Apple Introduces Magic Trackpad And New iMacs

Apple is refreshing its iMac and Mac Pro and introducing a new Magic Trackpad and LED Cinema Display as part of its periodic hardware update. The devices appeared on the company’s Website on 27 July.

The refreshed Mac Pro includes an option for two Intel Xeon “Westmere” six-core processors, for a 12-core system that runs at 2.93GHz, along with an integrated memory controller for quick access to data stored in memory. With Hyper-Threading, that becomes 24 virtual cores. Chances are, you would have no trouble playing “StarCraft II” on a system like that.

Apple is also introducing a 27-inch LED Cinema Display, with 2560 by 1440 resolution, which can be connected to other devices via three USB ports. It includes a built-in iSight camera and microphone.

New Performance Benchmarks

The new iMacs feature either a 21.5-inch or 27-inch screen and a choice of processors ranging from an Intel Core i3 for one of the two 21.5-inch versions to a quad-core Intel Core i7 for the 27-inch. Apple also offers the Intel Core i5, paired with either the 21.5-inch or 27-inch iMac; the company claims that the processor architecture has resulted in “new performance benchmarks” for the iMac. The 21.5-inch screen boasts 1920 by 1080 resolution, while the 27-inch has 2560 by 1440 resolution.

The Magic Trackpad—that adjective is Apple’s favorite, particularly when it comes to the “magical” iPad as described in nearly every press release—is a larger, freestanding version of the multitouch trackpad already integrated into the company’s laptops. Surfaced with wear-resistant glass, and wirelessly connected to a desktop or laptop, it allows users to scroll with two fingers, swipe with three fingers or rotate by “twisting” the thumb and forefinger clockwise. It retails for $69 (£44). Apple is also introducing a battery charger, which it claimed in a note on its corporate Website has “the lowest standby power usage value—or ‘vampire draw’—of any similar charger on the market.”

Each charger comes with six AA batteries: two spares, two for a wireless keyboard and two for a mouse or trackpad. Apple also claimed the batteries have a service life of up to a decade.

3.47 million Macs sold

Apple recently announced that it sold 3.47 million Macs in the third fiscal quarter, on its way to earning total revenues of $15.7 billion and a net quarterly profit of $3.25 billion. Much of the focus of analysts, though, seemed to be on Apple’s mobile products, including the iPad, of which the company sold 3.27 million units during the same period.