17 Inch iMac Hits Test Production Run

Even though the rumored 17 inch iMac, which goes by the code-name "P7A," is not expected to go Golden Master until the last week of January, sources within Cupertino claim that a limit production run of P7A prototypes recently rolled off the assembly line at LG Electronics' Mexcali, Mexico facility — the same facility responsible for a majority of Apple's current iMac production.

These prototype units will be used for demonstration at January's Macworld expo, sources said. All units will also be running what will hopefully be a Golden Master version of Minuet, otherwise known as Mac OS 9.0.1.

The preproduction P7A units are said to pack a 500MHz G3 processor with a 512K backside cache, supported by a 100MHz system bus. A slot-loading 4x DVD-ROM drive and 128MB of RAM are also standard on these units, though it is unconfirmed whether retail units will sport a full 128MB of RAM or only 64MB. (Traditionally, Apple packs their demonstration units with more than the base RAM configuration in order to boost their performance.)

The P7A logic-board also contains two FireWire Ports, two independent 12Mbps USB ports, RGB out, a 56K Modem, 10/100BaseT Ethernet, an AirPort card slot, and Analog audio input and output minijacks. According to sources who've been lucky enough to see one of the first units off the assembly-line, the P7A enclosure looks like a larger iMac DV Special Edition, but nothing more.

It's assumed that this new 17 inch unit will begin to plug holes in Apple's business PC offerings. For years consumers have been demanding the ease-of-use, power, and price of an iMac with a display big enough to run full screen business and office applications. At 17 inches diagonal, with 16 inches viewable, P7A may be just what Apple needs to expand beyond their current core markets. The new units will also be ideal for education terminals.

As mentioned above, and stated earlier, P7A is still in its late development-cycle. According to engineers on the project, the new units are not expected to go Golden Master until the 26 of January or later. Units are not expected to be made available until February and will not ship in quantity until early March.

However, sources say that Steve Jobs will use this January's Macworld Expo to announce the product and gather pre-orders. P7A will also require a custom build of Minuet, whose status you can read more on in another report published today.

Any additional updates on P7A will follow as information becomes available.