Top 5 Features of Windows 8

Windows 8

In this post we discuss about the top 5 features found in Windows 8.

1. Fewer Surprise Restarts

Desks across the world have fist-sized holes in them, caused solely by Windows' habit of restarting to implement a security update, often losing unsaved work in the process. Windows 8 doesn't abandon forced restarts, but it's much more considerate about them.

First, Microsoft promises only to restart for the security patches that arrive on Patch Tuesday once a month - unless a "critical security update to fix a worm-like vulnerability" crops up, in which case Microsoft will push out an update that will restart machines. Second, it will ease off on the nagging: there will be no more pop-ups interrupting presentations or DVD playback. Microsoft will instead place a prominent warning about necessary restarts on the revamped lock screen. Furthermore, it will give three days' notice of any restart, as opposed to the 20-minute default countdown from Windows 7.

As well as the three-day deadline, Windows 8 won't restart i: there are applications running in the background or if there's unsaved work open. How Microsoft defines "unsaved work" is, however, unclear: would data in a web form or CMS that hasn't been submitted count as unsaved work?

2. Built-in Antivirus

Microsoft seems reluctant to shout about it - perhaps through fear of attracting unwanted anti-trust attention - but Windows 8 is the first version of Windows to include built-in antivirus protection. And not before time.

Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE), the optional free antivirus package for older versions of Windows, now appears under the Windows Defender umbrella in the Windows 8 Consumer Preview. As with the Windows 7 version of MSE it's light on features, but as an unobtrusive minder to keep an eye out for anything untoward, it should suffice. Microsoft is also vetting Metro Style apps before they appear in the Store, adding another layer of protection.

Those measures, together with Windows 8's built-in firewall, could convince many people not to bother with extra, paid-for security suites. Whether it will eventually prove a bonus for malware writers - who may only have to worry about worming past Microsoft's security software instead of an entire field of third-party security suites - remains to be seen.

3. Cross-Device Synchronisation

The Windows 8 installation screen practically forces users to set up a Windows Live account. This not only becomes the PC's primary login, but it also gives access to the Windows Store and allows settings to be synchronised across different Windows 8 devices.

The lock screen, Windows desktop wallpaper and Metro theme are all synchronised by default, providing visual consistency across all of your PCs, laptops and tablets. Internet Explorer history and bookmarks are also shared, as well as other Windows settings. The Sync menu also allows the synchronisation of "certain settings in your apps", although frustratingly, it doesn't reveal any further details. On our test PCs, we saw our social network setting synchronised in the People app, but not much else.

Indeed, it could be argued that Windows 8's synchronisation doesn't go far enough. It would be nice if Microsoft at least offered to synchronise the Metro desktop and any installed apps, provided that both devices had sufficient storage space. Fingers crossed it will be sorted by final release time.

The Windows Store does at least contain a list of apps you've previously purchased, making it easier to re-download them onto a new device.

4. Improved 3G Support

Windows 8 offers native support for 3G and 4G (the latter of which won't be of use until we get the next-gen networks found in the US). Given that most high-end tablets have 3G slots in the back, Microsoft could do little else. However, this isn't the only concession that it's making to mobile broadband users.

There's built-in metering to make sure consumers and business users don't stray beyond their data cap. Hefty device drivers won't download by default while running on mobile broadband, and the new Task Manager also reveals which apps are hogging your data connection, allowing the most greedy to be summarily despatched.

Windows 8 will also automatically switch to Wi-Fi when in range of a known access point to prevent users incurring unnecessary bills.

5. Picture Passwords

Tapping in passwords on a tablet, even using Microsoft's excellent soft keyboard, is hardly ideal. Picture passwords are an inventive alter native. Select a pho from your library, make three gestures with your finger on ti i chosen photo - tapping each of your children in alphabetical order, for example, or swiping across three letters in a picture ( fridge magnets - and that becomes your Windows login. Picture passwords can be used with both touchscreens and mouse controls.

Should you forget your Picture password, you can switch back to the more conventional methods of logging in with your Windows Live ID or with a simple text password.

Signing in with a Picture Password 

Please share your favorite feature in the comments below.

Also read, 24 hours with Windows 8

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How to : Try the Windows 8 Consumer Preview

Windows 8 Consumer Preview

The Windows 8 Consumer Preview is free to download from Microsoft's website. It comes in both 32-bit and 64-bit versions and in a variety of languages, and the 64-bit version weighs in at a hefty 32GB.

if you're planning to do a clean install of Windows 8. or run it from within a VM, it's probably best to head straight for the ISOs at http://tinyurl.com/6u4m7hc. The page provides instructions on how to burn the ISO to either DVD or USB stick, using free tools provided by Microsoft.

If you're feeling brave, you can also install the Windows 8 Consumer Preview over your current installation of Windows XP. Vista or 7 using the special installer at http://tinyurl.com/7rnql5L . Note, however, that only Windows 7 users will keep applications, settings and user accounts in place. Those upgrading from Vista and XP have more limited options.

We've upgraded in place on several Windows 7 machines and it has worked flawlessly every time. Drivers, settings and Library structures have all been retained.

That said, the Windows 8 Consumer Preview is a glorified beta, so proceed with extreme caution, especially with PCs you depend on for work. Just because it worked for us doesn't mean it will do so for you, and there's no rolling back once you've made the upgrade. Take a full disk image backup of your existing PC before starting the upgrade, so you can revert to your current setup if something happens to go drastically wrong.

The upgrade installer checks your current PC has the right specification, and the compatibility of any applications you've pre-installed. If you Ye already running Microsoft's Security Essentials antivirus suite, you'll be forced to uninstall this first, os this is built into Windows 8 under the new guise of Windows Defender. Once you've passed all the necessary checks, the installer then proceeds to download and install the OS. After the download was complete, the installation took around 45 minutes on our aging Core 2 Duo laptop with 2GB of RAM.

Do beware that the Consumer Preview will eventually time out, and when the final version of Windows 8 is launched you won't be able to upgrade in place from the Consumer Preview. Microsoft has said it will provide migration tools to make the process of transferring data and settings easier than ever.

 

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The Death of DirectX

Time was, the latest version of DirectX would render previous versions outdated and redundant but lately things have changed. The first version of DirectX 9 appeared way back in December 2002 (older than most Justin Bieber fans, then) and yet we're still seeing the most eagerly anticipated big budget releases built around DX9 almost a decade later.

It isn't as though DirectX 10 and 11 have nothing to offer. You only have to load up Crysis to see what's possible when a development studio goes to town with the new features a graphical API has to offer. The jungles of Crysis offered up motion blur, post-processing and lighting effects that we simply hadn't seen before. It caused quite a stir, you might recall.
 

Things looked bright in the early days of DX10. Bioshock's idiosyncratic graphics style made good use of the API, and For Cry 2 made war-torn African tundra look appealing. No one matched Crysis' DX10 smorgasbord though. Perhaps they were put off by the fact that no one had a PC that could run it. Developers seemed to be reigning in on DX10. Instead of making a game take a giant leap forward into post-console visuals, DX10 releases looked increasingly similar to those made with old man DX9.

There were bigger problems emerging, too. DirectX 10 was only available to gamers who'd taken the plunge and upgraded their OS to Vista. Many were perfectly happy with XP and felt they didn't need it; others bought it and found a myriad of problems from front end to driver support. DX10 then, was bound to an operating system few liked. The gaming world lost its appetite for Microsoft's new API.

