The need for speed is the key issue of the day, or so Apple Computer Inc would have us believe. Apple unveiled what it refers to as the fastest personal computer available today at MacWorld, the Apple Power Macintosh 9600/350, using a 350MHz PowerPC 604e processor. Apple said the systems are nearly twice as fast as its highest performing offering of a year ago and similarly faster than the fastest Pentium IIs currently available. Apple also unveiled a new workgroup server, the 9650/350, using the same processor. It includes 1Mb Inline level 2 cache which the company says enables higher processor to cache communication, and has a 100MHz bus sandwiched between the Inline cache and the processor, designed to further boost transfer speeds. It comes with 64Mb RAM expandable to 768Mb and 24x speed CD ROM. The new systems, aimed at Apple’s familiar markets in publishing and education, also boasts a built in Iomega Corp’s Zip drive and a IXMICRO Twin Turbo graphics card. They will ship with System 7.6.1 but the company says it’ll be offering a free upgrade to Mac OS 8 when it’s finally released. The 9600 desktops range in price from $3,600 for the 250 MHz model to $5,300 for the 350MHz model and will be available later this month. The Workgroup servers range from $6800 to $7500 and are expected to ship in September.
