Can anyone explain how that would be accomplished if the cd drive was not mounted vertically? Mounting the drive horizontally means that either it blocks the air from escaping at the top, or blocks it from entering from the bottom.
I think you could do it, but it means giving room either in width or depth of the unit, so air can essentially run along the drive (which might be the hottest thing in the machine anyway -- convection currents like this would help) and have a mean of vertical escape. The trouble is getting air to circulate through a labynth of parts including the drive, so that the CD drive doesn't block the GPU/CPU/thingy and vice-versa. I don't think we'e seen the last of this effort to crop fans from Macs, but I don't think it's enough to justify a new product type in a somewhat squeezed product lineup. The Cube was Jobs' second love-child behind the original NeXT cube. It was a fling.
On the expansion front, my idea is a little different.
I would advocate for one 7" AGP and 7" PCI, in a shared position ( you cna have one or the other filled ).
The cube, would, by default ship with graphics built into the motherboard. Either in a shared memory solution, like an nForce 3 ( could happen if the 970 is hypertransport based ). Or using a low end AGP 8x chipset.
Either the Radeon 9200, or a Geforce 4mx. Perhaps one of the Mobile solutions would do the job. It all depends on space.
The key is that you could then add another AGP 8x card ( which supports multiple AGP cards ), and not only get improved graphics performance, but good dual display support.
But if you were looking for a PCI card, you can forgo the improved graphics and have whatever special card you need.
Other than that, I pretty much agree with everything that has been said. Im pretty sure that Apple dont release a cube type machine, in the $1000+ category, because they know it would wipe the iMac off the book, and thats a lot of mud on the face of the 'style' masters.
This is one of the best posts I've ever read at AI. The concept of a new, improved Cube is seductive, but Mr. Bauer has artfully exposed the many flaws in the concept.
I can agree with the acknowledged problems with the Cube, but let's face it people want it - badly. Price was it's dagger to the stomach. I bet 99% of people here don't expand CPU/FPU either. I haven't expanded a computer since I owned a Windoze machine. No reason. Apple makes it attractive to upgrade. If you want to expand I/O pop in a SCSI card in a Powermac. If not, don't buy the damned thing. Expandability is for people who want to keep their systems longer than the expected life of the product anyway.
Give me a cutting edge system that, maybe in a year or two, I can deal with replacing with more cutting edge technology. Problem is, Motorola has decided to squat on innovation in the desktop arena, and suddenly people are all over Apple because there is no serious performance to be had from new machines. Guess what people, blame Motorola not Apple; their the ones giving us sh!t product....
Deaf ears, I guess......
Just wait til June 23 and we will all be happy again....
This is one of the best posts I've ever read at AI. The concept of a new, improved Cube is seductive, but Mr. Bauer has artfully exposed the many flaws in the concept.
Thank ya I didn't mean to rain on everyone's parade, I too loved the Cube. In fact, everyone loved the cube. Just, no one bought them
The cube concept is essentially flawless. It has LESS flaws than the AIO, not more.
How does the tower deal with the heat of newer components 2-3 years down the line? The PS has to be up to the task, and a fan, it is possible to have a quiet fan you know. Make it bigger, turn it slower, it can still move a lot of air. As for expansion cards, there are specs for the power drain of said cards, if you include the port, you also engineer for what may be plugged into it, the same way the entire PC building industry deals with it. NOT a problem, at least not an insurmountable one.
NOBODY else sells a successful AIO because a system of seperates is actually a better alternative for everyone. It IS easier for the builders to make, and thus cheaper to buy, but also easier to manage, especially the displays, which give you tons of buying flexibility and the prospect of cheap easy upgrades. Yes cheap and easy. Lots of people just buy a new monitor when it falls into their price range, or add a second one, and then port those to their new box when the time comes for that. Seperating the display and box buying cycles is just too convenient to ignore, especially for schools and businesses.
ONE WIRE!!! gives much greater flexibility of displays, a minimum of internal expansion/upgradability, and makes it possible to builod machines faster and cheaper. WHEN the display goes, and displays do fail, a machine can still be perfectly viable, just plug in a new display! WOW, how revolutionary, a computer that doesn't become a paper weight when the display fails! Rather than an expensive repair, you just pick up a new (better) display of your choice from any retailer of your choosing.