The Journey of an API

In late 2009 DirectX 11 was released. It had a lot of wrongs to put light, and a lot of mistakes to avoid. This time it was tied to an operating system that people did like, and showed impressive potential for gaming graphics and performance... and yet we still haver't soon the standout DX11 title. What we have seen are some impressive DX9 games, and even the odd OpenGL title.

Throughout the nineties. DirectX and OpenGL locked horns. They scrapped to be the dominant application programming interface (API) to replace the proprietary interfaces that proceeded them. Each wanted to be the API that graphics card manufacturers would write driver support for, and that game developers would use as their toolset. SGI's OpenGL had the upper hand until the end of the decade, thanks to an alliance with id Software and the Quake engine that powered Half-Life in a heavily modified form, not to mention its subsequent blockbuster sequels to the Doom and Quake franchises. With each new game, the id Tech engines expanded their graphical features in parallel with OpenGL, and proved enticing engines for other developers to build their own games with.
 

As the decade ended, Microsoft muscled OpenGL off the API throne with DirectX 8. For the first time, it not only matched the latest OpenGL, but surpassed it by including vertex and pixel shader support. Microsoft also launched its Xbox, hitting the shelves late in 2001, which ran on an operating system similar to Windows NT, and used a Windows API-DirectX 8.1.

This opened the door for cross-platform releases. Developers had a shared toolkit across the PC and Xbox platforms that made programming easier. Anyone who tried to play Resident Evil2 or the like on PC will remember the calibre of cross-platform games - or console ports - developed with the console in mind, then re-coded for PC before this point. The vast majority were all but unplayable: controls were poorly translated to our beloved keyboard and mouse and game code was unstable and glitchy. So, unsurprisingly console games never sold particularly well when they finally made their way onto PC.

The game that bucked that trend was Halo. It was originally developed for PC and Mac, but when Microsoft bought Bungie Studios they saw it made sense to use the buzz the game was getting to boost their fledgling Xbox. As d result, we had to wait two years for Halo to make its way to the PC, grinding our teeth as Xbox owners banged on about how freaking' good it was.

When it actually was released on PC in 2003. it tame with DirectX 9.0 support. Perhaps Bungie felt bad about making the people who'd supported their game from the start wait so long, but the fact was the PC release offered more than the original console release-shiny new DX9 visuals that weren't possible on Xbox.

Halo's FC incarnation wasn't perfect. Frame rates were low and performance was often choppy - but it was playable, mouse-friendly and pretty, and that release set the protocol for cross platform releases through the next decade. Sharing the DirectX API across platforms made for less buggier games. DirectX 9 was a quality API that allowed a lot of flexibility beyond standout visuals; OpenGL had been well and truly muscled out of the action while Microsoft sank its fingers into the warm pies of PC and console gaming.

Hard History Lessons

 

Tie current generation of consoles also proved to be pivotal for DirectX, but this time for the worse.The Xbox 360 supports a modified build of DirectX 90c with Shader Model 3 support. Sony's PlayStation 3 natively uses a flavor of OpenGL. Here in PC land, we're on DirectX 11, which is no big deal to us since we can easily stick in a new GPU and unlock a new generation of graphics technology, but on consoles, the native API is ruler for life.

That means if a developer works hard on integrating DirectX ll's tessellation and multi-core rendering into a PC title, they then have to code it back out for the console version. Whether or not that developer has built their engine from the ground up, that's an expensive and time-consuming undertaking. Given the small profit margins PC titles can expect to generate, it's simply not worth it for many game studios.

Is that why we've seen even big-budget blockbusters like Crysis 2 and The Witcher 2 stick with DX9.0c? Bartlomiej Wronski, graphics programmer for The Witcher 2 explains: "I think the main reason not all developers - including us - provide DX11 support is that supporting two totally different rendering APIs requires much more work and testing. It also creates pipeline difficulties. We would have had to decide which features have fewer fast DX9 fallbacks, which are rendered in lower quality and which arc totally dropped and this would have meant even more work for our artists, programmers and testers.
 

 

"The Xbox [360] uses an API similar to DX9, with only few extensions from DX10/I1, like texture arrays or hardware tessellation, so to create a multi-platform engine, we had to base ours on DX9. We understand it's an ageing API, and that DX10 and 11 have new features and performance - it came down to balancing these and other considerations."

But there's more to consider than consoles, says Wronski. it's not as if every PC gamer has a DX11-ready machine: "The main reason games still implement DX9 is to support the many players whose PCs run Windows XP and older graphic cards. Fortunately. DX9.0c with shader model 3.0 is still a pretty powerful API, which allowed us to create a rendering engine capable of creating beautiful locations, characters and scenes"

So developers are faced with a fairly small user base when developing a DX11 title, compared to the prospect of a cross-platform release and reaching gamers with dusty old XP machines by working with DX9.0c. The goalposts are constantly shifting though, as gamers are able to upgrade their machines. This makes for an uncertain future for DX11, as Wronski says: "While DX11 is ready a very good and fairly mature API, many of its capabilities aren't widely used yet, go it's hard to speculate about new versions. All its cool features like geometry shaders texture arrays and dynamic hardware tessellation are still awaiting broader implementation. Direct Compute could also help a lot: vendor-independent GPU computing is a feature not only graphics can benefit from, but also particle and physics simulation."

The number of DX11 gamers is growing and they will dominate the market soon, so including it is an obvious, important next step in engine development. "We believe that it may be up to the next generation of consoles. The usage of APIs in future games depends on the capabilities of the next-gen console GPUs," says Wronski.

So from a developer's perspective. they'll blink when gamers dc. When there are enough DX11 end users open-mouthed for flashy games, it becomes commercially viable to make use of DX11 features - and if eighth gen consoles support DX1I natively, that viability more than doubles.

The Downfall of DX10

So what's stopping everyone from buying into DX11? Probably its predecessor, and the infamous operating system it was bound inexorably to.

When Microsoft released Windows Vista, it's fair to say it took a bit of a kicking. There were driver issues, front end gripes, performance problems, all reflective of the enormous changes under the bonnet. But perhaps Vista's biggest problem was that Windows XP still worked just fine. People weren't chomping at the bit for a new operating system, they were settled into XP as one settles into a comfortable chair. The incentive to jump from that comfortable chair onto the Indian bed of nails that many regarded Vista to be was DirectX 10. XP would never get DX10 support, if you wanted to play DX10 games, you were forced to buy Vista. That was something new for Microsoft. Previously, new versions of DirectX had been unbound to any particular operating system.

You also needed a new DX10 graphics card, and that was no small change. Suddenly, you'd gone from comfy old XP and a healthy bank account to an unfamiliar OS and empty pockets. Why put yourself through it? Well, for one reason, Crysis.

Remember how quickly things moved during the emergence of 3D gaming? How you'd sit there, gazing in wonder at Doom, wondering what kind of transcendent visuals Doom II would have? Well, Crysis looked like that to our 2007 eyes. It was simply one imperial unit of graphical quality higher than anything else. It was clear Crysis was going to need a brute of a PC to p ay, and importantly it generated enough enthusiasm from PC gamers that they went out aid bought those brutish PCs.

