IF you ask people in the computer industry what multimedia is all about, you are likely to get a range of answers as diverse as there are mail-order PC houses in the United States.
Apple, though, has a consistent history of defining multimedia in a way that is somewhat more integrated than most PC vendors, who define it as a haphazard combination of a fax/modem, a CD-ROM drive, a soundcard and a suitable PC.
From its earliest efforts to make QuickTime a fundamental and integrated part of its operating system, to its standard SCSI bus which has provided simple expansion, Apple, most would agreed, has led the way in the area of multimedia.
Last week, Apple took advantage of the launch of some new printers and a monitor to formally introduce its LC 630 to Asia. Company officials hope the product will be its mainstream multimedia system for most users.
According to Apple, they expect that existing TV, audio and video data highways will converge on to personal computers, and this is fuelling the design of the LC 630 and its upgrade options.
With a starting price of US$1,399, the LC 630 is clearly targeted at home, education and small business use.
Apple has also redesigned several of the unit's subsystems to position it as a multimedia box including improved video, supporting 16-bit (more than 65,000 colours) on monitors up to 15 inches, dual I/O support with an IDE hard drive (which frees an extra SCSI device for expansion and provides more low-cost hard drive option) and built-in infra-red capability for use with its television tuner option.