My magnum piece on the lack of garment - pull in Apple ’s transition to Intel chips get its share of feedback . But I was particularly hit by a commentary sent via eastward - mail from referee who take issue with my statement that “ every snatch of Apple hardware , save for the Xserve and whatever pro screen background will replace the Power Mac , now runs on an Intel processor . ” The rebutter :
take the second part of that feedback first , it ’s dead on target that iPod do n’t run on Intel processors . ( iPod guru extraordinaire tells me that the music devices are powered by PortalPlayer chip , though it appearsSamsung ’s about to get that contractin a decision that seems to be move mostly by preserve fabrication costs down . ) However , since the article itself was talk about Macs and not music players , the referee ’s iPod citation might qualify him for installation into the Nitpickers Hall of Fame on the first voting . For that thing , hardware like the Apple Cinema Display , the iPod Hi - Fi , and the Apple shiner and keyboard do n’t have Intel chips in them either — it ’s kind of a non - exit .
As for the eMac , the omission there was purely intentional . Apple intercept selling the CRT - based all - in - one background to civilians last twelvemonth . And when I did a cursory stay of the company ’s educational store last workweek , I could n’t get the eMac there , either . Therefore , I reject the lector ’s “ BZZZZZT ! ” and respond with a game show - esque sound effect of my own .
Of naturally , given Wednesday ’s announcement of an $ 899 iMac Core Duo draw a bead on at the education market , the eMac ’s absence from Apple ’s educational offerings last workweek make a whole lot more sense now . Apple has taken a machine sport two outdated or out - of - party favor technologies — the CRT varan and the PowerPC chip — and put back it with an all - in - one machine that features a flat - jury LCD showing and a dual - core processor from the company ’s microchip - maker of pick .
I suspect this $ 899 iMac will attract some aid from pupil , thanks to the depleted cost tag . But a glance at the specs indicates that this scheme really is likely drive at teacher , administrator , and the folk music who make IT purchases for schools . Consider the two master differences between this configuration and Apple ’s other iMac offerings — there ’s no built - in Bluetooth module , and , instead of a an ATI Radeon X1600 graphics card , you get an Intel GMA 950 processor that shares its storage with the main RAM .
Not having Bluetooth connectivity or a soup - up graphics menu might be deal - slayer if you ’re an single exploiter . But in a school information processing system lab setting , those kind of compromises really are n’t hardship at all . For the schoolroom , Bluetooth is an unnecessary — and potentially distracting — feature . ( Ca n’t have the small fry futzing around with their Bluetooth - enabled electric cell phones when they should be paying tending in class , after all . ) And as our examination on other Macs with the merged Intel artwork signal , the Intel GMA 950 is perfectly satisfactory on everything but graphics - intensive games — which are n’t part of the curriculum at many schools unless the educational landscape painting has changed dramatically in the decade - and - a - half since I receive my high-pitched shoal sheepskin .
Instead of forcing shoal to pay up for feature they did n’t desire or need , Apple removed these unnecessary bells and whistling and downgraded a few other specifications ( there ’s less storage capacity than in stock iMac fashion model and you get a compact disc - RW / DVD - ROM Combo driving force alternatively of a DVD - burning SuperDrive ) to deliver a still attractive organisation at averyattractive monetary value . More important , it kept features that educators do postulate — AirPort Extreme wireless networking is build - in — in the type of all - in - one system that the education market prefers . On top of all that , this iMac gives Apple an Intel - ground offering so that the caller ’s educational efforts keep up with the Intel transition across the balance of its product pedigree .
In other words , the dismissal of this 1.83GHz iMac for teaching users is a chic move that should help Apple both in the forgetful full term and over the longsighted draw . Figure the last remaining bits of PowerPC - based Apple hardware , the Power Mac and the Xserve , to make the leap to Intel scrap later on this year , perhaps as soon as August ’s Developers Conference . And then , the Intel conversion will , for all intent and purposes , be done .
