Mossberg reviews the Gateway One, accidentally reviews the iMac again

We've seen a couple reviews of the Gateway One already, but when it comes to reviewing sleek all-in-one PCs, we turn to the master: Walt Mossberg. Unkie Walt's been playing with a couple slick desktops lately, and surprisingly, none of them are the iMac -- although he can't seem to resist the comparison. Walt's got the Gateway One this week, and while he praises the machine's design and slick power brick / I/O breakout box, he's not particularly impressed with the machine's 19-inch screen, processing power, or, most damningly, stability -- he suffered two blue screens while testing. Add in the fact that the entry-level One is $100 more expensive than the cheapest iMac and offers a smaller screen, no built-in webcam, and a slower processor, and you've got Walt telling you that the iMac is still the best all-in-one out there. Up next: the XPS One.

[chris @ Nov 1st 2007 9:05PM]

Oh no...an iMac competitor. Puhleez...

[Disney @ Nov 1st 2007 10:56PM]

Mossberg further loses his crediability of anything technology related...

Check this out:

Gateway One: $1499
-1.5 Ghz C2D
-2GB RAM
-400GB HD
-256MB Video
-19 inch screen

similar iMac: $1527
-2.0 Ghz C2D
-2GB RAM
-320GB HD
-128MB Video
-20 inch screen

So basically its give and take with the two. Honestly, any unbiased reviewer could easily see that both are similiar, very similar.

You pay $27 more for the iMac for: bigger screen, 500 Mhz, less video ram and less HD space.

[chris @ Nov 1st 2007 11:08PM]

You fail to take into account the footprint, general aesthetics, ability to recycle the materials, and the fact that Gateway's customer support is like phoning the gates of hell...to say nothing of the worth of the operating system. These are all specifications that must be considered in addition to the standard RAM, Video RAM, CPU, and hard drive space.

[bbydon @ Nov 1st 2007 11:18PM]

Disney, you lose all credibility
the imac your pricing is $1200
and your specs are off the 1500 has a 2.4 c2d

2.0GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB memory
250GB hard drive1
8x double-layer SuperDrive
ATI Radeon HD 2400 XT with 128MB memory
$1,199.00


2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo
1GB memory
320GB hard drive1
8x double-layer SuperDrive
ATI Radeon HD 2600 PRO with 256MB memory
$1,499.00

[Disney @ Nov 1st 2007 11:20PM]

"...footprint, general aesthetics, ability to recycle the materials"

I'm sorry, I totally forgot that Apple's computers lack any sort of appreciable form of feet, better pack a laptop into a screen like platform, and are made of biodegradable plastics. I'll give you that one Chris, you sly guy you.

"Gateway's customer support is like phoning the gates of hell"

Yeah tell me about it, I've tried to call hell so many times, always a damn busy signal!

"nothing of the worth of the operating system"

Frosting on the cake my good chris, pure frosting.

Consider this, why do most prominent businesses around the world operate on Windows platforms and not OSX? I think it has something to do with the worthless architecture of Windows...

[Disney @ Nov 1st 2007 11:22PM]

Your blind bby.


http://www.gateway.com/configurator.php?product_recid=529667523

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/9104003/wo/Zk3aoGukg7nm2zwUcxAUtPQe2bd/2.?p=0

[Max Fun @ Nov 2nd 2007 1:21AM]

Disney, the model you quoted is inflated because of the additional memory and wireless keyboard and mouse. For $1500, you can get the 2.4Ghz iMac with 1GB RAM, 256MB video card and wired peripherals, buy 1GB of DDR2 RAM for like $50 or so, and you've got a computer that runs much faster than the Gateway. The only difference would be the wired/wireless keyboard and mouse, and let's just say that some people might prefer to have a choice in whether he/she would have to charge the keyboard and mouse all the time.

Don't forget also that iMacs come with iLife, which is a useful suite of software for home use.

[Temple @ Nov 2nd 2007 2:26AM]

"Disney" you're full of it. You seriously make me wonder how many Microsoft /Gateway viral-marketers roam this page.

Why don't you just link to the main site instead of fudging the numbers?
http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?nnmm=browse&mco=7B723646&node=home/shop_mac/family/imac

[Disney @ Nov 2nd 2007 4:59AM]

"For $1500, you can get the 2.4Ghz iMac with 1GB RAM, 256MB video card and wired peripherals"

Sure, Max. You could do that, but the point of my comment was objectivity. The closest computer in the iMac lineup to the 19inch One is the 20inch iMac, which, when configured as close to the One as possible, is around the same price. What you offer is analogous to comparing an 8GB Nano to a 30GB Zune. Yeah, they are both mp3 players, but you'd be more accurate to compare the Nano to, say, a Sansa.

