The other day I bought a new [iMac->http://www.apple.com/imac/] with the latest Tiger version of [OS X->http://www.apple.com/macosx/] to replace the Panther PowerBook G4 as my daily workhorse. Frustratingly I had to take it back the next day before I’d even fired it up. Having noticed a small sratch on the enclosure and that the screen didn’t appear to fit snugly, I inspected the polystyrene packing and discovered it was damaged on one side. Scared that the box had either been dropped, or had something heavy dropped on it, I returned it to the shop. Fortunately they agreed it should be replaced. Unfortunately, I’d reserved that one and even though I collected it the same day the shipment arrived, there was no more stock. As a long time Mac user, that was a surprise! So wondering if that meant Macs are getting more popular with home users, I headed over to Google.com and found [this -> http://www.businessweek.com/ap/financialnews/D8B7DM180.htm?campaign_id=apn_tech_down] at Businessweek.com:

Powered by sales of the iMac computer and iPod music player, Wall Street predicts Apple Computer will report earnings of 31 cents per share on revenue of $3.33 billion. In April, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company forecast lower earnings of 28 cents per share on sales of $3.25 billion for the third quarter. Last year, the company reported profit of 9 cents per share on $2.01 billion of sales.

So it seems iMac sales are up, and now I’m waiting …