8
The new line of Apple iMac computers is as much about esthetics as technology. What they do is almost overshadowed in their importance as by their appearance.
There's a very real reason for this: Apple is trying for a more corporate look for its flagship consumer and small business desktop computer, and the company is hoping the new iMac look will do the trick.
Previous iMacs have been marvels of design, but not for executive desks. They make people gasp with wonder every time the iMac design is updated. The downside, though, is that every new iteration of the iMac design makes its predecessor look a little quaint (the semi-spherical iMac G4) or just silly (the "Bondi Blue" iMac, which now looks like a Barbie doll accessory).
Apple iMac
Apple Store Canada
$1,299 to $2,499
Apple is trying for a more corporate look for its flagship consumer and small business desktop computer, and the company is hoping the new iMac look will do the trick. (APPLE)
Related Articles
The new iMac line resembles its immediate predecessor, the iMac G5, but clad in grown-up materials. The G5 was all white plastic, a kitschy design vaguely suggesting go-go boots, but the new iMac is anodized aluminum and glass, a design concept shared by the iPhone, the iPod Touch, the Mac Pro and the MacBook Pro. Its keyboard, moreover, has undergone a revolutionary change. It's the thinnest keyboard on the market (a little more than 8 mm at the front), with flat white MacBook-like keys and two USB 2.0 ports forming the footing that keep the keyboard slanted.
This is a minimalist, even severe, design. Like the G5, it incorporates the computer behind the screen in an enclosure even thinner than the ones that house only LCD screens; there is only one screw visible on the outside (underneath the bottom edge, meant for easy access to the RAM memory modules). It can operate with only one cable, the AC cord — it comes with the latest iteration of Wi-Fi (802.11n) wireless networking, which can run as much as five times the speed of the previous 802.11g and offers twice the range.
Speakers or headphones can be plugged into the digital-analog audio-out port, and a microphone or musical instrument into the audio-in port. A second monitor display or a TV can be plugged into the video-out mini-DVI port. There are four USB 2.0 ports (one must be reserved for the keyboard, which itself has two ports, one for the mouse), and will work with digital cameras, music players or external hard drives; two FireWire ports (FireWire 400 and FireWire 800), and wired Ethernet. Up to five peripherals can be attached simultaneously. Music fans will appreciate a feature that allows their iPods to recharge even when the computer is in sleep mode.
This flexibility is designed to appeal to the greatest number of people, including corporate customers who, whether they will admit it or not, consider looks important in the halls of power. The only clanger here is the continuing presence of the old Mighty Mouse design, the glossy white plastic object shaped like a polished river rock. This has discomfited many in the Mac community, who would have preferred a less G5-like design; while their logic seems to be bullet-proof, it's also a little petty, an indication that the new design has been long overdue.
Another non-corporate part of the design is the size of the screen — the new iMacs come in two sizes, a 20-inch screen and a 24-inch screen (gone is the 17-inch model G5). But even the 20-inch model tends to overwhelm the user's desk. The 24-inch model is so large it looks like a small home-theatre HD TV screen; in an office, it might suggest an executive has a too-intimate relationship with what should be just another business tool.
And the business user will presumably want to uninstall iLife, Apple's family entertainment suite, which comes pre-installed. So if Apple wants to appeal to the business user, why doesn't it bundle the iWork office suite with the iMac, which is priced the same as iLife? Better still, why not let the buyer choose from iLife or iWork?
Apple has built in an iSight webcam (640-by-480 pixel resolution) and its companion microphone so discreetly as to be nearly invisible, and built the speakers into the case at the bottom edge of the unit, invisible unless you're looking for them. Hiding them like this would make sense to the corporate market because webcams and chat still have an aura of fun and not business about them. Not surprisingly, Apple is pointing out that these features can be video-conferencing tools. But what corporate type wants 5.1-channel surround audio for video conferencing?
Like the outside, the iMacs' innards are all business. The 20-inch model runs on either 2.0 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo processor or on a 2.4GHz processor, and the 24-inch model is based on a 2.4 GHz processor. All run on 1 GB of RAM memory (expandable to 4 GB), all have ATI Radeon Graphics processors of various speeds, a slot-loading 8x SuperDrive DVD drive with double-layer support, AirPort Extreme 802.11n wireless networking and Bluetooth. The smaller 20-inch model features a 250 GB drive, while the larger one and the 24-inch model have 320 GB drives. And all come with a tiny wireless infrared remote control.
The architecture is basically the same as the G5, except for the price. The 20-inch models now retail for $1,299 (Cdn.) and $1,599, while the 24-inch model runs at $1,899, which means buyers are getting more power for less cost than they did with the three-year-old previous models.
The new iMacs have come in for a few criticisms that appear unfair; Globetechnology.com was sent the 20-inch model for review, and after being on for eight hours it did not heat up to "toasty" levels, as several reviewers noted, remaining quite cool. Other critics have lit into the glass front for reflecting ambient light. Apple says the glass has been treated with anti-glare and scratch-resistant finishes; in Globetechnology.com's test it does not seem unduly reflective under incandescent light (although it might be another story in a office with many fluorescent lights in it). And finally, the iMacs have been criticized for colour fall-off when the screen is viewed at a sharp angle, which certainly was not the case with the machine under review — at least, by the time the angle was narrowed to the point of the colour falling off, the screen content was almost unreadable anyway.
While there is a DVD burner, there is no included Blu-ray or HD DVD support; for that you must get an outboard player. But not including these players at this stage of development of high-definition technology makes sense — there are still two competing formats, and Apple has wisely left that choice to the user.
Typing is a highly personal thing, so a few things must be noted about the new keyboard. The super-thin device is laid out in classic fashion, with the keys spaced generously apart, making it a happy compromise between design and classic performance. The key action is silent and soft, and produces enough tactile feedback to appeal to a maximum number of users.
The configuration of the keys has also changed. Ten of the first 12 function keys (there are 19 in all) serve double duty, with dedicated keys for brightness control, Dashboard activation, system volume, as well as iTunes controls. This is the first time Apple has included media controls on one of its keyboards; traditionalists might fret over this, but they will surely be shocked when they discover the Apple logo has been removed from the Command key (the horror, the horror!), where it has been since the Apple II, and replaced it with the word "command."
Most of the hardware is in no way revolutionary, just a series of carefully considered upgrades. The dust-ups in the online press about the glass screen and the keyboard are petty squabbles about personal preferences and should be ignored by people considering buying one.
But there are a couple of other issues to consider. One is that there is no FireWire cable included to use with the Migration Assistant to move to the new system, an awkward gaffe. Another is that the iMacs have been released a scant month before Apple is to release the next version of its Mac OS X operating system, Leopard. So why buy an iMac now and not wait for Apple to cave into the inevitable pressure and upgrade the new iMac line to Leopard?
That's a matter of timing.
But the best timing is still in the design. In fact, the single greatest feature of the new iMacs is a design that won't become dated very soon.
In Pictures:
