[chucker]

I wonder what the white border looks like in person, but other than that, yeah, thumbs up.

[PB PM]

Saw the new iMacs for the first time in store over the weekend, I have to say the colours look much better in person than the pictures and videos I’ve seen. The blue and green looked great, only ones I’ve seen since that’s what they had. Didn’t even notice the white bezel to be honest.

[psmith2.0]

That always seems to be the thing. The pics and video never do these things justice, even going back to the jellybean iMac days.

After 3-4 months out in the world, I’ve yet to see an M1 iMac in person. I figure the local Simply Mac store at the mall, and the Best Buy across the road, have some by now. I may get out there one day.

[PB PM]

The memory of the flower power G3 iMac still haunts me, it’s was beautiful, and ugly at the same time. I think it’s one of the few that looks better in pictures than in person.

[psmith2.0]

What I’d give to have modern M1 guts (basically the performance/specs/features of an M1 Mac mini) transplanted into my beloved tangerine iMac DV!

I truly think that would be my dream Mac. That design/look outfitted with modern components, SSD, I/O, WiFi/Bluetooth, etc..

That’s one of those “if I ever win the lottery I’m hiring a major Mac nerd/tinkerer/builder to do just that” undertakings. I’ll provide the iMac DV (still have it after 22+ years) an upgraded mini (16GB RAM, 1TB SSD), a small gym bag full of cash and a note saying “whatever it takes; call me when it’s done”.

Then I’d call him back in about six months to say “I want a second Mac for my bedroom…do what you did six months ago, except this time put it in the iMac G4 I’m sending you!”

[PB PM]

Just buy the case and run the cables out the back, modern Mac's wont put out an analog video signal without a bunch of adapters, so it would be a nightmare to get a CRT working, assuming you could even find one to fit in the case. I say that because the original wouldn't work, given that it's tied to the logic-board. That age old, good monitor, useless iMac hardware argument comes up again. Someone really dedicated could hack something together I suppose, but I think you'd be hard pressed to find someone.

[chucker]

Probably better off putting a 15-inch TFT in there instead.

Given how much empty room you'd end up with, you could amusingly make it quite powerful.

[PB PM]

Yes a small LCD would do the trick, and I’d just stick an M1 Mac mini in there. Might just pull the glass from the front of the stock CRT to keep the look.

[turtle]

I have a Key Lime clamshell I've thought about "rebuilding" a few times. I already upgraded the logic board to the best they put in the clamshells, I just don't recall the specs on it. It even has a good battery in it.

[psmith2.0]

That's why all this is a "lottery" project. Someone could make it all work, properly motivated/compensated.

It'll never happen. Just something fun to think about sometimes.

That's when I sometimes wish that Apple, like Fender, had a custom shop...tailored for goofballs with more money than sense, to order cool Macs (primarily centered around modern performance/components built into classic Mac designs). Add "classic" or "reissue" to the name/branding (as Fender does with their 50's/60's/70's replicas).

No, they couldn't conjure up nonexistent, custom AS or new, completely different designs. That's not what I'm talking about. But simply rigging up jellybean iMacs and iMac G4 "sunflower" models (since those are two of the most unique, iconic Mac designs that scream "Apple") with whatever AS, I/O, RAM/SSD specs, etc. found in the current Mac mini. Respectable performance at a slight premium for those who love/prefer those designs over anything they've done since.

[kscherer]

Nah. Give me the 20" G4 iMac with the M1X guts.

[psmith2.0]

You know, the 25th anniversary of the original iMac is 2023.

I think Apple should surprise everyone and, for that one year only, offer the 24" iMac (or whatever the current default, baseline iMac is in 2023) in Bondi Blue.

iMac SE? iMac 25?

Hell, charge an extra $100 for it and donate it to some worthy cause (one that everyone could get behind...tree-planting, ocean/coastal clean-up, animal adoption, etc.).

I would probably buy that, just for the historic/nod-to-the-past angle. Nothing fancy or redone. Just simply offer (two-tone) Bondi, applied as colors currently are), and with the matching keyboard and mouse. and maybe a little half-inch badge/logo on the lower front "chin" to mark the model/occasion? Some sort of stylized graphic incorporating both the original jellybean silhouette/design and the current 24" model?

