Digitimes: Magnesium Alloy iMacs next year

zozo
Posted:
in Future Apple Hardware edited January 2014
Quote:

http://www.macworld.co.uk/news/top_n...fm?NewsID=7466



Magnesium iMac for ?04?



By Macworld staff



This morning's DigiTimes <http://www.digitimes.com/NewsShow/Ar...pages=A1&seq=1> has a report that's guaranteed to make the Mac rumour-mill churn away that little bit faster ? it claims Apple will release a new iMac in 2004 with a magnesium-alloy case.





The report states: "The new iMac Apple Computer is going to launch in the first quarter of next year will have a magnesium-alloy case and a high proportion of plastic parts for cost reduction."





The report from Taiwan's respected tech industry publication cites "sources" for its claims. DigiTimes explains that iMac sales have been lacklustre in the quarter "due to higher prices".





Macworld's online poll this week confirms the iMac to have lost the edge for sales against competing products in Apple's range. Just four per cent of readers who voted would like to see an iMac under their tree this year, with the majority of voters hoping for other Apple products.





The report also claims Apple suspended plans for a tablet PC-like Mac in September, because of costs.





DigiTimes believes the new iMacs will appear in January or February.





Would be nice to have a new form factor, cubish, mag-alloy, iMac... just get sales goin' again!
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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 89
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    After long and careful thinking on the whole subject, I've concluded that Apple needs to return to the colored jellybean design.







    THAT'S when iMacs were flying off the shelves!
  • Reply 2 of 89
    kraig911kraig911 Posts: 912member
    you could be correct
  • Reply 3 of 89
    ~ufo~~ufo~ Posts: 245member
    I couldn't agree more mr scates



    I've ranted and raved about this before.



    only italians (and, as someone kindly pointed out, interior designers) like that clean industrial look of all white, or all black.



    I for one think the key lime iBook was the coolest product ever to come from apple, that's what caught my eye and arroused my interest in the company.



    the current iMac is not bad, but it doesn't come near the cuteness of my green crt iMac over here....



    it's just the sweetest thing....



    bring back the colour in our digital lives
  • Reply 4 of 89
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by kraig911 you could be correct



    I usually am...
  • Reply 5 of 89
    salmonstksalmonstk Posts: 568member
    Current iMac is great- its just pricey compared with eMac so people have a hard time justifying it.



    Get proced down on eMac and the iMac and leave the general form factor alone for now.



    Its ok if the sales are now huge as long as people are buying an eMac instead.
  • Reply 6 of 89
    murbotmurbot Posts: 5,262member
    There might have been an iMac under my tree this year.



    Farkin' stinky bastich!
  • Reply 7 of 89
    cubistcubist Posts: 954member
    Blech. So let's say Apple makes the arm plastic (green plastic, for our friend ufo) and reduces the price to $799 and eliminates the eMac. Will they fly off the shelves then?



    No.



    In its day, the jellybean iMac was a fast computer. It may not have been in the top rank, but it was at least competitive. Today's iMac is too slow. Reducing the price may improve sales some, but they're not going to sell like hot cakes. I won't buy one, even if they make the arm and base flower power.



    Put a G5 in it, now that's another story. But it doesn't sound like that's what's happening.
  • Reply 8 of 89
    kraig911kraig911 Posts: 912member
    I for one think the current iMacs run great. I personally think if they did offer them at 799 that they would fly off the shelves, People hardly look at processing power as they do other features now such as, digital video, audio and such. Intel is megahertzed out, with the advent of Panther I see no reason to think that it runs super slow anymore.



    What we need is sales incentives for the people selling them besides guys like you and me who are just out for the platform and the customer and not commisions. Where Hp's and Compaq's are higher.
  • Reply 9 of 89
    powerdocpowerdoc Posts: 8,123member
    The rumor of Digitimes also told that the first i mac they will ship will be the 20 inch.



    If this info is correct, it's a very important one. Why ?

    Because it means that Apple has scheduled that their supply will be low, thus they limit the offer to the high end.



    Why the supply will be low ?

    Because of the case ? : i doubt it. The case is not the most difficult part of a computer, even in Magnesium.



    Because of the hardware ?

    Much more interesting here. Considering that both the G4 mobo and the G5 mobo already exist, i only see one thing wich can limit the supply :

    the processor.



    My conclusion is There will be a new processor in the new I mac

    Two choices :

    - the 750 vx codename Mojave

    - the G5 at 90 nm (the initial supply will be low, it make sense)
  • Reply 10 of 89
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Okay, if Apple releases a 20" iMac with a G5 in it for under $1400, I don't want to hear ANY of you spec-whore clowns bitchin' ever again about ANYTHING, got that?







    If the above machine isn't good enough for you (and any "envelope-pushing" work you like to delude yourself into thinking you're doing), then do us all a favor and go to hell.



