Apple released a
firmware update on Dec. 21, in response to complaints that the displays on
some of its 27-inch iMac desktops were flickering.
The update applies to graphics firmware on ATI Radeon HD 4670
and 4850 graphics cards.
Apple introduced the 27-inch iMacs on Oct. 20, offering a
model with either a 3.33GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor or a 2.8GH Intel Core i7
quad-core processor. The
quad-core models were particularly slow to ship, and on Dec. 13 an Apple
spokesperson told a CNET reporter that,
“The new iMac has been a huge hit and we are working hard to fulfill
orders as quickly as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience or delay this
may cause our customers.”
Beyond the slow shipments, complaints
began to arise from Apple customers who said the new iMacs were arriving with
cracked screens, with screens tinged with yellow or with screens that flickered.
Support forums on the Apple Website stretched for dozens of pages, with customers
detailing their desktops’ ails.
Apple offered no comment or apology on its site, but
explained the firmware update will “address issues that may cause image
corruption or the display to flicker.”
The Oct. 20 introduction of the new iMacs — which
came with news of updates to the Mac Mini and MacBook Pro, as well as the introduction
of the Magic Mouse, the first mouse with multitouch technology
— came a day after Apple announced quarterly profits of $1.67
billion.
On Oct. 20, Brian Marshall, an analyst with Broadpoint
AmTech wrote in a research note, “In our view, Apple is the best
technology company on the planet …. It is our view that [Apple] has the
ability to potentially double its computing market
share on a global basis from [approximately] 4 percent today to 8
percent over the next five years.”
Desktops and Notebooks News & Reviews 
