Apple coolness...has it peaked?

pscates · April 19, 2003 12:42AM

I don't know...I'm asking.

I do know that I don't seem to harbor as much enthusiasm and feelings of "ohmigosh, what next?" as I did in 1999 and 2000.

Was it the colors? The "newness" of it all (wild, colorful and swoopy iBooks, a "Special Edition" iMac, FireWire, this new "AirPort" thing, all these colored USB peripherals, the initial peeks of OS X, the very first couple of iApps, etc.).

Not to say these days are bad, because they're certainly not. I think Apple is - with the exception of one or two small things - firing on all cylinders.

But I don't crave or pursue things like before. 2, 3 or 4 years ago I'd get Macworld, MacDesign/MacToday, the occasional MacAddict and MacHome and about 7 of the mail order catalogs and just DEVOUR them. Couldn't get enough. Loved looking at new blue or strawberry USB hubs, mice, drive cases, etc.

Just wondering if it's me, if things are indeed different in tone/vibe or, perhaps, a little bit of both?

I still love and dig the company and their stuff to no end, but it's a bit more sedate and "take it or leave it". I can skip the mags and I only get a couple of mail order catalogs (and, honestly, never really look at them beyond an initial "flip through" while walking back from the mailbox).

Something is definitely different. Not good, not bad...just different.

Maybe it's just at "cruising altitude" now? That initial rush and thrill of take-off (based on the things I mentioned above) is now standard and expected stuff. Like a junkie, perhaps, maybe it takes more and more to attain that onetime high? Feels like more of an evolutionary period now, rather than a revolutionary one. Overall.

torifile · April 19, 2003 12:57AM

I think that the internet has killed the newness of a lot of things for me. It used to be that I had to get a magazine to see some pictures, but now I just hop on the net and there it is. In abundance. We don't have to wait for that magazine to hit the stands anymore. The stuff I read in the magazines is something I read at least 3 weeks prior. And the reviews? They're like 2 months behind the times.

So, I think that the times have changed. I don't think that any qualitative has changed all that much. Although, I think that Apple is in a lull right now. The powerbooks, ibooks and imacs are all sort of stagnant. The real fun will start in a couple months at WWDC. So maybe something qualitative has changed. I just don't think that overall things have changed that much...

Wow, I should really avoid posting at 2 in the morning. Sorry for the ramble. (Pulp Fiction kicks ass, btw)

ibrowse · April 19, 2003 1:30AM

Quote:

Originally posted by torifile

Wow, I should really avoid posting at 2 in the morning. Sorry for the ramble. (Pulp Fiction kicks ass, btw)

I read this, chuckled, then remembered your signature... and we're all crazy...?

defjef · April 19, 2003 2:06AM

I know the feeling. I've been on an Apple buzz since I got my iMac 500 SE, my first Apple computer. I started getting Mac Addict almost one year ago and every single magazine I highly anticipated receiving. I noticed with the last issue I got that I wasn't as intrested in it as I used to be. I think it does have a lot to with the internet and the vast amount of information available with just a click of the mouse, but I also think Apple has been somewhat stagnant for the last year or two. There have been a couple of great introductions like the new iMac, iPod and 12" and 17" powerbooks but they seem to be quelled somewhat by the CPU speed. It's become hard to argue computer speed with Windows geeks when Pentiums are twice as fast as G4s. I think when the 970 is made public it will stir up all the old enthusiastic feelings that lie dormant in a lot of us Apple Computer lovers by giving us new hope for Apple world domination. 8)

thuh freak · April 19, 2003 2:28AM

Quote:

Originally posted by DefJef

I think when the 970 is made public it will stir up all the old enthusiastic feelings that lie dormant in a lot of us Apple Computer lovers by giving us new hope for Apple world domination. 8)

i'm a bit nervous for the future of apple. i haven't been as enthusiastic in a while (i know i'll get into it around mw, cuz i always do). i havent been on subscription for any mac mags in a while, cuz i stopped reading them. not cuz they weren't current (when i did read them, i wasn't as hip to the "internet", so i suppose they could'v been stale when i got them, but that wasn't an issue for me), but i found that a lot of the stuff didn really relate to me so much. i'd love reading about the next best thing, or whats just come out or what might come out soon; but i rarely buy stuff (damn you budgets! damn you to heck!). i read about the g3s, then g4s and rumors about g5s, but i realized i was running a pos and i couldn't afford to get my hopes up.