It was only when the dust had settled after Crysis that gamers found faults with DX10 itself. First, only Crytek seemed capable of drawing those cutting-edge visuals out of the API. It had set the bar high, but other developers didn't get near it. Second, DX10 wasn't a performance-enhancing API. In fact all games that shared the API seemed to also share terrible frame rates. Gamers that bought into DX10 were hugely disillusioned.

Current Climate 

It would be understandable then if PC gamers had their trepidations about DX11. This time it isn't bound to a Windows OS, in this case Win7 as its Predecessor was, but it does require a
new generation of graphics card and the subsequent outlay.

And yet, the trusting doe-eyed PC gaming community, never one to boycott a company or product based on even the slightest mishap or glitch and then spend months furiously typing obscenities about that company or product in their forums long after everyone stopped caring, did have faith in DX11. And they did buy into it.

Matt Ployhar is the president of the PC Gaming Alliance. Senior Product Planner at Intel and former Microsoft employee with experience in MS Games Studios and the Windows/DirectX team through the DXI0-11 development phases. He's as informed as anyone on Microsoft's API, and explains that there are in fact plenty of DXII gamers ready and waiting for DX11 games. "The DX10 to 11 GPU-discrete Install base alone is now sitting somewhere around 230 million unique PC gamers across every segment and geography. The problem for DX10 and II isn't the Total Available Market (TAM) or install base, which incidentally is larger than all the seventh gen consoles combined, the problem is that it's more analogous to being like a largely untapped oil field"

So unlike CD Projekt's vision of the PC landscape, Ployhar sees DX11 as a graphics revolution about to happen if developers would only tap that oil field. So, why aren't there more DX11 games in development? "Good question," says Matt Ployhar. "There should be. DX11 would likely be the most robust option available presenting the least amount of compromise to one's vision for a game.

"The real problem is probably the lack of incentives, carrots, whatever you want to call them, for making PC games in general. Your console manufacturers can spend 100's of millions a year to single digit billions for a specific platform; and that equivalent spend doesn't occur on the PC"

It seems that the only thing holding DX11 back is time, rather than any failing with the API itself. Perhaps it's predecessor DX10 didn't deserve its bad rep. It paved the way for DX11, for starters:'Getting people to switch to a new API is never an easy thing to do. It took several years for Microsoft to get the foothold and market share it did with D3D. This obviously didn't happen overnight. Nor should we expect it to happen with DX10-11 and beyond," says Ployhar.

"DX10 didn't really fail. (The API) was going up against a large established DX9 TAM and Install base. DX9 is very mature in terms of support, familiarity, tools, and so on. Once DX10 - which has matured into DX11 - becomes more mature and prevalent we'll start seeing the ocean turn in favor of what is effectively the DX10 code path"

Okay everyone, take a knee and let's gather our thoughts. DX10 got a tough time because it came tied with Vista, and at a time when the PC's financial ecosystem was - and is - being ransacked by piracy. Thus, cross-platform releases made for safer releases and that marginalized DX10 coding. However, DX10 grew into the beautiful butterfly that is DX11, and it seems gamers are ready and waiting to see what developers can achieve with it. The past few years might have changed the way we look at DirectX, but it's still as important to PC gaming as ever.

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PC or MAC : Which Is Best For You ?

It's a question that has plagued many a prospective computer user - which is better, a Windows PC or an Apple Mac? The debate has raged between fans of both platforms for over two decades. Apple's famously stylish products traditionally appeal to creative media professionals and general consumers, while the PC is so ubiquitous that it defies making huge steps forward, Mac sales are a small proportion of the Windows-dominated PC market.

What sets Apple apart from other computer manufacturers? Apple is the only company to produce computers running it Apple OS X operating system, while Microsoft's Windows is available for everyone to use, from corporate behemoths such as Sony to individuals who are building their own PCs. The former guarantees hardware compatibility and quality, while the latter allows greater freedom and versatility.

Pricing is a key factor. The cheapest MacBook costs Rs 56,000 - more than most Windows based models. We only include Apple products in group tests occasionally; the small number of models and higher prices means there often isn't a Mac to fit our criteria. This doesn't mean they aren't worthy of considerations, especially given the success of the iPhone and iPod. More people are making the switch, but is it right move for you? 

Today Microsoft has the dominant market share, and over 89 percent of global computer users run Windows. But it wasn't always this way; in the 1980s, when computer operating systems were text-based and reasonably machine costs Rs 70,000, Apple was establishing itself as top dog, Pre-empting the launch of Windows by a year with its own graphical user interface (GUI) OS, the company established an early lead over the competition that remained strong - until Microsoft launched Windows 95.

Apple struggled in the 1990s. It did build a steady following of media professionals, thanks to its support of QuarkXpress and Adobe Photoshop, a legacy that continues to this day; most graphic designers, music producers and video editors work on Apple hardware, as do we when working on The Pirado. For most home users, though, Windows quickly became the accepted standard, and the Mac a niche product.

Fast-forward to the present day, and the iPod and iPhone have reversed Apple's fortunes, making it one of the world's best-known and well-respected companies. The latest version of Mac OS X is far more refined, and as it improves the 'Cult of Mac' is expanding with it.

While Apple goes from strength to strength, Microsoft isn't resting on its laurels. After the less-than successful Vista, Windows 7 is a huge improvement over previous versions. Indeed, it's already set to overtake XP as the most popular version of the Operating system. Windows-based systems are incredibly versatile. It's this versatility that means Windows can be found in just every walk of like, from cashpoints to the most powerful gaming PCs in the world.

All Systems GO

Both Windows and Mac OS X have improved massively since they were introduced - both taking advantage of new technologies and faster hardware and adapting to new computing trends such as social networking and media streaming. They are plenty of reasons to consider each Operating System - here we give you the truth about the benefits and pitfalls of your choice.

We've put together a comprehensive guide to help you make an informed decision. We're putting bias aside : some of our friends use PC, some use MAC and some use both, so we've strived for a balanced, objective analysis.

As well as comparing the Operating Systems and their respective hardware, we take a look at design, price and usability. From apple, we've taken the iMac desktop PC and a MacBook laptop. Representing Windows, we've built a PC using components similar to those Apple uses in the iMac, and an Asus laptop that costs Rs. 52,000.

PC Versus MAC

MAC  

Apple is responsible for producing every aspect of a Mac, from the hardware and the operating system right down to the lovingly designed packaging. This ensures a certain level of quality, but also limits choice.


Design 

Every Apple product undergoes meticulous design, overseen by British designer Jonathan Ive. Ive has been responsible for the minimalist appearance of Apple's line-up for the best part of a decade, shaping not only the iPhone and iPad but also iMac and the stunning MacBook Air. The latest iMac has a unibody aluminium chassis that is precision-cut from a block of metal to keep superfluous lines to a minimum. Even the MacBook, which is made from polycarbonate plastic, uses a similar process.

As well as looking great, Apple frequently introduces innovative new ideas to make its kit stand out from the competition. It has embraced wireless technologies to keep desk clutter to a minimum. Most users need only plug in a power lead does throw up one or two issues; to plug in a USB memory stick, you must reach around the back, as the ports are all located at the rear of the device. The SD card and DVD drive are more convenient side-mounted, through.

The MagSafe power connector uses a magnet to keep the cable tethered to the MacBook it is charging, so if it gets yanked accidentally it won't pull the laptop off your desk or lap. This is now a feature of every MacBook.


