New eMacs

[Ensoniq]

I think a lot of people (especially those who have never used one) underestimate the eMac. The last revision to 1 GHz put the eMac on the same playing field as the over-priced iMac. This new revision seriously kicks the iMac in the butt. The eMac is NOT just for "schools, kids, and Internet".

Most people who want a Dual PowerMac G5 don't NEED one. They just want it because it's the best. And there is nothing wrong with that. But that doesn't mean that because the G5 PowerMac exists that the eMac sucks. This new eMac will perform on par with the last Dual-PowerMac G4 revision Apple ever produced. (For applications that didn't take advantage of the second processor, which means most except high-end video/graphic work.) That was "Pro" a year ago. The eMac is just it's little brother.

Admittedly iMac still has the "style" factor over the eMac, and I personally would love to replace my aging iMac DV 400 with a 17 or 20" FP iMac. But how can you justify the iMac price differential?

eMac Combo $799
iMac Combo $1299 ($500 More)

eMac SuperDrive $999
iMac Super/17" $1799 ($800 More)
iMac Super/20" $2199 ($1200 More)

When the eMac was only 1 GHz yesterday, paying $500 to $1200 more was not very smart unless you had money to burn. Today with the eMac at 1.25 GHz, you're a sucker if you even consider the iMac before you see what the next revision will be.

 

[nagromme]

Great deal

That eMac is like a pro/gamer machine from not too long ago. Plenty for most users and a great buy. I wouldn't have bet Apple would update the low-end FIRST, but this is a lot of OS X machine for $799. Great screen, and surprisingly good speakers built-in. And my old eMac gets praise on sight from jealous biege users

($749 education, or SuperDrive/80HD for $899.)

 

[XForge]

New eMacs, not to be confused with GNU-EMACS. = )

 

[Zaty]

The more I think about this the clearer it gets. The G4 has nowhere to go really. If they move the iMac to 1.5GHz and the PB's get the same processor Apple will have broken their upgrade structure (with PB's a generation behind desktops and equal to their entry-level offering).

I don't know about speeds but I think that the iMac's going 1.5 GHz (soon) and the WWDC will reveal G5 PB's (running what exact processor I don't know) and Desktop upgrades. Even more likely will be G5 iMacs as I don't think Apple want to commit to a 'new' 1.5 G4 (they've had a long time to bump the G4's to 1.42 and haven't - the difference is minor).

As for drives - I don't see why they'd hold back from the fastes +/- drives available.

Unless we see new PMs powered by 970FX running at at least 2.5 GHz next week, which I highly doubt, I don't think the G5 PB will be ready anytime soon. It would be so nice to see a G5 PB at WWDC but it's not going to happen. I have said it before and stick to it: PB G5 at MWSF in Jan 05 along with iMac G5. It's much easier to put a new CPU into a tower than into a laptop or an iMac.

 

[kgarner]

Yes, with new video cards now reaching to 256MB on the Windows side, 32 is rather lame. It would be great to be able to get a BTO for at least a 64MB card.

Yeah, but in the budget systems they are nowhere near that. In fact, many of them are still using on-board video with shared memory. I work at CompUSA and the only systems we have with good video cards sell for over $1,000 and that's with no monitor.

 

[Diatribe]

<---- anxiously awaiting next tuesday

 

[tex210]

What was missed....

The real reason for the update!!!

What everyone seems to be missing from this article is IBM is having problems above 2.0. please remember the Xserve fiasco and the fact that it was advertised for a moment at 2.3 then changed to 2.0 Sounds like IBM may have problems on the 90nm process but i would guess the controler. were they not going to integrate that into the chip instead of on the motherboard like 970s? anyways since Apple uses the HORRIBLE tier structure for its line up. If Powermac isnt going faster then they cant release a Imac G5 and if they cant release a Imac G5 then they cant update Emac. I wonder how many Apple executives along with Steve Job can fit into a VW bug? cause they are looking like a bunch clowns to me.

from a seperate thread...... just to show complaining goes in circles.

 

[sw1tcher]

Yes, I wouldn't get all those looks of jealousy in class if I had an eMac.

