In the past two months Apple has released a number of completely new products, and more importantly has started their transition to the Intel processor. In this article I will detail the new product offerings and options available on each.
The first new Intel product announced by Apple was the iMac Core Duo. The all-in-one enclosure featuring either a 17" or 20" LCD monitor looks exactly the same as the previous iMac G5 enclosure, and like the iMac G5, features a built-in iSight camera. Inside however it's an entirely different story. The iMac Core Duo features the Intel Core Duo processor running at 1.83 or 2.0 GHz, the ATI Radeon X1600 graphics card, 512MB of built-in RAM upgradeable to 2GB, and a 160GB Serial ATA hard drive upgradeable to 500GB. The iMac Core Duo also features Front Row media software and the Apple Remote.
The second new Intel-based product that Apple introduced was the MacBook Pro. This is their brand new laptop, and their first completely new laptop in quite a while. The MacBook Pro features an Intel Core Duo processor running at 1.83, 2.0, or 2.16 GHZ, a 15.4" TFT display, 512MB of built-in RAM upgradeable to 2GB, an 80GB Serial ATA hard drive upgradeable to 120GB, and the ATI Radeon X1600 graphics card with 128MB or 256MB of RAM. Unlike any laptop in Apple history, the new MacBook Pro also features a built-in iSight camera, Front Row software, and the Apple Remote.
The latest Intel-based product announced by Apple is the Mac mini. Like the iMac, the new Mac mini looks exactly the same as the old Mac mini, but is completely different inside. The mini is the first Mac to offer either the Intel Core Solo or Core Duo processor. The base model Mac mini comes standard with the Intel Core Solo running at 1.5 GHz, 512MB of built-in RAM, a 60GB Serial ATA hard drive, and a built-in Intel GMA950 graphics chipset. New to the Mac mini is the Apple Remote, Front Row software, and the option of connecting the mini to your home television.
What I am most excited about with these new Intel-based Macs is that Apple finally offers a product line in which all of their offerings are comparable in processing power and performance. Previously there were the PowerPC G4-based products - the Mac mini, PowerBook, and iBook - and the PowerPC G5-based products – the iMac G5 and Power Mac G5. While the PowerPC G4 is a viable and powerful processor, it is no match for the PowerPC G5, and left many purchasers of G4-based Macs stuck with substantially less processor power and overall performance. Now that the Intel-based Mac line is out, even buyers of lower end Macs still are offered processor power and performance comparable to buyers of top-of-the-line Macs. This is a great move for Apple, and is a win-win situation for consumers, shareholders, and for the company.
John Conanan is the owner of http://www.readandforget.com and http://www.7verse.net |
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