Apple Claims 150,000 iMac Pre-Orders, Begins Shipping Today

by , 9:50 AM EST, January 28th, 2002

Apple has announced that it received 150,000 pre-orders for the new iMac G4 introduced at MACWORLD San Francisco. The company also says that this is more than the total number of pre-orders for the original iMac, though pre-orders in 1998 were accepted for considerably longer than the three weeks since the new model was introduced. More importantly for those 150,000 people anxiously awaiting the arrival of the delivery person, Apple says that the high-end 800 MHz models began shipping today. From Apple:

Apple® today announced that it has received a record-breaking 150,000 pre-orders for the new iMac® since its introduction three weeks ago today, and that it has begun shipping the first of three iMac models. The new iMac features a stunning 15-inch LCD flat screen that floats in mid-air, allowing users to effortlessly adjust its height or angle with just a touch. The first shipping model includes an 800 MHz PowerPC G4 processor and Apple's revolutionary SuperDrive(TM) for playing and burning CDs and DVDs, and is priced at $1,799(US).

"We have taken over 150,000 pre-orders for the new iMac in the first three weeks -- which is more than all of the pre-orders we received for the original iMac in 1998," said Philip Schiller, Apple's senior vice president of Worldwide Product Marketing. "It's sure looking like the new iMac is going to be a huge hit with both Mac users and PC switchers."

The new iMacs are designed to be the center of the emerging digital lifestyle and run Apple's award-winning suite of software for digital photography, music and video. All new iMac models include iMovie(TM) 2, the world's easiest to use video editing software; and iTunes(TM) 2, the amazing digital music software that lets users put their entire music collection on their Mac, burn custom CDs and seamlessly sync to Apple's iPod(TM) portable digital music player. All new iMac models equipped with a SuperDrive also include iDVD 2, enabling users to easily create and burn custom DVDs that play in regular DVD players.

Every new iMac is also designed to run Apple's new iPhoto software -- the missing link in digital photography. With iPhoto, users can easily import images directly from digital cameras, organize and manage a photo collection containing thousands of photos, view cross-dissolved slide shows of their photos on iMac's stunning flat screen, automatically create a professional-looking Web page of their photos, order professional-quality Kodak prints and enlargements, and even a create and order a custom-printed, linen-bound book of their photos.

You can find more information on the new iMac at Apple's Web site.

The Mac Observer Spin:

So, do you think the iMacs are going to be a hit? Note the sardonic look on our collective faces as we ask that. Wall Street will no doubt enjoy this news, though the markets just opened a few minutes before this writing. There are no doubt some anxious customers who will enjoy it even more. The company has been able to meet its projected release and shipping dates for hardware during the last 18 months, and we are pleased to see them do so for this most-important product. Note that it remains to be seen just how fast the company can fill all of the pre-orders, not to mention store shelves, but we have high hopes it will be speedily. All in all, this isn't so bad for a niche company that is clearly near death...

Apple