Some random thoughts on Apple ’s freshly reveal iMac , which have its larboard on the back of the enclosure no matter how much some nap - deprive fool insists otherwise :

  • Going Tilt : One of the things I liked about the last incarnation of the G4 iMac was its adjustability . If you require to move the prostrate - cover monitor lizard up - and - down or side - to - side , all you had to do was align it with the tinge of a finger . I liked that tractableness so much , in fact , that I recreated it with my PowerBook G4 . When I ’m in theMacworldoffice , I hook my PowerBook up to an Apple Studio Display that floats iMac - like above my desk thanks to a StudioLift subdivision fromInnovative Office Products .

The new G5 iMac sure offer up - and - down flexibility — it tilts from 25 degrees to -5 stage , according toApple ’s Web site . But there does n’t seem to be a way to move the screen from side to side , inadequate of tilt the entire stem . At any rate , I ’m eager to get my hands on a Modern iMac specifically to see just how adjustable the presentation is .

( My Bos , Rick , tells me that Apple ’s in style Cinema Displays — which the new iMacs more or less resemble — swivel pretty easily . He ’s as unsure as I am , though , as to whether that feature of speech made it over to the raw iMac designing . )

  • Speed Demon : We wo n’t be able to say exactly how fast these new models are compared to the older iMac until Macworld Labs take a crack at them , but I ’d assume we ’re going to see a significant performance improvement . asunder from the fact that clock speeds have been hike up to 1.6GHz and 1.8GHz ( depending on form ) from 1GHz and 1.25GHz and that the system motorbus has been upped to 600MHz from 167MHz , the iMac now runs on a G5 mainframe as opposed to a G4 chip . Back when Apple first add the G5 to its Power Mac line , Macworldexplained how otherwise the two PowerPC generations do . That September 2003 article founder a elaborate explanation ( just skip down to the “ A Chip ’s report ” subdivision ) , but the Cliff ’s Notes version is basically : faster clock amphetamine , 64 - mo processing , and a more efficient system architecture boost performance even further .

  • Comparison Shopping : While we ’re stacking up the fresh iMacs to their older G4 - power opposite number , consider this . Just a few week ago , $ 1,299 bought you a 15 - inch iMac with a 1GHz PowerPC G4 micro chip , 256 MB of RAM ( with the option to add up to 1 GB ) , an 80 GB knockout cause , an Nvidia GeForce4 MX graphics processor , and a CD - RW / DVD - ROM Combo campaign . Today , that same $ 1,299 gets you a 17 - column inch model with a 1.6GHz G5 chip and an Nvidia GeForce FX 5200 Ultra graphics visiting card . The hard - private road capacity , optical drive , and install RAM remain the same ( though the raw models support up to 2 GB of memory ) . I ’d call that a pretty bonny rising slope .

While the low - end iMac maintain its $ 1,299 price tag , prices have expend on the other two configurations . You now get a 20 - inch iMac with a DVD - burning SuperDrive and a 1.8GHz G5 CPU for $ 1,899 ; the 20 - inch unconditional - panel G4 iMac cost $ 2,199 .

  • screen background , Schmesktop — Where ’s My Music Player ? : If you ’re uncertain as to where Apple is making its money these days , the merchandising endorsement on the front page should erase any doubt . It ’s there that the iMac is bill as “ from the creators of the iPod . ” Not the creator of the original Mac or from the companionship that revolutionized personal - computing — Apple is now set itself as the iPod company .

Although if you heap an iPod and a Modern iMac next to each other and stare at them from the side long enough , they do sort of look alike .

Anyhow , those are my initial impressions of the iMac , after sift through mixed account . What are yours ?