Shuttle style PC's are just taking off, people are buying them. iMac sales, after the initial impact of the concept, have not grown, the iMac FP is not comming near to the impact of the original. The concept is played out. If I want an AIO, I'll get a laptop, that at least rewards me with portability in exchange for giving up expansion and flexibility.
From a great many aspects of ownership, "seperates" are better than an AIO. Philosophy is just that. AIO's work for some people, they have a place, but overwhelmingly, the market demands something else, and those demands have merit and advantages for both builder and buyer.
Do we need a tower? No. Do we want an AIO? NO. Do we need and want a cube? YES! and we want it at the right price.
Jobs fellating AIO zealots get lost. We want a beautiful consumer cube, with just the right I/O and internal expansion. With the flexibility and security of being able to attach displays of our choice, and with a wide ranging marketability that far exceeds the reach of any AIO machine.
The cube failed ONLY on price. The price was idiotic. Take one machine that's cheaper and easier to build than an iMac, easier to package and ship, easier to service and repair and upgrade, and there is just no way that it wouldn't reach more consumers than the iMac.
matsu, matsu, matsu....you are usually so calm and reasoned....except about price...but then we expect that at this point...going off twice in one thread is surprising from you...oh well, i love my iMac and think there is a place for an AIO, but i still drool over the thought of a re-release of the cube....
if i had a choice of a iMac FP for 1700
or a similar spec'd cube that was say 1850 with the 17" Apple display or 2150 with the 20" apple display, i would choose the cube without a moments thought...
AIO are ok too as many people never upgrade their computers in the least...if you know you will never do upgrades and that you will buy a new computer every couple of years, an AIO is a great thing...hell our iMac DV from 1999 is used everyday in the kids room and i expect it to be used for 4 more years....
still, give us back the cube!
g
ps...as much as i like my iMac, i just can't see going oral on SJ...not my type, even with his RDF going full blast....
I could have bought a cube for my business. The price was high and certainly a factor. But I ended up going with a PowerMac. My primary reason was I could see the ports on the bottom making my life miserable everytime I wanted to plug/unplug a peripheral. All those cables exposed on the desk would look ugly.
The price does need to be right, but a redesign would be a must.
Apple sold the cube for about $1,199, $1,099 Education (I think those are correct) in the last quarter before it was discontinued. I'm 90% sure they stated they sold 12,000 Cubes that quarter. Even at these low prices, they couldn't even give the things away. Why would it be any different now, especially considering at that time it didn't have a flatscreen iMac and an cheap eMac to compete with? You say the Flat Panel iMac sales have not grown, but at least they haven't declined to the point of the product being discontinued.
And honestly, you make it sound like it's a regular ordeal for your monitor to die before your computer goes out of use. I've dealt with a lot of computers, and I don't know any that outlived their monitor. Second, monitors also improve every year, and most people take advantage of that and get a new monitor with their new computer. I don't know anyone running a new Powermac on their 15" 1024x768 monitor that they've had for 6 years.
I don't know how many of you have done a lot of moving or brought your computer with you to LAN parties or what have you, but I sure as hell prefer my 1 piece unit Flat Panel iMac for lugging around than I did my 17" Studio Display and Blue & White G3 Tower back in the day. I can have the power and price of a desktop computer and still carry the whole thing in one hand, leaving my other hand free to eat candy and open doors. After that, there's the fact that a single piece unit takes up very little space, especially now that the monitor is mounted above the computer with the new iMacs.
Now your first comment last. A Powermac can accomodate next year's high-end graphics card because the tower has plenty of room for airflow, not to mention a big ass fan. which it must because you're allowed to put 4 drives and 4 PCI cards in there. I don't know if you've looked at the current Powermacs lately, but the entire thing is covered in airholes. Sorry friend, but you can't have a small, quiet Cube and be able to add next year's Graphics cards as well. The little quiet fan in the iMac would not be enough to keep next years high-end 7" AGP graphics card cool. For that, you need some room for ventilation, and thus your Cube must be bigger to make up for this (someone earlier mentioned making the cube 10" by 10"). So now it's no longer small, it's no longer quiet, and it never was expandable, so...you'd buy an eMac, an iMac, an iBook, a Powermac, or a PowerBook, depending on your budget.
