iMac
The current 24" iMac. The IMac is a midrange to high-end desktop computer offered by Apple Inc
Type:	Desktop
Released:	April 28, 2008 (current model) August 15, 1998 (original release)
Processor(s):	Intel Core 2 Duo, 2. A desktop computer is a Personal computer (PC in a form intended for regular use at a single location as opposed to a mobile Laptop or portable computer Events 1192 - Assassination of Conrad of Montferrat (Conrad I King of Jerusalem, in Tyre, two days after his title 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 778 - The Battle of Roncevaux Pass, at which Roland is killed Year 1998 ( MCMXCVIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar) The Core 2 brand refers to a range of Intel 's consumer 64-bit dual-core and 2x2 MCM quad-core CPUs with the X86-64 instruction set 4, 2. 66, 2. 8,   3. 06 GHz (current model) PowerPC G3, 233 MHz (original release)
Base Price:	US$1,199–US$1,499–US$1,799 (current model) US$1,299 (original release)

The original "Bondi Blue" iMac G3 was introduced in 1998. PowerPC G3 is a designation used by Apple Computer to a third generation of PowerPC Microprocessors from the PowerPC 750 family designed The hertz (symbol Hz) is a measure of Frequency, informally defined as the number of events occurring per Second. The United States dollar ( sign: $; code: USD) is the unit of Currency of the United States; it has also been The iMac G3 was the first model of the IMac line of personal computers made by Apple Inc

This case design housed the iMac G5s and the early Intel iMacs. The iMac G5 was a desktop Macintosh computer designed and built by Apple Inc The IMac is a midrange to high-end desktop computer offered by Apple Inc Earlier revisions excluded the integrated iSight camera above the screen. iSight was a Webcam developed and marketed by Apple Inc The iSight was sold retail for US$ 149 as an external unit which connects to a computer via

The iMac is a desktop Macintosh computer designed and built by Apple Inc. It has been a large part of Apple's consumer desktop offerings since its introduction in 1998, and has evolved through three distinct forms. Macintosh, commonly nicknamed Mac is a Brand name which covers several lines of Personal computers designed developed and marketed by Apple Inc Apple Inc, ( formerly Apple Computer Inc, is an American Multinational corporation with a focus on designing and manufacturing Consumer electronics In its original form, the G3, the iMac was gum drop or egg shaped with a CRT monitor, mainly enclosed by colored, translucent plastic. The iMac G3 was the first model of the IMac line of personal computers made by Apple Inc The cathode ray tube (CRT is a Vacuum tube containing an Electron gun (a source of electrons and a Fluorescent screen with internal or The second major revision, the G4, moved to a design of a hemispherical base containing all the main components and an LCD monitor on a freely-moving arm attached to the top of the base. The iMac G4 was a Computer that was produced by Apple from the beginning of 2002 to mid 2004. The iMac G5 and the Intel iMac placed all the components immediately behind the monitor, creating a slim design which tilts only up and down on a simple metal base. The iMac G5 was a desktop Macintosh computer designed and built by Apple Inc The IMac is a midrange to high-end desktop computer offered by Apple Inc The current iMac shares the same form as the previous models, but is now thinner and uses brushed aluminum and black-bordered glass for its case.

Like other Apple products, the iMac enjoys a relatively high profile in popular culture due to its distinctive aesthetics and Apple's successful marketing. Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — Aesthetics or esthetics ( also spelled æsthetics) is commonly known as the study of sensory or sensori-emotional values sometimes called In popular usage "marketing" is the promotion of products especially Advertising and Branding However in professional usage the term has a wider meaning of The iMac and other Macintosh computers can also be seen in various movies, commercials, and TV shows (both live action and animated). Macintosh, commonly nicknamed Mac is a Brand name which covers several lines of Personal computers designed developed and marketed by Apple Inc A computer is a Machine that manipulates data according to a list of instructions. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic ^[1] The iMac has also received considerable critical acclaim, including praise from technology columnist Walt Mossberg as the “Gold Standard of desktop computing";^[2] Forbes Magazine described the original candy-colored line of iMac computers as being an “industry-altering success”. Walter S Mossberg (born March 27 1947) is an American Journalist who is the principal technology columnist for the Wall Street Journal Forbes is an American Publishing and media company Its flagship publication Forbes magazine is published bi-weekly ^[3] The original 24" Core 2 Duo iMac received CNET's “Must-have desktop” in their 2006 Top 10 Holiday Gift Picks. The Core 2 brand refers to a range of Intel 's consumer 64-bit dual-core and 2x2 MCM quad-core CPUs with the X86-64 instruction set CNET Networks Inc is a media company based in San Francisco California, United States, and is part of CBS Interactive, owned ^[4]

iMac models

• iMac G3
• iMac G4
• iMac G5
• iMac (Intel-based)

