iMac G3
The Computer that Saved Apple
The Computer that Saved Apple
When Steve Jobs returned to the company in the late 1990's, what he found was a company in trouble. Apple hadn't had a hit in years and was months away from bankruptcy. He knew he had to do something to save the company.
He and Jony Ive along with the rest of the then-new Apple team set out to create a computer that you didn't feel the need to hide behind a curtain. And they did. In May of 1998, Apple and Jobs announced the new iMac, which was based on the G3 processor.
He and Jony Ive along with the rest of the then-new Apple team set out to create a computer that you didn't feel the need to hide behind a curtain. And they did. In May of 1998, Apple and Jobs announced the new iMac, which was based on the G3 processor.
It was put on sale to the public in August of 1998. It was the hit Apple was waiting for.
The iMac one of the first machines to have USB standard, and the first to use it for its keyboard and mouse. The original iMac featured a 233MHz G3 chip which was found in its older brother, the Power Mac G3 All In One. It featured 2 USB 1.1 ports, 2 Headphone jacks (3.5mm), a "Mezzanine" slot, and a pair of built-in stereo speakers.
The Mezzanine slot was only on the Bondi Blue iMacs, which according to Apple was "off limits to developers". Did that stop them? No. Some introduced a video card upgrade that would go in the Mezzanine slot for better game performance.
The iMac one of the first machines to have USB standard, and the first to use it for its keyboard and mouse. The original iMac featured a 233MHz G3 chip which was found in its older brother, the Power Mac G3 All In One. It featured 2 USB 1.1 ports, 2 Headphone jacks (3.5mm), a "Mezzanine" slot, and a pair of built-in stereo speakers.
The Mezzanine slot was only on the Bondi Blue iMacs, which according to Apple was "off limits to developers". Did that stop them? No. Some introduced a video card upgrade that would go in the Mezzanine slot for better game performance.
In early 1999, Apple discontinued the Bondi Blue iMac in favor of a faster, more colorful iMac dubbed Revision C and D. The shell retained its translucent shell, but now came in 5 colors, known as Blueberry (light blue), Grape (purple), Strawberry (red), Tangerine (orange) and Lime (green). The baseline model came with a 266MHz processor and a 333MHz option was also available.
Late 1999 brought another iMac upgrade and color change. The tray-loading optical drive was replaced in favor of a slot loading one. The model identifier also changed for the first time, from iMac,1 to PowerMac2,1. Graphite was added to the choice of colors and the shell went from having an anti-glare property to it to being glossy. The baseline model came only in Blueberry, and had a 350MHz processor with no FireWire. The iMac DV (digital video) brought FireWIre (2) for the first time to the iMac, had the option for an AirPort Card, plus had VGA video mirroring, and a 400MHz processor. The iMac DV could be had in any of the Revision C colors. There was also an SE (special edition) of the iMac DV, which included 128MB of RAM (2x the amount in the DV) and a 13GB Hard Drive. This revision iMac was the first to be convection cooled, meaning it lacked a fan and the only addible noise was the hard drive.
For the first iMac refresh in the new millennium, Apple kept the baseline model on with no AirPort slot, but changed the color to Indigo, upgraded the graphics chip from the ATi Rage 128 VR to the 128 Pro and dropped the price to $799. The color matched keyboard and hockey puck mouse was replaced by the Apple Pro Keyboard and mouse, which was the first optical Apple mouse, eliminating the ball. Colors were changed to Indigo, Ruby, Sage, Snow and Graphite. Other upgrades included faster processors (up to 500MHz), more RAM and bigger hard drives. The iMac DV dropped in price and the iMac DV+ took its place. The DV SE remained, but had a 500MHz processor and came in two colors, Graphite and Snow.
The Early 2001 iMacs introduced the IBM 750CX (G3) processor and now came up to a 600MHz model. The iMac DV and DV+ were renamed iMac, and now had a 400 or 500MHz G3, the iMac DV SE was now just iMac SE and had a 600MHz G3. Two new patterns were added to the SE, named Blue Dalmatian and Flower Power.
The final revision of the iMac G3 came out in July of 2001 and sported a 500MHz (750CX), 600MHz or 700MHz G3 (750CXe). It was the only iMac to ship with Mac OS X preloaded, version 10.0.4. It came in Indigo, Graphite or Snow. The 700MHz model was discontinued in January of 2002 in favor of the iMac G4 in the consumer line. For education, Apple kept selling the iMac G3 at a lower price, keeping only the 500 and 600MHz models. The were later discontinued when the eMac, based on the PowerPC G4, came out in March of 2003.
For the first iMac refresh in the new millennium, Apple kept the baseline model on with no AirPort slot, but changed the color to Indigo, upgraded the graphics chip from the ATi Rage 128 VR to the 128 Pro and dropped the price to $799. The color matched keyboard and hockey puck mouse was replaced by the Apple Pro Keyboard and mouse, which was the first optical Apple mouse, eliminating the ball. Colors were changed to Indigo, Ruby, Sage, Snow and Graphite. Other upgrades included faster processors (up to 500MHz), more RAM and bigger hard drives. The iMac DV dropped in price and the iMac DV+ took its place. The DV SE remained, but had a 500MHz processor and came in two colors, Graphite and Snow.
The Early 2001 iMacs introduced the IBM 750CX (G3) processor and now came up to a 600MHz model. The iMac DV and DV+ were renamed iMac, and now had a 400 or 500MHz G3, the iMac DV SE was now just iMac SE and had a 600MHz G3. Two new patterns were added to the SE, named Blue Dalmatian and Flower Power.
The final revision of the iMac G3 came out in July of 2001 and sported a 500MHz (750CX), 600MHz or 700MHz G3 (750CXe). It was the only iMac to ship with Mac OS X preloaded, version 10.0.4. It came in Indigo, Graphite or Snow. The 700MHz model was discontinued in January of 2002 in favor of the iMac G4 in the consumer line. For education, Apple kept selling the iMac G3 at a lower price, keeping only the 500 and 600MHz models. The were later discontinued when the eMac, based on the PowerPC G4, came out in March of 2003.
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