iMac
Apple's primary desktop computer. The iMac is an "all-in-one" that houses the computer and drives within the flat panel monitor case. Since their debut in 1998, the iMacs have been very popular. Like all Macintosh models in that time frame, the first iMacs used PowerPC chips. In 2006, iMacs began using Intel chips (see Mactel).
What, No Floppy?
The first iMac caused a stir because it was the first desktop computer to eliminate the floppy disk. It debuted as a low-priced Internet-ready machine (the "i") with a CRT display, 32MB RAM, 4GB hard disk, CD-ROM drive and dial-up modem. Only the memory could be upgraded. See Macintosh models, iBook and eMac.
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| Apple's All-In-One |
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| All the components in an iMac are housed in the same case with the LCD screen. The optical drive slot is on the right side near the top. This third-generation iMac was introduced in 2003 with eight times the memory and 20 times the hard disk space of the first iMac. (Image courtesy of Apple Inc.) |
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| The First iMac |
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| Available in several case designs so users could personalize their computing, the first iMacs reflected back to the first Mac in 1984, which was also self contained. Flat panel LCDs were too costly for the first iMacs; however, by 2001, when the second-generation iMac debuted with an LCD screen, more than five million CRT-based units had been sold. |