Think of what sells, not what sells to mac-lots. When you do, you find that, for 99% of desktop buyers, it isn't an AIO. A large group of Mac users buy iMacs because they can't afford Powermacs, not because they prefer the AIO. Simple.
PRICE!!! It has nothing to do with the AIO philosophy, integration, ease of use etc etc... it's the same reason why the iBook has been a strong seller.
No, some people even buy additional displays BEFORE their tower becomes obsolete. That's the benefit of a new seperate buying cycle for the display and the box. At a school I worked for, we re-used every single CRT. Were they the best? no, but they were good enough.
Right, so, if the volume of cooling air can be sufficient in a tower, the right amount of airflow will also be sufficient for future cubes. People are stuffing hotter CPU and GPU combos, and much faster drives into the current cube without trouble. One fan cures everything, because while parts get hotter, the parts themselves must remain within a certain spec to be useable -- dies shrink, more efficient designs get used, and voila a 400Mhz cube with a 16MB rage card is in late 2003 running a DUAL 1.2Ghz G4 and a GF3Ti. Much too much is made of your collective, but the heat rantings, a proper design, can be quiet and have more than enough excesss cooling capacity to deal with CPU/GPU changes.
In the last quarter before they were discontinued, supplies were low, the product had not been properly promoted, and the initial price shock had dissolusioned most of its potential buyers, who had already purchased powermacs in the weeks before. The product had become stale, NOT offering the speeds, grafics or optical options of the rest of the line-up.
12 000 left over old units may have been sold in the last quarter ONLY because sales figures are given on a quarterly basis. 90% of those macs were gone within 2 weeks of the price drop. After that, on the internet, you could literally count the display units left (not yet on sale)in edu and retail stores across the globe. An odd batch of refurbs, or mismanaged stock would appear and be quickly snapped within days or hours of the news reaching the web community. Your quarterly figure greatly misrepresents the actual sales pace: once the cubes were discontinued and price reduced, they were gone, FAST!
PRICE
cue Matsu's ceremonial pricing dance:
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
kormac
...oops, different dance.
Anyway, the ONLY reason for the cubes failure was price. Design issues (cords, power button, drive placement, could have been, and can be, easily fixed with a little price conscious re-designing.)
Basically, the only reason for the cube's failure was the price.
Either the Radeon 9200, or a Geforce 4mx. Perhaps one of the Mobile solutions would do the job. It all depends on space.
The key is that you could then add another AGP 8x card ( which supports multiple AGP cards ), and not only get improved graphics performance, but good dual display support.
By using a Mobile graphics card, they would make the second cube look like a lesser attempt, than if they were to use a standard card.
Good posts, Cory. As a Cube owner myself, I raised several of the same points back when we were all trying to think of ways to rescue the Cube the first time, and the point that there's no room in Apple's lineup is a salient one. I think sales tapered off toward the end just because everyone new they were doomed.
Quote:
Originally posted by Matsu
No, some people even buy additional displays BEFORE their tower becomes obsolete. That's the benefit of a new seperate buying cycle for the display and the box. At a school I worked for, we re-used every single CRT. Were they the best? no, but they were good enough.
And this identifies one market that is generally cool to AIOs: The business and enterprise markets, which generally prefer separate monitors for various reasons. Also, the same graphic designers who loved the Cube (but not enough to pay that much for it) wanted to be able to hook up the giant monitors and color-correct CRTs that they use for their work. The iMac misses both of those markets. The eMac and the iBook are well-targeted toward education (especially at their current prices) but not toward the crowd that wants expansion as an economical measure (incremental upgrades, in theory, spread the cost over time). That crowd includes Matsu, and, as the axe falls, an increasing number of schools.