"Why don't you just link to the main site instead of fudging the numbers?"

Wow. I think the only fudging going on here is between you and a rainbow apple. If you honestly cannot see the objectivity of comparing a similar 20inch iMac to a 19inch Gateway, then you are what is known as 'biased'.

This is not a bipartisan issue here, fellow nerds. The point is that objectivity is lacking from Mossberg. He's been romping with that same apple as temp. Gross.

You should never give your undivided love for any company, especially in an industry where investments cost up to $2000. When that happens, you just set yourself up to be used and abused by said company. Competition is good for the CONSUMER. So Apple guys, why are you guys so scared?

[TMM @ Nov 2nd 2007 5:20AM]

@Disney:
Your're talking bs:
The iMac screen has a much higher resolution.

If you configure the iMac with a 500GB hd and 2GB of memory, your're about the same price but have a faster processor and better keyboard and mouse ... and: the much better OS.

You're still trying to argue that Macs are more expensive and that for no reason.

And that lets me wonder about your objectivity.

[Max Fun @ Nov 2nd 2007 7:23AM]

Disney, you're the one that is short on objectivity here. You only like your comparison because you know that it is based on Apple's propensity to inflate their peripheral prices. How is my comparison akin to a nano vs a zune? They are both 19/20 inches in size and about the same price. In this comparison, the iMac has almost 1Ghz of processor speed advantage and higher resolution (1680x1050)LCD, but 1GB less RAM and wired keyboard and mouse. For $50, you can get 3rd party RAM to remove the memory deficit, and that will make the iMac a lot more powerful than the Gateway. So your argument is going to be based on whether or not wireless keyboard and mouse is going to make the Gateway worth the processor and resolution deficit.

[chris @ Nov 1st 2007 9:06PM]

Oh no...an iMac competitor. Puhleez...

[7of7 @ Nov 1st 2007 9:07PM]

It's no secret that Mossberg is a Mac shill. He and Pogue have been on Apple's payroll for years.

[strdust @ Nov 1st 2007 9:18PM]

Doesn't matter if he is an apple fan or not, you still have to admit, a negative review on the WSJ carry more weight than a negative review on tech journal.

[snitch @ Nov 1st 2007 9:32PM]

well if you think that way them you Probability dont remember how bad mossberg use to write about apple back in the days. but you have to give it some thoughs too because its not only them its Gizmodo, engadget,Cnet,WireMagazine,PCworld magazine,BoyGenius Reports, they are all in Love with Apple, now they Can't all be wrong or getting a salary from apple now, think about it, thats why i whent out and got a mac thinking that i was goin to take it back withing the 30 days period, and let me tell you apple its not the same as it was back in 1998, they have change alot, to bad some people are blind by innorance

[dave95 @ Nov 1st 2007 10:53PM]

@ snitch

Lets add in PC Magazine - http://www.pcmag.com/
They went from shunning Apple's product (hey they're 'PC' Mag) to salvation over them. iMac was giving good reviews, high ratings (4.5), iPod Touch was just given the highest ever rating (5), Apple Laptops (4.5) all from PC Mag.

Leopard rated (4.5) "Arguably the best consumer operating system available"
Compared to Vista's (3.5) "Vista: Look Before You Leap"

They must be doing something right, right?

[JB @ Nov 1st 2007 9:07PM]

We all know Walt Mossberg is biased towards apple. Before you call me a microsoft fanboy know i'm writing on this while on my mbp listening to music on my iphone. I am an apple fanboy if anything, but before i am a fanboy i am an educated consumer and know not to trust Mossberg

[FrannckyB @ Nov 1st 2007 10:41PM]

Biased or not, it easy to realize that getting a 19" machine instead of a 24" for the same price is not a good deal. Think about it, for the same price you get a Faster machine and a much bigger screen size. Yes getting windows would be extra, but then again, it would be worth it for all the perks.

[arteekay @ Nov 1st 2007 11:21PM]

20, not 24.

[aaron @ Nov 1st 2007 9:09PM]

If this had a carbon fibre casing it would be SUPERIOR to all things Mac. ;^)

[christapher @ Nov 1st 2007 9:16PM]

yeah, or if it could print money

[michael @ Nov 1st 2007 9:18PM]

"iMac is still the best all-in-one out there"

I'm not surprised to hear that coming from Mossberg. Is he really a reliable source to get a review from? I don't think so.

