cache
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1.0 MB L2 cache
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RAM Type:
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DDR2-SDRAM PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
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DDR2-SDRAM PC2-5300 (667 MHz)
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Front Side Bus:
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667 MHz bus
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800 MHz bus
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RAM Amount:
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1.0 GB (2 SO-DIMMs)
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512 MB (2 DIMMs)
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Max. RAM:
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2.0 GB (2 slots)
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2.0 GB (2 slots)
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Hard Drive Capacity:
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80 GB
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80 GB
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Hard Drive Type:
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Serial ATA
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Serial ATA
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Hard Drive Speed:
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5400 RPM
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7200 RPM
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CD:
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24x16x24x CD-RW (slot-loading)
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24x16x24x CD-RW
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DVD:
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8x DVD-ROM (slot-loading)
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18x18x8x DL DVD±RW
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Floppy/Other Drive:
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--
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22-in-1 card reader
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PCI/AGP Slots:
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--
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1 available PCIe slot
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Internal Bays:
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1 2.5" drive bay (filled)
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2 3.5" drive bays (filled)
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External Bays:
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1 5.25" drive bay (filled)
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1 5.25" drive bay (filled)
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Mouse:
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4-button, 360º trackball optical USB mouse
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Logitech UltraX Optical Mouse
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Keyboard:
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ultraslim USB Keyboard w/2 USB 2 ports
(includes volume/mute/eject/media keys)
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Logitech UltraX Keyboard
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Remote Control:
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Apple Remote included
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--
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USB Ports:
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6 USB 2.0 ports total (4 on CPU, 2 on keybd.)
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6 USB 2.0 total (4 in back, 2 in front)
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FireWire Ports:
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1 port @ 400 Mbps
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2 ports @ 400 Mbps
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Other Ports:
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--
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2 PS/2, 1 Serial
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Infrared Reception:
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Yes
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--
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Video Card:
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Intel GMA 950
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Intel GMA 950
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Video RAM:
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DDR2 SDRAM (shared)
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DDR2 SDRAM (shared)
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VGA Out:
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Yes (via included adapter)
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Yes
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DVI Out:
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Yes
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Yes
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RCA-Out:
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optional adapter
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optional PCI card
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S-Video Out:
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optional adapter
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optional adapter
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TV Tuner:
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optional PCI card
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Dual Display Support?
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--
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--
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Display:
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n/a
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n/a
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Display Upgradable?
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n/a
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n/a
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Display Resolution:
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n/a
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n/a
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Brightness/Contrast:
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n/a
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n/a
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Viewable Angle:
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n/a
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n/a
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Audio In:
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combined optical digital audio input/audio line in
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Onboard 7.1 Channel Audio w/Digital (SPDIF) Ports
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Audio Out:
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combined optical digital audio output/headphone out
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Onboard 7.1 Channel Audio w/Digital (SPDIF) Ports
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Speakers:
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internal speakers
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--
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Video Camera:
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--
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Logitech QuickCam Pro 5000
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Ethernet:
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10/100/1000 Base-T
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10/100/1000 Base-T
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56k Modem:
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optional USB modem
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optional USB modem
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Wi-Fi Card:
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built-in 802.11a/b/g/n (248 Mbps) card
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optional
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Bluetooth Card:
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built-in Bluetooth 2.0+EDR module
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optional
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Printer/Scanner/etc:
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Canon PIXMA iP4300 Printer
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--
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Included OS:
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Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger; BSD Unix;
X11 Window System included
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Windows Vista Home Basic
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Windows Support:
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Native via Boot Camp or 3rd-party Virtualization
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Native
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Mac Support:
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Native (OS X)
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Mac OS 8 (via emulation)
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Linux/Unix Support:
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Native (various builds)
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Realtime Metadata Search/Organization:
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Spotlight (system-wide)
(includes Smart Folders, Content Search, etc)
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Instant Search
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Window/App Management:
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Dock / Cmd-Tab / Expose
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Task Bar / Flip
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Modular Desktop Utilities:
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Dashboard (system-wide)
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Gadgets/Sidebar
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Task Scripting:
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Automator/AppleScript (system-wide)
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Windows Script Host
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Save-as PDF:
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Native
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--
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Faxing:
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Yes (requires optional modem)
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optional
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Zero-Config Networking:
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Bonjour
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Handwriting Recognition:
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Inkwell
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--
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Voice/Speech Recog:
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Voiceover
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Yes
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Web Serving:
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Apache w/Perl, Python & PHP included
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--
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Data Backup Utility:
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(iBackup, PsyncX, etc. available as free download)
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Realtime Backup & Recovery
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Developer Tools:
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Xcode, Script Editor, etc.