The real issue, as far as I'm concerned, is not so much whether it would do well (with a redesign) but where in Apple's lineup it would go. My feeling on this has always been that it should have some form of high-speed connection (FW 1600/3200, 2Gbps Fiber Channel, 10Gb Ethernet etc. - and yes, I'm aware that some of these aren't available yet), so that it could become the next PowerMac. Things that have to be big and loud, like chassis for PCI and internal drives and RAID, can be bought as needed and attached via the high-speed link, and the PowerMac could thus scale up from a small, quiet workstation to a firebreathing powerhouse. At the absolute top end, Apple could continue to offer a no-compromise tower.
To Cube or not to Cube? I own one, and love it. Yes it was too expensive when it came out, and it when it came down to a realistic price the G4 speed fiasco and hard economic times kept sales down. I know that the company I work for was ready to buy a bunch (11 for the design department, possilby 50 for production, and a few for imaging and pre-press) of Cubes (inseatd of towers, most of these computers dont have the need for PCI cards), but the economy held off those purchases for about 6 months, by which time the Cubes were discontinued.
I would like to see the Cube come back out, pretty much as it was. I dont see a problem with the slot loading CD, and the vertical orientation was key to the silent design. If they added a Firewire port to the keyboard or ADC monitor that would be usefull, as would front port for USB, Firewire and audio out, but I dont think it is neccessary. The ability to add a standard sized GPU would be great, but if the systems were selling well I think that ATI would accomodate that in their retail cards, after all the smaller card will fit in a tower with a faceplate change.
Personally, the way I see it what Apple needs to release is a system that is going to attract NEW customers. This includes people who woulndt buy AIO's, as well as buisness, enterprise, and any other market that will expand Apples market share. Could the iCube do this? who knows? I know that I would be a lot more tempted to buy a low-med range 970 Cube than an iMac for home use, and pair it up with a 20" studio monitor.
As for monitors, at work I have gone through 3 computers in the past 5 years, but still have the same 20" monitor hooked up the the latest Dual G4. When we do get a new monitor in the design departmet, typically the old ones (as long as they are still functioning) are moved to production, editorial, project management, or anywhere they are needed just as they do with the computers. I would imagine that this is a pretty common buisness practice, and to ignore it is to ignore potential sales. (note also that the computers are moved down the "need for speed" hierarchy as well, so this affects the buying choices of all the computers that are made by the company).
Here is a report we'll start with a disclaimer: This comes from a short email we received, supposedly from an employee at the same small plastics plant that cast the outer acrylic shells for the Apple G4 Cube. Only because two obscure, minor bits of information in the email are also correct, ones that only someone from that plant would be likely to know, do we pass this along. The report?... That Apple has recently submitted a request for quote to this firm for an only slightly modified version of the G4 Cube's clear outer shell.
Actually, we have had a number of quiet comments come our way from Taiwan sources over the past few months intimating that Apple was quietly sourcing suppliers for a "surprising" product to celebrate the Macintosh's upcoming 20th anniversary. This latest report of a possible resurrection of the original Cube design just adds fuel to the speculative fire that Apple's preparing to offer a very special model Macintosh to commemorate the computer platform's two decades of history.
At this point, what we know with some confidence is: (A) Apple is developing a special edition Mac for introduction around the end of 2003, (B) the new model will not be merely a variation of either the iMac, eMac, or PowerMac, but will be a distinct form factor to itself, (C) the new Mac will be built in one limited edition production run (quantity presently unknown), and (D) the machine *may* be slated to appear in a clear cast acrylic enclosure nearly identical to the original G4 Cube.
We have made a point to aggressively pursue added information about this mysterious limited edition Mac, and will report any new findings here, as available.
Now that would make sense! A limited production run for a special occassion. Therefore, it doesn't compete with existing products, and doesn't have to fit into their product stragedy, and they don't have to worry about it failing again, because it's only going to be around for xxx number of units anyhow. And they can use it as a means of testing the waters for a real Cube introduction. If the whole line sells in a day, they could think about replacing that iMac with a Cube permanently...If it takes a whole quarter to sell 20,000 of the things, then they know the thing still isn't going to be a good alternative to the iMac.
