1GHz eMacs?

[MacRumors]

ThinkSecret reports (http://www.thinksecret.com/news/aprilemacs.html) that eMac updates are coming soon...

Highly reliable sources said that Apple's consumer eMac lineup will be expanded to three models. In an effort to fill the gap left by the departure of the classic iMac G3, the first will be a bare-bones 800MHz G4 unit that will ship with only a CD-ROM drive. The other two models will ship with a Combo drive and SuperDrive, like today's units, but will now both clock at 1GHz, and include larger hard drives.


Full specs are provided in the article of the upcoming machines, and the exact timing of the release is not specified.

The eMac was introduced in April 2002, and saw price drops in February, 2003. This would be the first major revision of the eMac.

ThinkSecret has also reported on upcoming iBook (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/04/20030407004845.shtml) and iPod (http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/04/20030410085125.shtml) revisions -- also due soon.

[artificiallife]

Revisions are always nice :D

[kansaigaijin]

will it boot OS9?

[VegetaPunk]

They probably will boot into OS 9 Im sure when they stop they will do it will a big anouncment Like the 970 :rolleyes: *wishes that he could use 970 right now*

[iSmell]

If the prices stay the same, this would only make the CRT iMac prices (they're still available to edu) that much more ridiculous.

[arn]

Originally posted by VegetaPunk
They probably will boot into OS 9 Im sure when they stop they will do it will a big anouncment

There's already been an announcement. Jobs said that After Jan 1, 2003... all new macs (and faster revisions of current macs) will not boot os 9.

arn

[kansaigaijin]

and the thinksecret story also says they will not, except educational customers, implying they still want to use 9.

[scem0]

I assume these will be priced the same as the current eMacs?

[Nermal]

Originally posted by scem0
I assume these will be priced the same as the current eMacs?

"At this time, we're unable to confirm the pricing for the new lineup. However, given the pricing for the two current eMac models -- $999 and $1,299 -- it's possible that the two new top-end models could keep those prices, with the new 800MHz unit shipping below that."

[t^3]

How can all the new eMacs have Airport Extreme, but the low end iMac still has regular 'ol Airport?

[Nermal]

Originally posted by t^3
How can all the new eMacs have Airport Extreme, but the low end iMac still has regular 'ol Airport?

The same way that the 12" PB has Extreme, and the 15" still has regular :)

[iwantanewmac]

Why do they still want to ship a mac with only a cd-rom?
Are there any other company's that ship computers with cd-rom only?

[kansaigaijin]

extreme question? cause it takes a new motherboard to get it. the new ones will go extreme.

cd-rom? cause its cheap. maybe you don't want users burning discs either for some reason really save money, leave out entirely and netboot.

[Datazoid]

This is really gonna make iMacs seem like rip-offs, you know. Between the low end tower ($1499) and these eMacs ($999?-$1299?), what is the point of the iMac? The low end iMac, from the sounds of it, will have performance WORSE than a computer $200 less than it, and lets see, a 1Ghz iMac for $1799 vs a 1Ghz eMac for $999 ($299 for superdrive). Moreover, how is AP Extreme going to be on the low-end eMac but not the low-end iMac? Yeah, LCDs are cool, but, its pretty hard to swallow that much cost difference ($5-700) just for a 17" LCD screen (or the 15" for that matter). iMacs are positioned at a mid-range (for Apple) price level, and I believe the PERFORMANCE should match, not just the monitor.

I need coffee...

[physicsnerd]

Originally posted by iwantanewmac
Why do they still want to ship a mac with only a cd-rom?
Are there any other company's that ship computers with cd-rom only?

Yes, actually there are a lot of cheap PCs that have a good old cd-rom. The dell Dimension 2350 come with a 48X CD ROM Drive for $499. The Compaq Presario S3000V, S3000Z, and S3000NX also come with cd drives. The Compaq's start at $369. There's not much power in any of these systems. But for just browsing around online, and simple word processing they're fine.

physicsnerd

[AhmedFaisal]

That's what I would want. I don't want a friggin screen but I don't want a behemoth like the PowerMac either. I want the midrange Pizza Box Macs back. Something like this:

http://www.hushtechnologies.net/

If Apple doesn't finally come up with something like that I guess i have to switch to this VIA Epia Machine and run RedHat on it..... darn it......
Cheers,

Ahmed

[F/reW/re]

CD-rom and 128MB RAM, yeah baby! øhh?
Is this a joke?