but, in regards to those rumours, they scare me. if we build up the 970 too much, it can only disappoint us. hell, i don't think i've heard any press release or word from jobs that acknowledges the 970 yet; let alone confirm it'll be added to the macintosh line. while i think its excessively likely that apple would and could use it, i also thought similarly about the next thing moto was supposedly working on. now i doubt that moto was even making a g5 for consumer computers. and, for all i know, apple may quit on the processor wars, and i dont think i want that kind of noose.

on the other hand though, maybe expecting too little is a bad thing too. prudence suggests that apple will keep moving, keep growing and will increase up their procs. i should expect some noticeable movements in a publicly traded company. i think i liked it better when shit totally surprises me though. if i totally bought into the rumor mongering now, apple wouldn't be able to match up. so: *think pessimistic thoughts...think pessimistic thoughts...think pessimistic thoughts*

hmurchison · April 19, 2003 4:05AM

What do we really expect? Apple has to move on from OS9. They now need to tailor their hardware and OS to match OSX.

Computer tech always moves in ebbs and flow. It takes some decent increases in Power to enable new Technology that will make a difference in your life. 5 Years ago if I had told you that you could Surf the net Wirelessly on your Couch while burning a DVD Disc you wouldn't have believed me. Technology marches on and we find new uses for our computers. I'm just as excited as ever. Digital Audio and Video technology ,both hardware and software, have improved by leaps and bounds. As Tech improves it's only natural to feel a little Jaded.

johnhood · April 19, 2003 4:19AM

Familiarity and taking things foregranted can have a diluting effect on one's perception - regardless of the subject matter! Having access to so much mixed media 'content' has 'spoiled' many of us. However, I'm looking forward to the next generation iPod and OS X 10.3 with the relish of my first Mac encounter in the late 1980s!

kenneth · April 19, 2003 4:21AM

Good point! I feel somewhat in-between.

We are all surrounded by many different kind of things today. They are just come-and-go.

I remembered between 1996-1999, I subscribed to MacWorld, MacHome, MacAddict, WIRED, etc. Then I went down to MacAddict and WIRED. Now.. none. My bookcase is still full of old magazines.

Anyway, I don't a TV and I don't listen to radio. I sometimes read the paper, but most of the time I am infront of my display and catch all the news, from Mac to the news from my hometown. I think after we have broadband with a decent monthly fee, our daily life have been changed somehow. We used to read an article on a magazine/paper line-by-line, but now we may just read it quickly and then jump to the next selection.

Meanwhile, we still don't how will the 970 be the heart of the next Macintosh. It's just a matter of time.

BTW, MacWorld just rolled out their prints on Zinio format. It's good to see they do that, especially for the non-US readers.

trevorm · April 19, 2003 5:20AM

Umm A few years back or 2 anyhow I used to be really excited about what was happening in the mac world but now I am not really interested.

I happen to think that it has nothing to do with Apple as a company that I have lost interest but rather that the emphasis on computer technology isnt as great as it was back then. There seems to be more emphasis on like Mobile Communications etc. Here in Australia it seems that just in the last few months their has been a great deal of new phones comming out that say 12 months ago would have been thought to be very $$$$ but stuff is coming out with cameras, mobile video phones etc.

All quite cheap too!

Just my .02

trumptman · April 19, 2003 5:51AM

I think it was also because in addition to the cool new Mac's you could do cool new things with them as well. Also consider other technologies that were introduced a while ago like...wireless.

I still the keynote with Steve carrying that iBook across the state while the video was streaming. It took the whole audience (and me as well) a couple of seconds to catch on. Holy crap, that things got no wires on it! (Yes I own airport and all my computers link wirelessly to it darn it!)

iMovie, iPhoto and iTunes were dropping jaws when released. You will have to excuse me if iCal and iChat don't bring about the same response.

I like spending money on tech. I almost do it compulsively. However nothing on the PC or Mac side has really jumped out and said, "You must have me!" for a while now.