The only flaw in the cube was the pricing. The cube rumor floating around places such as this before the official announcement was it would be a shockingly tasty $999. I was ready to chunck down the cash on the day of the release. When the $1799 price tag was officially announced, I wanted to vomit. Do you think the mini cooper would sell as well for $50,000?
. . . The report?. . . That Apple has recently submitted a request for quote to this firm for an only slightly modified version of the G4 Cube's clear outer shell. . .
Honey, we shrunk the G5 Super Computer? By that time the 90 nanometer 970+ should be available.
My concerns about a reintroduced Cube have always been based on Apple trying to make the little guy a high volume machine, or worse yet an iMac replacement. A limited run 20th Ann. Cube however, could be VERY appealing, especially if it uses a .09 970 for silent and fanless operation.
I only hope Steve doesn't position it as a $2,500 "collectable".
Comments
Originally posted by Frank777
Can anyone explain how that would be accomplished if the cd drive was not mounted vertically? Mounting the drive horizontally means that either it blocks the air from escaping at the top, or blocks it from entering from the bottom.
I think you could do it, but it means giving room either in width or depth of the unit, so air can essentially run along the drive (which might be the hottest thing in the machine anyway -- convection currents like this would help) and have a mean of vertical escape. The trouble is getting air to circulate through a labynth of parts including the drive, so that the CD drive doesn't block the GPU/CPU/thingy and vice-versa. I don't think we'e seen the last of this effort to crop fans from Macs, but I don't think it's enough to justify a new product type in a somewhat squeezed product lineup. The Cube was Jobs' second love-child behind the original NeXT cube. It was a fling.
I would advocate for one 7" AGP and 7" PCI, in a shared position ( you cna have one or the other filled ).
The cube, would, by default ship with graphics built into the motherboard. Either in a shared memory solution, like an nForce 3 ( could happen if the 970 is hypertransport based ). Or using a low end AGP 8x chipset.
Either the Radeon 9200, or a Geforce 4mx. Perhaps one of the Mobile solutions would do the job. It all depends on space.
The key is that you could then add another AGP 8x card ( which supports multiple AGP cards ), and not only get improved graphics performance, but good dual display support.
But if you were looking for a PCI card, you can forgo the improved graphics and have whatever special card you need.
Other than that, I pretty much agree with everything that has been said. Im pretty sure that Apple dont release a cube type machine, in the $1000+ category, because they know it would wipe the iMac off the book, and thats a lot of mud on the face of the 'style' masters.
Originally posted by Ensign Pulver
This is one of the best posts I've ever read at AI. The concept of a new, improved Cube is seductive, but Mr. Bauer has artfully exposed the many flaws in the concept.
I can agree with the acknowledged problems with the Cube, but let's face it people want it - badly. Price was it's dagger to the stomach. I bet 99% of people here don't expand CPU/FPU either. I haven't expanded a computer since I owned a Windoze machine. No reason. Apple makes it attractive to upgrade. If you want to expand I/O pop in a SCSI card in a Powermac. If not, don't buy the damned thing. Expandability is for people who want to keep their systems longer than the expected life of the product anyway.
Give me a cutting edge system that, maybe in a year or two, I can deal with replacing with more cutting edge technology. Problem is, Motorola has decided to squat on innovation in the desktop arena, and suddenly people are all over Apple because there is no serious performance to be had from new machines. Guess what people, blame Motorola not Apple; their the ones giving us sh!t product....
Deaf ears, I guess......
Just wait til June 23 and we will all be happy again....
Until then, settle down and post nicely
Originally posted by Ensign Pulver
This is one of the best posts I've ever read at AI. The concept of a new, improved Cube is seductive, but Mr. Bauer has artfully exposed the many flaws in the concept.
Thank ya
Originally posted by Cory Bauer
Thank ya
Price point....it was a bit high....and so am I
Jim Morrison
How does the tower deal with the heat of newer components 2-3 years down the line? The PS has to be up to the task, and a fan, it is possible to have a quiet fan you know. Make it bigger, turn it slower, it can still move a lot of air. As for expansion cards, there are specs for the power drain of said cards, if you include the port, you also engineer for what may be plugged into it, the same way the entire PC building industry deals with it. NOT a problem, at least not an insurmountable one.