That's how you do an "anniversary" model...offer the current version of the Mac that changed Apple's fortunes in the unique, never-been-used-since color it debuted in back in 1998. Can't think of any better reason to bring that color back for one year. That they never used it again, on any other device (iPod, etc.) makes it mean even more..."wow, we've not seen this since 1998-1999!"

Don't waste the opportunity by trotting out some crazy-ass, one-off design that nobody can actually afford (remember that one?). Just offer the regular iMac but in a dedicated, custom color for one year only, with badging and packaging reflecting said anniversary, and with a $100 surcharge to go toward cleaning up beaches (Bondi and others).

Boom...you're welcome.

I bet it would sell like crazy!

[chucker]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 You know, the 25th anniversary of the original iMac is 2023. I think Apple should surprise everyone and, for that one year only, offer the 24" iMac (or whatever the current default, baseline iMac is in 2023) in Bondi Blue.

The current "green" might be too close to that.

(But I haven't seen it in person, nor am I sure I've ever seen Bondi Blue in person, so maybe not?)

[psmith2.0]

It’s pretty unique. It’s got a little more blue in it than the current green iMac. But then held up against something blue, it’s way more green. It was very attractive; I remember it well. A very nice teal they’ve not used on anything since. But you’re right…the darker back of the green iMac is kinda close to that shade. At least in pics/video I’ve seen. The lighter, pastel variant on the chin/stand is more minty green.

Plus, 18 or so months from now, will the current colors even be in the lineup? Will Apple tweak/update the color choices when they get a new processor and other Rev. B updates? Not sure what they could do but I suppose they could go darker/more subdued (burgundy, copper, rose gold, sage or hunter green, bronze/root beer, navy blue, etc.). They might even retire the colors completely and settle into silver only.

Here’s one way to go about it, if they wanted…offer only the Bondi Blue in 2023? Just like in 1998, you could get the iMac in only that color? What was the Henry Ford quote?

Reading the history of iMac, that Bondi blue was only on the streets for less than five months! While announced/unveiled in May 1998 it didn’t actually go on sale/hit the street until mid-August. Come early January of 1999 it was replaced by the five fruit colors.

I’d forgotten just how short that was, making the color even more “special” and deserving of a temporary return.

Maybe offer it and the silver for a safe, stock alternative, for those not wanting the color.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 It’s pretty unique. It’s got a little more blue in it than the current green iMac. But then held up against something blue, it’s way more green. It was very attractive; I remember it well. A very nice teal they’ve not used on anything since. But you’re right…the darker back of the green iMac is kinda close to that shade. At least in pics/video I’ve seen. The lighter, pastel variant on the chin/stand is more minty green.

Yeah. I got the impression that both of those are shades of "teal".

If we take the current "green" iMac as teal, and if Wikipedia is anything to go by, you're right: teal is sRGB 0, 128, 128 they say, whereas "blue-green" (which "bondi blue" redirects to) is sRGB 13, 152, 186. So, more blue than green (and overall lighter).

Interesting. Like I said, really hard to tell from pictures anyway. Plus, as you mention, there's the whole deal of the front being a different color anyway.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Plus, 18 or so months from now, will the current colors even be in the lineup? Will Apple tweak/update the color choices when they get a new processor and other Rev. B updates? Not sure what they could do but I suppose they could go darker/more subdued (burgundy, copper, rose gold, sage or hunter green, bronze/root beer, navy blue, etc.). They might even retire the colors completely and settle into silver only.

I hope they don't retire the colors. They probably won't go all-crazy like on their Watch bands and iPhone cases and have biannual seasonal spring/fall color collections; that's a logistics nightmare. But, they've done "flower power" before, and they did have the blueberry/grape/tangerine/lime/strawberry 1999 collection, then "SE" graphite, and then the indigo, ruby, sage, graphite, snow (SE) collection in 2000.

I'm not sure what that means in terms of number. I think they sold about four million Macs a year total at the time, and now they do four million a quarter. But whereas at the time, the iMac was perhaps about every third Mac, it's gotta be more like every tenth now. So maybe the overall number of iMacs has remained rather constant at about a million a year?

