Apple stirred up some controversy by claiming the Mac G5 was "the world's fastest personal computer and the first with a 64-bit processor". Well, we already know that the 64-bit claim is a lie, but we're still waiting to find out if the "world's fastest" has as much credibility as Apple's usual speed claims -- ie not very much at all. PC World.com has just published some comparisons based on running applications, and the G5 generally loses to the AMD Athlon 64. "Even Apple's 2GHz dual-CPU G5 unit had a hard time keeping up with a single-chip FX-51 PC in most tests," says PC World.com. The comparison table is here.
This certainly isn't conclusive and will be very far from the last word, but it adds to a growing body of evidence (eg Nasa etc).
Interestingly, SPL's Soapbox notes that "The Apple Australia website has been changed. It now reads: 'The Power Mac G5 is one of the fastest personal computers with a 64-bit processor'."
