EMac
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- The title of this article is incorrect because of technical limitations. The correct title is eMac.
- This article is about the Apple Macintosh computer model. For the text editor, see Emacs.
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The eMac is an economy desktop computer made by Apple Computer. It is a white all-in-one Macintosh with a shape and design closely resembling that of Apple's original iMac, but it sports a PowerPC G4 processor significantly faster than the old iMac's G3, as well as a larger display.
Apple introduced the eMac in April 2002 as a low-cost alternative to the new LCD iMac, exclusively for education buyers – in fact the name "eMac" stands for "education Mac" – but demand for it was so great that it was made available to the general public one month later.
The eMac featured a 17-inch flat CRT monitor, a G4 processor running at 700 or 800 MHz, NVIDIA GeForce2 MX graphics, and built-in 18-watt stereo speakers. The public models were priced at $1,099 and $1,499, filling the price gap between the $799 old iMac and the $1499 new LCD iMac.
Apple discontinued the old iMac line in March 2003 but did not fill the "cheap" price point until May, when the eMac line was updated and its price brought down to old-iMac levels. That revision brought the processor speed to 800MHz and 1GHz and replaced the GeForce2 with an ATI Technologies Radeon 7500 graphics system.
The eMac was further improved in October 2003, when the 800 MHz model was eliminated and the 1GHz model brought down to its price. A more expensive 1 GHz model that included Apple's SuperDrive was also made cheaper. This model was notable for being one of the least expensive brand-name computers at the time that could burn DVDs.
The next revision to the eMac line came in April 2004, with DDR SDRAM, a faster CPU, and a better graphics system. The most recent revision came in May 2005, with a faster CPU, improved graphics and larger standard hard drives.
To Apple's detriment, a large portion of eMacs have suffered from what was known as "Raster Shift", a strange phenomenon where the bottom third or half of the screen goes black, with the rest of image shifting upward and out of the top boundary of the display. Serious static also accompanies the problem, rendering the viewable part of the screen virtually useless. In response to the problem, Apple offered a solution which involved the replacement of a video cable inside the eMac's case.
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Current revision (introduced 3 May 2005)
- 1.42 GHz G4 processor
- 167 MHz system bus
- 256 MB or 512 MB DDR SDRAM (can be upgraded to a maximum of 1 GB DDR SDRAM)
- ATI Radeon 9600 graphics (64 MB dedicated DDR SDRAM)
- 17-inch flat CRT display
- Built-in 18-watt stereo speakers
- Combo drive (CD burner that can read DVDs) or SuperDrive (CD and double-layer DVD burner)
- 80 or 160 GB hard disk drive
- AirPort Extreme Ready
- Mac OS X version 10.4 Tiger
Second revision (introduced 13 April 2004)
- 1.25 GHz G4 processor
- 167 MHz system bus
- 256 MB DDR SDRAM (can be upgraded to a maximum of 1 GB DDR SDRAM)
- ATI Radeon 9200 graphics
- 17-inch flat CRT display
- Built-in 16-watt stereo speakers
- Combo drive (CD burner that can read DVDs) or SuperDrive (CD and DVD burner)
- 40 or 80 GB hard disk drive
- AirPort Extreme Ready
- The hard drive on the Combo Drive model can be upgraded to 80 GB, and the hard drive on the SuperDrive model can be upgraded to 160 GB.
First revision (introduced 6 May 2003)
- 800 MHz or 1 GHz G4 processor
- 133 MHz system bus
- 128 or 256 MB PC133 SDRAM (can be upgraded to a maximum of 1 GB SDRAM)
- ATI Radeon 7500 AGP 4x
- 17-inch flat CRT display
- Built-in 18-watt stereo speakers
- Combo drive (CD burner that can read DVDs) or SuperDrive (CD and DVD burner)
- 40, 60, or 80 GB hard disk drive
- AirPort Extreme Ready
Original version (introduced 29 April 2002)
- Released to consumer market 4 June 2002
- 700 or 800 MHz G4 processor
- 100 MHz system bus
- 128 or 256 MB PC100 SDRAM (can be upgraded to a maximum of 1 GB SDRAM)
- NVIDIA GeForce2 MX 3D AGP 2X graphics
- 17-inch flat CRT display
- Built-in 18-watt stereo speakers
- CD-ROM or Combo drive (CD burner that can read DVDs), later options included SuperDrive
- 40 GB hard disk drive
- AirPort Ready
External links
- Apple's eMac page (http://www.apple.com/emac/)de:Apple eMac