(If it has increased much, it creates quite a logistics problem.)

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Here’s one way to go about it, if they wanted…offer only the Bondi Blue in 2023? Just like in 1998, you could get the iMac in only that color? What was the Henry Ford quote?

That does seem like a very Apple approach, yup.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Reading the history of iMac, that Bondi blue was only on the streets for less than five months!

History is wild like that.

It's also… the G3 iMac was only around for three and a half years. And the G4 for two and a half! The G5 design then stuck around for three years (if you count Intel), and the various aluminum designs for a whopping 13 years.

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Maybe offer it and the silver for a safe, stock alternative, for those not wanting the color.

Yup.

[psmith2.0]

The more I think about it, the more I like it!

Sometimes Apple has acknowledged anniversaries, usually they don’t.

But I think the iMac, considering what it represents (turned things around for them, kicked off the whole iThing, was such a groundbreaking, iconic design, made the AIO a solid, viable option for many, influenced industrial/product design (computer peripherals/accessories, vacuum cleaners, office supplies, home decor, kitchenware, toiletries, etc. all started adopting that look…translucent, curvy plastic. That’s all you saw in 1998-2000 at IKEA,!Target, and Staples…everything tried to look like an iMac!)

Pre-M1 iMac such a thought wouldn't have crossed my mind. But now that they’re doing colors on the iMac again, and with the 25th anniversary approaching, it just all seems kinda obvious and “well, yeah…of course we should!”

If I were CEO, things would be well underway for a surprise early January 2023 announcement/unveiling!

No media event or anything crazy, but it would certainly be front and center on the homepage, accompanied by a neat little video retrospective/lifestyle piece showing its initial introduction in 1998, media coverage, people using it, editorial cartoons, parodies, Halloween costumes, people talking about it being their first computer (and set it up all by themselves with no help) and you have to include that famous photo of Steve sitting cross-legged with one in his lap. And then a brief history/evolution of the iMac line, quick cuts and an onscreen year overlay showing how the model changed and grew over 25 years, up through the current M1 model, ending up with a shot of the original Bondi iMac zoomed in. As the camera pulls out, the jellybean rotates a bit and the modern 24” model is shown sitting right beside it in the same color. Then some onscreen tag line (“You’ve come a long way”, or “Here’s to another 25 years”, etc.), followed by the model name (iMac 25, iMac SE, etc.), fade to white and a Bondi blue Apple logo appears.

And if there’s any voiceover/narration involved…Jeff Goldblum is the only choice. He was there from the beginning.

And if they did the charity angle (beach/coastal cleanup gets my vote), that would certainly be incorporated into the video as well.

it’s all very doable, if they wanted to. I think they’re goobers if they don’t.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 The more I think about it, the more I like it! Sometimes Apple has acknowledged anniversaries, usually they don’t.

I think that was more of a Steve Jobs thing anyway. He didn't want to look back.

Cook-era Apple does, well, a $299 "Designed by Apple in California" book.

Bringing back Goldblum would be amazing.

[psmith2.0]

I think so. It's very easy to imagine him narrating that little retrospective video in that way of his, Goldbluming it up all over the place.

"Once upon a time...well, ah, more like 25 years go to be, ah, precise, yes, there was a computer...like...no...other." Then just turn him loose with a script. You don't even have to show him...everyone knows who it is.

Even that little toodling clarinet(?) music from those original commercials could play over the closing shot of the 24" coming into frame next to the original.

A nice little perfect storm of the past, the future. Bondi and Goldblum make a temporary return, but a modern version larger and more powerful than anyone ever dreamed the original would become, etc. I wouldn't mind it one bit if 2023 only saw a silver and Bondi blue 24" iMac available for 12 months. They can do whatever they want in 2022, and again in 2024. But they should make 2023 kinda special/cool, IMO.

Nostalgia is a powerful thing, and although they don't often trade in it, done right I think a lot of units would sell and a lot of people would "get it" and want to be part of that, knowing it was just a one-year limited edition kind of thing. Such a thing would be the one reason I would buy a 24" M1 iMac in a color other than silver. I would totally own such a model!