[DHagan4755]

It is curious that Apple -- according to Think Secret -- would release refreshed iBooks sans Airport Extreme, yet release a newer version of the eMac with Airport Extreme. :confused:

[firestarter]

Originally posted by DHagan4755
It is curious that Apple -- according to Think Secret -- would release refreshed iBooks sans Airport Extreme, yet release a newer version of the eMac with Airport Extreme. :confused:

Hopefully they'll all go extreme.

In a mixed environment (lots of computers on the same wireless network) the network switches down to the speed of the slowest. So if Apple wants to push extreme for education, they really need to be releasing all products with extreme.

I think the eMac on extreme is a good sign for iBooks...

[punter]

Originally posted by Macrumors
This would be the first major revision of the eMac.

When they added the superdrive wasn't that classified as a revision? I guess not a major revision, but it certainly made me think about getting one.

[backspinner]

Originally posted by punter
...but it certainly made me think about getting one. I'm getting one. Actually, my sister bought one (700MHz) and a week later prices dropped. My father is getting one (800MHz) and now this rumor surfaces... I guess I just have to buy and lock myself out of macrumors ;)

[DakotaGuy]

1Ghz G4 w/Combo drive...$999

Now if that happens, I would buy it!!!!

[seamuskrat]

I can say for the educational lines, havingf JUST a cd rom is essential. With a burner, youhave a highe rrisk of p3p sharing, software theft and other activities. I know the way my university works is that all students have a network account with space to save files. The lab computers are for worek only no saved files, no disks, etc. Keeps all the machines safe, virus feee and standardized. So for that purpose it makes sense.

For consumers, it makes sense because they may have an older Mac with an exteternal burner. I know my G4 tower 500 is DVD rom with fast extenal burner. Makes the most sense since I just copy a CD rather than image first , so I would not want a burner inside. Plus the CD is a faster CD speed than a combo drivw, so rip of cds goes better.

So its not dead, just another option for schools, budget minded folks, or those with external burners looking for an upgraded mac.

[Blaq]

Originally posted by AhmedFaisal
That's what I would want. I don't want a friggin screen but I don't want a behemoth like the PowerMac either. I want the midrange Pizza Box Macs back. Something like this:

http://www.hushtechnologies.net/

If Apple doesn't finally come up with something like that I guess i have to switch to this VIA Epia Machine and run RedHat on it..... darn it......
Cheers,

Ahmed

AMEN! I've been waiting for ages for a reasonably priced box. I don't want to spend nearly $1000 on an 17" imac LCD screen that I have to get rid of when I want to upgrade my computer.

This CDN$ is killing me... these Powermacs are just way out of my range, and .mac costs more than six months of low-speed broadband!

[Latino]

Originally posted by AhmedFaisal
That's what I would want. I don't want a friggin screen but I don't want a behemoth like the PowerMac either. I want the midrange Pizza Box Macs back. Something like this:

http://www.hushtechnologies.net/

If Apple doesn't finally come up with something like that I guess i have to switch to this VIA Epia Machine and run RedHat on it..... darn it......
Cheers,

Ahmed

The other day I was thinking about this pizzabox idea, and I came up with something.

Apple currently doesn't have a low end desktop without monitor. I mean, a LOW end. Something cheap and cheerful. Something for someone who has a PC and wants to move to a Mac, but has no need for a new monitor. Or something for that person who is considering moving to Mac but doesn't want to spend lots of dosh on something he/she doesn't know and is not familiar with.

How about this? A pizzabox mac with a G3... ok, I know half of you are going to criticise the idea because of the G3. But think about it this way.

It would be a basic machine for email, chat, browsing, the ocassional photo editing with IPhoto, or whatever. Simmilar market as the iBook but on a desktop.