[Nick @ Nov 1st 2007 11:02PM]

Sure Mossberg slipped in a sucker punch with "All the iMacs come with a better operating system", but it doesn't matter if Mossberg is an Apple Fanboy or not. The specs and price say it all, and they are saying "rip off". The only thing that it tops the Mac in is HD space... and personally I'd be buying a secondary external backup drive anyways. You know people are getting spoiled beyond belief when they are concerned about using up all 320 GB of HD space for a non Pro machine.

[Jon @ Nov 2nd 2007 3:53AM]

Somebody forgot to tell the old fool (and Engadget) that Apple did not create the All-in-One LCD computers. I believe Sony and IBM had products years before Mac went that route.

[insertAlias @ Nov 1st 2007 9:21PM]

Well, who's actually surprised that Walt Mossberg recommended an Apple product?

But that doesn't mean that his points aren't valid. It does seem like less of a computer for the same or more money. I personally think that it looks better than the iMacs, but that's a personal opinion. I don't actually buy my computers based on what they look like, so that doesn't matter. If I were forced to choose between the two, I would take the iMac too. Faster, bigger screen, and I can put XP on it as well.

[AC @ Nov 1st 2007 9:29PM]

APPLE IS KING OF ALL "PC's"!! VISTA is an expensive, excuse for an APPLE OS copy!!! I WILL HAVE AN APPLE AS MY NEW COMPUTER!!! Did I mention VISTA SUCKS?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

[facebookfake @ Nov 1st 2007 9:55PM]

Wow. Why even comment if all you're going to be is a douche?

[Trace The Hedgehog @ Nov 1st 2007 11:30PM]

Wow...its like you just commited suicide with that comment..

[Constable Odo @ Nov 2nd 2007 12:56AM]

@AC
Excuse me, but I didn't quite hear you at the end when you mentioned something rude about Vista. Could you please repeat what you said?



I just wanted to add that BSODs are a feature. It's considered a built-in rest break. They were supposed to add in a WSOD and a RSOD in honor of 9/11/2001.

[e_rocm @ Nov 1st 2007 9:35PM]

He has some good points (in the article, I didn't watch the video), but this comment kind of killed it for me:

"All the iMacs come with a better operating system"

I think that it's pretty subjective which OS is better, but he wrote it like it's fact. OS X, Vista, XP, Linux . . . they all have their ups and downs and they all have their place in the OS market.

[magicite @ Nov 1st 2007 9:44PM]

You're right, but, as per his previous reviews, he has declared OS X to be "better" than, say, XP or Vista. So, it is a 'fact' to him.

[js @ Nov 1st 2007 9:46PM]

What the hell did he do to get a BSOD on Vista?

[Jon Miller @ Nov 1st 2007 9:49PM]

I've bluescreened my Vista Gateway laptop a couple of times, from a crappy driver once and an update that Windows installed without telling me.

[JD @ Nov 2nd 2007 12:09AM]

Keyword in that post: Gateway. I'm on a homebuilt system, on my second vista install (decided to switch to 64 bit) and I've been running vista for 7 months now? Not a single bsod.

[Constable Odo @ Nov 2nd 2007 12:26AM]

What did he do to get a BSOD in Vista? He booted into Vista. That's what caused it. Born to be WILD. Born to BSOD. The WOW is NOW. Wow! I got another BSOD.

[Temple @ Nov 2nd 2007 2:20AM]

I've gotten a BSOD a bunch of times on Vista, complete with memory dump. In fact, I find it to be less stable then my XP. Its Windows ME all over again.

[Jon @ Nov 2nd 2007 3:59AM]

My gf's notebook comes with Vista Premium. Even after I tinkered with it and upgrading the RAM, six months later we still have not met this mythical blue screen.

BSOD are usually caused by idiotic users who messed things up. And to get two BSODs you must really be doing something completely idiotic.

[Cadius @ Nov 2nd 2007 9:12AM]

Yeah, I'm no apple fan boy, but in all honesty, how did he get a BSOD on vista? My system was getting semi-regular BSOD Memory Dumps on XP (probably due to my 4 gigs of RAM...). After I upgraded to Vista, I haven't had a single problem.

Also, I'm a semi-daily reader of the WSJ, and due to my tech affiliation, I read a lot of Mossberg's articles. I'm perfectly fine if he wants to rate Leopard over Vista, everyone is entitled to his or her opinion, but that article in particular just felt like it had little or no evidence. All of his comments just felt excessively subjective.

[darren @ Nov 1st 2007 9:46PM]

the man doesn't even try to hide his bias. at least review it from a neutral point of view, instead of mentioning "imac" more than the actual product.

[jarofchris @ Nov 1st 2007 10:24PM]

That's pretty foolish. I'd much rather someone display their bias up-front then try to conceal it.

