Pfeiffer Consulting just released a 200-page report detailing Total Cost of Ownership, Productivity & Return on Investment differences between the two operating systems.

The report is based on extensive international market research covering companies from the United States and 5 European countries, as well as extensive productivity and efficiency measures.

A sample page from the $2,400 (1,999 euros) report shows that the Mac compares favorably with Windows. Some salient points revealed in the sample page:

• It almost takes twice as long and twice as much to deploy a new Windows machine vs. a new Mac
• Replacing a dsyfunctional Windows machine costs 45 percent more than replacing a dsyfunctional Mac
• Macs are 22 percent more productive in a sample Photoshop workflow even though the the Windows machine was 2.3 times faster in the core loading performance of a 100 mb image. The discrepancy was explained by the high "user interface friction" of Windows in executing the workflow.
• Mouse precision benchmarks show Windows users are prone to make six times more errors given the same task.

Source: Pfeiffer Consulting

UPDATE: The report was conducted using PowerPC Macs. One can only surmise that the 2x to 4x performance boost of the new MacTels will further tip the scales to Apple's favor.