Design

The announcement of the iMac initially caused considerable buzz among commentators, Mac fans, and detractors in the press and on websites. The iMac G3 was the first model of the IMac line of personal computers made by Apple Inc The iMac G4 was a Computer that was produced by Apple from the beginning of 2002 to mid 2004. The iMac G5 was a desktop Macintosh computer designed and built by Apple Inc The IMac is a midrange to high-end desktop computer offered by Apple Inc Opinions were polarized over Apple’s drastic changes to the Macintosh hardware. ^[5] At the time, Apple was revamping its retail strategy to improve the Mac purchasing experience. Apple famously declared that "the back of our computer looks better than the front of anyone else’s". ^[6] The distinctive aesthetics were easily spotted in public. The iMac was recognizable on television, in films and in print. This increased Apple’s brand awareness, and embedded the iMac into popular culture. Popular culture (or pop culture) is the Culture — patterns of human activity and the symbolic structures that give such activities significance and importance — When released, the iMac was one of the best selling computers in the U. S. and Japan for months, and Apple was unable to meet demand.

Apple declared the 'i' in iMac to stand for "Internet". The Internet is a global system of interconnected Computer networks ^[7]Attention was given to the out-of-box experience: the user needed to go through only two steps to set up and connect to the Internet. "There's no step 3!" was the catch-phrase in a popular iMac commercial narrated by actor Jeff Goldblum. Jeffrey Lynn Goldblum (born October 22, 1952) is an Academy Award -nominated American actor ^[8] Another commercial, dubbed ”Simplicity Shootout”, pitted seven-year-old Johann Thomas and his border collie Brodie, with an iMac, against Adam Taggart, a Stanford University MBA student, with an HP Pavilion 8250, in a race to set up their computers. The Border Collie is a breed of Herding dog that originated in the Border country of England and Scotland Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University or simply Stanford, is a private Research university located in The Master of Business Administration ( MBA) is a Master's degree in Business administration, which attracts people from a wide range of academic disciplines Johann and Brodie finished in 8 minutes and 15 seconds,^[9] whereas Adam was still working on it by the end of the commercial. Apple later adopted the ‘i’ prefix across its consumer hardware and software lines, such as the iPod, iBook, iPhone and various pieces of software such as the iLife suite and iWork. Internet-related prefixes include e-, i-, cyber-, info-, techno-, iPod is a popular brand of Portable media players designed and marketed by Apple Inc The iBook is a line of Laptop computer that was developed and sold by Apple Computer Inc The iPhone is an internet-connected Multimedia Smartphone designed and marketed by Apple Inc iLife is a suite of Multimedia Software applications created by Apple Inc iWork is a suite of applications created by Apple Inc, containing Pages, a Word processing and Desktop publishing application Keynote

Apple’s use of translucent candy-colored plastics inspired similar designs in other consumer devices. For example, grilling machines, portable electronics, pencil sharpeners, video game consoles and peripherals (including the Nintendo 64, which was released in special edition ‘Funtastic’ colors) featured the translucent plastic. The George Foreman Lean Mean Fat-Reducing Grilling Machine, commonly known as the George Foreman Grill, is an indoor electrically-heated grill manufactured by The, often abbreviated as N64, is Nintendo 's third home Video game console for the international market Apple’s introduction of the iPod, iBook G3 (Dual USB), and iMac G4, all featuring snowy white plastic, inspired similar designs in consumer electronic products. The color rollout also featured two distinctive ads: ‘Life Savers’ color scheme was based upon the Rolling Stones song "She's a Rainbow" and the white advert had Cream’s "White Room", specifically its introduction, as its backing track. " She's a Rainbow " is a song by the English Rock 'n roll band The Rolling Stones and was featured on their 1967 album Their Satanic Cream were a 1960s British rock band " White Room " written by Jack Bruce and Pete Brown, is a single by Cream from their 1968 Album Wheels

USB

The original iMac was the first Macintosh computer to include a USB port. The iMac G3 was the first model of the IMac line of personal computers made by Apple Inc In fact, USB was the only peripheral interface built into the original iMac; Apple dropped previous ports such as the Apple Desktop Bus and SCSI in favor of the newer interface. Apple Desktop Bus (or ADB) is an obsolete bit-serial Computer bus connecting low-speed devices to computers Although USB was invented by Intel and was also available on PCs at the time, the iMac’s popularity and sole dependence on USB helped popularize the interface among third party peripheral makers, as evidenced by the many early USB peripherals that were made of translucent colored plastic to match the color schemes of the original iMac. ^{[10] [11]}

Via the USB port, hardware makers could make products compatible with both PCs and Macs. Previously, Macintosh users had to seek out certain hardware, such as keyboards and mice, specifically tailored for the "old world" Mac's unique interfaces. Only a limited number of models from certain manufacturers were made with these interfaces, and often came at a premium price. USB, being cross-platform, has allowed Macintosh users to purchase a large selection of inexpensive devices, such as hubs, scanners, storage devices, USB flash drives, and mice. A USB hub is a device that allows many USB devices to be connected to a single USB port on the host computer or another hub Historical precedent Scanners can be considered the successors of early telephotography input devices consisting of a rotating drum with a single Photodetector at A data storage device is a device for recording (storing information (data

After the iMac, Apple continued to remove older peripheral interfaces and floppy drives from the rest of its product line.