NOBODY else sells a successful AIO because a system of seperates is actually a better alternative for everyone. It IS easier for the builders to make, and thus cheaper to buy, but also easier to manage, especially the displays, which give you tons of buying flexibility and the prospect of cheap easy upgrades. Yes cheap and easy. Lots of people just buy a new monitor when it falls into their price range, or add a second one, and then port those to their new box when the time comes for that. Seperating the display and box buying cycles is just too convenient to ignore, especially for schools and businesses.
ONE WIRE!!! gives much greater flexibility of displays, a minimum of internal expansion/upgradability, and makes it possible to builod machines faster and cheaper. WHEN the display goes, and displays do fail, a machine can still be perfectly viable, just plug in a new display! WOW, how revolutionary, a computer that doesn't become a paper weight when the display fails! Rather than an expensive repair, you just pick up a new (better) display of your choice from any retailer of your choosing.
Shuttle style PC's are just taking off, people are buying them. iMac sales, after the initial impact of the concept, have not grown, the iMac FP is not comming near to the impact of the original. The concept is played out. If I want an AIO, I'll get a laptop, that at least rewards me with portability in exchange for giving up expansion and flexibility.
From a great many aspects of ownership, "seperates" are better than an AIO. Philosophy is just that. AIO's work for some people, they have a place, but overwhelmingly, the market demands something else, and those demands have merit and advantages for both builder and buyer.
Do we need a tower? No. Do we want an AIO? NO. Do we need and want a cube? YES! and we want it at the right price.
Jobs fellating AIO zealots get lost. We want a beautiful consumer cube, with just the right I/O and internal expansion. With the flexibility and security of being able to attach displays of our choice, and with a wide ranging marketability that far exceeds the reach of any AIO machine.
The cube failed ONLY on price. The price was idiotic. Take one machine that's cheaper and easier to build than an iMac, easier to package and ship, easier to service and repair and upgrade, and there is just no way that it wouldn't reach more consumers than the iMac.
JUST PRICE IT RIGHT!
Jobs fellating AIO zealots get lost.
matsu, matsu, matsu....you are usually so calm and reasoned....except about price...but then we expect that at this point...going off twice in one thread is surprising from you...oh well, i love my iMac and think there is a place for an AIO, but i still drool over the thought of a re-release of the cube....
if i had a choice of a iMac FP for 1700
or a similar spec'd cube that was say 1850 with the 17" Apple display or 2150 with the 20" apple display, i would choose the cube without a moments thought...
AIO are ok too as many people never upgrade their computers in the least...if you know you will never do upgrades and that you will buy a new computer every couple of years, an AIO is a great thing...hell our iMac DV from 1999 is used everyday in the kids room and i expect it to be used for 4 more years....
still, give us back the cube!
g
ps...as much as i like my iMac, i just can't see going oral on SJ...not my type, even with his RDF going full blast....
I could have bought a cube for my business. The price was high and certainly a factor. But I ended up going with a PowerMac. My primary reason was I could see the ports on the bottom making my life miserable everytime I wanted to plug/unplug a peripheral. All those cables exposed on the desk would look ugly.
The price does need to be right, but a redesign would be a must.
Apple sold the cube for about $1,199, $1,099 Education (I think those are correct) in the last quarter before it was discontinued. I'm 90% sure they stated they sold 12,000 Cubes that quarter. Even at these low prices, they couldn't even give the things away. Why would it be any different now, especially considering at that time it didn't have a flatscreen iMac and an cheap eMac to compete with? You say the Flat Panel iMac sales have not grown, but at least they haven't declined to the point of the product being discontinued.
And honestly, you make it sound like it's a regular ordeal for your monitor to die before your computer goes out of use. I've dealt with a lot of computers, and I don't know any that outlived their monitor. Second, monitors also improve every year, and most people take advantage of that and get a new monitor with their new computer. I don't know anyone running a new Powermac on their 15" 1024x768 monitor that they've had for 6 years.