Taking a lead from its iPhone, Apple has introduced multi-touch gestures into its laptops. Its oversized touchpads provide plenty of room for two, three and even four finger gestures, which are built into the OS. Scrolling, rotating and punch-to-zoom are all slick, with no noticeable delay. Multi-touch is also accurate, rarely triggering a gesture by mistake.


In spite of these impressive innovations, Apple is behind the competition in certain areas. A second mouse button is a relatively new concept for many Mac owners, who are used to holding down the option key to bring up context sensitive menus. Apple has finally relented and added one to the Mighty Mouse which should ship as standard with all new iMacs.


Build Quality

Apple is renowned for the excellent construction of its products. The aluminium chassis of the iMac and MacBook Pro is incredibly rigid and scratch-resistant. The polycarbonate plastic used for the MacBook is reinforced and equally tough, with no noticeable flex and certainly no loose or weak-feeling panels. Apple also uses aluminium in many peripherals, including the Mighty Mouse and wireless keyboard. The keyboard in particular feels impressively sturdy.

However, there have been reports of iMacs overheating and of dust getting caught beneath the screen. Apple admitted a problem with the 27in iMac, releasing a software update ti prevent some screen flicker and unusual colour tints. It's worth remembering that for all their vaunted design, Apple products are put together in the same factories in China as Windows-based products.


Apple provides a typical one-year warranty on their products for hardware failure. It also provides 90 days of complimentary telephone support. You can extend your warranty support to 3 years with AppleCare, but this costs about Rs. 13,000 (for a MacBook).


Upgrades

Although it looks fantastic, the iMac's unibody design is difficult to openm requiring specialist tools and patience. Replacing the memory is relatively easy; the RAM slots are hidden behind a small cover beneath the screen. Replacing or upgrading other components requires more work - first, by removing the screen from the main chassis using suction cups and a Torx screwdriver.

Because Apple uses a lot of mobile components in its desktop machines, only a few parts can be upgraded by the end user. Beyond the optical drive or hard disk, almost every other component is available only through Apple as a replacement part. Unlike a PC, where a faulty or out-of-date graphics card can be replaced by a new one of any make or model, the iMac isn't user-upgradable. Unlike a desktop PC, you can't change the display for a new one-but then we can't see any reason, bar a malfunction, why you'd want to give up the stunning IPS panel.


It's a similar story for MacBook laptops, which are even harder to upgrade than their already difficult Windows counterparts. MacBook batteries are sealed units that can be hard to replace. When the battery loses its ability to hold a charge, the laptop must be returned to Apple for a replacement. Typically, a new battery costs around Rs.7,000, which also includes installation.


It can take a lot of effort to upgrade an Apple machine yourself, but there are plenty of online resources to help make the task easier ; one of the best is www.ifixit.com .However, Apple's warranty won't cover opening a Mac product beyond replacing or upgrading the memory.


Buying Options

The key point to consider when buying a Mac is cyclical nature of Apple's hardware business. Most of Mac product lines have been running for a new generations, with regular revisions and the odd redesign. There have been 3 main versions of the MacBook since 2006- two with plastic bodies and one (discontinued) aluminium design - and eight minor revision, mainly incremental processor speed increases. A new Mac is comparable to Windows PCs released at the same time. However, the hardware becomes dated over subsequent months until a minor revision comes along, and can age badly until the next redesign moves the product to a new chipset and processor architecture. If you buy the MacBook tested here, you're getting an Intel processor that's two generations old. Despite this, Apple does not drop the price on hardware as its ages.

There are several other Apple products worth consideration. The Mac Mini, a small form-factor PC, costs Rs. 40,000. It doesn't include a monitor or peripherals, but its compact dimensions make it an ideal home theater or second PC, although its hardware is looking dated.

The thin MacBook Air is a thing of beauty. Less than 17mm thick and weighing just 1.3kg it's one of the thinnest ultra-portable laptops around. There's an older Core 2 Duo processor, but it's more than fast enough for running basic tasks on OS X, and there's a definite speed boost from the SSD storage. Available as either in 11in or 13in model, prices start from around Rs. 56,000.

For power users, there's the MacBook pro laptop and Mac Pro desktop PC. The MacBook Pro is available in 13, 15, 17in models is versatile, portable and easily as powerful as a desktop computer. For even more power, the Mac Pro's tower-style desktop PC can be configured a high spec. But price start at around Rs. 1,30,000, and that's before you even factor in the price of a monitor.

Additional Hardware

Apple produces a range of peripherals beyond the Mighty Mouse and Wireless Keyboard. The newest addition to the range is the Rs. 4,000 Magic Trackpad, bringing the functionality of a laptop touchpad to a desktop iMac. Stylish and made from aluminium, it blends seamlessly with Apple's other products. Muti-touch gestures work just as well on an iMac, but the Magic Trackpad will be more useful for OS 10.7(Lion) launches in the summer. Refinements to the OS look set to exploit muti-touch further.

Adding a second monitor to an iMac can look odd, unless you choose Apple's Cinema Display. This 27in, Rs. 60,000 (around) giant matches the iMac's design and includes a built-in webcam, MagSafe power adaptor and mini DisplayPort connectivity.

Wireless connectivity is one of the iMac's strengths, so it's unsurprising that Apple offers a home network kit. Available in Express or Extreme the Airport unit integrates a wireless access point, media streamer and print server in one modem, but it's still user friendly and it's compatible wth PCs as well as Macs.

PC 

Unlike Apple, where one company is responsible for designing both hardware and software, a multitude of different manufacturers produce PC components. Very few come close to matching Apple's excellent designs, but there's certainly more choice.

Design 

The way a PC looks is down to your choice of components. Unlike Apple's products, you aren't limited to a single colour or design ; there are hundreds of desktop and laptop computers available, in all manner of sizes and shapes. It's more than just a web browser or work tool-a PC can easily become an expression of your personal tastes. If you're prepared to spend some money, high-quality aluminium cases from companies such as Silverstone and Lian-Li come as close to Apple's designs as possible, and they can look stunning. Less expensive cases are often made from steel or plastic, but these are ideal for anyone who doesn't want to pay extra for styling.

Tower-style cases are great if you have the room for one, but if you don't then there's a myriad of smaller form-factor cases available for microATX and Mini-ITX motherboards. Such cases are still designed with user access in minds, so you're bound to find something big enough for your needs but still smaller than a fully fledged tower.

Whereas Apple would prefer it if you never got to see the inside of a Mac, and many PC builders take the opposite approach. They will often incorporate the interior into the design ; indeed, they actively show off the internal components. Clear side panels, cold cathode lighting and LED-lit cooling fans are all a matter personal taste and won't suit everyone. But what all such embellishments have in common is that they celebrate the technology inside your PC rather than hiding it away out of sight.

Of course, you spend more time using a PC than you do looking at it, which makes the monitor just an important as the case. Few computer monitors look as sleek as Apple's iMac enclosure, but there are plenty of well-designed models from a range of manufacturers, in far more sizes than Apple offers. Huge widescreen monitors with barely visible bezels are great, but you can also buy smaller, cheaper displays if you aren't worried about style. To watch the 27in IPS panel in an iMac, you would have to spend considerably more than the equivalent TN panel display, but there are still great monitors out to suit every budget.

With a monitor, keyboard, mouse and case from different manufacturers, the average PC can look jumbled and less streamlined than an Apple system. It also requires more cables ; third-part peripherals are beginning to use wireless connectivity, but they usually require a USB dongle or receiver box.