You'll certainly get looks though. Strange looks.

 

[g30ffr3y]

i guess i was wrong...

although im not particularly interested in an emac... its great to see the apple digital music company still makes computers... hooray for the apple computer company!!! now where are the dual 3gig powermac g5s and 30" monitors??? i suspect sooner than the powerbooks youre all waiting for... *crosses fingers*

my excitement that apple actually released a computer apparently rubbed off on my girlfriend... so far today she has applied for an apple loan which was approved for way more than enough for an emac... checked out the apple store online and pseduo-purchased a superdrive emac with 512ram the tilt stand applecare a dot mac subscription and an HP printer...

ive called my local apple store twice so far to see if the emacs are in... the first time it seemed like the guy didnt even know they were out... i called a little later and they told me they should be in today but not definately... im supposed to call back in a few hours to see...

if they are in... we are going to get her one after work... hooray... otherwise... ill keep on the apple store til they get them in... this is so cool for her [and for me vicariously]... i just ordered her an ipod mini last night for her birthday which wont ship for 3-5 weeks... puke... but now she wont have to use it on her dell laptop... which will be up for sale on ebay as soon as the emac is obtained...

this is awesome... ive switched yet another!!!!

good job apple...

 

[Zaty]

What 74XX?

On a side note: Does anyone know what CPU the new eMacs utilise? I would bet it' s the 7447 b/c of the 512 KB L2 cache. Or is it possible they already have the new 7447A?

 

[QCassidy352]

does anyone what the speed of the emac hard drive is? I don't see it on either the emac page at apple, or at the apple store.

This is a great update. I would now happily recommend an emac to someone in the market for a new computer. It's what I'd buy if I needed something new!

As for those upset that the emac is close in specs to the powerbook - grow up. I have a 12" 1 Ghz powerbook, and I don't care a bit. I want all of apple's products to be the best they can be. Soon ibooks will eclipse my machine too - so what? Does your computer have the specs that you paid for? Does it do what you need it to do? No one screwed you over. The existence of a nice new emac does not somehow cripple your powerbook.

 

[LaMerVipere]

I had a feeling something was coming today, after I tried to check the order status on my iPod mini (which btw is probably going to die on me within a month, according to all of these iPod mini defect reports) and it said the Apple store service or something was down.

 

[alexhammerhb]

No Optical Drive?

Why is it that education custimers don't need an optical drive? What will it look like in front?! WHY?! I ask you, WHY!?

 

[The Red Wolf]

eMac vs. PowerBook

All and all I believe that the eMac will not only be good for Apple sales but for users who can now afford a quality machine that is a Mac. For everyone who is upset about the eMac (for the moment) having similar features to the PowerBook line, there are a few things to note:

Missing from the eMac:

1) Extended desktop not supported.
2) No FireWire 800 port.
3) No PC card (or PCI card) expansion.
4) No LCD monitor.
5) No DVI port.
6) No GIGE.
7) Not portable nor 1" thick.
8) Will not keep running on battery after a power failure.
9) Less VRAM.

So, if you still think the eMac blows your PowerBooks out of the water... Just remember the benefits that are going for your machines. The eMac is cute, but I doubt it would evoke the sheer sex appeal of the PowerBook at any size. Apple will update the rest of their lines, don't worry. And trust me, when the G5 PowerBook hits the shelves, I will be first in line.

 

[yoda13]

Yeah, thats just the thing, the cheapest, lowest line should not be first!!!!!!!!!! And as someone who bought a powerbook a week ago, i DO take personal offense, because its insulting that the update is imminent, but held off so their profit margins are greater. Emacs can only go up, and thats why their being updated. PB's, on the other hand, are doing well, cause people want apple and portable, and dont care about the price/details. So Steve screws people like me and anyone who has recently put their PB's in 6th overall, and highest among comps.

So you shut it, i am right.

