Is new design too radical for public?
I throw this out as my initial reaction was "huh"?
But it is starting to grow on me and the more I look at it, it's making more sense.
I wonder how this "lamp" will go over with the general public. Will they perceive it as a work of art and not a serious computer?
The original iMac had to overcome some of these hurdles and succeed. However, the Cube was perhaps too "designy" and went over many heads and therefore died quickly.
The power of the iMac brand name will help but is it enough to make people take note and have it taken seriously by the masses?
But it is starting to grow on me and the more I look at it, it's making more sense.
I wonder how this "lamp" will go over with the general public. Will they perceive it as a work of art and not a serious computer?
The original iMac had to overcome some of these hurdles and succeed. However, the Cube was perhaps too "designy" and went over many heads and therefore died quickly.
The power of the iMac brand name will help but is it enough to make people take note and have it taken seriously by the masses?
Comments
If it wasn't for the price, I could see this even more than the original TV-like iMac, as something in "every room of the house" just like lamps and phones. Oh that's right people are carrying their phones now.
So is it too radical? Maybe. It doesn't look attractive to me, but maybe another 5% of the public who wouldn't normally buy a computer, might buy it.
I just wish it were metallic or graphite or the base glowed or something. The idea of organic and "sunflower-like" to me doesn't connote glossy white.
[edit] Oh, wait! The Cube was on Drew's desk...
[ 01-07-2002: Message edited by: starfleetX ]</p>
I know that sounds corny, but display adjustability is paramount to the user experience. I'm sure this new iMac will be a joy to work on.
Will it go ver the heads of the normal public? Not anymore than the original iMac. I think this one will probably be easier for people to digest because it's not colorful. It has a very professional look to it, and I can imagine it fitting right in at a business, with all the desktop sharper image toys.
I'm holding out for the 17" version, I bet it's here at MWNY.
So, imagine you're Joe Average Consumer, and you're walking in a mall that happens to have an Apple store and you see this thing in the window. "iMac?" the sign says it's a computer, but it sure doesn't look like any computer you've ever seen, so you go inside to investigate...
Now, not every Joe Average Consumer is going to buy one, but you can bet they'll be talking about it when they see it, and more than a few of them will see it as something that is truly different and worthwhile, not just a cheap beige box that runs windows.
With the economy as it is, it seems that not alot of people are going to be buying new PC's until the second half of this year at the earliest, but those who do are going to want to spend their money on something unique and compelling. Something like an iMac...
ciao,
michael
That iMac is great. I'm not even so fond of the dome, but I still think it's great. As (i think) Buon Rotto is fond of repeating, "Good design creates it's own rationale."
That new iMac just makes so much sense. It'll evolve far more easily than the old one. You know that sony touch-screen easle PC, that's easily in the reach of Apple's new swivel design -- just needs software, a touch sensitive layer, and a pen. If Apple wants to increase the screen size in a year or two on the high end models? No problem, just stick a new panel on the arm. A small size increase up to 17 or 18 inches wouldn't cock-up the design in any way. It'd probably look even better.
How bout a rotating landscape to portrait type display? Just a question of drivers and a small addition to the arm. I think they should have done this right outta the box. A twisting swivel in the arm couldn't have been hard to engineer, but perhaps the drivers were a peskier issue -- I've heard that those old monitors never really worked bug free.
The point is that the new iMac design has a lot more room to mature than the old one, and yet it takes even less desk space than before.
Quite good.
And PS. Those are full cache G4s in there. See the heat sink Apple uses to cool those guys in the Pro Machines. That enclosure must be very good a dispersing heat. Apollo is on the way, and it is going to raise the speed of this machine quite a bit before years end.
This will be bigger then the first iMac. I'm getting my wife one
Personally, I think the new iMac looks like something I'd want on my desk...it takes up little space, and then it has that awesome LCD that totally adjustable. ****in' cool! And I say, **** Joe Consumer, because he's too busy buying a Wintel to care about Apple.
Joe Consumer doesn't buy a Mac. The people who buy Macs are a bit different, a bit eccentric in their own ways. This is Apple's market, and I think it would be foolish of Apple to go after Joe Consumer, because Joe Consumer doesn't value the things that make a Mac so special. Joe Consumer doesn't use his computer to create, he uses it to play games and surf the internet. Joe Consumer is a right wing redneck, who likes to drink lots of bud light and watch TV. Joe Consumer would think Steve Jobs did too much acid. Joe Consumer buys Wintels because he has a powerful need to conform to the masses. Joe Consumer doesn't think for himself.
Get my point? Apple doesn't sell to Joe Consumer, Apple doesn't target Joe Consumer, and Apple is better off not doing so. Apple's got a niche market and that's fine for now...they can build up their marketshare but it isn't going to happen by selling to Joe Consumer, it's going to happen by selling to people who are creative, think for themselves, and don't mind being different, being non-conformist.
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I'm holding out for the 17" version, I bet it's here at MWNY.
Naaah, JD, you'll be holding out for 19" and a HyperDrive-equipped 2 GHz G5 by then.
Three USB's is another nice detail that makes me think Steve Jobs is listening.
Personally I loved the Key Lime iBook. I'm not kidding. But I'd also be the first to admit that most people probably should hate it. Apple should offer these off beat products because it's what they do best, but if they're serious about increasing their market share then they need to have a product that in some sick way appeals to the lowest common denominator. That doesn't mean dumping their beautiful products, just making sure the lowest rung of their products is accessible.
Think of it as a stepping stone for the weak!
LOL, well yeah, there's ALWAYS something better to wait for. But I've always been very critical of the iMac's display size, and this new one still has a very small display. Unlike the CRT iMac, this LCD is of the highest quality, so at least the picture will be tip-top. I could see myself living with this 15" LCD iMac. But a 17" iMac would be much, much nicer, especially for gaming.
I've been saying this for years, and I suppose I'll go on saying it, since Apple doesn't seem to care about the market that a large-screen iMac would tap into. But I'm hopefull that they will see the light.
<strong>This is the first computer from Apple recently that I would like to see in black. Why not offer both? Then it would fit in everywhere.</strong><hr></blockquote>
Funny you bring that up. I just showed my mom the new iMac and she said "I only want it if it comes in black."
Also while I'm at it, I don't really like the way it looks. Sorry, I don't. There's no doubt in my mind that it will sell well but I don't really like it. My favorite product still it the Key Lime and Graphite iBooks. I really miss the colors, and the girls thought my iBook was cute which was a real plus. I also liked the Indigo, Sage, Ruby, Graphite iMacs. Apple is turning white into the "new beige." Don't like it. My $.02
[ 01-08-2002: Message edited by: G4Dude ]</p>