I don't know how many of you have done a lot of moving or brought your computer with you to LAN parties or what have you, but I sure as hell prefer my 1 piece unit Flat Panel iMac for lugging around than I did my 17" Studio Display and Blue & White G3 Tower back in the day. I can have the power and price of a desktop computer and still carry the whole thing in one hand, leaving my other hand free to eat candy and open doors. After that, there's the fact that a single piece unit takes up very little space, especially now that the monitor is mounted above the computer with the new iMacs.
Now your first comment last. A Powermac can accomodate next year's high-end graphics card because the tower has plenty of room for airflow, not to mention a big ass fan. which it must because you're allowed to put 4 drives and 4 PCI cards in there. I don't know if you've looked at the current Powermacs lately, but the entire thing is covered in airholes. Sorry friend, but you can't have a small, quiet Cube and be able to add next year's Graphics cards as well. The little quiet fan in the iMac would not be enough to keep next years high-end 7" AGP graphics card cool. For that, you need some room for ventilation, and thus your Cube must be bigger to make up for this (someone earlier mentioned making the cube 10" by 10"). So now it's no longer small, it's no longer quiet, and it never was expandable, so...you'd buy an eMac, an iMac, an iBook, a Powermac, or a PowerBook, depending on your budget.
PRICE!!! It has nothing to do with the AIO philosophy, integration, ease of use etc etc... it's the same reason why the iBook has been a strong seller.
No, some people even buy additional displays BEFORE their tower becomes obsolete. That's the benefit of a new seperate buying cycle for the display and the box. At a school I worked for, we re-used every single CRT. Were they the best? no, but they were good enough.
Right, so, if the volume of cooling air can be sufficient in a tower, the right amount of airflow will also be sufficient for future cubes. People are stuffing hotter CPU and GPU combos, and much faster drives into the current cube without trouble. One fan cures everything, because while parts get hotter, the parts themselves must remain within a certain spec to be useable -- dies shrink, more efficient designs get used, and voila a 400Mhz cube with a 16MB rage card is in late 2003 running a DUAL 1.2Ghz G4 and a GF3Ti. Much too much is made of your collective, but the heat rantings, a proper design, can be quiet and have more than enough excesss cooling capacity to deal with CPU/GPU changes.
In the last quarter before they were discontinued, supplies were low, the product had not been properly promoted, and the initial price shock had dissolusioned most of its potential buyers, who had already purchased powermacs in the weeks before. The product had become stale, NOT offering the speeds, grafics or optical options of the rest of the line-up.
12 000 left over old units may have been sold in the last quarter ONLY because sales figures are given on a quarterly basis. 90% of those macs were gone within 2 weeks of the price drop. After that, on the internet, you could literally count the display units left (not yet on sale)in edu and retail stores across the globe. An odd batch of refurbs, or mismanaged stock would appear and be quickly snapped within days or hours of the news reaching the web community. Your quarterly figure greatly misrepresents the actual sales pace: once the cubes were discontinued and price reduced, they were gone, FAST!
PRICE
cue Matsu's ceremonial pricing dance:
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
PRICE
kormac
Anyway, the ONLY reason for the cubes failure was price. Design issues (cords, power button, drive placement, could have been, and can be, easily fixed with a little price conscious re-designing.)
Basically, the only reason for the cube's failure was the price.
Originally posted by mmmpie
Either the Radeon 9200, or a Geforce 4mx. Perhaps one of the Mobile solutions would do the job. It all depends on space.
The key is that you could then add another AGP 8x card ( which supports multiple AGP cards ), and not only get improved graphics performance, but good dual display support.
By using a Mobile graphics card, they would make the second cube look like a lesser attempt, than if they were to use a standard card.
I like your shared card idea though.
Originally posted by Matsu
No, some people even buy additional displays BEFORE their tower becomes obsolete. That's the benefit of a new seperate buying cycle for the display and the box. At a school I worked for, we re-used every single CRT. Were they the best? no, but they were good enough.
