I was getting a little confused about the difference between the
AIO and iMac, so I thought I'd compare them side by side:
AIO iMac
$1499(?) $1299
233MHz 233MHz
512k cache 512k cache
4GB 4GB
32MB 32MB
15" mon 15" mon
2MB SGRAM 2MB SGRAM
24xCD 24xCD
Audio in/out No Audio in/out(?)
SCSI bus No SCSI
10baseT 10/100baseT
No modem 33.6k modem
ADB USB
Floppy No floppy
A couple of things occur to me: the first is how similar
these two machines are; the second is that their differences
have mostly to do with networking and connectivity. The iMac
is higher end in some ways, like 100baseT, and futuristic,
like USB. (In view of this, it is definitely wrong to include
an old modem). In other ways it is a strange Mac, with no floppy
and no support for SCSI or ADB.
Because of the many similarities, it occurs to me that the
purpose of this product is primarily one of marketing. It
looks different, it connects different. Other than that, it's
just an AIO. Jobs was saying something about watches, and how
the average American now owns 7. This probably explains the iMac
better than anything else: it's the Swatch of the computer industry.
Or, it's an NC, but isn't being marketed that way (yet).
Also, the price of $1299 may have more to do with the current
$1499 price point of the AIO than anything else. Apple may not
want to cut into AIO sales by pricing it too low. When it arrives,
however, the price may drop at the same time as the AIO, or
something like that.
rhet0ric |
