Apple to drop sub-$500 Mac bomb at Expo

[Chris]

With iPod-savvy Windows users clearly in its sights, Apple is expected to announce a bare bones, G4-based iMac without a display at Macworld Expo on January 11 that will retail for $499, highly reliable sources have confirmed to Think Secret.

The new Mac, code-named Q88, will be part of the iMac family and is expected to sport a PowerPC G4 processor at a speed around 1.25GHz. The new Mac is said to be incredibly small and will be housed in a flat enclosure with a height similar to the 1.73 inches of Apple's Xserve. Its size benefits will include the ability to stand the Mac on its side or put it below a display or monitor.

Along with lowering costs by forgoing a display (Apple's entry-level eMac sells for $799 with a built-in 17-inch CRT display), the so-called "headless" iMac will allow Apple's target audience -- Windows users looking for a cheap, second PC -- to keep their current peripherals or decide on their own what to pair with the system, be it a high-priced LCD display or an inexpensive display. Sources expect the device to feature both DVI and VGA connectivity, although whether this will be provided through dual ports or through a single DVI port with a VGA adapter remains to be seen.

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That's £260 :o

[andsome]

I'll stick with my Windows PC.

[-pops-]

The thing I dislike about the whole Apple MAC ethos is the exclusivity. By that I mean the lack of ability to legitimately enter the case to make alterations/improvements, the lack of components to make these alterations, the lack of quite an amount of software which is easily available for Windows, the lack of speed, the lack of capacity (both in disc space and memory), the lack of - - - - .

Windows, Linux and the other PC operating systems are far from perfect but the MAC system has an awful long way to go before it even gets near the versatility of the IBM concept of the Personal Computer.

Two of the artists in my son's company use MAC machines and, even though I've had a go with them, I'm sorry but I can't get on with them at all. A case of style over substance in my view.

Now I know that these machines have a lot of fans - they must have in order to still be in production. What I've written above is just my opinion and no amount of persuasion will make me alter that. So, yes, write in response but no, don't try and make me change my mind :)

[andsome]

That's what I meant

[scuzzman]

This concept really doesn't seem to make a whole lot of sense to me either... I'll stick to my x86 Slackware box thank you.