Apple has introduced a new 24” iMac and reintroduced the low-end 17” iMac to double the number of iMacs available to consumers. The new iMacs have been upgraded to the new Core 2 Duo chips from Intel. The specs for the mid range 17” and 20” iMacs remains mostly unchanged though both come with 1GB of Ram standard and upgrades to 2GHz and 2.16GHz processors respectively.

The low-end 17” iMac is pretty much identical to the educational iMac previously announced, featuring a combo drive and integrated graphics with an absence of Bluetooth and the Apple Remote. The 24” features a 2.16GHz Core 2 Duo (upgradable to 2.33GHz), 1GB memory (upgradable to 3GB), 250GB HD (upgradable to 500GB) and an NVIDIA GeForce 7300GT (upgradable to a 7600GT).

The Mac Minis have also been upgraded to 1.66 and 1.83GHz Core Duo chips at the same price points.

UPDATE If you’re eligible to purchase with an academic discount and are planning to buy a new iMac, be forewarned: the new iMacs are not eligible for Apple’s iPod rebate promotion, which ends in ten days. (See the FAQ for details.)