[CamrySE]

How did 10 years go by that fast.

iMac turns ten

Apple first announced the original iMac ten years ago this week.

The all-in-one computer is widely credited as saving Apple from a downward spiral after years of producing generic designs, and is also associated with re-injecting fashion and simple design into computers.

Users at the time complained of the lack of a floppy drive and the switch to using USB almost exclusively for peripherals -- a sharp break from Apple's reliance on SCSI and its in-house Apple Desktop Bus standard. The move was later regarded as forward-thinking and contributing to the iMac's ease of use.

Since its official launch in mid-August 1998, the iMac has gradually moved upscale in Apple's lineup, and in its aluminum, Intel-based form is now considered a "prosumer" model that caters to both home users as well as some professionals.

Performance has certainly changed as well: the 3.06GHz Intel Core 2 Duo in today's fastest model is over thirteen times faster than the original 233MHz G3 in clock speed alone. Apple's newer models are also thinner and boast screens almost ten inches larger than the early 15-inch, CRT-based displays.

To this day, the iMac remains Apple's most popular desktop. Here's to ten more years.