Photo: Gregg Richards / CC BY 2.0 / Wikimedia Commons · source
eMac (2002)
A big flat-screen CRT all-in-one made for classrooms.
Overview
Apple built the eMac for schools, who wanted a sturdy, affordable all-in-one and had little interest in a pricey LCD. A flat 17-inch CRT (16 inches visible) at 1280 x 960 anchored a white case with a 700 MHz PowerPC G4, 128 MB of memory, a 40 GB hard disk and an optical drive.
Three USB ports, two FireWire, Ethernet, a modem and stereo speakers gave it everything an educational lab needed. It could boot into Mac OS X 10.1.4 or Mac OS 9.2.2.
Education-only at first, it proved so popular that Apple opened it to consumers in June 2002. Some early models suffered from a display fault called raster shift, which Apple fixed with a replacement cable.
Why it mattered
It kept the CRT alive for budget buyers and became a staple of schools for years.
At a glance
- Announced
- April 29, 2002
- Released
- April 29, 2002
- Launch price
- $1,099
- Chip / processor
- PowerPC G4, 700 MHz
- Display
- 17"
- Storage
- 40 GB
- Status
- Vintage
Highlights
- 17-inch flat CRT, 1280 x 960
- Education-first, later sold to consumers
- PowerPC G4 at 700 MHz
- Built-in stereo speakers
Tech specs
Specifications as published at launch. Some values (like battery life) are manufacturer estimates.
Display
- Size
- 17-inch (16-inch viewable)
- Type
- Flat CRT
- Resolution
- 1280 x 960
Chip
- Chip
- PowerPC G4, 700 MHz (800 MHz model added August 2002)
Memory
- RAM
- 128 MB PC133 SDRAM, expandable to 1 GB
- Storage options
- 40 GB hard disk; CD-ROM, combo or SuperDrive options
Graphics
- GPU
- Nvidia GeForce2 MX, 32 MB
Ports
- Ports
- 3 USB 1.1, 2 FireWire 400, Ethernet, modem, mini-VGA
Audio
- Speakers
- Built-in stereo speakers
Software
- Launch OS
- Mac OS X 10.1.4 and Mac OS 9.2.2
Availability
- Announced
- April 29, 2002
- Released
- April 29, 2002
- Launch price
- $1,099
Colors
- Finishes
- White
