When the new ridiculously thin iMacs were announced in October, Apple promised that the 21.5″ model would ship in November. As November has worn on without any sign of the striking new hardware, rumors began swirling that supply constraints would delay the product into next year. However, a press release this morning shows that Apple will keep its promise – though just barely. The low-end iMac will be available for purchase this Friday at all Apple Stores, some authorized retailers, and, of course, through Apple.com.
In addition to selling the smaller iMac, Apple will also begin accepting orders for the 27″ model on Friday, though the flagship desktop won’t ship until sometime in December. The big iMac will command a $500 premium over the entry level one, starting at $1799.
Though $1299 may seem steep for Apple’s entry-level all-in-one, the specs aren’t exactly what most companies define as entry-level. The base iMac packs a 2.7GHz quad-core i5 processor (with “Turbo Boost” up to 3.2GHz), a 1TB hard drive, and 8GB of RAM. Add a very capable graphics card and a full 1080p HD IPS LED display to the mix, and you’ve got a pretty serious machine for the money. We would have love to have seen Cupertino carry on the tradition of raising the specs without raising the price, but we can also see where the $100 price bump is probably justified in this case.
Below is the press release Apple put out this morning, but Peter Kafka of All Things D reminds us that supplies are likely to be very limited. He quotes Tim Cook as saying, “We will have a significant shortage,” in reference to the new iMac, during the last Apple earnings call.
CUPERTINO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Apple® today announced the all-new iMac® will be available on Friday, November 30. Featuring a stunning design, brilliant display with reduced reflection, faster processors and an innovative new storage option called Fusion Drive, the new iMac is the most advanced desktop Apple has ever made. The 21.5-inch iMac will be available through the Apple Online Store (www.apple.com), Apple’s retail stores and select Apple Authorized Resellers. The 27-inch iMac will be available for order through the Apple Online Store and will begin shipping in December.
Redesigned from the inside out, the new iMac packs high performance technology into an aluminum and glass enclosure that measures just 5 mm thin at its edge and features a reengineered display that reduces reflection by 75 percent. The new iMac includes 8GB of 1600 MHz memory, a 1TB hard drive, third generation quad-core Intel Core i5 processors that can be upgraded to Core i7, and the latest NVIDIA GeForce graphics processors that deliver up to 60 percent faster performance. Fusion Drive is an innovative new storage option that gives customers the performance of flash and the capacity of a hard drive by combining 128GB of flash with a standard hard drive to create a single storage volume that intelligently manages files to optimize read and write performance.
The 21.5-inch iMac is available with a 2.7 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.2 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 640M for a suggested retail price of $1,299 (US); and with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M for a suggested retail price of $1,499 (US). The 27-inch iMac is available with a 2.9 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660M for a suggested retail price of $1,799 (US); and with a 3.2 GHz quad-core Intel Core i5 with Turbo Boost speeds up to 3.6 GHz and NVIDIA GeForce GTX 675MX for a suggested retail price of $1,999 (US).
Apple designs Macs, the best personal computers in the world, along with OS X, iLife, iWork and professional software. Apple leads the digital music revolution with its iPods and iTunes online store. Apple has reinvented the mobile phone with its revolutionary iPhone and App Store, and is defining the future of mobile media and computing devices with iPad.
Source: All Things D
The post New Razor Thin iMac Begins Shipping Nov 30 for $1299 appeared first on Considering Apple.