Design legacy

Although closely imitated by competitors, the iMac clearly shone as a winner in the personal computer market. eMachines marketed the eOne computer as an iMac look-a-like. The eOne was an all-in-one desktop computer produced by EMachines in 1999 that bore a clear resemblance to the design of Apple 's iMac. The successful iMac allowed Apple to continue targeting the Power Macintosh line at the high-end of the market. This foreshadowed a similar strategy in the notebook market when the iBook was released in 1999. Since then, the company has continued this strategy of differentiating the consumer versus professional product lines. Apple's focus on design has allowed each of its subsequent products to create a distinctive identity. Apple derided the beige colors then pervading the PC industry. The company would later drift from the multicolored designs of the late 1990s and early 2000s. The latter part of the first decade of the 21st century saw Apple using anodized aluminum and white, black, and clear polycarbonate plastics. Anodizing, or anodising, is an electrolytic Passivation process used to increase the thickness of the natural Oxide layer on the surface of metal WikipediaNaming Today many PCs are more design-conscious than before the iMac's introduction, with multi-shaded design schemes being common, and some desktops and laptops available in colorful, decorative patterns.

Timeline of iMac models

See also: Timeline of Macintosh models

Criticism

Since first unveiled at Macworld by Jobs himself the iMac has been a very successful machine, suffering very little criticism. Wikipedia talkFeatured lists for an explanation of this and other inclusion tags below -->This timeline of Macintosh models lists all major types of Some reviews, such as the oft-quoted Walt Mossberg review, mentioned the iMac shipped with less RAM than industry standard and had no slots for camera memory cards as the only drawbacks. ^[12] There is only one current major criticism for the August 7, 2007 batch of iMacs, and it only pertains to the 20 inch model. Apple is currently being sued for having allegedly deceived the public by promising millions of colors from the LCD screens of all Mac models. The 20 inch models, however, currently only display 260 thousand colors; dithering was used in an attempt to hide the issue. Dither is an intentionally applied form of Noise, used to randomize Quantization error, thereby preventing large-scale patterns such as contouring that are more objectionable ^[13] This issue was originally noticed on Apple's line of MacBook and MacBook Pro notebooks. ^[14] This issue arose due to the use of 6-bit per pixel Twisted nematic LCD screens, instead of more modern technologies. The twisted nematic effect ( TN-effect) in Liquid crystals is claimed to be first discovered by James Fergason in 1970 at the International Liquid Xtal There also has been some criticism of the 20" Aluminum iMacs for having lesser viewing angles than the 24" Aluminums. This is due to lower quality displays being used in the 20" models than in the 24"s. Apple hasn't commented on the issue.

While not a criticism of the iMac per se, the iMac's integrated design has some inherent tradeoffs that have garnered criticism. In The Mythical Midrange Mac Minitower, Dan Frakes of Macworld suggests that with the iMac occupying the midrange of Apple's product line, Apple has nothing to offer consumers who want some ability to expand or upgrade their computers, but don't need (or can't afford) the Mac Pro. The Mac Pro is a Workstation computer manufactured by Apple Inc ^[15] For example, the iMac's integration of monitor and CPU, while convenient, commits the owner to upgrading both at the same time. Similarly, the iMac's graphics chip is soldered to the motherboard, precluding an upgrade, and models after the iMac G5 made it virtually impossible for the end-user to swap out the hard disk or optical drive. While conceding the possibility of a minitower cannibalizing sales from the Mac Pro, Frakes argues there is enough frustration with the iMac's limitations to make such a proposition worthwhile.

Perhaps one of the biggest criticisms however is with all white (including G5s and Intels) iMacs with serial numbers starting in "W8. " Many users with these units had permanent vertical lines of color appear on their screens after approx. 13+ months of use. These units tend to have more lines appear over time and the only known remedy is to have the screen replaced. Apple hasn't responded to the issue yet, however there is an online petition of users with this problem as well as a website dedicated to it (http://imaclines.blogspot.com/), both made by users experiencing this problem.

See also

• Apple Inc.
• Macintosh

References

External links

• Apple - iMac
• Apple - Support - Specifications
• Apple - Support - How to identify your iMac
• Apple Developer Connection - Comprehensive technical details (Latest developer notes)