Apple: Intel chip is set free

Stock jumps 7% as Apple CEO unveils new Intel-based computers.

January 10, 2006: 2:34 PM EST


SAN FRANCISCO (CNNMoney.com) - Apple CEO Steve Jobs Tuesday unveiled the first Apple computers ever to use an Intel processor.

Intel CEO Paul Otellini was also on hand to introduce the iMac Core Duo desktop computer and the MacBook Pro notebook, a new product line for Apple, unveiled during Jobs' keynote at the Macworld Expo in San Francisco.



"The Intel chip... for years been trapped inside PCs, performing dull little tasks when it could have been doing so much more," the ad said. "Starting today, the Intel chip will be set free and get to live life inside a Mac. Imagine the possibilities."

The Intel-based iMac G5 will be two to three times faster than earlier G5's, according to Apple, while the MacBook Pro notebook will be more than four times faster than its predecessors.

Apple will offer two iMac G5 models: one with a 17-inch monitor for $1,299 and one with a 20-inch monitor and a faster processor for $1,699.

In February, it will debut the MacBook Pro, which features two processors, in two varieties -- a model with a 1.67GHz processor for $1,999 and a 1.83GHz processor for $2,499.

Jobs said that Apple's entire product line will be transitioned to use Intel (Research) chips by the end of this year.

The Apple CEO also announced Tuesday that the company posted $5.7 billion in revenue last quarter, in part based on strong sales of 14 million iPods in the holiday quarter alone.

Speaking to the Apple faithful at Macworld, Jobs said Apple sold 32 million iPods for all of 2005, and that Apple's 135 retail stores drew 26 million visitors during the holiday quarter.

Shares of the Apple (up $4.25 to $80.30, Research) jumped nearly 6 percent in heavy trading on Nasdaq. By mid-afternoon about 56 million shares had changed hands, more than twice the average daily volume.

Jobs also unveiled a new accessory for the iPod, a remote control that attaches to iPod headphones and includes an FM tuner -- a move to answer critics who complained that some competing MP3 devices have tuners, unlike the iPod. The device goes on sale today for $49.

In addition, he announced that Chrysler will seamlessly integrate the iPod into many of its Jeep, Dodge and Chrysler models for 2006.

And he said there will be new content for the iTunes music store -- customers can now buy archived skits from NBC Universal's "Saturday Night Live" for $1.99 each.

The fourth-quarter iPod sales were up sharply from a year earlier, and easily topped forecasts by a number of analysts who had been expecting sales of 10 million to 11 million units in the quarter.

Apple stock has been on a tear since the start of 2004, largely on the strength of the iPod and the company's digital music business.