What will the next iMac look like?

[MacBytes]

Category: Apple Hardware
Link: What will the next iMac look like? (http://www.macbytes.com/link.php?sid=20040727134634)
Posted on MacBytes.com (http://www.macbytes.com)

Approved by Mudbug

[montex]

Pointless. Why bore me with an article that only asks the question? At least speculate on the design instead of bringing up some lame products by emachines and Gateway. Oh wait a minute, it's cnet: expect very little and get even less.

[LeeTom]

I think the new iMac will look just like the new displays, but with the guts on the back. Think of a Powerbook, but with the screen reversed, so when closed the screen is on the outside. The dvd drive is on the top-right of the iMac.

Ideally, the guts could be removable from the monitor's front part, so you could upgrade the iMac without having to replace your monitor, but I doubt it.

It will come in 15", 17", and 19/20" models, probably topping out at 2GHz.

Lee Tom

[Chip NoVaMac]

I was sort of hoping for some artist thoughts based on the rumors.

Basically it said what we all know, that it will be uniquely Apple.

[azdude]

I still think it will follow the white/acrylic color scheme (no aluminum). There has always been a key visual distinction between the con/pro-sumer "e/i*" products and the professional Power* products. While, during the time of the G4 PowerMac, they were more similar in material, the appearance was quite distinct. Having both the PowerMac/ACD and iMac lines as aluminum would not be Apple-ish, and IMHO, is not very likely.

A deviation in the direction of aluminum for the G5 iMac would be unprecedented in Apple's recent product line. Unwelcome? That's another question. ;) Certainly unprecedented, though. Don't expect it.

[nagromme]

I too tend to expect something like the new Al displays--only extra-thick and white, with LOTS of vents. Probably an external power brick.

It will be interesting to see, though.

[shamino]

I too tend to expect something like the new Al displays--only extra-thick and white, with LOTS of vents. Probably an external power brick.
This is what we've all been hearing, and it's not a bad design.

My question is where they're going to put the optical drive. Back when the iMac was introduced, Jobs said that a vertically-mounted optical drive (a-la the Cube) could not work reliably at high speeds.

If this is still true (does anyone know?) then a drive mounted in a monitor-shaped panel wouldn't be able to run very fast.

On ther other hand, the optical drive could still be built-in to the pedistal, giving it a horizontal orientation. But I'm not sure how good this might look.

Another possibility is to do away with an internal optical drive altogether. Instead, bundle a USB or FireWire drive. (And provide an appropriate mount-point on the computer so it doesn't have to waste desk space.) The user can put it where he wants, or stash it in a cabinet when not in use. This also allows for user-serviceable drive upgrades - something that iMacs have not supported so far.

Another nifty idea might be a slot-loading optical drive in the keyboard, although it would be rather inconvenient for me, since my keyboard is in a desk drawer.

I will be very eager to see what they actually end up shipping.

[jackieonasses]

Pointless. Why bore me with an article that only asks the question? At least speculate on the design instead of bringing up some lame products by emachines and Gateway. Oh wait a minute, it's cnet: expect very little and get even less.

at first i thought it was pointless....then i thought maybe the administrators wanted us to provoke our inputs....

[sjk]

I have an imagination so it's not particularly interesting having someone speculate for me what the iMac replacement might be. And that won't make it arrive any faster so I'm satisfied just to wait and maybe have a bit of enjoyment being surprised.

[neoelectronaut]

I honestly hope they don't deviate too much from the iMac G4 design. I really liked that one, and always wanted one, even though I never had the $ to get one.

[wdlove]

We will know for sure in another month. The new iMac will definitely look just as Steve Jobs wants it to look.

[Chip NoVaMac]

We will know for sure in another month. The new iMac will definitely look just as Steve Jobs wants it to look.

Being a relative Mac newbie, what was the cry when the "New" iMac (LCD) was introduced?

I personally loved it from day one.

[montex]

Steve has said in the past that he hated the idea of pasting the cpu to the back of a LCD panel, so I don't expect that is what the new iMac will be like. I imagine an evolution of the half-dome rather than a complete redesign. Maybe the new iMac will have a detachable monitor... probably not. Forget I said that.

My roomie has one of the flat panel iMacs and I think it is a perfect design and I wouldn't change it. But then I don't have to please the shareholders and dazzle an entire industry either.

Let's just hope the new iMac doesn't come in 'flower power' or 'blue dalmation'!!!

[wdlove]

Being a relative Mac newbie, what was the cry when the "New" iMac (LCD) was introduced?

I personally loved it from day one.

I'm not sure why, but I have never cared for the design of the iMac from the beginning. Just have always favored the tower.

[JDOG_]

Maybe it'll have a built-in iPod doc on the right side of the CPU (if there is a CPU unit...) I could see that being totally do-able with the current generation iMacs--but then again I could see Apple wanting that $39 for personal use :rolleyes:

[jackieonasses]

I'm not sure why, but I have never cared for the design of the iMac from the beginning. Just have always favored the tower.

ya but that is jobs favorite peice. he will put his thoughts (more like ego) into the design of it! lol

[Sun Baked]

I did a sketch awhile ago, but I didn't know if they were thinking single/dual channel DDR, AGP slot for video, or PCI slot for expansion.

Did find out that the new U3 is most likely going to be called the U3-Lite.

http://forums.macrumors.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=15115

[wowser]

;) It would be cool if they could create a screen that looked like a plain sheet of glass, yet when switched oin revealed itself to be a monitor. possible?

[shamino]

;) It would be cool if they could create a screen that looked like a plain sheet of glass, yet when switched oin revealed itself to be a monitor. possible?
They make displays like this now. They're designed to be placed atop overhead projectors.

The trick into making this tech into a desktop monitor is that you need to somehow switch the glass from transparent to opaque when it has a signal. (While seeing through your computer desktop to the back wall looks like a really awesome prop from a sci-fil movie (like Minority Report (http://www.movieconnection.it/schede/minority_report/minority_report-moviola.jpg)), I don't think you'd be able to get much real work done this way.

Maybe by putting a high-contrast LCD shutter behind the image elements to make the background go black and some creative light-pipe work to get the backlight to shine up in front of the black layer but behind the color layer, so you can actually see an image.

Tricky and expensive, but I think it could work.

[wowser]

and would look damn nice - a good way to continue the lampshade theme from the present imac.

[shamino]

and would look damn nice - a good way to continue the lampshade theme from the present imac.
Absolutely, but I think such a display would make the resulting iMac cost more than a PowerMac - which would kill it.

If such tech is under development, I'd expect to first see it in a standalone display, and only built in to computers after the prices come down to affordable levels.

Now if you want to get really awesome, combine it with something like HP's see-through scanner (http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/us/en/ho/WF06b/15179-64195-215155-15202-f25-303640-303642-303643.html).

Imagine it. Insert your document behind the glass. Drag a frame around the document itself and click "go" to scan the region you framed.

But I think we're now talking sci-fi. At least for the next few years.

[wowser]

Very true. I can imagine a glass-like screen on a G5 (G6?) Tower being very attractive. The HP Scanner looks a little too much like a magazine rack cum trouser press for my liking, though!