Since Apple discontinued the eMac a few months ago, their lineup has been conspicuously missing a budget-level K-12-classroom-oriented desktop model. Now MacRumors reports on a new education-store-only low-end version of the iMac.
This is a 17″ iMac with a few differences from the standard config:
| Feature | Standard 17″ iMac | Education 17″ iMac |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,299 (standard store) $1,199 (education store) |
$899 |
| RAM | 512MB memory (single SO-DIMM) | 512MB memory (2x256MB SO-DIMMs) |
| Hard Drive | 160GB | 80GB |
| Optical Drive | 8x double-layer SuperDrive (DVD±RW, CD-RW) | 24x Combo drive (DVD-ROM, CD-RW) |
| Video Card | ATI Radeon X1600 graphics with 128MB GDDR3 memory | integrated Intel GMA 950 graphics with 64MB of shared memory |
| Bluetooth | Included | Not included |
| Apple Remote | Included | Not included |
All other features are identical. Obviously it’s lower-spec, but it’s $300 cheaper — seems reasonable to me.
Personally, I wouldn’t be satisfied with the lower-spec model, but I’m not the target. It’s more than capable of everything a K-12 classroom needs, and would continue to be for a few years at least. And for a school, $300 per unit can add up fast!
This is a good move on Apple’s part.
