Apple to Finally Begin Selling Next-Gen iMacs
Posted by zduncan | Posted in Computer | Posted on 28-11-2012
Tags: 2012 iMac, Apple, Apple iMac, iMac
1
Apple announced yesterday that it will soon begin selling its redesigned iMac desktop computers, making a self-set deadline to start shipping them by the end of November. These new iMacs are smaller than previous versions, coming in at 21.5″. Availability is said to be both online and in retail stores across the country, as well as with authorized resellers, for a starting price of $1,299.
The company had previously promised to deliver these new models in the beginning of November, though that obviously didn’t happen. The larger 27″ iMac, which starts at $1,799, should be available for pre-order as well, though it will not begin shipping until December.
Apple first debuted the newly designed iMacs back in October, though only said that they wouldn’t ship for weeks, giving no explanation as to why. Two days later, CEO Tim Cook acknowledged the delays and said that iMac supplies would be “constrained for the full quarter in a significant way.”
The delays were definitely substantial. Since the announcement of the devices back in October, not a single one has been available for sale on Apple’s online store, with previous generations of the device being pulled from the store as well. In addition to that, the phone ordering desk for the company was also unable to take orders.
The new iMacs feture Intel’s Ivy Bridge 2.7 GHz or 2.9 GHz quad-core Core i5 processors, 8GB of memory, 1TB hard drives and Nvidia graphics chipsets with 512MB of RAM. In addition to that, these models also opted out of optical drives and retained the previous model’s screen sizes and resolutions.
Another new feature of these iMacs is Fusion Drive, an option that combines 128GB of flash storage with a standard platter-based hard drive of between 1TB and 3TB. The hybrid drive will significantly increase speeds of some tasks, lie starting the computer and opening frequently used applications.
The new iMacs are $100 more than the previous models, with pre-configured 21.5″ models priced at $1,299 and $1,499 and pre-configured 27″ models priced at $1,799 and $1,999. It is also unclear how much the new Fusion Drive will increase the price, though the single option of 1TB for the Mac Mini runs $250.
Source: Computer World – Apple to start selling new, pricier iMacs Friday
