Filed under: Hardware, Blast From the Past, Flickr Find, Apple History
Flickr Find: Unusual Apple designs from the early 90s
TUAW reader Mike turned us on to a Flickr photo set and a related post on Aussie Mac site MacTalk.MacTalk forum regular Donnie Darko was visiting a used book store in the Sydney suburb of Newtown when he came upon a rare find -- a 1991 copy of a Japanese design magazine called Axis featuring concepts that Apple was working on at the time.
In this jewel are a number of concept computers:
- The bike computer on the front cover (see photo at right)
- A wrist-mounted Mac called the TimeBand
- A device called the Exchanger that shows an American dollar being inserted and another currency coming out of a slot
- Several server concepts that look similar to Apple servers of the early 90s
- A very cool flat-panel TV that looks cutting-edge even in 2009
- Several tablet Macs
- A device that looks like a hybrid Mac / digitizer tablet
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
vigilare said 11:30AM on 1-28-2009
Several of these pictures are also included in the book "Apple Design: The Work of the Apple Industrial Design Group" by Paul Kunkel. 1997, Graphics Inc. ISBN 1-888-001-25-9. The book has many other interesting designs from Apple.
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ds said 7:19PM on 1-28-2009
I'm a lucky owner of the aforementioned book, and can attest that many of these designs were in there (TimeBand, the Exchanger, stylus concepts, etc.) Some great concept art in there (the Sweep concept for Pomona [20th Anniversary Mac] and the Juggernaut design samples, to name a few), if you have the means to get it, highly recommended.
tvn said 12:43PM on 1-28-2009
Isn't that Knowledge Navigator guy's office the same one that Fletch almost got shot in?
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Joe said 3:03PM on 1-28-2009
I think that if I were a Japanese magazine, I'd refrain from using words which could also describe ties to WWII-era Germany.
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blip said 5:37AM on 1-29-2009
Er...? The name has more in common with an "axis around which things revolve". In this case it's the "world of design". Then again, I guess it's in human nature to interpret things the worst possible way, rather than pick what one might expect would be a more obvious meaning.
I've been following this mag for some years, used material from it for my bachelor etc and I have not once made the connection you just did. Why would I? Pragmatically, there's no context that could in any way imply what you just interpreted.
I sure do hope you don't think that way were you to see anything labeled "German".
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blip said 5:40AM on 1-29-2009
Gah, was meant to be a reply to Joe's comment above mine.
jared said 6:34AM on 1-29-2009
Seriously? I did a bachelor once, also, in Asian Studies, and not often have I heard the word Axis referred to by using its standard definition, especially in terms of a magazine.
I completely agree with Joe's comments. This is especially true given it is a Japanese magazine. 'The Axis' would refer to the countries opposing 'The Allies' in WWII....a markedly poignant period of time in Japan. They would know its historical use more than its standard definition, I would argue.
blip said 7:10AM on 1-29-2009
@jared: Yes, seriously. This is like a bad recollection of "don't mention the war" a la Fawlty Towers. It's a design mag, not a Japanese "guns & ammo".
"They would know its historical use more than its standard definition, I would argue."
A bit ignorant, perhaps. At least as seen from the view of the company, the editors and the native speaker living in Japan. This "issue" has more to do with people's view of the matter outside of Japan, not necessarily the native speakers living inside Japan. If you have touched upon Japan and the Japanese language you would know how they love to use "larger than life" kind of metaphors, hence my "the axis the world revolves around" comment above.
On the other hand, I'm probably a bit biased an ignorant, as well. As AXIS is also available outside of Japan and since both you and Joe made that connection one might assume that others might as well. In that regard, fair enough. The publisher could/should perhaps given it a second thought.
Sorry, didn't mean to blow this up.
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jared said 7:44AM on 1-29-2009
@blip
Point taken. I also cannot assume to know the minds of the Japanese populace, being the many-faceted jewels they are. I speak for myself only as a Japan-loving Westerner (with the history of such); I actually also agree with your "larger than life" assertion - anyone who has read direct transliterations of Japanese might tend to agree.