Actually its $400 difference from the full priced new version. The price you arre quoting is the refurb price, which you can't use in this instance.

mgpalma, the nushield looks good, but I am not worried about finger marks, I am worried about dead pixels. I am sure those thin screens can protect against that. And trust me, I have heard kids kit the CRTs hard enough that there would be many dead pixels after a while!

I meant to say above that the nushield CAN'T protect for dead pixels, not can. sorry

if it's that much of a big deal what's wrong with Mac Minis with CRTs.

My wife teaches at an elementary school, and they have a computer lab with G5 imacs. After about a year now, they have had no problems with kids touching the screens. None at all.

It would be a big change for my school, we virtually have NO CRTs, we are all old CRT iMacs and eMacs, so it would be an extra cost. Also, extra set up time, etc. the eMac was a perfect education computer, and Apple should have kept it. I am not saying they should have never made the education iMac, I think for middle schools, high schools and colleges, this is a great computer, but for Elementary schools, there is a gap, at least all of the schools I have either worked at or visited who have eMacs/CRT iMacs in them. The eMac was wonderful to set up, everything in one box (like the new Apple commercial) and could handle being abused by little kids. OK, off my soap box now!

does she teach in the lab herself or is she a grade level teacher? If she is a grade level teacher, what level. Most kids who are 2nd grade and older will not touch the screen, some still do up to 4th grade. If she is not the lab teacher, ask her to ask the lab teacher or the lower level classes (k-2) teachers if they notice it. Also, most grade level teachers don't notice it happening as they do not watch for it. I on the other hand, who teaches in the lab, see it constantly with the lower grades.

She teaches 1st grade, and the iMac lab services the entire school (k-4). Sure they have finger prints here and there, but no more so than the average computer screen in the average work place (I checked them out myself).

She also has a G5 iMac in her classroom. No problems at all.

Why have a separate model (with different components and enclosure) when you can make a low(er)-end version of the 17-inch iMac? Once the price of these Core Duo chips goes down another notch, Apple will probably cut $100 off the price, and maybe Apple would release it as a consumer model for $899 at that same time.

My only concern would be, because of the lighter weight of the iMac versus eMac, that they might get knocked over or pushed off the table. But I'm sure some enterprising company will design a solution for that too.

WyvernSpirit and macbarry,

$1199 USD is the education price for the consumer iMac 17. The price differential between iMac Edu and iMac Consumer is $300 for education buyers.

we have a dozen iMacG5 iSights. After this school year we found that we rarely use the remotes (you can drive FrontRow with the keyboard at these distances) ditto the bluetooth. as for screen poking - it's a non-issue. one or two dvd burners per lab usually suffice, and would here. they should sell a lot of these.

I think this is an initial price, that drops when you start purchasing large numbers, in education purchasing fashion... When you do contracts, the price probably drops even more. It really makes sense to have a nice low end edu lcd computer, which doesn't use LEAD in the GLASS TUBE. My sister has an iMac (G5), and it weighs about 25-30 lbs. Another big plus, is that it's more energy efficient. My 17 inch ADC displays are about the same size, and weight, and use similar tubes as the eMac, and i can tell you, i'd take an iMac anyday. Much smaller footprint too.

This is a great option for college students who don't want a Mac Mini but cannot afford the current iMac. Make it available to consumers and Apple has a success.

Has anyone advocating tube (due to finger-poking) stopped to think what tube does to the children's vision? For all that are not aware, tubes flicker, just like neon lights. While your brain does not notice this, your eye does and it gets plenty tired after staring at one for a while. LCD has no flicker (kind of like the standard incadescent bulb). Anyone with experience with both screens (especially switching from one to the other) can attest to the cummulative discomfort caused by tube monitors. LCDs are significantly healthier in this regard. When my daughter reached the age of personal computing (that is, age 2), I got rid of my old RasterOps 21" tube and got a BenQ 19" LCD. She has at least 80 more years to go. I want her eyes to be able to go at least for another 60 without help.

We allow all our students to touch the screens. They know to use only their fingers. Yes the screens have fingerprints, but no scratches. We use a different class each week to help clean. As the lab assistant I see at the beginning of each year students who at home can touch nothing more than the keyboard or mouse. I see the students (K-6th) become more comfortable with computers after they find out they can touch the information to learn or share with other students. It also helps with scale and planning when drawing. After all students are allowed to touch almost everything else they learn with, books, handouts, and manipulatives.