The Register has published a sketch of what someone told them was the new LCD iMac (and a Mac OS X only box) that is expected to come out at MACWORLD New York. Better yet, it is also the source of the 14" iBook rumor that AlphaTop announced it would be making. For the icing on the cake, this unit will also be the rack-mount server about which rumors have been circulating for the last few weeks. Too good to be true? In a word, duh. The Register makes great fun with it, however, and explores the issue from every side.
From The Register piece:
The diagram was passed on by a third-party who claims to have received it from someone at "a third company that is already producing something for Apple." Now hereis the really interesting bit: The new iMacis LCD screen, says the original source, can be removed and used as a Webpad. It has its own battery and a wireless link to the main (youill note the exposed iBook-style modem, USB, FireWire and Ethernet ports on the side) system unit.
Apparently, the screen contains enough processing power to display the Quartz data sent to it by the main system unit, not unlike the way some remote terminals work. The mention of Quartz implies this is a MacOS X-only box, and we have been hearing rumours for some time that Apple is preparing a MacOS X-only version of the iMac to demonstrate the new OS to consumers.
But wait, thereis more. A couple of weeks back, before Appleis Worldwide Developer Forum, it was claimed that the company is working on a rackmount server. Well, weive got that one taped too, apparently. Says the source of the pic: "Notice there is no CD/DVD unit in the front. It is in the other side, opposite to the ports. Turn the thing 90 degrees around the Z axis and you have the ON/OFF button, the reset and the DVD slot in the front and the ports in the back. It is a thin-server for X Server and WebObjects deployment.
There is a *lot* more information in the article that we didnit quote, and this is definitely a must-see. The image is entertaining as well. The piece was penned by Tony Smith, and he offers an outstanding analysis.