By Leo Stiles
As if all the excitement over the iPad and iPhone 4 wasn’t enough, Apple has decided to launch a new range of iMacs plus a couple of little surprises.
The refreshed iMac line features the powerful I-Core processor from Intel that will deliver a serious performance boost to the all-in-one computer.
Buyers of a new iMac are being offered the choice between an i3, i5 or i7 processor and prices range from €1,229 for the 21.5-inch screen model with an i3 processor to €2209 for the 27-inch screen model with an i7 processor.
Along with the new iMac range, which had been expected by industry analysts for some time, was the surprise introduction of two new accessories: the Magic Trackpad and a battery charger.
The Magic Trackpad is a desktop version of the trackpad that features in the MacBook Pro and brings multi-touch features such as gestures and inertial scrolling to the iMac. The trackpad is made of aluminium and glass and also functions as one big button that will eliminate any need for a mouse. Just like the latest Apple keyboards the trackpad connects to the iMac via Bluetooth and runs on two AA batteries.
The Magic Trackpad costs €69.
The Battery charger is a little more straightforward and is a unit that will charge two AA rechargeable batteries. In a clever little addition, Apple has designed the charger to almost cut of the power supply to the batteries when they become fully charged, eliminating much of the power wastage that comes from chargers being left on too long.
The battery charger costs €29 and comes with six batteries that Apple claim will last 10 years.