Give it one of those G3s at 800Mhz and/or 1Ghz, bump the bus to 133Mhz, give it a CD-ROM with optional CDRW, one AGP, one PCI, optional modem, network , firewire, usb, and a radeon 7500 for example.

This would create a very cheap mac which also would be very capable for basic users. The G3 would limit this machine to non-pro people. For those, there's the G4 powermac.

What do you guys think? Think a G3 on this machine would be a good move? or should it use low speed G4s?

I know I would buy one in the blink of an eye for the right price. I also know my brother would buy one too. And at the end of the day, the more Mac users the better, right?

Also, here is a question for you lot. Why do you think Apple hasn't made this pizzabox idea a reality yet? what reason(s) do you think they have?

[NavyIntel007]

Originally posted by Blaq
AMEN! I've been waiting for ages for a reasonably priced box. I don't want to spend nearly $1000 on an 17" imac LCD screen that I have to get rid of when I want to upgrade my computer.

This CDN$ is killing me... these Powermacs are just way out of my range, and .mac costs more than six months of low-speed broadband!

Hey it's not as bad as it was last year. I was there in March and there wasn't anything that I could really beat the exchange rate on.

[MrMacMan]

Bad move apple,

I really think this is a bad move, now your gonna take over your own iMac pos. with a cheaper mac.

Bad move IMO. They shouldn't be equal.

[kzoonut]

So which is going to be updated first?

15" Al pBook?
iPod?
iBook?
eMac?

or a brand new product like the 8 inch tablet?

..jeez..it seems like forever since Apple has updated anything. I keep anxiously waiting "Update" Tuesday..and nothing for months now...Maybe the dam will finally break and we'll get a whole slew of them like we did in January...

[backspinner]

G4 in eMac, G5 in iMac

if update to eMac soon, then update to 970 also soon! :p

[Blaq]

Originally posted by NavyIntel007
Hey it's not as bad as it was last year. I was there in March and there wasn't anything that I could really beat the exchange rate on.

Which makes me wonder why Apple prevents retailers from selling Apple products online in Canada?

Does anyone know why?

[Mr. MacPhisto]

With an eMac update, I might also expect an iMac update as well because, as others have stated, a 1 GHZ eMac would make the iMac look like a ripoff. Maybe a coninuation of the 15" iMac with a boost to 1 GHZ, Airport Extreme, DDR RAM, etc and a boost of the 17" iMac to 1.25 GHZ. Also, possibly a price drop on the 15" of $100 to make it more appealing.

An eMac at 800 costing $799 wouldn't be a bad deal.

[mymemory]

For me the eMac is such uglie computer, it is "mentally challenge" look is something that I can't stand.

[kansaigaijin]

I think the eMac looks just fine, very clean design, and looks very good on its stand.

what makes you think it looks mentally challenged? Does it look like it is wearing a hockey helmet? What's up with the negativity anyway? When it came out as an educational only product everyone was begging for it to be made available to any buyer.

Same design cues and colours as the iBook.
you don't like that either?

[AllenPSU]

I really wish apple would move away from a CD-ROM in the bottom line eMacs and iBooks. Without another form of export media it would really help if they upgaded that to a CDRW. You can keep the COMBO drive for the next level up but but a burner in the lowest level computer.

[yzedf]

Originally posted by kansaigaijin
and the thinksecret story also says they will not, except educational customers, implying they still want to use 9.
Implying that most schools can't afford to upgrade hundreds of computers to a new OS and all new software at the same time. Classic mode is not really a choice. I am assuming that Apple will soon have a educational upgrade path in place to get everyone to OS X without costing so much money (cost is in the apps, not the OS)...

[StealthRider]

not to mention training people to use OS X. Most people have yet to learn how to use OS 9 here....lol

[davy the bunny]

Originally posted by mymemory
For me the eMac is such uglie computer, it is "mentally challenge" look is something that I can't stand.

I don't think that there's anything wrong with the way the eMac looks. In fact I love the one that graces my desk, it's design may be an acquired taste to some but I can't see anyone making a nicer all-in-one CRT (let's disregard the G3 iMac, I personally think the eMac looks better).

