Next generation iMac
I think the iMac as it is now has lost it's identity, purpose, and role. I'm not even sure it's proper to call the iMac of today and iMac when it has deviated so much from the original.
The iMac when it originally was released mirrored the lowend powermac pretty closely but made a few sacrifices to cut cost and it shipped as one model and offered the best bang for the buck for that one price. It was designed to be the perfect all around consumer machine. One model fits all.
Then Apple slowly expanded, and expanded....and then the iMac G4 was released, prices went into a completely other league and now the iMac is hardly the all around consumer model it originally was
SOOOOOO
with the G5, I think Apple should take a shot at going back to the original iMac and offering a single model.
iMac G5
17 inch LCD
1.6Ghz G5 / 800 Mhz Bus
256 MB RAM
120 GB Hard Drive
ATI Radeon 9600 64 MB
Superdrive
Firewire 800/USB 2/Airport Extreme
Gigabit Ethernet
$1499
possibly one other model as a "Special Edition" and have it be the 20 inch screen for $1799
I guess this is somewhat arguable as far as pricing but I think it' important for the iMac that it get rid of this tiered performance/features model it has been following. and back to being a one model fits all thing.
The iMac when it originally was released mirrored the lowend powermac pretty closely but made a few sacrifices to cut cost and it shipped as one model and offered the best bang for the buck for that one price. It was designed to be the perfect all around consumer machine. One model fits all.
Then Apple slowly expanded, and expanded....and then the iMac G4 was released, prices went into a completely other league and now the iMac is hardly the all around consumer model it originally was
SOOOOOO
with the G5, I think Apple should take a shot at going back to the original iMac and offering a single model.
iMac G5
17 inch LCD
1.6Ghz G5 / 800 Mhz Bus
256 MB RAM
120 GB Hard Drive
ATI Radeon 9600 64 MB
Superdrive
Firewire 800/USB 2/Airport Extreme
Gigabit Ethernet
$1499
possibly one other model as a "Special Edition" and have it be the 20 inch screen for $1799
I guess this is somewhat arguable as far as pricing but I think it' important for the iMac that it get rid of this tiered performance/features model it has been following. and back to being a one model fits all thing.
Comments
Also I would not mind to see the iMac take another shape to cut costs. Don't get me wrong... I love the current look, it's my wallet that seems to hate it.
Originally posted by \\/\\/ickes
Agreed,,, but I would like to see a 15" model too.
Also I would not mind to see the iMac take another shape to cut costs. Don't get me wrong... I love the current look, it's my wallet that seems to hate it.
as would i. i don't really like the current design. it needs to be much more refined for my tastes.
15 inch....eh, i say leave the low end market to the eMac.
Originally posted by \\/\\/ickes
Agreed,,, but I would like to see a 15" model too.
Also I would not mind to see the iMac take another shape to cut costs. Don't get me wrong... I love the current look, it's my wallet that seems to hate it.
The 15" is really dead. No one wants this model anymore the resolution is just too low. For the marginal extra cost you get the 17". I expect the first posters predictions to come true, it is just a matter of time. I need just one more iMac and it will be 20" and G5, I am patent, I will wait.
Originally posted by Big Mac
Still sounds too expensive to me. . . The iMac is supposed to be a consumer machine. It really should be approaching eMac price levels, but it's not going that way at all. When you speak about refining the design, what do you have in mind, applenut?
well, i don't think the base is all that elegant and functional. it's not too attractive, the trapdoor on the drive is ugly, the ports around the back are annoying.
The base needs to be redesigned. Have some front mounted ports. Slot load drive. Different color.
I'd like to see a darker colored iMac....or a blue
I believe I paid 1299 USD for my bondi iMac... add in a little inflation and that price isn't really much different.
Pure on petrol and light with a match. The low end iMac(1) was at one point 50% cheaper than the iMac(2)'s low end.
The iMac 2's brilliant design isn't going to save it from a design tweak from Apple. It used to be the sales flagship and is now being outsold by £2k towers.
Applenut's right. The iMac has lost its mandate. It's become the overpriced and underspecced 'cube' and the 'lard mac' has become the iMac.
If it maintains its current price then a G5 and a decent graphics card is essential. Not only that, the 'low end' price is £200 off the mark. There are consumer wintels with 15-17 inch LCDs, 2 gig plus cpus, expandability and 'decent' design AND a 'super drive' for about £799.
...and there's no wonder Apple lumps iMac2 with eMac sales. Down 20% year on year.
It's had a stint in the Apple store top ten. Whoop-de-doo. 1 million iMac 2 vs 3 million iMac 1 in the first few years.
iMac 2 is off the sales pace as is its price. No surprise. Seems to be some sort of correlation there...
If the iMac2 had an upgradable graphics slot and cpu then I wouldn't moan as much. Or if it had a G5/decent graphics card. BUT, it's great design on rip-off, out of date hardware. It's put in stark light by the leading edge G5. In terms of hardware? The 20 inch monitor is lipstick on a chicken.
If the 15 inch and 17 inch iMac 2 were well below 1 K no one would care and sales would surge higher.
Maybe the design is too lofty? Not as approachable as the cuddly iMac 1?
They could change colours. Lower price(I like repeating myself...!) Have AN expansion slot for better graphics later...
