Apple Announces 4 New iMacs Starting US$799

Todayis keynote was packed with more announcements than we were anticipating. Although the Cube was the most revolutionary and unexpected, the announcement of 4 new models of iMac was very welcome. With iMac sales slowing down, the line was due for a refreshment. All of the models should be available immediately, except for the new low-end iMac, which will be available in September.

All of the new iMacs sport a PowerPC G3 processor, 512K of Level 2 cache, Rage 128 Pro graphics, 10/100 BASE-T Ethernet, a 56K modem, a 15-inch display and two USB ports. All except the low-end iMac have two FireWire ports, sport VGA video mirroring, and are AirPort capable.

The new iMac comes in Indigo, a shade of blue, to keep it consistent with the other entry-level iMac computers. For a new low price of $799, you get a 350 MHz processor, 64 MB of RAM, a 7 GB hard drive and a CD-ROM drive. This should be more than enough machine for beginning users who just want to get on the Internet, and donit plan on doing any sort of DVD playback or video editing work.

Next is the iMac DV, available in both Indigo and Ruby. The Ruby color was very pleasing, and not as "girly" looking as the earlier Strawberry iMac. This configuration sports a 400 MHz processor, 64 MB RAM, a 10 GB hard drive, a CD-ROM, two FireWire Ports, VGA video mirroring and is AirPort ready. Although one would think the DV would mean a DVD-ROM drive, the DV in this case refers to the DV capabilities thanks to the FireWire ports and bundled iMovie software. This configuration will cost $999.

The next in line is the iMac DV Plus, which comes in Indigo, Ruby and Sage. Sage is a darker shade of green than the existing color. For $1,299, you get a 450 MHz processor, 64 MB of RAM, a 20 GB hard drive, a DVD-ROM drive with DVD-video, two FireWire ports, VGA video mirroring, and is AirPort ready. This looks like a great system for those who want to both view DVD movies, and be able to create their own movies. Although them RAM is somewhat wimpy, the 20 GB hard drive should do for most users.

The top of the line is the iMac DV special edition. This baby comes in either Graphite, similar to todayis color, or Snow, a translucent white. For $1499, you get a 500 MHz processor, 128 MB of RAM, a 30 GB hard drive, DVD-ROM with DVD-video, two firewire ports, VGA video mirroring, and is AirPort ready. For an extra $200, you get 64 MB more RAM and 10 GB more hard drive than the iMac DV Plus, so if you plan on doing any serious movie creating, this is the model to go for.