Nick

mac the fork · April 19, 2003 11:31AM

I don't know specifically why, but I feel the same way. Maybe it's the too-cool look of Apple hardware, as opposed to the friendliness and charm of the original iMac. I expected Mac OS X to be better too.

amorph · April 19, 2003 12:17PM

I also miss the parade of bright colors and translucency. Things are becoming blander again after tending toward the sort of joyful color you find some Mexican or African villages. I suppose the multiple colors were an inventory nightmare, but still.

The tangerine iBook and the ruby iMac are still, for my money, two of the most flat-out gorgeous pieces of technology ever produced.

That said, I think that some of the original excitement came from: Apple rediscovering their design sense, and also really trying to find out just how much could be squeezed out of a contemporary computer. Before that, the only people who really tried to exploit newer hardware were game developers. Everything else had barely changed in 10 years. New hardware standards were almost impossible to establish, too, until Apple used its control over the platform to establish them.

Well, by now Apple's more or less caught up with their machines' capabilities. So we need a new round of potential. I think there's one coming right up. Unfortunately, I don't see Ive going back to those lovely gem colors and textured plastics any time too soon, but even if Apple designs no longer command attention they'll still be beautiful and functional.

pscates · April 19, 2003 12:45PM

That's true. That's a good post.

Don't anyone get me wrong: I still think Apple produces the most gorgeous, eye-opening hardware and has the coolest, most intuitive and fun-to-use software (both the OS itself and the various iApps).

They're still doing it better than anyone else.

Maybe I just miss the colors.

defiant · April 19, 2003 12:53PM

cosmonut · April 19, 2003 1:43PM

Apple's most beautiful computers ever (in my opinion)

Tangerine, Sage, and Blue Dalmation G3 iMacs

Indigo iBook clamshell

G4 iMac

G4 Cube

15" TiBook

thinkingdifferent · April 20, 2003 1:13PM

Quote:

Originally posted by CosmoNut

Apple's most beautiful computers ever (in my opinion)

Tangerine, Sage, and Blue Dalmation G3 iMacs
Indigo iBook clamshell
G4 iMac
G4 Cube
15" TiBook

My additon to your list is:

BW G3 Case

mount_my_floppy · April 20, 2003 1:15PM

Indigo iBook clamshell

By far my favorite Apple computer. So sexy.

cubedude · April 20, 2003 2:54PM

I think it's exactly how pscates described it for me.

ghost_user_name · April 20, 2003 3:39PM

Something about the graphite iMac that will be hard to challenge.

Take almost every other piece of electronic equipment and expose its components like that and still its beautiful AND stylish.

Every time I see it next to the original iMac I wonder if they knew that somewhere in the life of the iMac it would be possible to "let it all out". So alike the original and still so different.

iMac II is of course also a great computer with an even more radical design. But with the dome you don´t have to make the computer beautiful. You hide it all away. Something that couldn´t be done with the iMac

I loved my Pismo and I still regard it as the best looking computer I have ever owned. But the see through iMac is the most radical PC ever IMHO.

salmonstk · April 20, 2003 4:12PM

I too don't get as excited as I did about the colors. OS X still excites me and I can't wait for 10.3 But that only happens once a year.

I also think Apple has been trying to play down the hype a bit in the last year. I think we will all be WOWed when the new Powermacs come out. At least I hope.

jimmac · April 20, 2003 7:39PM

You know it's funny but I was just thinking to myself " It's a little quiet on the Apple front lately. I think I'll see if anybody at AI feels the same way ".

I think part of what you're talking about is the fact that in 1999 Apple was on the cusp of rebirth. New designs and a new OS. Now that we have our new OS ( which still isn't up to OS 9 in some departments but getting close ) the newness has worn off.

Some of the things that I looked forward to are absent ( like this week's great looking Kalidoscope theme ). So some things are different. On the other hand OS X is so much better to work with than 9 it kind of makes up for it. We do have more games than ever which is a plus. Still with time and OS maturity some of those diverse things that we used to enjoy may return.

Perhaps if the 970 is a reality or some faster hardware than we have does happen maybe that will rekindle some of the excitement and trendyness. God knows parity with the speed of current PC's would be an event.

Apple coolness...has it peaked?

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