Filed under: iPod Family, iMac, Apple, iPhone
The new iMac and iPhone, separated at birth?
During the deluge of news coming out of Apple today I paused for a second and thought, 'Hmm, the new iMac kind of looks like a big old iPhone.' Luckily I was not the only one to notice this. The good folks at Signal v.s Noise (the blog from 37signals, the makers of Basecamp amongst other things) also noticed. They point out that the previous incarnation of the iMac took its design cues from the iPod. Consumer electronics shaping the design of a consumer computer, makes sense to me.Does this mean that those fabled touch screen iPods will look like iPhones? Wouldn't surprise me a bit.
I would like to know what you think of the iMac's new look. Sound off in the comments.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Raffi said 7:37PM on 8-07-2007
I don't really like the black on titanium thing that they have going on there. It just doesn't work for me, or maybe that's because I have a black macbook with a white apple. It just looks ... off.
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nano said 7:39PM on 8-07-2007
Hate this silver look. It's too "American" like it wants to look like a car or something.
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Bill Olson said 7:40PM on 8-07-2007
I need to see it in person (should have in the next couple of days) but I like the looks from the pictures I've seen at Apple's website.
I'll just have to stick with my white 24" iMac for awhile longer.
PS: WHY, WHY, WHY are the bluetooth keyboards not exactly the same (except for the USB ports of course) as the wired keyboard? #@$*&#$*&#. I realize that there must be people screaming for the bluetooth one to be less wide so they can use it in cramped spots. But why not have two of them? One wide and one not. Not I won't be buying either of them and sticking with my current iMac keyboard.
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required said 7:47PM on 8-07-2007
the logo is horsey, otherwise it looks nice, maybe someone will sell something that can mask/tone down the logo
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David Chartier said 7:50PM on 8-07-2007
No, I think this means the new iPods will look like Mac minis, so the Mac minis will get redesign as Mac Pros which will cause the entire universe of Apple products to implode...
this could be dangerous.
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DBrim said 7:59PM on 8-07-2007
I'll start off by saying that I am definitely not a fan of the chin, personally. If I were to design the iMac, I'd eliminate the chin entirely and make it thicker.
However...
The chin serves a purpose. It's the way that it's identified as an Apple product, not just another competitor. The ability to recognize an Apple product from a mile away has always been one of the most things in the company design philosophy, it seems. This iMac certainly fits the bill for that.
If you really really wanted to keep the chin, though, I would have made it black, with a metal apple. That would look nice.
My biggest real pet peeve (I can get past the chin) is the lack of option for matte displays. I hate glossy displays, and as a photographer I would never go out and buy a glossy display. I sincerely hope that this does not indicate future trends in Apple.
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Steve Simitzis said 8:02PM on 8-07-2007
I personally love it. My first reaction was "ooh, an iPhone on a stick". I also like that they're moving away from plastic.
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Ryan said 12:33AM on 8-08-2007
I don't particularly mind the metal+black thing they have going on. I can see that the black enclosure around the screen itself will allow the screen to stand out that much more with such heavy contrast. However, the glossy screen kills me. I'm a designer, and I cannot stand glossy screens. They exaggerate color and reflect everything, and as such they create results on screen that do not resemble print-outs. I wouldn't care as much if they had given people the option of getting a matte or glossy screen like they do with the laptops. But instead they made the decision for us.
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Nathan C. said 8:22PM on 8-07-2007
i was so excited for the new iMac because i waited to buy an iMac so a year now for leopard. But when i saw the new design i was CRUSHED. There hasnt been a single apple product that i didnt say WOW that looks awesome! How did they come up with that design? This has to be the first apple product that i think is ugly. I know its hard for me too, never have i used the adjective ugly with an apple product before. I guess im going to take advantage of stores clearing out the old sexy white iMac =).
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Timothy Chaten said 8:28PM on 8-07-2007
I love this new iMac: an iPhone converted to an iMac :)
Everything from the screen (the iPhone has the same wonderful glass screen) to it coming with a cleaning cloth. This is a wonderful design and am looking forward to seeing it in person.
I am furious however at the lack of an option for a full sized bluetooth keyboard. I use the apple bt constantly and was hoping for a nice new thin bt. The work I do requires the use of a number pad! So this is terrible! But I love the new iMac. It is wonderful and amazing, not quite sure what the Core 2 Duo Extreme is how does it differ from the Core 2 Duo?
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Jim of Davao said 11:59PM on 8-07-2007
So people are putting off from buying the new iMac because of the design? They don't care it's much faster and better than the old ones? That's messed up.
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NK said 8:34PM on 8-07-2007
Nice to see Scott back to blogging! I had assumed that he was depressed without an iPhone and had to sit high on a mountain top to reflect.
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iGO said 8:57PM on 8-07-2007
It should have been ALL black. Then that stupid border would just blend in. As in the past with Apple, I hope that by the time Leopard starts shipping, these new iMacs will get those quiet little upgrades that just irk early adopters, like an all black option and a full size wireless bluetooth keyboard. I'm buying one for sure, the 24"- 2.8Ghz, when Leopard and the iLife 08 are bundled in.
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Jay said 8:57PM on 8-07-2007
The new iMacs are ugly. They'd be fine without that black rim around the screen. The aluminum is nice, I even like the black back. Just not the big black bezel.
And here I was, all set to go out and buy a new iPod. I guess I can dream for early September?
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Andrew said 9:17PM on 8-07-2007
I agree with Nathan C. This is the first ugly Mac product I have seen. If they had gone ALL aluminum or ALL black, it could have been stunning. As it is, it's like an iPhone with a silver beer belly.
Abysmal!
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Stephen Macklin said 9:28PM on 8-07-2007
I think it looks like a 1972 vision of what a computer would look like 30 years in the future. Didn't they have something that looked like this in Logan's Run? Or was it THX1138?
Come to think of it, it might have been Sleeper.
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Reg Muffet said 9:29PM on 8-07-2007
Will have to see it in the flesh.
In general I do find metal finishes to look more stylish and professional than plastic.
(Which is why I was hoping for a 12" PowerBook G4 replacement aka "ultraportable" today, to substitute for my 13" black MacBook, which is just a few inches too wide and looks cheaper than it should. Maybe by MacWorld SF 2008.)
Hopefully the new design will improve the iMac. I haven't much liked any of the designs since the deep indigo blues and ruby reds of the 1999 era iMacs. They had character.
(It all went wrong after flower power and blue dalmation!)
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minimalist said 8:50AM on 8-08-2007
The new iMac design, the iPhone and recent changes to Apple.com seems to signal a move away from the gloss white plastic designs of the last 5 years.
And Apple loves continuity amongst it product lines. We are now entering an era of of brushed aluminum, black plastic and glass. It all looks a little like it belongs on the Death Star to me and is too serious looking but I guess its better than another desk lamp with ugly half ball base.
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Jon said 10:30PM on 8-07-2007
They look superb in the flesh - so well designed.
Pics here from the 5th Avenue Store this evening
http://theappleofmyi.com/blog/?p=1054
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Ryan said 11:35PM on 8-07-2007
I think it's ugly, the black ring is absolutely hideous. That ring is just wasted space, why not eliminate that and make the screen bigger, or make that black ring aluminum like the rest of the body.
All aluminum or all black would be better, but a choice would be the best. I hate the glossy display and hope they give the matte option. I have always hated glossy displays, and as a graphic designer i'll never purchase a computer with a glossy display.
The keyboard is terrible, from the pictures ive seen the aluminum looks cheap and the white keys are ugly on top of it. Why would you take the numpad off the wireless version? Apple really screwed this one up.
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