I undertand your sentiment. I bought my TiBook the week before the 15 aluminum books came out. The only thing I can say is that I bought because I needed it, knowing that they would be revised any day, and had been rumored to be revised any day for months. If you needed the computer, then you had little choice, if you just wanted it, the current revision of powerbooks have been rumored to be updated imminent future for quite a while now, and I'll be you knew that. So while I understand your frustration at having an "outdated" computer, I am not sure where all the personal venom comes from. Desktop computers will always be more powerful than portables, at least until Apple gets a G5 into their Powerbooks, and even then, the powermac will stilll blow it out of the water.

 

[ipirate]

As for those upset that the emac is close in specs to the powerbook - grow up. I have a 12" 1 Ghz powerbook, and I don't care a bit. I want all of apple's products to be the best they can be. Soon ibooks will eclipse my machine too - so what? Does your computer have the specs that you paid for? Does it do what you need it to do? No one screwed you over. The existence of a nice new emac does not somehow cripple your powerbook.

Couldn't have said it better myself. I agree totally.

 

[m4c]

ibook updates soon...c'mon 12" 1Ghz superdrives @ $999

 

[ChrisDeBear]

As a UK resident, I can see the emac shifting some at Pc world with a price tag of £549. This is seriously good value, in the same market as the £499 el cheapo pc's, and with much better software and solid hardware. Plus ipod is becoming a big name in the uk and there is only 150 between this and the most expensive ipod
This of course means something big is about to happen to the imac, which we all knew anyway

 

[wrldwzrd89]

Why is it that education custimers don't need an optical drive? What will it look like in front?! WHY?! I ask you, WHY!?

I guess some schools that use NetBoot don't want their students fiddling with or breaking an optical drive tray, so they get their eMacs without one. The only reason to go without an optical drive would be if your school installs and configures Mac OS X through the network to Mac OS X Server, in which case having Mac OS X install CDs/DVDs wouldn't be necessary, either - saving money for the school.

 

[johnnyjibbs]

As a UK resident, I can see the emac shifting some at Pc world with a price tag of £549. This is seriously good value, in the same market as the £499 el cheapo pc's, and with much better software and solid hardware. Plus ipod is becoming a big name in the uk and there is only 150 between this and the most expensive ipod
This of course means something big is about to happen to the imac, which we all knew anyway

I agree with you. The eMac is suddenly competing strongly with cheap PCs. My parents got a cheap Dell for that price a few months ago. Macs are now about comparable on price. Just think what you get with an eMac too - GarageBand, iMovie, iPhoto, iTunes, Appleworks, all your internet options. You don't need to buy anything else!

It also bodes well with new Apple products for next week. Could we be seeing PowerBook and PowerMac price reductions to reflect the exchange rate from $US? The US to UK pricing on new eMacs is a lot fairer for us 'outer' regions!

 

[ZildjianKX]

Wow, I just realized, you can get a 1.25 GHz eMac with a superdrive, AND a 14" 1 GHz iBook all for $100 LESS than a 15" 1.25 GHz PB with a superdrive...

That really makes you think. Kinda makes the portability argument bunk.

 

[goof_ball]

well, there's no way I'm reading almost 300 comments.....but I thought I should add mine!! hehe

I think this is a good thing for Apple's education market. They are a good value for what you get. The CRT is also a good thing for schools since they are more durable.

 

[allpar]

emac advantage...

...over the PowerBook: considerably faster hard drive. Just the way it is...power isn't an issue.

This is good news.

 

[dipsomaniac]

Hard drive speed

I can't find any reference to the speed of the hard drives in the eMacs. Are they 7200?

 

[stoid]

Wow, I just realized, you can get a 1.25 GHz eMac with a superdrive, AND a 14" 1 GHz iBook all for $100 LESS than a 15" 1.25 GHz PB with a superdrive...

That really makes you think. Kinda makes the portability argument bunk.

Unless you need more than iBook power on the go, or a 64MB video card.

Or FireWire 800

Or GigaBit Ethernet

Or built-in Bluetooth and Airport Extreme

Or 15 inches of screen estate for watching DVDs on the go

Or DVD burning on the road.

edit: Or 2GB of RAM, or 80GB (5400 RPM) Hard Drive on the road, or a back-lit keyboard, or the handy PCM-CIA expansion slot