Macworld Expo keynote summary: Mac hardware refreshed; Mac OS 10.1 and iDVD 2 previewed; new retail locations

Apple Debuts New Power Mac G4 Line Three new Power Macs: 733, 867, and dual processor 800 MHz were announced. The SuperDrive is now included on both the top and midrange models and the enclosure has been refined slightly. The entry price for SuperDrive equipped Macs was reduced by about $1000. The press release has more. Here is a closer look:

• The 733 MHz model has a suggested retail price of $1,699 and includes: 256K on-chip level 2 backside cache; 128MB of PC133 SDRAM memory; 40GB Ultra ATA/66 hard disk drive; NVIDIA GeForce 2 MX graphics card with 32MB video SDRAM in 4x AGP slot; CD-RW drive.
• The 867 MHz model has a suggested retail price of $2,499 and includes: 256K on-chip level 2 backside cache and 2MB of level 3 cache; 128MB of PC133 SDRAM memory; 60GB Ultra ATA/66 hard disk drive; NVIDIA GeForce 2 MX graphics card with 32MB video SDRAM in 4x AGP slot; and a SuperDrive combination CD-RW/DVD-R.
• The dual 800 MHz model has a suggested retail price of $3,499 and includes: 256K on-chip level 2 backside cache and 2MB of level 3 cache per processor; 256MB of PC133 SDRAM memory; 80GB Ultra ATA/66 hard disk drive; NVIDIA GeForce2 MX with TwinView graphics card and 64MB video SDRAM in 4x AGP slot; and a SuperDrive combination CD-RW/DVD-R.
• All three models also include two FireWire and USB ports; four full-length 64 bit PCI slots at 33 MHz; 10/100/1000BASE-T Ethernet, AirPort ready and built-in 56K V.90 modem; and iDVD, iTunes and iMovie 2 software.

Apple Updates iMac Family Three new iMac models have been announced and are available now: 500, 600, & 700 MHz. All three models include CD-RW drives. Also see press release for details. Here is a closer look:

• The 500 MHz model has a suggested retail price of $999 and is available in Indigo and Snow. Features include 128MB of PC100 SDRAM and a 20GB Ultra ATA hard disk.
• The 600 MHz model has a suggested retail price of $1,299 and is available in Snow and Graphite. Features include 256MB of PC100 SDRAM and a 40GB Ultra ATA hard disk.
• The 700 MHz Special Edition model has a suggested retail price of $1,499 and is available in Snow and Graphite. Features include 256MB of PC100 SDRAM and a 60GB Ultra ATA hard disk
• All three models include: a slot-loading CD-RW drive, an ATI RAGE 128 Ultra with 16MB of SDRAM; a built-in 56K V.90 modem; two FireWire ports and two USB ports; VGA video mirroring; and support for AirPort option.

Apple Previews Next Version of Mac OS X Mac OS X 10.1: The primary improvements are performance, a movable dock, system menus, an improved Finder, DVD playback, and more personalization features. It is a free update for existing users (although it will also be available on CD-ROM for $19.95) and should ship in September. Press release. Also see the coverage on our Mac OS X Late-Breakers page.

Apple Previews iDVD 2 for Mac OS X The biggest change in Apple's DVD authoring software is the ability to put movies into DVD menu buttons. iDVD 2 requires Mac OS X version 10.1 and will be a free upgrade for existing users. Press release.

New retail locations set to open The keynote began with information on the Apple retail stores. Four new stores will open in August: Dallas, Minneapolis, Chicago, and Boston. Steve introduced the same two videos which debuted at WWDC 2001.