Apple revamps iMac desktop, iLife, iWork

In a bid to upgrade its computer lineup and applications, Apple has rolled out a revamp of its products. This includes upgradation of its iMac desktops, iLife applications, and addition of a new spreadsheet program to its iWork productivity suite, said a report

Significantly, the new roll outs coincide with the company’s back-to-school buying season, which is an important annual sales period for Apple. Of late, computers have been gaining huge market share with sales outpacing the broader PC industry by about 3 to1. The company’s notebooks have been growing far faster than its desktops.

The new iMac is a bit thinner and is encased largely in aluminum and glass, instead of plastic, like the prior model. In the meantime, the company seems to be doing away with the 17-inch version of the iMac. For the same $1,200 price, the company will now offer a 20-inch version of its new desktop. In fact the company is offering three basic models of the iMac, which range in price up to $1,800 for a 24-inch version.

The new Apple iLife suite comes with update versions of all its applications. The iPhoto and iMovie programs received the most extensive revisions, with iMovie rewritten completely with a view to let users make high-quality movies faster. The new version of iLife will sport a tag of $79.

Besides these, Apple has added a spreadsheet application named Numbers to iWork to make it easier for users of its Pages application to do simple word processing.