Build Quality

The build quality of a PC can vary wildly between manufacturers, depending on the care and attention of the system builders and the chosen components. In the main, PCs are built from plastic and sheet metal, which can make them more susceptible to knocks and scrapes than the all-aluminium bodies of most Mac products. You can buy all-aluminium PC cases, but you'll need to shop around to find complete PC systems that use these.

If you feel happier buying a PC from established brand such as Sony or Samsung, you can. As we mentioned before, these will probably be made in the same factories as Mac products. We've seen no evidence that PCs from a big-brand manufacturers are any more reliable than those that come from smaller system builders in the India.

Internal component quality and reliability shouldn't differ between PCs and Macs. If you want to be sure that your PC isn't going to suffer a breakdown, avoid bargain-basement hardware and buy from a manufacturer such as Asus, which generally offers longer warranties on its hardware. This is true whether you're buying components yourself or looking at the specs when shopping for a complete system.

If you buy a desktop PC from a retailer or system builder, it should be covered for at least a year, and many of our friends have more coverage throw in, Telephone support for day-to-day problems on a PC won't match up to Apple's excellent service, largely due to the limited variety of models and hardware with which Apple's support staff need to deal. Remember some PC companies won't uphold your warranty if you open the case to make upgrades.

Upgrades

If and when you do decide to upgrade, there's more scope on a PC than a Mac. Tower-style cases are easy to upgrade, thanks to their spacious interior design; there's plenty of room to add multiple hard disks, optical drives or expansion cards. Most cases include thumbscrews, and many are beginning to use tool-free hard disk and optical drive rails, so you shouldn't even need a screwdriver for many tasks. Windows 7 contains many standard drivers, and modern PC BIOS are far easier to navigate, so most new hardware should work without too much faffing about.

Windows based laptops are slightly more upgrade-friendly than the MacBook. Most have removable batteries that can be switched out, although we're starting to see more integrated batteries on Windows laptops that aren't designed to user-replaceable. It's also usually easy to remove the hard disk to replace a faulty drive or upgrade to a larger model.

Buying Options

Whether you want to buy a PC or build one from scratch, the variety is astounding. Competition is strong, and you can shop around between numerous suppliers and manufacturers to get the best laptops or PC for the lowest possible price. As hardware ages, it's quickly reduced in price to keep stock levels flowing, so its easy to pick up a bargain model from last year's ranges.

With hundreds of companies, and thousands of models, in the market, you'll need some help to choose the right one for you. 

Additional Hardware

Microsoft is primarily a software company, but t still produces a range of PC peripherals including high-definition webcams, VoIP headsets, mice and keyboards. They compare well with the rest of the industry, but few stand out of their design. There are countless other manufacturers producing hardware for Windows based PCs.

MAC OS X     

The tenth iteration of Apple's operating system is pre-installed on every Mac. Unlike Windows, it isn't available to buy as a standalone disc, so you can get it only by buying a computer from Apple. This Operating System, which is based on UNIX, has been around in one form or another for 10 years.

The major revisions to OS X are named after big cats, with the current 10.6 build codenamed Snow Leopard, and these revisions are released every year or two. Although these updates aren't compulsory, customers pay for each release. This seems harsh, but think of each upgrade as a new OS (like Windows XP, Vista and 7) and it's not so bad. Prices vary considerably depending on how significant the revision is, with the latest costing around Rs. 2,000 for a single Mac. Smaller security updates are free, but are compatible only with latest major revision.

Look and Feel

If you're coming from a Windows environment, the OS X can take a little while to get used to. The most prominent distinction between the two Operating Systems is the Desktop, but there are a lot of under-the-hood differences, too.

Windows users will immediately notice the lack of a Start menu. In its place is the Dock, a hub that contains frequently used programs, as well as shortcuts to important files and folders. The Dock has had several refinements across different version of OS X and is very versatile. Documents can be stored in stacks, and the Dock resizes depending on how many icons it holds, so you can fit more onscreen than in Windows.

Each application is represented by a high-resolution icon that expands as the mouse cursor moves over it. More shortcuts can be created by dragging a file or program from its folder into the Dock, or removed by dragging it out. As you open a program, a blue orb appears beneath its Dock icon to show it's running. Even if you close all open windows, the program will run in the background which speeds up the time it takes to open another file. You can force any running program to quit by click and holding its Dock icon.

The Dock is great for accessing frequently used programs, but to access other applications and files you'll need Finder. This is the equivalent of Windows Explorer, and displays files and folders in a nested list, so it's easy to navigate through multiple folders. Important folders can be highlighted in a range of colours so they stand out, which is useful for anyone who has a lot of photos or music in their multimedia collection. Finder includes a search bar to locate documents and applications quickly, but you can press Cmd-Space to bring up a search menu called Spotlight without having to touch Finder at all.

The panel on the left side of the Finder window contains shortcuts to frequently visited links, installed hard disks, applications, multimedia folders and search options are included ; to add more from your list of folders, drag them to the list. The final shortcut is for the iDisk, which is online storage linked to an Apple MobileMe account. Files added to iDisk can be downloaded on any computer, or an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch with the iDisk app.

In the nested view, one click on any file will display a preview column with a thumbnail, file size and the date it was last edited. There are three other view modes, including an iTunes-style cover flow option that's great for browsing large photo albums quickly. Horizontal scrolling with the Mighty Mouse or multi-touch touchpad, is faster than previewing each file individually.

Application windows have similar buttons for minimise and close as on Windows. However, although the '+' button looks like it maximises a window, it doesn't. There's no way to make a window fill the screen quickly. Instead, '+' resizes the windows to match the content. This makes sense when working on a document but not when browsing the internet, with all those different sized web pages. There's also no neat window management, as with Windows 7; getting neatly lined-up windows is hard without a lot of manual resizing.

There is a neat way of dealing with a Desktop cluttered with open windows. To make it easier to find a program, Expose can rearrange every window into a grid temporarily with a single button press(F3 or a four-fingered swipe on a touchpad). Using the keyboard or mouse/pad, click on the application to bring it to the front.

Dashboard is a widget system that overlays several small applications temporarily over the OS X Desktop. Pressing the Dashboard key (usually F4), several programs fly onscreen using the same animation as Expose. As well as a calculator, clock, calendar and internet search bar, widgets such as a flight tracker, a unit converter and weather report are installed by default. More can be added by downloading them from the Apple website.

Launching an application, Windows users will notice the lack of a self-contained title bar. In OS X, the File, Edit, View and other menus aren't kept withing the application but moved to a static title bar at the top of the screen. Because it is application specific, the active application dictates which menus appear in the title bar. The Apple logo in the top left opens the Apple menu, containing links to options such as Sleep, Restart and Shut Down, plus the App store for Mac. 

Because of this single title bar, Macs are more annoying to use over multiple monitors than PCs, as moving an application to the second display means you have to go back to the primary monitor to access its menus.

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Software

Adding Mac-ready applications is easy; installers mount as virtual disks and the program inside just needs to be dragged over to the hard disk's Applications folder. Programs are really cleverly packaged folders containing everything you need to run an application. To remove an application, select it and press Cmd-backspace. Finding suitable programs can be difficult - the selection is small compared with Windows - but the App Store makes it easier. That said, the OS includes a lot of quality applications out of the box : 

• Safari

The default Apple web browser, Safari, used to be basic but has been updated with each new version of OS X. The current version supports multiple tabs  and private browsing and includes a built-in pop-up blocker. A recent update added the extensions gallery, which lets you expand the functionality of the browser with URL shorteners, advert blockers and social networking tools. Both Google Chrome and Firefox have more available extensions and both are available for Mac.

