If you have OS X Server, installing, updating and reinstalling over a network is a cinch. This is a solved problem.
As for the TS iMac specs: I think Nick's being more general about price than people think. He only says it'll be in the same general range, and possibly top out higher. He then gives the current price range as a reminder, but that doesn't mean it defines the upper and lower bounds. Apple's made last-minute price changes anyway, so price is very hard to predict, even if you do have an accurate source.
On the other hand, somehow it's just not that hard for me to see Apple introducing yet another iMac at $1299, and hoping they can push the price down over time. That guarantees the existence of the eMac for a good long while, since $1299 is not a good starting price for a consumer line. I really hope they hit $999, or at least $1099 out of the starting gate, but this is Apple.
Since the long-simmering tablet rumors seem to be coming to a boil, maybe Apple is going to shake up their low end in a way that makes a premium iMac sensible, or at least understandable?
I think the video card specs are wrong. Those are the current iMac GPUs. That doesn't mean that Apple won't grandfather them in, but it does allow for the possibility of confusion. Or else Apple might have shipped out test mules with the old chipsets.
I'm with amorph on this one. There's such a large price difference between the optical-drive $999 eMac and the "hey, I've got no optical drive" $1299 iMac.
Let's just wait for the official MSRPs later this month because I'm frankly not sold on these numbers just yet.
Yes AMorph, that is easy..... BUT not every institution has those resources.
Then they don't buy that model. I don't think this is the only machine Apple will offer to education, it's just an edu-only machine because it only makes sense in that context.
BTW, anyone who was buying that model would be buying lots of them, which means they'd probably be asking for the servers to run them, etc. This is the sort of machine you buy on a bid for a full set of equipment, not something you pick up on the way home from work. And the cost of an Xserve relative to a roomful of computers is pretty low anyway, so the general idea is that it's less expensive to go with a server and so many driveless clients, and more secure and easier to maintain to boot.
Quote:
I still think it would be a mistake to take that drive out.
Nah. You just have to look at how the machines are bought and used to see that it makes sense. A school that wants standalone iMacs with optical drives can always buy them. This model is specifically in response to demand for a desktop client that can be locked down and administered centrally.
Quote:
Graphics cards.... apple is still using the 5200 in Powermacs.... figure that one out.
If you're not buying a PowerMac to do the sort of work that requires a buff GPU, why would you want to pay for one? That slot's there for a reason.
I don't believe ThinkSecret. The processor speeds are actually fine and are in line with the G5 yields, but the rest doesn't make alot of sense. Why would there be an educational iMac that pricer and less capable than the current eMacs?!?!?!?
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.
I don't believe ThinkSecret. The processor speeds are actually fine and are in line with the G5 yields, but the rest doesn't make alot of sense. Why would there be an educational iMac that pricer and less capable than the current eMacs?!?!?!?
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.
The Thinksecret specs seem odd. It really is as if they mention the G5 and new enclosure then slop in the details from the outgoing line of iMacs. I think the only reliable portion may be processor/enslosure.
I don't believe ThinkSecret. The processor speeds are actually fine and are in line with the G5 yields, but the rest doesn't make alot of sense. Why would there be an educational iMac that pricer and less capable than the current eMacs?!?!?!?
Yah I have to agree with you. Doesn't make a lot of sense. Personally I can't really see institutions taking the iMac (if these specs are true) over the eMac... why just cause it has a lcd?
Quote:
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.
Comments
As for the TS iMac specs: I think Nick's being more general about price than people think. He only says it'll be in the same general range, and possibly top out higher. He then gives the current price range as a reminder, but that doesn't mean it defines the upper and lower bounds. Apple's made last-minute price changes anyway, so price is very hard to predict, even if you do have an accurate source.
On the other hand, somehow it's just not that hard for me to see Apple introducing yet another iMac at $1299, and hoping they can push the price down over time. That guarantees the existence of the eMac for a good long while, since $1299 is not a good starting price for a consumer line. I really hope they hit $999, or at least $1099 out of the starting gate, but this is Apple.
Since the long-simmering tablet rumors seem to be coming to a boil, maybe Apple is going to shake up their low end in a way that makes a premium iMac sensible, or at least understandable?
I think the video card specs are wrong. Those are the current iMac GPUs. That doesn't mean that Apple won't grandfather them in, but it does allow for the possibility of confusion. Or else Apple might have shipped out test mules with the old chipsets.
Graphics cards.... apple is still using the 5200 in Powermacs.... figure that one out.
Let's just wait for the official MSRPs later this month because I'm frankly not sold on these numbers just yet.
Originally posted by emig647
Yes AMorph, that is easy..... BUT not every institution has those resources.
Then they don't buy that model. I don't think this is the only machine Apple will offer to education, it's just an edu-only machine because it only makes sense in that context.
BTW, anyone who was buying that model would be buying lots of them, which means they'd probably be asking for the servers to run them, etc. This is the sort of machine you buy on a bid for a full set of equipment, not something you pick up on the way home from work. And the cost of an Xserve relative to a roomful of computers is pretty low anyway, so the general idea is that it's less expensive to go with a server and so many driveless clients, and more secure and easier to maintain to boot.
I still think it would be a mistake to take that drive out.
Nah. You just have to look at how the machines are bought and used to see that it makes sense. A school that wants standalone iMacs with optical drives can always buy them. This model is specifically in response to demand for a desktop client that can be locked down and administered centrally.
Graphics cards.... apple is still using the 5200 in Powermacs.... figure that one out.
If you're not buying a PowerMac to do the sort of work that requires a buff GPU, why would you want to pay for one? That slot's there for a reason.
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.
Originally posted by MacGregor
I don't believe ThinkSecret. The processor speeds are actually fine and are in line with the G5 yields, but the rest doesn't make alot of sense. Why would there be an educational iMac that pricer and less capable than the current eMacs?!?!?!?
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.
The Thinksecret specs seem odd. It really is as if they mention the G5 and new enclosure then slop in the details from the outgoing line of iMacs. I think the only reliable portion may be processor/enslosure.
Originally posted by MacGregor
I don't believe ThinkSecret. The processor speeds are actually fine and are in line with the G5 yields, but the rest doesn't make alot of sense. Why would there be an educational iMac that pricer and less capable than the current eMacs?!?!?!?
Yah I have to agree with you. Doesn't make a lot of sense. Personally I can't really see institutions taking the iMac (if these specs are true) over the eMac... why just cause it has a lcd?
I hope the resemblence with the Sony begins and ends at the powercable.