  • Reply 11 of 89
    rickagrickag Posts: 1,626member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by pscates

    Okay, if Apple releases a 20" iMac with a G5 in it for under $1400,





    I could afford it, only if it were $1200 and came with a standard sized AGP card and one PCI-X slot.





    i just had to be the first with the sarcastic reply
  • Reply 12 of 89
    geekmeetgeekmeet Posts: 107member
    Quote:

    Originally posted by pscates

    Okay, if Apple releases a 20" iMac with a G5 in it for under $1400, I don't want to hear ANY of you spec-whore clowns bitchin' ever again about ANYTHING, got that?







    If the above machine isn't good enough for you (and any "envelope-pushing" work you like to delude yourself into thinking you're doing), then do us all a favor and go to hell.











    AWESOME POST!

    this has me cracking up!
  • Reply 13 of 89
    satchmosatchmo Posts: 2,699member
    For the umteenth time, drop the price by a couple hundred dollars, give it a better video card and give it DVI out for true desktop spanning. That, or make the iMac's screen usable as an external

    People don't want products that will be obselete within a year. Build in a bit of flexibility.

    Only then will it begin to get respect.
  • Reply 14 of 89
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    I have to say, two years into the things I REALLY thought they would've dropped in price by now.



    I mean, shouldn't the 20" be priced more like the current 17", the 17" down in the $1399 range and so on?







    But I dont know. Just wish they were. Charging $2199 for the 20" seems a tad excessive. I would've loved to have bought my Mom one at a more $1700-ish price.



    I'll wait for six months until these things start to hit the refurb store and see how cheap they are then!



  • Reply 15 of 89
    salmonstksalmonstk Posts: 568member
    We all bitch cause the iMac doesnt sell like it used to. But Apple has achieved with the iMac and emac what it wanted with the Cube. A high end and low end consumer model.



    I would prefer see the eMac updated a bit in form factor. Try and shrink it a bit.



    Oh and on the G5 front, with 90nm coming out for the PowerMac at higher clock speeds maybe they could afford some 12 nm chips to put in the iMac.
  • Reply 16 of 89
    wrong robotwrong robot Posts: 3,907member
    I highly Doubt apple will return to colors anytime soon.



    They turned the PC world onto the appeal of colorful computers, but then got hosed by repeated misconceptions that apple only sells "fruit flavored kids toys" and the dreaded "I dont buy computers based on what color they are" Yes I still hear those comments today.



    the current aluminum books have a bluish sheen though, caused by the LCD refracting off the case I'd imagine, but at any, it's VERY subtle and very neat.



    I think that maybe apple will release colored computers again somewhere down the line, possibly once the PC world is starting to make industrial looking metal designs. \



    Either way, the eMac is eating into the iMac sales hardcore, if the iMac will still be steve jobs' darling, then it's going to need to drop it's price by a few hundred across the board.
  • Reply 17 of 89
    pscatespscates Posts: 5,847member
    Well, I was being slightly sarcastic when I called for a return of colors.







    But only slightly...they WERE gorgeous.



    And anyone not buying one because "they were colored kids toys" or whatever is obviously an ignorant, clue-deprived individual who didn't do their research and missed owning a nimble, sharp little computer that served (and still serves) the needs and demands of tons of proud, happy jellybean iMac owners (of which I was one, and, as of next week, will be again). Just because they couldn't get past the colors? That's THEIR problem.







    These people aren't secure in their masculinity or something...



  • Reply 18 of 89
    murbotmurbot Posts: 5,262member
    A 1.25GH G4 with a gig o' RAM is totally powerful enough to run all of the cool software Apple stuffs into it. The display is arguably the most important part of your computer using experience too, as that is how you interact with the thing, and that freaking monster display is amazing.



    Therefore, the 20" iMac is the best computer ever, and you all need to have a nice big glass of STFU.



  • Reply 19 of 89
    wrong robotwrong robot Posts: 3,907member
    I always thought that the jellybean iMac was the PERFECT dorm room gaming machine.



    only two problems, back then gaming was even worse on macs, and the 8 meg ati rage 128 pro(while admirable, stunk)



    but, the form factor, the price, the appeal, it was perfect.



    Currently that's the only big market item that macs are weak with, games, while it's getting better, it still has a while to go, and even then, people still don't believe that you can do anything on macs.

    \





    while those people I mentioned might be ignorant not-do-research-before-purchase types, they are still a large part of the market
  • Reply 20 of 89
    amorphamorph Posts: 7,112member
    murbot gets a beer!



    What is it with Steve and magnesium, anyway? He really seems to like that stuff. Anyway, if they've found a way to make a substantially less expensive iMac, bully for them. I consider the 20" iMac to be a brilliant design for a consumer machine, but it really sorely needs to come down below $2K. Preferably a ways below $2k.



    I'd like to see how this impacts the case design, too. I can only assume that Apple used stainless steel the first time for a reason.
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