[cubist]

Yes, the eMac needs the stand, it's $50 extra. With the stand, it's a pretty nice machine.

Yes, it will cannibalize the LCD iMac sales. The fact that Apple is not concerned about this is strong evidence that there is an ace in the hole. Maybe the 970s will come out with single-processor iMacs and dual-processor PowerMacs. :eek:

As for the G3 pizza box, the reason it doesn't happen is that Apple doesn't sell a lot of machines and therefore needs a lot of margin. When you're selling a bare-bones machine, the margin padding becomes way too obvious. Like it or not, the eMac is the low end of the line. You guys can go get a used G3 Tower or Blue & White and upgrade it for the money you're talking about.

I bought a Cube, not because it was cheap, but because it was small, powerful and attractive. Apple may be missing some sales because it's monitor-less computers are all big as blimps (and the curvy cases make them even more blimp-like). Hopefully they have new cases in the works.

edit: Backspinner beat me to it on the iMac thought.

[noel4r]

i have an eMac, it's my first mac. since i bought it, i stopped using my pc except for downloading at kazaa. the price of the eMac made me switched over to apple. does anybody know how much the upgraded eMacs will cost?

[Apple][Forever]

i hope the logic board is swappable to the older eMacs... 1GHz here I come!

[Latino]

Originally posted by cubist

You guys can go get a used G3 Tower or Blue & White and upgrade it for the money you're talking about.


Trust me, I have thought this out. I have considered taking down that route. However, there is a big problem with Blue & White G3. No AGP which means No Quartz Extreme, which in turn means dog slow performance.

As it is, I'm trying to convince myself that I need a laptop and buy a new iBook, when the new ones come out. My friends are simply not going to move to Mac because they simply don't want to gamble the money.

But you may be right in that Apple's markup would probably show too much on such a basic machine like this. I guess that would be a good reason why there's no iBox and there won't be one for a while! (unfortunatelly)

[Apple][Forever]

flatMac

[jimjiminyjim]

Originally posted by cubist
Yes, it will cannibalize the LCD iMac sales. The fact that Apple is not concerned about this is strong evidence that there is an ace in the hole. Maybe the 970s will come out with single-processor iMacs and dual-processor PowerMacs. :eek:

I just hope that the ace is a tablet. A tablet, imo is a good move to more uses, in general, for computing.

[SoonToGetAMac]

Originally posted by Apple][Forever
flatMac MiniMac? Another ad with Verne Troyer?;) :D :D

[Brandon Sharitt]

Originally posted by jimjiminyjim
I just hope that the ace is a tablet. A tablet, imo is a good move to more uses, in general, for computing.

While a tablet wouldbe good, it's not going to stop the eMac from cannibalizing iMac sales.

[maxterpiece]

The eMac is ugly. It looks like the old iMac going through puberty. It's too tall to be cute, but too plasticy and post-modernish to be serious. Not only did the iMac need to be completely rethought (as Jobs' keynote speech explained upon its intro.) when it was switched to LCD, but the eMac needed to be rethought as well, instead of just stretching out the old iMac design.
max

[DakotaGuy]

I don't think the eMac is ugly. How else would you design an all-in-one 17" flat CRT Computer? You could make small changes to the appearence, but it is still going to look like a big CRT monitor. The eMac has it's place and like I said before I would jump all over a 1Ghz Combo Drive model for $999!

If you look at an iBook, iMac, and eMac, they all share a family resemblence, and one look at any of them, you know it's an Apple! I think a couple improvements to the eMac would help looks. First off, would be a slot-load drive, like the iMac G3's had. Second, would be a nifty handle on the top (well built for the weight) Possibly a few color choices might be nice as well. The tilt and swivel stand should be standard as well.

[voicegy]

It's interesting to see whenever the subject of the eMac comes up the number of people who either strongly object to its looks or strongly embrace it.

