I will agree, I can lock up my Mac to with some intense work with big files but that is going to happen with any machine that you push to the limit. I just hate to hear people complain about how slow or freeze up’s when they are using a 299 Dell. You have to understand if you buy the cheapest you get the cheapest throughout(cheap parts and cheap labor for manufacturing). I totally agree with James, there are a lot of great middle of the road PC’s out there that are just fine for the average joe that is surfing and emailing. I guess this is like the old Chevy-Ford-Dodge thing, everyone has their favorite. I also have a PC that I use at work for diagnostics and it is great for what it does. Good luck with your purchase.