Safari has more visual effects than Internet Explorer, the default Windows web browser. The Top Sites tab displays 12 most visited pages in a wall, letting you rearrange and pin your favourites in place. An on-going dispute with Adobe over its Flash plug-in has resulted in a push for HTML 5 support, but you still need Flash to get a lot of web content to display correctly.

Downloaded files are saved to Downloads stack, so they're easy to access from the Dock, although this is also true of other browsers. Like most OS X applications, options are kept in the main title bar, leaving more room to display web pages, which requires less vertical scrolling.

• iPhoto

The default image-editing program on OS X, iPhoto quickly organises your photo albums, but also lets you fix a lot of common mistakes. After importing images directly from a digital camera or an SD card, the program can even use GPS data in a photo (if your camera provides it) to plot its location on a map. It also uses facial recognition to tag people in each photo, making it easier to find friends and family in a large album.

If your images didn't come out as you intended, there are plenty of options for editing them. Beyond the standard crop and red-eye removal tools, there are options to straighten a crooked photo, enhance its colours automatically and adjust brightness and contrast. A series of sliders adjust exposure, saturation and image sharpness, as well as temperature and noise levels. There's even the option to retouch blemishes, which is usually a feature found only on advanced image-editing software. Edited images can be turned into a greeting card, calendar or slideshow in a few clicks using the built-in templates, then emailed or exported to websites such as Flickr or Facebook.

If iPhoto lacks some of the advanced features you're used to seeing in other image editors then the comprehensive Aperture is available from the App store for around Rs. 12,000. For the budding amateur however, there are few features missing from iPhoto that would require additional software.

• iMovie

Editing video can be harder than fixing photos, particularly if you don't have the right software. Professional-grade programs can cost thousand of rupees, but OS X includes iMove, which is perfect for editing home movies. The latest version, iMovie'11, has plenty of features not normally found in bundled or free software and is ideal for the budding cameraman. It supports plenty of file formats and easily imports High Definition video directly from a video camera ready for editing.

Clips are created automatically from imported video files and saved in chronological order. They can be trimmed and repositioned with a few mouse clicks, ready to be added to the timeline. It appears basic at first, but the timeline has a lot of depth; effects and transitions can be applied to any clip, and its audio channel can be separated to make it easier to segue between scenes, or replaced completely with a backing track or voice over. The extensive library of transitions and effects is impressive for a bundled product, as is the amount of stock footage, which is perfect for learning the basics. 

Selecting a theme or the new trailers feature adds transitions and effects to a project, so you can produce polished results with minimal effort. The finished product can be exported directly to YouTube to share with family and friends.

• iTunes

If you've used an iPhone or iPod, you'll be familiar with iTunes. Even if you haven't, it's still a popular media player on PCs, but its true home is on OS X. Pre-loaded with the operating system, and far less prone to crashes and errors than the Windows version, iTunes is a digital media library that organises your music, video and eBooks.

Visually, there are few differences between the OS X version of iTunes and its PC counterpart. They use the same layout and functionality is identical, which should help anyone making the transition from Windows. The latest version includes the Ping social network for sharing musical tastes, but as it's limited to music it isn't as practical as Facebook.

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Additional Software

OS X includes many other useful default programs. GarageBand, for example, is a geat music creation tool with plenty of synthesised instruments and onscreen keyboard, so you don't need any extra equipment  to make songs. Photo Booth uses the built-in webcam to take photos and video, add special effects and backgrounds. The instant messaging program iChat can send text or video to other Mac users or anyone with an AIM account. Finally, Apple includes the Mail application for anyone who wants a dedicated email client. Although we expect many people to have switched to webmail, the program can import accounts from Gmail, AOL and Microsoft Exchange. It can also rack RSS feeds and also integrates with the iCal calendar to manage meetings and social events.

Microsoft   

It has gone through several redesigns and seen many improvements, but the key design principles behind Microsoft's operating system have remained the same. Microsoft releases a new version of Windows roughly every four years, and this is then pre-installed on laptops and PCs. You can also buy a standalone version of the operating system to install on a computer you build yourself; it costs around Rs. 8,000 for a single license of Windows 7 Home Premium.

During its lifespan, Microsoft usually releases at least one major Service Pack for each version of Windows; however, although it adds new behind-the-scenes features and vulnerability fixes, the basic Operating System remains the same. Critical updates are released on a more regular basis; as with Service Packs, these are all free. There are few hardware limitations to running Windows; it's backwards-compatible with older components, although performance will suffer when installed on very old systems.


Look and Feel

Windows 7, which is easily one of the most recognisable computer interface in the world, is centered around two main points of interaction. The Start menu is the main tool for launching programs, opening files and folders and accessing settings. In its original guise, it contained only application shortcuts, but it has been refined a great deal in the intervening years. An integrated search bar can help you to locate files, folders and applications very quickly, and applications are listed according to how often they're opened. Favourites can be pinned at the top of the menu for easier access. Jump lists, a new feature for Windows 7, allow you to open files in a specific program straight from the Start menu.

The Start menu forms part of the taskbar, which contains your open applications and the System Tray of notification icons. Text labels were removed in Windows 7, moving to an icon-only interface that takes up less room per application. Each icon can group application instances together; unlike previous versions of Windows, where each open window would have its own icon, the taskbar is less cluttered and easier to navigate. Hovering over an icon with the mouse reveals thumbnails of each open window, so you can choose a file or folder easily without having to navigate through multiple taskbar icons. By default, a program disappears from the taskbar when closed, but a shortcut for that application can be pinned permanently in place if required.


If you want to browse all your files, just click the Computer button in the Start menu. This navigation pane displays any connected storage, including external disks, optical drives and USB memory sticks. The simple directory structure can display the contents of one folder at a time, so there's often a lot of back and forth between folders when copying and moving files. Unless you specific locations when installing programs, your hard disks can soon fill up with folders that make it hard to find what you're after. Thankfully, the improved search tool means you can find files quickly in even the most disorganised folders.


Every applications opens in a self-contained window. Settings and options are accessed through a title bar, which is unique to each program and moves with the window. Microsoft has started to introduce its Ribbon interface, first seen in Office 2007, to some of the programs included with Windows. Its icon-based menus are easy to navigate, although confusing at first if you're used to the old style drop-down menus. Because all the functions of a program are constrained to its window, working with multiple monitors is arguably easier on Windows. Managing application is also arguably easier with buttons to maximise, minimise and close. In Windows 7, you can drag a window to keep its sides of the screen to automatically make it take up half of the display, or to the top to maximise. This makes it easy to work on multiple applications at once.


There are several software-based ways to improve productivity too, most notably with task switching keyboard shortcuts that bring different windows to the foreground of the desktop. The Alt-Tab keyboard shortcut has been a part of the OS for some time, enabling you to flip quickly between windows. Flip 3D, introduced in Windows Vista, is a more visually appealing method, but it performs essentially the same function.


