Apple to Unveil Faster Home PCs

Apple Computer Inc. plans to introduce today its new line of home personal computers, featuring faster chips and better multimedia capabilities. The troubled computer maker has simplified its product line, and the new 6500 series machines are the first home PCs carrying the Power Macintosh name instead of Performa, which has been used for the last several years. The new machines, which are priced between $2,000 and $3,000, run all current versions of Apple’s Macintosh operating system and will also operate future versions of the system. The computers are part of a number of new products that Cupertino-based Apple will introduce this year as it tries to combat concerns about quality, confusion about many different models and uncertainty about its operating system strategy. The fastest of the new series, the 6500/300, uses the PowerPC 603e chip running at 300 megahertz. It costs $3,000.