[PB PM]

I cannot see Cook going for anniversary version of things either, doesn’t seem like his style.

[chucker]

Maybe not. He does seem a little more sentimental to me than Jobs.

[psmith2.0]

Well I sent Tim an email anyway.

Five sentences, two (really short) paragraphs. Short and to the point (as hard as that must be to believe). And I still managed to include the Goldblum and beach/coastal cleanup ideas too.

I know they won't do it - tech companies would never do something that smacks of "looking backwards" (although I'd argue that simply re-using a color and mentioning the reason why is hardly a huge step backwards; I'm not suggesting they create a variant of the M1 that runs as slow as a 233MHz G3 ) but they're leaving money on the table, I guarantee you. People would love it, especially us old-timers and those of us who were around back in the Centris/Quadra/Performa days where it seemed like the company might go away at any moment.

Oh well, I've done all I can do...championed/laid it out here and notified the CEO. Short of conducting a seance, I'm out of ideas in the "put a bug in someone's ear" department.

Yes, I know it gets vetted by underlings - and winds up in the crank stash - but let me have my fun today.

[psmith2.0]

Originally Posted by chucker Maybe not. He does seem a little more sentimental to me than Jobs.

Absolutely. Not saying he'd ever do such a thing, but I can count on two hands the times I've seen Cook well up or get a lump in his throat talking about something. I don't think Steve was capable (until maybe closer to the end ). If so, he hid it much better.

Between Jobs and Cook, I can more easily picture the latter doing such a thing. But even that's a long shot, I realize.

Steve would probably fire someone, back at the height of his piss-and-vinegar days, for even suggesting it. "We do not go backwards, ever...hit the bricks, your ass is outta here!"

[chucker]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Well I sent Tim an email anyway.

Excellent!

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Absolutely. Not saying he'd ever do such a thing, but I can count on two hands the times I've seen Cook well up or get a lump in his throat talking about something. I don't think Steve was capable (until maybe closer to the end ). If so, he hid it much better. Between Jobs and Cook, I can more easily picture the latter doing such a thing. But even that's a long shot, I realize. Steve would probably fire someone, back at the height of his piss-and-vinegar days, for even suggesting it. "We do not go backwards, ever...hit the bricks, your ass is outta here!"

Right.

I think it's not just a difference of character, but also of goals — Steve wanted to relentlessly chase the future and not waste too much time on the present.

[PB PM]

Originally Posted by chucker Maybe not. He does seem a little more sentimental to me than Jobs.

Could be, but remember the things we are talking about are from before his time at Apple, so maybe it wouldn't hit home with him?

[psmith2.0]

Cook was at Apple in early 1998, as VP of marketing or something like that. He would've been right there, for a product unveiled in May and on the street in August (and all the hype and success that followed). It wasn't his baby, but he was with the company and surely saw how it started turning things around in Apple's favor.

Cook was squarely present during the launch of the iEra and all that it led to.

In fact, with a lot of those guys no longer there - Jobs, Schiller (didn't he retire/step back recently?), Ive, etc. Cook may be one of the few execs/higher-ups still around with a direct link/memory of those days.

[PB PM]

Couldn't remember when Cook started, I thought it was later.

[Mac+]

Originally Posted by pscates2.0 Cook was at Apple in early 1998, as VP of marketing or something like that. He would've been right there, for a product unveiled in May and on the street in August (and all the hype and success that followed). It wasn't his baby, but he was with the company and surely saw how it started turning things around in Apple's favor. Cook was squarely present during the launch of the iEra and all that it led to. In fact, with a lot of those guys no longer there - Jobs, Schiller (didn't he retire/step back recently?), Ive, etc. Cook may be one of the few execs/higher-ups still around with a direct link/memory of those days.

COO - Tim’s an Ops person.

Did start in 1998.

[psmith2.0]

Yep, senior VP of worldwide operations. Schiller was the marketing guy. Oops.

[Mac+]

All good.

It’s nice to return to nova and read the back and forth. Any mock-ups Paul? You know… for old times’s sake.

[Mac+]

Originally Posted by chucker I think it's not just a difference of character, but also of goals — Steve wanted to relentlessly chase the future and not waste too much time on the present.

Great quote!