Buying a computer is one thing, but spending $15,000 on a hardcore workstation for gaming and serious business is something else. Apple has normally ruled the area between powerful home computer and server, but Alienware, now acquired by Dell has been at the forefront of gaming and high-performace computers.

The systems we compare in Apple versus Alienware are both 8-core systems with 16GB of memory, an extended warranty and multiple displays. In doing our research we didn't find one complaint about either of these systems.

Are you a Mac person or a PC person? Consider your usage and the availability of software. The Apple Mac Pro Custom is a beautifully designed well built peice of machine with plenty of room for all the extras we fit into it. The Alienware MJ-12 8550i is not shabby either, the Alienware's case is a rugged black rackmount chassis with a tower option available, and while it lacks the contemporary design appeal of the Apple Mac Pro, it's strong build quality will last a long time.

Overall the Alienware MJ-12 8550i presented the best value. It beat the Apple in harddrive space with 4TB over Apple's 3TB, and our option-build Alienware has a 4-monitor display as opposed to Apple's 2-monitor setup. The Mac Pro Custom does operate at 3.0Ghz, so slightly faster and our version has the Fibre card for networking to get upto optical server speeds.

In the end, both of these machines are screaming monsters that can easily handle heaving hollywood film rendering, 300-track studio production, advanced engineering or just about anything else you can throw at them but there are some strong considerations that will help you determine what system to buy; software selection, money and stability. Apple is renown for system stability and known for not have many software titles. Alienware can be had for less if you lower the harddrive space and take the monitors from 4 to 2, you'll also get MUCH more software to choose from but then you'll have to deal with Microsoft windows. With Apple's new ability to run Microsoft programs the software will be less of an issue.