And this identifies one market that is generally cool to AIOs: The business and enterprise markets, which generally prefer separate monitors for various reasons. Also, the same graphic designers who loved the Cube (but not enough to pay that much for it) wanted to be able to hook up the giant monitors and color-correct CRTs that they use for their work. The iMac misses both of those markets. The eMac and the iBook are well-targeted toward education (especially at their current prices) but not toward the crowd that wants expansion as an economical measure (incremental upgrades, in theory, spread the cost over time). That crowd includes Matsu, and, as the axe falls, an increasing number of schools.
The real issue, as far as I'm concerned, is not so much whether it would do well (with a redesign) but where in Apple's lineup it would go. My feeling on this has always been that it should have some form of high-speed connection (FW 1600/3200, 2Gbps Fiber Channel, 10Gb Ethernet etc. - and yes, I'm aware that some of these aren't available yet), so that it could become the next PowerMac. Things that have to be big and loud, like chassis for PCI and internal drives and RAID, can be bought as needed and attached via the high-speed link, and the PowerMac could thus scale up from a small, quiet workstation to a firebreathing powerhouse. At the absolute top end, Apple could continue to offer a no-compromise tower.
I would like to see the Cube come back out, pretty much as it was. I dont see a problem with the slot loading CD, and the vertical orientation was key to the silent design. If they added a Firewire port to the keyboard or ADC monitor that would be usefull, as would front port for USB, Firewire and audio out, but I dont think it is neccessary. The ability to add a standard sized GPU would be great, but if the systems were selling well I think that ATI would accomodate that in their retail cards, after all the smaller card will fit in a tower with a faceplate change.
Personally, the way I see it what Apple needs to release is a system that is going to attract NEW customers. This includes people who woulndt buy AIO's, as well as buisness, enterprise, and any other market that will expand Apples market share. Could the iCube do this? who knows? I know that I would be a lot more tempted to buy a low-med range 970 Cube than an iMac for home use, and pair it up with a 20" studio monitor.
As for monitors, at work I have gone through 3 computers in the past 5 years, but still have the same 20" monitor hooked up the the latest Dual G4. When we do get a new monitor in the design departmet, typically the old ones (as long as they are still functioning) are moved to production, editorial, project management, or anywhere they are needed just as they do with the computers. I would imagine that this is a pretty common buisness practice, and to ignore it is to ignore potential sales. (note also that the computers are moved down the "need for speed" hierarchy as well, so this affects the buying choices of all the computers that are made by the company).
MacWhispers
May 19, 2003
Strange Report: 20th Anniversary Mac
Here is a report we'll start with a disclaimer: This comes from a short email we received, supposedly from an employee at the same small plastics plant that cast the outer acrylic shells for the Apple G4 Cube. Only because two obscure, minor bits of information in the email are also correct, ones that only someone from that plant would be likely to know, do we pass this along. The report?... That Apple has recently submitted a request for quote to this firm for an only slightly modified version of the G4 Cube's clear outer shell.
Actually, we have had a number of quiet comments come our way from Taiwan sources over the past few months intimating that Apple was quietly sourcing suppliers for a "surprising" product to celebrate the Macintosh's upcoming 20th anniversary. This latest report of a possible resurrection of the original Cube design just adds fuel to the speculative fire that Apple's preparing to offer a very special model Macintosh to commemorate the computer platform's two decades of history.
At this point, what we know with some confidence is: (A) Apple is developing a special edition Mac for introduction around the end of 2003, (B) the new model will not be merely a variation of either the iMac, eMac, or PowerMac, but will be a distinct form factor to itself, (C) the new Mac will be built in one limited edition production run (quantity presently unknown), and (D) the machine *may* be slated to appear in a clear cast acrylic enclosure nearly identical to the original G4 Cube.
We have made a point to aggressively pursue added information about this mysterious limited edition Mac, and will report any new findings here, as available.
Originally posted by Ensign Pulver
Cube reintroduced as 20th Anniversary Mac?
. . . The report?. . . That Apple has recently submitted a request for quote to this firm for an only slightly modified version of the G4 Cube's clear outer shell. . .
Honey, we shrunk the G5 Super Computer? By that time the 90 nanometer 970+ should be available.
I only hope Steve doesn't position it as a $2,500 "collectable".