Gadgets are desktop applications that usually provide web-based updates on such items as the news or weather. They were previously restricted to a vertical sidebar in Vista, but they can now be placed anywhere on the Windows 7 Desktop. Several gadgets are pre-installed with Windows, and more can be downloaded from the Windows website, but few are as polished as Microsoft's own. Once placed onscreen, gadgets can be assigned to always appear on top of other windows, or set to be transparent so they don't obscure more important applications. Pressing the Windows key and G together will bring every gadget to the front of the Desktop.

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Software

One massive advantage to using Windows is the vast amount of software available for it. The OS also includes a great deal of bundled software, ranging from games and multimedia players to image editors and web browsers. Few of these programs may be essential given the fact that there are free alternatives available on the internet, but some are certainly worth a mention.

It isn't as secure as Google Chrome or Firefox, but Internet Explorer is still the preferred web browser for most Windows users. Microsoft was recently forced to add the browser ballot page, which gives users the choice of various browsers; it market share has slowly fallen, but IE remains popular. The latest version matches other browsers for key features, with tabbed browsing and InPrivate mode, which prevents the browser recording your internet history.


Unlike previous editions, Windows 7 doesn't include an email client. Outlook has been discontinued, Microsoft is instead promoting Windows Live Mail. It's not included by default. but it's easily downloaded using Windows Update tool. As well as Gmail and Hotmail compatibility, the program can receive mail from an Exchange server. It integrates well with Windows Live services and can import all your contacts if you have an existing Windows Live ID. Although we could expect many people to be happy with webmail or an existing client, the easy-to-use interface makes Live Mail ideal if you have multiple email accounts.


Windows 7's approach to multimedia is a big improvement over that of its predecessors, with improvements to Windows Media Player and Windows Media Centre. Both will play music and video, including DVDs, and let you browse your photos. Media Player is designed to be used while sat at your PC, while Media Centre is optimised for living room TVs and is easily controlled by an optional remote PCs and laptops that are equipped with a TV tuner can use Media Center to record live television straight to the hard disk, then stream the content to any compatible UPnP or DLNA media player.


Previous versions of Media Player were popular for music playback, but there are now countless alternatives available on the internet. Its interface hasn't changed dramatically for several years, and it is starting to feel dated. Functionally, though, Media Player is as robust as ever, coping well with massive music collections and photo albums. There are hundreds of freely downloadable skins that can instantly transform its appearance to match a particular Desktop wallpaper or application, unlike iTunes.


It might use the new Ribbon interface, but good old Paint has remained mostly unchanged for the best part of a decade. A simple image-editing program, Paint can be used to create simple drawings but lacks many of the features necessary to touch up photos. Windows Live Photo Gallery is a better choice for this; as well as offering geo-tagging and facial recognition for organising your photos, it has more advanced image-editing tools, include retouching and red-eye removal. Although features such as image straightening are useful, they are automatic and can't be manually configured. This leaves the user with less control over the final image. Once your photos have been edited, they can be directly uploaded to Facebook, Flickr or YouTube from within the program.


Windows Movie Maker, a standard feature of previous editions of Windows, is not included in the latest version. It's replaced with Windows Live Movie Maker, another program bundled with the Live Essentials pack, but many features that made the original program useful have been removed. There's no longer a timeline view, so it's harder to edit multiple clips together smoothly. You can record from a Webcam or import files in various formats, add transitions or visual effects and upload finished projects to YouTube. Anyone who wants more functionality will have to look for an alternative such as Sony Vegas Movie Studio HD, which costs around Rs. 2,500.


Windows Live Essentials is a comprehensive if simple software suite. It requires a separate download, which is frustrating as many people may not realise the programs are available at all, although they can be found through the Windows update service


Additional Software

Two other components of the Windows Live Essentials package are Live Writer and Live Mesh. Writer and Live Mesh. Writer is a blogging tool that works with almost every blog platform, including Windows Live Spaces, Blogger, LiveJournal and WordPress. If you currently use a Web-based blogging tool, Writer may be a more user-friendly alternative. Mesh is a file synchronisation tool that can keep important documents up to date on multiple  computers at once . If you frequently move files between PCs, Mesh can do the job automatically over the internet, and it even runs on Macs, too.


Microsoft includes several games with Windows 7. Classics from previous versions, including Minesweeper, Solitaire and FreeCell, have received graphical updates; others are enabled for internet play. Backgammon, Checkers and Spades players can challenge human competitors online instead of playing only against the computer. Two new additions are Chess Titans and Mahjong Titans, based on the classic board games. Purble Place is a colourful game aimed at kids. Texas Hold'Em and Tinker can be downloaded from Microsoft's website.

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Performance benchmarks

When we test Windows-based PCs, we use a benchmark suite that can put any computer through its paces. As well as testing a processor's maximum clock speed in the image editing and video encoding test, it also pushes multi-core CPUs to the limit with a multitasking
benchmark. This is a great indicator of the performance you can expect from a PC, but it isn't designed to work on OS X. To ensure we could compare Apple's hardware and Operating System with a Windows-based PC in a fair way, we created a new set of cross-platform benchmarks to highlight whether one OS handles particular tasks better than the other.


Like their predecessors, the new benchmarks consists of three tests. We ran all three tests several times, producing an average score for both PC and Mac that we could pick an overall performance champion:

• Image Editing 

This converts a group of high-resolution images from 32-bit TIFF to 16-bit PNG files using ImageMagick, a freeware program that will run on both Mac and Windows. The time taken is highly dependent on a processor's maximum clock speed, rather than the amount of system memory or the number of cores.

• Video Encoding

 This re-encodes a five-minute 1080p video file from the AVCHD format to iPhone 4-friendly MP4 video. Although higher clock speeds will be beneficial, the open-source Handbrake transcoder makes good use of multiple processor cores. 

• Multitasking

This re-runs the image-editing and video encoding tests simultaneously. A 1080p HD video clip at 28 Mbps is also played in the background using MPlayer, which is another multi-platform freeware application. This tests the hardware to its limits and also the operating system's ability to balance multiple tasks.

Results Analysis

Because we built our test PC using components that are identical (or very similar) to those used in the iMac, the results of our benchmarks should highlight performance of differences between OS X and Windows. Unsurprisingly, the results were close, but they did indicate that each operating system has certain strengths and weaknesses.

After several runs, the Windows machine came out narrowly top overall because it consistently beat the iMac in both image editing and video encoding. This suggests that for single tasks, a PC will perform slightly faster than a Mac if it uses identical components. However, each time we ran the benchmarks, the iMac was faster during the multitasking test. This indicates that Apple's Operating system is splitting tasks across processor cores.

Despite these differences, the overall gap in performance is very small. We were pleased to see little impact when switching from one operating system to the other; choosing between a PC and a Mac involves comparing factors other than performance.

The results for the laptops require greater consideration. Asus's U36JC has more memory and a faster processor. It was no surprise to find it was faster in every test by a significant margin, despite that the MacBook costs around Rs. 56,000 more. A Windows-based laptop, then, makes more sense for anyone who wants both performance and value from a portable computer.

Everyday Use 

Performance benchmarks can tell us which PC is more powerful, but they can't tell us how a computer will perform in everyday situations. One of the most irritating things about using a PC is waiting for it to come on, so we compared the startup, shutdown and sleep times of both machines using a stopwatch.