[Jeff Reynolds @ Nov 2nd 2007 8:16AM]

It's an obvious attempt at borrowing the imac's style and form-factor. It would be ridiculous for him not to compare the two.

[Jim Charles @ Nov 1st 2007 9:56PM]

Wait, I thought that Macs were supposed to be more expensive than their PC counterparts?

[Ang @ Nov 1st 2007 10:02PM]

Let me get this right, what you are saying then is if any reviewer, especially Walt give a good review for a Mac PC they are biased and are on the apple payroll, but if they give a bad review for a HP, Dell or any other PC they are also biased and on the apple payroll.

Going by this way of thinking, it must also mean that when a reviewer gives HP, Dell or any other PC a Good review they have to be on the PC/Windows Payroll which then means if they give Mac PC a bad review they are also on the PC/Windows Payroll.

Looks like they are starting to behave like politicians, they never speak the truth.

[herfy @ Nov 1st 2007 10:08PM]

This guy is a dope, didn't anybody watch when he hoasted an interview with Jobs and Gates together. He didn't know what he was talking about! This guy should get as much attention as the wall street analysis with computer products. none. Stuck in his ways, just trying to make a buck.

[Modano @ Nov 2nd 2007 12:26AM]

Well, Mossberg is the highest paid journalist at the second highest circulated newspaper in America and he's covered technology there for 20 years. You can't spell "hosted" and only included one complete sentence in your entire post. I gotta go with Walt on this one.

[Luigi193 @ Nov 1st 2007 10:14PM]

Well the iMac is cheeper...

[Jeremy K. @ Nov 1st 2007 11:56PM]

Wow... that's interesting. I never knew that the iMac was really a bird.

[mm @ Nov 1st 2007 10:16PM]

Mossberg obviously likes Apple products, but I'm confused about the comments as to why he's a "shill" when he compares the Gateway to the iMac? Obviously, any all-in-one is going to get compared to an iMac. So that's not unfair... And his observations are pretty objective: the Gateway charges 10+% more for a smaller screen, slower processor, etc. I don't really see, based upon that evidence, how any reviewer could 1) ignore the iMac in the review, or 2) recommend the Gateway over the Mac.

[IndiaTech @ Nov 2nd 2007 3:56AM]

The point here is that he was suppose to give a review and not provide us with a comparision chart... In a review you write what is good about a product, what is bad about the product not how it is when compared to another product.
The review would have been credible if Moss had just said that the "One makes lots of noise and is very expensive..." But he lost his credibility when he said "One makes lots of noise and is expensive WHEN compared to an iMac"
It is like you are taking this class and you are doing really, really bad. Now the prof walks to you and instead of saying "Hey, you are going wrong here and here and you need to improve here", he says you are doing very bad compared to the guy sitting next to you... Is the prof wrong? No. Is he rude... Yes.

[Samuel @ Nov 1st 2007 10:24PM]

Mossberg has never reviewed computer and related equipment on their actual merits.

Years ago (2002-2003), Mossberg wrote how the Palm was superior to Windows Mobile. It never was, and is now history, while Windows Mobile, the far more powerful alternative is now up to its 6th generation. Palms had the simplicity factor if you didn't know Windows, but, otherwise, Windows Mobile is superior in every way.

Similarly with Windows, Windows supports far more software and hardware than does MAC, so if you want a machine that'll likely have software other than Office and Photoshop, you need a PC.

So, Mossberg saying the Gateway is inferior to iMac is missing the point; they're not direct competitors, and only a Microsoft-hater, which I suspect he is given the above, and/or an Apple-fanboy would frame things the way he did. (Yes, you can dual-boot Vista on an iMac, but that adds to the cost, and is not the point of the device.)

For example, "Shockingly, for those who still cling to the notion that Windows machines are always priced lower than comparable Macs..."

Shockingly, Windows machines are generally priced lower than Apple, so no reason to be shocked, Mr. Mossberg. Reading a little further on, we find "But the Gateway...has more memory than the iMac -- double the amount in the base model and triple in the $1,799 model. The One also has larger hard disks -- 320 gigabytes in the base model compared with Apple's 250 gigabytes, and 500 gigabytes in its top model compared with 320 gigabytes on the same-price iMac.

The Gateway also has a wireless keyboard and mouse, which cost extra from Apple, plus built-in slots for camera memory cards, which Apple doesn't offer. On the high-end model, Gateway throws in an external TV tuner, something Apple doesn't include."

So it's not really $100 more for the Gateway base config than the iMac base config as you claimed Mr. Mossberg, is it? The additional $100 more than covers the reader, extra RAM and extra disk space, even with a smaller LCD.