Apple Computer Inc. has updated its KnowledgeBase online database of technical questions to acknowledge a problem associated with what it describes as “a small number” of its eMac computers that will prevent their operation.
The problem is described as “a popping sound” followed by a visible flash inside the iMac’s case followed by a flash on the video screen. The result is no operation from the eMac. This happens immediately after the power button is pressed.
Without defining what exactly has gone wrong with these machines, Apple simply noted that the problem must be remedied by bringing an eMac afflicted with this condition to an Apple authorized service provider for repair.
The eMac is Apple’s all-in-one configuration originally developed for schools and later offered to consumers. It combines a 17-inch CRT in a case equipped with stereo speakers. Inside the box is a PowerPC G4 chip and Nvidia Corp. GeForce2 MX graphics, at retail prices starting at US$1,099. Apple recently began offering the unit with an optional SuperDrive to provide DVD-R burning capabilities.
The all-white eMac is an updated take on the original iMac, built around a 17-inch monitor as compared to the 15-inch cathode-ray tube monitor tube that is at the heart of the first iMac. However, because it uses a flat-screen CRT, the eMac takes up roughly the same amount of space as the original iMac.
– With files from Victoria Berry
