Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!samsung!spool.mu.edu!cs.umn.edu!brsmith
From: brsmith@cs.umn.edu (Brian R. Smith)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.amiga
Subject: NeXT vs. Amiga 3000UX? (was Re: Amiga 3000UX, X, ...)
Message-ID: <1991Mar19.184812.4218@cs.umn.edu>
Date: 19 Mar 91 18:48:12 GMT
References: <1991Mar18.051407.4163@kessner.denver.co.us> <1426@amix.commodore.com> <1991Mar19.003209.6819@kessner.denver.co.us>
Organization: University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, CSci dept.
Lines: 36

In <1991Mar19.003209.6819@kessner.denver.co.us> david@kessner.denver.co.us (David Kessner) writes:

>I am at the point where I'd find the extra money to buy a
>SPARC/NEXT/486 rather than getting a A3000UX-- but I think I'm just
>used to the higher performance of these machines (ie, I'm spoiled)...

EXTRA money?  Educational prices:
  NeXTstation with 105meg disk, 8meg ram, floppy:	$3,221
    (Through U of MN bookstore.)
  Amiga 3000/UXB - 100meg disk, 4meg ram, (floppy?):	$4,003

Other differences?

The NeXTstation comes with a MegaPixel grayscale display.  (Color is a
mere (HA!) $1,200 more.)  The Amiga?  I must admit I'm not sure of the
monitor in the package, but you KNOW it's got the color hardware
onboard.  So it's a matter of choice - it's easier to get a honking
B&W monitor for the NeXT, and easier to get color for the Amiga.
(Personally, I live for screen area, and grayscale stays sharper over
time...)

NeXT, of course, runs NeXTstep.  Which isn't X.  (This being the major
reason I don't own one, and probably won't get one.)

Amiga runs S5R4, which is supposed to have 4.3BSD compatibility.  NeXT
runs 4.3BSD on a Mach kernel.  NeXT is probably more stable - having
been out longer.  (And 4.3 > 5, IMHO...)

Ok - maybe it's an apples and oranges comparison.  But, being somewhat
poor, those are THE low-end Unix workstations available to me.  (No, I
don't consider {3,4}86 based ex-DOS machines worth the bother.)  I
can't help but WISH that either NeXT would get off their horse and use
X, or that Commodore would up the default memory to 8meg and offer a
humongous grayscale monitor without the extra $$$....
--
Brian  (Yet another lost soul looking to dump an Apple IIgs.)