Cheaper iMac For Educational Institutions Skimps On Specs, Offers $200 Discount
Apple has released their new iMac for educational institutions the first of their iMac desktop devices to be sold for under$1000 ($999).
The desktop is only available to educational facilities (you have to prove it before you can buy the units) and while they are slightly cheaper than other Apple iMac models, the technology offered is also downgraded.
For example, the education-only iMac features a 3.1GHz dual-core Intel Core i3 processor, while the standard $1199 iMac offers a 2.5GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5 processor.
Apple also pushed down the amount of memory on the educational device from 4GB (two 2GB) 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM on the standard device to 2GB (one 2GB) of 1333MHz DDR3 SDRAM. Educational facilities will also see hard drive space cut in half from 500GB to 250GB.
Graphic memory was also cut in half with the education-only device offering the same AMD Radeon HD 6750M but with only 256MB (instead of 512MB)
The educational version of the iMac is also missing bluetooth support and the company’s new Thunderbolt port, although at this time very few devices actually support Thunderbolt which makes that option a less important selling point.
While the iMac for educational facilities may not be on par with even the company’s standard retail units, a savings of $200 per unit could mean huge savings for educational facilities that require hundreds of desktops for their schools and other facilities.
Would you be willing to purchase the iMac educational version if it were made available to the general buying public or do you require more from your Apple devices?
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Aug 9, 2011
I'm glad I bought apples shares at 80 dollars a share! I'm mad I sold at 97$ dollars a share
((.
Aug 9, 2011
I require better grammar and punctuation in a report. A lot of awkward sentences in dire need of commas.
Aug 10, 2011
Yep!
Aug 10, 2011
If the promotion of the Mac to schools and other educational institutions is a downgraded version the students seeing it and comparing it to reasonable i5 cores on PC's it might be a bad move. If they upgraded for educational institutions and kept the same price it would be a smarter move!
Aug 10, 2011
I remember when it was 90 bucks a share and that was only a few years ago.
Aug 10, 2011
No it's a terrible concept. Teachers who use mac, I being one of them, would be annoyed by the limitations of them, especially since I work a lot on my mac to prepare for classes to begin with. Dumb Idea. Here's a great idea. Provide schools with the best equipment possible at the lowest cost. Educate students with macs and when they leave schools they will take their knowledge and understanding of your product to their workplace. If this is done enough, eventually there will be a mass exodus from windows to mac.
Aug 10, 2011
its not the first to be under $1000. Before Apple switched over to intel there was a cheap computer they produced called the eMac. It had a G4 processor and last time I remember seeing it on Apple's website back around 2005ish it went for $699. The "e" in eMac stood for education.
Aug 10, 2011
Yeah Sam, agreed, that's why it says first of the iMac desktop devices to be offered for that price
Mac Mini's are also respectively cheaper, although my University had the Mac Mini's and they were AWFUL!!!! LOL
Aug 10, 2011
Oh yeah I guess that I didnt really read it carefully hahah. Although a question that I thought of is this the new eMac in way?
Aug 10, 2011
Yeah Sam, I think in certain ways it is, I think it was a way for them to charge more than they do for a Mac Mini as well, while providing the "convenience" of an included monitor, although Mac based schools with Mini's already have monitors. It's not a bad system for basic use, it's just not what I would consider an "iMac" based off spec quality standards. Good catch though the eMac was just a monumental failure in terms of public attraction I almost forgot about it!
Aug 10, 2011
tax payers will pay the rest. thank you america, same as 10.00 internet access for the poor. if you can not afford it, don't buy it.
Aug 10, 2011
John, there will be nothing for tax payers to pay (outside of the original cost). Apple specifically pushed down specs to make them cheaper. But regardless, tax payers are paying for the devices regardless of the cost. The institutions that have the most to gain are private schools who pay out of pocket for their technology.
Aug 11, 2011
Money is the motivating force behind everything in our culture and although that is music too many peoples ears, the facts show that individual needs suffer when money is so important and the economic collapse is no accident. Ironically I find Apple's money grubbing to be more offensive then Microsoft. Apple's computers are decorations in my house, I am offended by their fascist censorship of Trent Reznor's Downward Spiral and find their money grubbing to be much more destructive then even Bill Gates. I hope Windows allows education to go forward and schools start buying their products while companies like Apple that sacrifice quality for educatiion are tossed in the trash.