We admit it-- when we heard that Apple was actually going to be selling otherwise-identical iMacs in five different colors at retail outlets, we thought it was an absolutely nutty idea. Seriously, it just screams "Imminent Inventory Debacle!" at the top of its lungs while running around the room setting fire to the furniture. What if one color was waaaaaay more popular than another? Who's to say that there won't be dire shortages of Grape and warehouses packed to the gills with unwanted Tangerines? Sure, we were assured that Apple had a "secret plan" for just such a situation, but that did little to disperse our growing anxiety.

Now that some sales data is slowly trickling in, though, we're not quite as concerned. According to a MacWEEK article, sales for both the new blue-and-white G3's and the fruit-flavored iMacs are strong, but it's the data about the iMac color choices that helps ease the funny feeling in our collective tummy. The ten-store ComputerWare chain notes that "Blueberry and Grape seem to sell the best, and that Tangerine is the least popular color," but color popularity seems to be varying by location. For instance, the five-store CompuTown retailer claims that their most popular flavor overall has been Lime, but in their San Francisco store, Strawberry and Blueberry are selling the fastest. And CompUSA says that Grape is their biggest seller.

So apparently no one particular color is vastly overtaking the others, and that's good. On the other hand, we're still a bit concerned about poor old Tangerine. Not only is it not the best seller for any of the chains mentioned, but it was also singled out as the least popular flavor by two of the three. Perhaps we should start a "Give a Tangerine a Home" promotion. Think we can sign up Sally Struthers to plead tearfully for viewer support as she walks among dusty piles of unsold Tangerines in a cold, cruel warehouse?