Maybe a shuttle design that you can dock on an 'ARM' display. The more I think about it, why not a 'giant' iPod design...with 'tablet' functional screen that can dock at the i-Pudding station? You'd essentially have a 12inch iBook screen placed vertically on a bigger iPod style dock. The iPod buttons could stay. As could the jog wheel. Maybe even build an iSight into it and wireless you know what to stream you know what. Complete with i-Pen to Inkwell your Winter away until the next San Fran Macworld? This would justify its price far more than the current beast.
Lemon Bon Bon
Although they may not quite be ready for an iMac3 with a new form factor, my guess is that a top of the line G5 20" model, perhaps with a few cosmetic changes, will be unveiled at MWSF.
If not, a few weeks later.
Originally posted by satchmo
If you recall, the specs of the original FP iMac came at us from left field. While most were simply clamouring for a 17" version of the gumdrop design, Apple blew everyone away with not only a radically new design, but a G4 processor to boot.
Although they may not quite be ready for an iMac3 with a new form factor, my guess is that a top of the line G5 20" model, perhaps with a few cosmetic changes, will be unveiled at MWSF.
If not, a few weeks later.
I think everyone was clamouring for an LCD iMac at the time and not a 17 inch version. and yes, the specs were better than most expected. the price was also 500-700 dollars higher than anyone was expecting.
a top of the line G5 20 inch model does NOTHING. 2199 is not a consumer machine. it isn't going to gain market share. isn't going to sell anywhere near the levels the iMac should be selling
<disclaimer>I'm one of those Lemon Bon Bon fans who think the prices on the whole LCD iMac line are around $400 too high anyway.</disclaimer>
Besides, the only difference between the 20" and the 17" is the big screen and the additional weight in the base. If you're coming out with a G5 iMac, you can change all of them, not just the 20".
"oh i think......."
who cares what you think!
this is by far the worst time of the year because everything goes silent and yet all i see are threads with....."oh i think".....
arrrrgh!
Originally posted by geekmeet
this is another thread which accomplishes nothing!
"oh i think......."
who cares what you think!
this is by far the worst time of the year because everything goes silent and yet all i see are threads with....."oh i think".....
arrrrgh!
Ahhhhhhh RRRRRRRRRRRRitalin!
Originally posted by @homenow
The biggest problem today with the iMac is that its processor is too out of date. When the original iMac (at $1299) was released it's processor was equil to the low end PM. Today it is well below that target and needs to be brought up to speed.
Good point. Now, let's see: in about two months from now at most, the low end PowerMac will run one or two 1.8-2 GHz G5 processors. If Apple does not introduce a G5 based iMac until then with at least 1.8 GHz G5, then they will enlarge the existing gap to... abyss.
Originally posted by applenut
I think everyone was clamouring for an LCD iMac at the time and not a 17 inch version. and yes, the specs were better than most expected. the price was also 500-700 dollars higher than anyone was expecting.
a top of the line G5 20 inch model does NOTHING. 2199 is not a consumer machine. it isn't going to gain market share. isn't going to sell anywhere near the levels the iMac should be selling
Well, I remember it differently. A 17" screen was the missing piece in the gumdrop line. Even the G3 processor wasn't an issue.
Regardless, I'd love to be blown away again with a low cost iMac. But this is Apple we're talking about. I agree 2199 is too much, but how many times have we seen them bump up the speed but keep the price the same. I'm afraid we'll be lucky if we see a G5 iMac 20" for $1999.
Originally posted by geekmeet
this is another thread which accomplishes nothing!...
I liked the way you put it in the other thread:
you guys got squat!
you got nothing!
these threads are so sad and pathetic and the worst part is many of you take yourself WAY too seriously!
just sit back and wait for apple to deliever the goods.
Of course we've got nothing. This board has had some juicy posts at times, but nowadays most of the "insider" stuff is coming on the main page.
A thread like "Next generation iMac" is bound to be a pure-speculation thread. Speculation is fun! Skip it if you don't want to see pure speculation. But we do appreciate your reminders that what we are doing is pure speculation.
I think that for home/school users, the iBook/PowerBook is more enticing than an iMac. Also the sheer portability of a laptop is a major selling point for a lot of people. While the iMac has it's place, it's place is a lot lonelier of late.
I think that a price shrink is not only due, but it is a must to keep it in the small markets it is still viable in.
Brute force desktops, value/perfomance laptops are in, the over-priced, under-speced iMac is either on it's way out, or up for a remodel.
Originally posted by cubist
Applenut is right, the price is too high. Why would I spend $2199 on an LCD iMac when, for the same money, I can get a dual 1.8GHz tower and a separate monitor?
Really? Where can I buy one?
Originally posted by applenut
I think everyone was clamouring for an LCD iMac at the time and not a 17 inch version. and yes, the specs were better than most expected. the price was also 500-700 dollars higher than anyone was expecting.
People were expecting $799, $999, and $1299 when the iMac 2 came out? Here, this whole time I thought that the iMac 2 was originally priced very well at $1299 considering at the time a 15" LCD and a 700 mHz G4 cost nearly $2500 and two months before $1299 got you a 700 mHz G3 and a 15" CRT screen.
a top of the line G5 20 inch model does NOTHING. 2199 is not a consumer machine. it isn't going to gain market share. isn't going to sell anywhere near the levels the iMac should be selling
Price has nothing to do with a computer being consumer or pro. Features are what distinguish the two. Now I do think that the iMac could shed a few $, but simply adding a G5 is not going to do much for sales.