Apple Computer, Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL and LSE: ACP) is an American computer technology company. Its headquarters are located at 1 Infinite Loop, Cupertino, California, part of Silicon Valley. Apple was a major player in the personal computer revolution in the 1970s.

The Apple II microcomputer, introduced in 1977, was a hit with home users. In 1983, Apple introduced the first commercial personal computer to use a graphical user interface (GUI), the Lisa. In 1984, Apple introduced the revolutionary Macintosh. The Macintosh (commonly called the "Mac") was the first successful commercial implementation of a GUI, which is now used in all major computers.

Apple is known for its innovative, well-designed hardware and software, such as the iPod and the iMac, as well as the well-known iTunes application (originally part of the iLife suite) and Mac OS X, its current operating system.

Hardware

Apple introduced the Apple Macintosh family in 1984 and today makes consumer, professional, and educational computers. The Mac mini is the company's consumer sub-desktop computer, introduced in January 2005 and designed to motivate Windows users to switch to the Macintosh platform. The iMac is a consumer desktop computer that was first introduced by Apple in 1998, and its popularity helped save the company from bankruptcy. Now in its third design iteration, the iMac is similar in concept to the original Macintosh in that the monitor and computer are housed in a single unit. The Power Mac G5, Apple's desktop computer for the professional and creative market, is a member of the Power Macintosh series first introduced in 1994. The eMac is/was Apple's cheaper alternative to the iMac for the education market. Apple's server range includes the Xserve, a single-processor, dual-processor, and cluster-node server range, and the Xserve RAID for server storage options.

Apple introduced the iBook consumer portable computer as a companion to the iMac; it is Apple's lowest cost portable computer. The MacBook Pro is the professional portable computer alternative to the iBook intended for the professional and creative market and replaced the PowerBook range. PowerBooks are still being manufactured and sold, but is expected that Apple will phase out both the PowerBook and iBook lines upon arrival of the heavily rumored MacBook, the low end version of the MacBook Pro and Intel-based version of the iBook. The Powerbook range was first introduced in 1991 and helped Apple's profits increase during the 1990s.

In 2001, Apple introduced the iPod digital music player and currently sells the iPod (with video), available in 30 and 60 GB models; the iPod nano, available in 1 GB, 2GB and 4 GB models; and the iPod shuffle, available in 512 MB and 1 GB models.

The Mac mini is Apple's lowest cost desktop computer.Apple sells a variety of computer accessories for Macintosh computers including the iSight video conferencing camera, the AirPort wireless networking products; Apple Cinema HD Display and Apple Displays computer displays; Mighty Mouse and Apple Wireless Mouse computer mice; the Apple Wireless Keyboard computer keyboard and the Apple USB Modem.

Software

Apple independently develops computer software titles for its Mac OS X operating system. Much of the software Apple develops is bundled with its computers. An example of this is the consumer-oriented iLife software package which bundles iDVD, iMovie HD, iPhoto, iTunes, GarageBand, and iWeb. Both iTunes and a feature-limited version of the QuickTime media player are available as free downloads for both Mac OS X and Windows. For presentation and page layout, iWork is available.

Apple also offers a range of professional software titles. Their range of server software includes the Mac OS X Server operating system; Apple Remote Desktop, a remote desktop control application; WebObjects, Java Web application server; and Xsan, a Storage Area Network file system. For the professional creatives market, there is Aperture for professional RAW-format photo processing; Final Cut Studio, a video software package, as well as Final Cut Express HD, a cut-down version, for SD and HD video editors; Logic Pro, a comprehensive music toolkit, and Logic Express, its prosumer cousin; and Shake, an advanced effects composition program.

Apple also offers online services with .Mac which bundles .Mac HomePage, .Mac Mail, .Mac Groups social network service, .Mac iDisk, .Mac Backup, .Mac Sync, and Learning Center online tutorials.

(Apple Computer Information Courtesy of Wikipedia.)