Apple's new consumer computer, the translucent all-in-one iMac, goes on sale from Saturday, August 15, in the US, priced at $1,299 and marks Apple's much-awaited re-entry into the consumer market. Apple plans to spend $100 million through December.

The iMac television commercials will premier on Sunday, August 16, the company said, during prime-time viewing starting at 7 P.M. on the "Wonderful World of Disney" on the ABC network.

Apple did not disclose many details about the advertising campaign, except to say the ads will focus on the iMac's key features - easy Internet access, simplicity and speed.

Apple recently gained attention with its innovative multi-million dollar "Think Different" marketing campaign, which it launched last September after co-founder Steve Jobsrejoined the company as interim chief executive and hired back Apple's old ad agency, now known as TBWA Chiat Day.

The company's current television ads tout the speed of the processor used in its G3 Power Macintosh desktop computers and in its new PowerBook notebooks, while poking fun at Intel Corp's Pentium II processors. One commercial, called "Toasted Bunny," portrays one of the disco-dancing Intel "bunny men" trying to put out flames on his manufacturing cleanroom suit, after being burned by the faster G3 processor.

Chiat Day also created the widely-acclaimed television commercial, "1984," which Apple showed only once on television during the 1984 Super Bowl, to launch the first Macintosh.

Apple said its ads will air throughout Europe and Japan beginning in September.

"We have a big message that we want to get out to a lot of people," said Phil Schiller, vice president of worldwide marketing at Apple, in a telephone interview. "It is definitely the largest campaign we have ever had, just as thepre-orders are the largest we have ever had."

On Monday, Apple said that it has received orders for more than 150,000 units of the new consumer Macintosh, the iMac. Apple started accepting pre-orders on August 3.

Bradley Johnson, a columnist for Advertising Age, said that Apple spent about $85 million for the "1984" campaign.

"Apple spent $85 million to launch a revolution and they are spending $100 million to launch an evolution," Johnson said, adding that the ad spending is among the heftiest by a personal computer maker. Compaq Computer Corp, the world's largest PC maker, doubled its US consumer advertising budget to about $50 million this year, Johnson said.

"This means that Apple appears to be on track to do the biggest, most concentrated consumer computer campaign in history," Johnson said, adding that Apple's ads, as well as the iMac, will be noticed and talked about during the campaign.

"The question is how it will help sell the product?" Johnson said. "The ad will get noticed and theproduct will sell phenomenally in its early days. What Apple has to do is turn all the early hype into long-term momentum."

The Cupertino, California-based PC maker hopes to boost its sagging share of the world personal computer market - about four per cent in the second quarter - and to gain new users, beyond the current installed based of the Macintosh faithful.

Apple said that its ads will also run on national network television programmes such as Seinfeld, News Radio and Drew Carey and on cable shows such as South Park and Larry King Live.

A 12-page insert will be distributed in major consumer magazines such as Time, Newsweek, BusinessWeek, People, Sports Illustrated and Rolling Stone. Over 15 million copies of the insert will be distributed in major publications this quarter.

"We definitely are trying to reach more customers with this kind of marketing by having very strong consumer messages and reaching through a lot of consumer media...to reach to a broad diverse set of consumers," Schillersaid.

Tim Bajarin, president of Creative Strategies Inc., a consulting firm based in San Jose, California, predicts that the first purchasers of the iMac will likely be early adopters and the Mac aficionados and that the calendar fourth quarter will be the real barometer to gauge whether new users are buying.

"There is no question that Steve has decided to bet the farm on the iMac," Bajarin said. "He has a shot at getting the first time buyers...While it is a gamble, it's probably not a bad gamble. At the very least, he will easily make a return on the existing investment."