Start Up

To check startup times, we measured the time from the power button being pressed to the moment a webpage was loaded using Google Chrome. Both systems use solid-state disks, which dramatically improve startup times when compared with those that use traditional hard disks. Despite using different boot processes, the Mac and PC had almost identical startup times. The iMac hides its boot process, displaying a white screen and grey Apple logo while low level system drivers are started by the EFI chip on the motherboard. It took a respectable 50s to load the web page from first pressing the power button. Despite using the older BIOS technology to load its system drivers, the Windows-based PC was slightly faster, taking 47s to perform the same.

  

Sleep

For day to day use, sleep mode is far more convenient than a full shut-down; it can save any open programs to memory ready to resume at a later point. We use sleep mode on our PCs during the working week, only shutting them completely for the weekend.

  

Both Operating Systems are optimised for this power-saving mode, but the iMac took the lead over Windows. With several applications open, it took just four seconds to enter sleep mode and a further three seconds to resume. The Windows-based caches programs to memory slightly differently, so with the same basic programs running it took nine seconds to enter sleep mode and a further seven seconds to resume.

Shut Down

Using a power tester, we made sure that each machine had powered down fully when measuring shut-down times. Clicking shut-down in OS X will bring up an alert box that checks to make sure that you intended to shut-down the machine. This can be cancelled to return to the operating system, or confirmed to turn the Mac off. It took eight seconds to shut down a second time.

With the changes made to the start menu in Windows 7, the shut-down is now a one click option that can't be cancelled once activated. If you accidentally click the button, there's no way to cancel it. Once we clicked shut-down, it took nine seconds for the Windows-based PC to power down completely.

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Security

The popular misconception is that Mac OS X is more secure than Windows, although it lacks many of the safety features present in Microsoft's Operating System, That said, Mac owners are far less likely to fall victim to a virus while surfing the web.

Apple's market share is currently around 10 percent of all computer users, so hackers and malicious software designers have very little to gain financially from targeting Mac users. Most threats designed to attack Windows PCs simply won't be able to infect a Mac in the same way due to differences in the operating systems. 

However, if the balance were to shift and Apple became a dominant presence, it would'nt be a big step for criminals to adapt their software to attack Mac users.

Although there aren't as many Mac-specific viruses in the wild, this doesn't mean that Apple products are immune from internet threats. Many Mac owners are more lackadaisical about internet security, often forgoing virus protection completely in the belief that OS X is inherent 'safer' than the alternatives. If you think we're being biased, consider for its operating system and bundled software.

OS X is easily as vulnerable as Windows when it comes to unsecure applications; web browsers, emails and the Java and Flash plug-ins are frequently targeted. Now that Apple is using common components such as Intel processors in its products, it is becoming easier to write a malicious code that can attack the same exploit on multiple platforms. Threats that rely on user mistakes, such as phishing attacks, identity fraud and scam emails, can still cause problems for anyone who isn't careful about how they protect their personal data on the internet, regardless of their operating system. Therefore, people who do use OS X shouldn't get complacent. It's important to keep all software up to date, either manually or by using the update tools that are built into every operating system.

Using a router with a hardware firewall to hide a system from direct attacks can certainly help, as will not using an administrator account on a regular basis. Running an anti-virus program can also help to protect any system from external threats. Although there are fewer options for Mac users, some of the big companies such as Symantec and McAfee offer programs that are compatible with OS X. As well as paid software, free alternatives such as ClamXav are equally effective and can help keep viruses from taking control of your system.

Applications

Beyond the (admittedly excellent) default programs that are bundled with OS X, Apple simply cannot match Microsoft when it comes to the volume of applications available for it operating system. Because Mac users make up such a small segment of the market, there's very little financial incentive for a software company to make software that's compatible with OS X. This is a problem compounded by the excellent software that Apple itself ships with every Mac.

On the other hand, plenty of freeware applications have been designed with multiple applications have been designed with multiple operating systems in mind. Many popular programs, including Google's Chrome web browser, VLC media player, the OpenOffice productivity suite and sound editor Audacity, are compatible with OS X. If you use freeware applications on a regular basis, you shouldn't be too inconvenienced when using a Mac instead of Windows.

Commercial software might be limited, but there is one big exception: creative individuals and media professionals are very well catered for. Almost every major application used in the music, video and publishing industries has a Mac-compatible version. Adobe's Creative Suite is available for OS X in its entirety; this includes Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator, which are used in desktop publishing, Premiere Pro and After Effects for video editing, and Dreamweaver for web design.

Apple fans would argue that many of these cross-platform applications run better on OS X than they do on Windows. In all likelihood, they may well be slightly less crash-prone, due to the limited range of Apple hardware. However, as our tests show, performance differences between the two operating systems should be minor.
   

Traditionally, Macs have been the preferred system for musicians and DJs, because they offered lower latencies than Windows and were able to deal with large file sizes without crashing - a regular occurrence an older versions of Microsoft's operating system. Although this may no longer be the case, the three major audio production programs - Cubase, Ableton Live and Reason - are all cross-platform. These programs aren't for everyone particularly as they cost thousands of rupees for a single-user license, but for many professionals they are indispensible.

Not every Mac owner needs one for work. At the time of writing, three most popular programs available through Apples website are the Rosetta Stone language tutor, iBank money management and Apple's own iWork productivity suite. This productivity suite, which is one of the few Apple-made programs not included in OS X by default, costs Rs. 5,000 and includes Pages, a word processor that also handles page layout, spreadsheet tool Numbers and even presentation creator Keynote.

Even Microsoft, Apple's biggest competitor, offers a Mac-compatible version of its popular Office software, although it has less functionality than the equivalent Windows version. The 2011 version of this useful productivity suite includes Word, Excel and Powerpoint, if you buy Office, the cost is almost same as iWork for Home and Student edition. However, if you want the Outlook email client, you'll have to buy the Home and Business edition, twice the price at around Rs. 10,000. Neither version includes Access or Publisher, which are exclusive to Windows.


Apple seem to be aware that OS X is seen by many as inferior to Windows when it comes to software, and has invested heavily in the App store for Mac. This service, which is based heavily on iTunes App store, is a hub for Apple customers to buy OS-X-compatible software and games. Currently, there are a few premium offerings from third-party publishers and Apple themselves, but the store is filled with budget or free apps that have little functionality. Although it's only been available for a few months, the App Store's sale have eclipsed software purchases from Apple's retail stores.

The Third Option ? 

If you like the idea of buying a Mac, but you don't want to say goodbye to Windows, there is an alternative option that can provide the best of both worlds. Once you've bought Apple's hardware, you can install a copy of Windows on it using the Boot Camp utility built in to OS X.

Using Boot Camp, the operating system creates a new partition on an installed hard disk, ready for a Windows installation. An internet connection is required to download some Mac-compatible Windows drivers, but  the process is painless as long as you now how to install Windows. The utility modifies the boot menu automatically, giving user the choice of which operating system to load at startup. It also installs a small widget that sits in the Windows System Tray, letting you toggle a shut-down that automatically reboots the system into OS X. The process is non-destructive, so if you no longer need Windows you can delete the partition and recover the disk space.

Boot Camp supports 32-bit versions of Windows XP and Vista, but only Windows 7 has full 32-bit and 64-bit support. The cost of a Windows license must be factored in to the overall cost, as you won't be able to use an existing copy that's already installed on another computer. On a MacBook Air, you'll need an external optical drive as the thin ultra-portable doesn't have one built-in.

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