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Apple iMac and Mac Pro lines updated

This morning, Apple unveiled an upgrade of their workstation Mac Pro series. The focus of this iteration of the large and customizable machines is on the new quad-core and six-core Intel Xeon processors, according to the press release by Apple. Other improvements include upgrades to the available ATI graphics card options and the ability to install four 512GB SSD storage units. Fully configured, the new Mac Pro outperforms the previous top of the line model by 50%, says Philip Schiller, Apple’s senior VP of worldwide product marketing.

"With up to 12 cores, the new Mac Pro outperforms our previous top-of-the-line system by up to 50 percent, and with over a billion possible configurations, our customers can create exactly the system they want."

Here are some more detailed specs as provided by Apple:

The new quad-core Mac Pro, with a suggested retail price of US$2,499, includes: 

  • one 2.8 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon W3530 processor with 8MB of fully-shared L3 cache
  • 3GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 16GB
  • ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
  • two Mini DisplayPorts and one DVI (dual-link) port (adapters sold separately)
  • 1TB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
  • 18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
  • four PCI Express 2.0 slots
  • five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
  • AirPort Extreme 802.11n
  • Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
  • Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Magic Mouse


The new 8-core Mac Pro, with a suggested retail price of $3,499, includes:

  • two 2.4 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon E5620 processors with 12MB of fully-shared L3 cache per processor
  • 6GB of 1066 MHz DDR3 ECC SDRAM memory, expandable up to 32GB
  • ATI Radeon HD 5770 with 1GB of GDDR5 memory
  • two Mini DisplayPorts and one DVI (dual-link) port (adapters sold separately)
  • 1TB Serial ATA 3Gb/s hard drive running at 7200 rpm
  • 18x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD+/-R DL/DVD+/-RW/CD-RW)
  • four PCI Express 2.0 slots
  • five USB 2.0 ports and four FireWire 800 ports
  • AirPort Extreme 802.11n
  • Bluetooth 2.1+EDR
  • Apple Keyboard with numerical keypad and Magic Mouse
     

This machine is not for the light user. As always, configuring this beast to the fullest will run you well into the multiple thousands of dollars, and provides functionality and power that the average user wouldn’t be able to tap. According to MacDailyNews, “Apple's 12-core Mac Pro. For when you absolutely, positively have to render Toy Story 3 before lunch. In 3D.” The new Mac Pro will be available in August 2010.

In an upgrade more suited the base consumer market, the popular iMac line has also been updated. The processors have been upgraded to dual core Intel Core i3 and i5, and quad-core i5 and i7. There is now an option to include a 256GBSSD , and the graphics are powered by an ATI Radeon HD 5750. The display is now available in 27” widescreen, at 2560x1440 native resolution as well as LED backlighting.

Here are pricing and configuration options from Apple:

The new 21.5-inch 3.06 GHz Intel Core i3 iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,199 (US), includes:

  • 21.5-inch 1920 x 1080 LED-backlit display;
  • 3.06 GHz Intel Core i3 processor with 4MB shared L3 cache;
  • 4GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 16GB;
  • ATI Radeon HD 4670 discrete graphics with 256MB GDDR3 SDRAM;
  • 500GB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
  • slot-load 8x SuperDrive® with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
  • Mini DisplayPort for audio and video output (adapters sold separately);
  • AirPort Extreme® 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
  • iSight® video camera;
  • Gigabit Ethernet;
  • four USB 2.0 ports;
  • one SDXC SD card slot;
  • one FireWire® 800 port;
  • built-in stereo speakers and microphone; and
  • Wireless Apple Keyboard, Magic Mouse.

 

The new 27-inch 3.2 GHz Intel Core i3 iMac, for a suggested retail price of $1,699 (US), includes:

  • 27-inch 2560 x 1440 LED-backlit display;
  • 3.20 GHz Intel Core i3 processor with 4MB shared L3 cache;
  • 4GB 1333 MHz DDR3 SDRAM expandable to 16GB;
  • ATI Radeon HD 5670 discrete graphics with 512MB GDDR3;
  • 1TB Serial ATA hard drive running at 7200 rpm;
  • slot-load 8x SuperDrive with double-layer support (DVD±R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW);
  • Mini DisplayPort for audio and video input and output (adapters sold separately);
  • AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking & Bluetooth 2.1+EDR;
  • iSight video camera;
  • Gigabit Ethernet;
  • four USB 2.0 ports;
  • one FireWire 800 port;
  • one SDXC SD card slot;
  • built-in stereo speakers and microphone; and
  • Wireless Apple Keyboard, Magic Mouse.
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