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Visual Basic/C#/C++/J#/WebDeveloper available as free downloads
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File Compression:
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System-wide Zip compression
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System-wide Zip compression
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File Encryption:
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FileVault system encryption
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--
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Parental Controls:
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Yes
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Yes
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64-bit Processor Support:
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Yes (no recompiling needed)
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Yes (apps must be recompiled?)
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Visual/Audio Accessability:
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Very Good
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Very Good
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Word Processor:
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TextEdit (Word compatible)
or OpenOffice (free download; Word comp.)
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MSFT Word 2002
or OpenOffice (free download; Word comp.)
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Spreadsheet:
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OpenOffice (free download; Excel comp.)
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MS Works (Excel compatible)
OpenOffice (free download; Excel comp.)
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Presentation:
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OpenOffice (free download; PwrPt. comp.)
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OpenOffice (free download; PwrPt. comp.)
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Database:
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OpenOffice (free download)
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MS Works
OpenOffice (free download)
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Drawing/Painting:
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OpenOffice (free download)
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OpenOffice (free download)
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Page Layout/Publishing:
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--
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--
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Website Authoring:
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iWeb
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--
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Font Management:
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FontBook
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no on-the-fly font enabling/disabling
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Projects/Planning:
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--
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MSFT Works
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Web Browser
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Safari RSS
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Internet Explorer
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Image Viewer:
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Preview
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Windows Photo Gallery
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PDF Viewer:
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Preview
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--
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E-Mail/Address Book:
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OS X Mail / Address Book
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Windows Mail / Contacts; MSFT Works
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Calendar Program:
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iCal
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Windows Calendar; MSFT Works
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Data Synchronization:
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iSync
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Sync Center
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System Data Transfer:
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System Migration Assistant
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Easy Transfer
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Chat:
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iChat AV
(others avail. as free downloads: ICQ, AOL IM, etc..)
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Windows Messenger
(ICQ, AOL, Yahoo avail. as free downloads)
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AV Conferencing:
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iChat AV 3.0
(video: up to 4 people; audio: up to 10 people)
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Windows Meeting Space (view only)
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Remote Desktop:
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optional (both free & commercial solutions)
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(Client Only)
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Multimedia Software:
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Front Row (works w/Apple Remote)
Quicktime; DVD Player
(WMP & RealPlayer avail as free downloads)
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WMP
(RealPlayer & QuickTime avail. as free download)
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DVR Software:
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--
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Financial:
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--
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MSFT Money, Std. Ed.
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Reference:
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Dictionary/Thesaurus; Sherlock
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Encarta Std. Ed.; MSFT Streets & Trips
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Digital Photography:
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iPhoto, ImageCapture; Photo Booth
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Digital Image, Standard Edition;
Windows Photo Gallery;
Google Picassa free dload
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Digital Video Editing:
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iMovie
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Windows Movie Maker
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CD Burning/Music:
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iTunes; OS X Disk Burner; OS X Burn Folders
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Vista Disk Burning; WMP
iTunes avail. as free download
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Audio Engineering:
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GarageBand
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--
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DVD Burning/Authoring:
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iDVD; Disk Burner
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Std. Vista Burning
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Games Included:
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Chess
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"Games Explorer"
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Total Software Titles Available:
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Either Fewer or More depending on whether the Mac uses BootCamp
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Additional Software:
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Asstd. system software
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Free Services:
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1 month .Mac trial
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6 months Earthlink
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Viruses/Trojans/Worms:
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No known viruses, trojans,
worms or spyware affect OS X.
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Firewall:
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Built-in, fully configurable
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Hardware Warranty:
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1 yr. ltd./mail-in
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1 yr. ltd./mail-in
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Software Support:
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90 days phone
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1 yr. phone
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Customer Service:
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???
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Subtotal:
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Base system price: $599
+ Canon PIXMA iP4300: $100
+ Apple Keyboard/Mouse: $98
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Base system price: $649
22-in-1 card reader: $18
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- Rebates if any:
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- $100 printer rebate
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--
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+ Ground Shipping:
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n/c
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$40
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Total Price as configured:
(tax not included)
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