I have to admit I'm of the camp that hopes a revision in its looks is part of the upcoming line up. It "feels" real nice...it has a great finish and is almost slippery, which actually acts against it when you try to move these monsters. It was obviously built with abuse in mind, and that easy-off finish allows one to wipe off crayon marks, pencil lines and other such rubbish that children have an oh-so-fun time with from their arsenal of defacement tools.

Despite that, it looks, well, just goofy to me. Maybe we can jazz it up with some color, but I think Steve is way past the Bondi days. I would like to see an enhancement here and there (I HATE the power switch placement...it's impossible to find by feel, I miss it every time).

In any case, it has been a while since we were first told to look out for the death of the almighty, perky little G3 iMac, and I'll miss the little sucker. It's G4 all the way now, which makes more sense to the entire lineup. And yes, us Education folk are still going to be able to boot into OS 9, but Steve is so anxious for us poor folk to get on the OSX train and deal with the future, that this new eMac line up just MIGHT be the end of that option for Education...we've heard it was coming soon, they may allow it through the end of the year...but I've heard June to be the cut off too often to not discount it.

Hey, classic is still there and will be for a while longer...so no big whoop. It's a GOOD thing to have an all-in-one under $1,000.00 G4 machine with a big CRT screen and a CD-ROM. Just the ticket for schools, and lots of others as well.

[Apple][Forever]

I had this discussion with my g/f when I decided to buy an eMac... i love the way it looks, and she hates it... she calls it the milkcrate (which is now my machine's Rendezvous name).

But then again, I would rather have my iBook that her TiBook (well, if it had a G4). I like the painted-inside white plastic Apple's been using. I think it looks a LOT nicer than the blue of my old tower.

[Apple][Forever]

AGH! server error causes double post, film at 11

[The Shadow]

I must admit I don't think the eMac looks ugly.

But clearly Apple are struggling to work out this whole clean minimalist design idea, clearly influenced by Steve. What is best of class on the iBook, doesn't work on well on the bigger eMac.

Which makes me wonder if this is why the PMac case has not been fully updated for so long. You probably couldn't have an all metal look like the PBooks, would probably look ugly on such a big beast.

So I'm expecting a much smaller revision of the PM case when the 970 hits, and therefore fingers crossed something really radical can be done.

Can't wait.

[Sun Baked]

Originally posted by arn
There's already been an announcement. Jobs said that After Jan 1, 2003... all new macs (and faster revisions of current macs) will not boot os 9.

arn Right now it is using the same chipset as the old SDR PowerMacs (UniNorth/KeyLargo), if it is a major upgrade to DDR it'll probably switch over to the Intrepid DDR chipset like the PowerBook did.

So it it is a switch to the new Intrepid chipset, it won't boot OS 9 -- just like the DDR iMac and the DDR PowerBooks don't.

If they do this switch it should be easier for Apple to keep the features in line with the iMac, and upgrade it quicker.

Of course there is always the possibility of just a speedbump for another upgrade cycle (like the iBook).

[GregA]

Originally posted by voicegy
It's G4 all the way now, which makes more sense to the entire lineup. And yes, us Education folk are still going to be able to boot into OS 9, but Steve is so anxious for us poor folk to get on the OSX train and deal with the future, that this new eMac line up just MIGHT be the end of that option for Education...we've heard it was coming soon, they may allow it through the end of the year...but I've heard June to be the cut off too often to not discount it. If Apple would just release remote terminal access to MacOS X, the old MacOS 8/9 stuff could run as thin clients.
... Hell.. if they did that though they could release thin client hardware, wireless/diskless/ibook clients, even Windows box software as clients... but the money is not in selling large quantities of low margin stuff right?

[yzedf]

Originally posted by firestarter
Hopefully they'll all go extreme.

In a mixed environment (lots of computers on the same wireless network) the network switches down to the speed of the slowest. So if Apple wants to push extreme for education, they really need to be releasing all products with extreme.

I think the eMac on extreme is a good sign for iBooks...
That is the fault of Apple, not the spec. The spec states that everything is supposed to co-exist all happy like, without speed throttling down due to a mixed environment.

I believe that Linksys / D Link etc are also having the same problems.