For those of you who thought the magic was gone, think again. Sure, April's retail sales figures told a heartbreaking story as the iMac fell out of the PC Data Top 5 for the first time since its introduction in August of last year, but hope springs eternal; while naysayers held that the iMac was on its way out, the iMac faithful quietly noted that the combined sales of all iMacs-- Bondi and fruit-flavored and every revision ever made-- actually would have taken the number one slot. Unfortunately, not all iMacs are created equal, so that's not a particularly fair way to present things; still, it gave us hope that as the cheap discontinued iMacs got snapped up, the current iMacs would once again regain a position within the coveted Top 5.

And sometimes things work out just the way you want them to-- even in the Apple world. You can't keep a good computer down; the May numbers are out, and according to a Mac Observer article, the 333 MHz iMac has clawed its way back into the limelight and claimed Slot Number 3. That places our fruit-flavored friend just above a couple of Hewlett Packards and just below a pair of Compaqs. Sounds like some kind of contrast sandwich; ease of use and elegant design between two slices of mediocrity. (Does that come with a pickle?)

Only numbers in future months will reveal if April's dip was just a fluke caused by remaining Bondi iMacs in the channel and the switchover from 266 MHz to 333 MHz fruit-flavored models. It's certainly possible that May's increase was just a temporary spike, instead-- but we doubt it. Bondi Blue iMacs finally seem to be disappearing from the catalogs and stores, meaning that overall iMac sales won't be split between several different models. At least, that'll be true until Apple releases the next big iMac revision, which may happen as soon as next month. But hey, June's numbers ought to be impressive, at least...