Introduction to iMac

This developer note gives a technical description of the current two configurations of the iMac computer: 15” Pangea-based main IC and 17” Intrepid-based main IC. The note provides information about the computer’s internal design, input-output features, and expansion capabilities. The Introduction chapter, Supplemental Reference Documents chapter, and both appendices are commoon to both configurations of the iMac computer. However, the 15” and 17” configurations have their own Architecture chapters, Devices and Ports chapters, and RAM Expansion chapters.

This developer note is intended to help hardware and software developers design products that are compatible with the products described here. If you are not already familiar with Macintosh computers or if you would simply like additional technical information, you should refer to Supplemental Reference Documents“.

Organization of This Document

The information in this note is arranged in four chapters.

• Chapter 1, Introduction, introduces both configurations of the iMac computer, describes the features, and mentions a few software issues of interest to developers.

• Chapter 2, Architecture of the 15 iMac, describes the internal organization of the 15” Pangea-based computer. It includes a functional block diagram and descriptions of the main components on the logic board.

• Chapter 3, Architecture of the 17 iMac, describes the internal organization of the 17” Intrepid-based computer. It includes a functional block diagram and descriptions of the main components on the logic board.

• Chapter 4, Devices and Ports on the 15 iMac, describes the I/O ports and the built-in I/O devices of the 15” Pangea-based computer.

• Chapter 5, Devices and Ports on the 17 iMac, describes the I/O ports and the built-in I/O devices for the 17” Intrepid-based computer.

• Chapter 6, RAM Expansion on the 15 iMac, includes development guidelines for the RAM expansion modules for the 15” Pangea-based computer.

• Chapter 7, RAM Expansion on the 17 iMac, includes development guidelines for the RAM expansion modules for the 17” Intrepid-based computer.

• Appendix A, Supplemental Reference Documents, tells where to find more information about specific technologies used in the iMac computer.

• Appendix B, Abbreviations, lists the standard units and abbreviations used in this developer note.