Jony Ive's Design Video for the Twentieth Anniversary Mac

[kerryb]

Steve Jobs had just returned to Apple and this model was being discontinued and sold off at huge discounts. My boss bought one and it was quite a masterful 1990's piece of design. Many complained about it being under powered and I believe it was pretty much a Powerbook in a fancy case. Still there was nothing like it at the time and it took a long time for the first LCD screen iMac to become a mass produced product along the lines of this earlier model.

[AppleInLVX]

Originally Posted by nutmac

Among the small powered speakers, my favorite is Audioengine 2 (aka A2). I also have B&W MM-1, which costs more than twice as much and have better usability and design. While MM-1 has much better upper range, I actually prefer A2 overall. Having said that, A2 scores pretty low on usability, with controls on the back of the speaker.

Thanks for your feedback. I'll look into those.

[JoshRoche]

Where did all Jonny Ive's hair come from?

[liavman]

a much younger and less-polished Jony Ive, complete with hair and British accent.

Less Polished? What prompted this value judgement? I looked for it but could not find any. Though it is all great sounding and heartwarming that there are people who care about such things, I can't relate to half of what he says in that video and that ratio is same as today (j/k)

[MacFly123]

Originally Posted by Radio

Wow isn't he just so full of **** how he talks up things?!

No. I just think he is truly passionate about what he does!

[scott911]

Originally Posted by MrVinney96

Wait… Did I see a BOSE logo on that subwoofer????

I'd like for Apple and BOSE to work together again and make some incredible laptop and desktop speakers. And I know they won't be the first (look to HP and Beats, but really, they are Beats, c'mon), but they will be one of the best.

BOSE is not a good audio company - they are successful on account of great marketing and nailing the wife-acceptance-factor.

But please realize they are not a name to hold in high regard when you're hoping for some truly great audio design.

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Originally Posted by gmanist1000

I think Bose speakers are best in-class, the prices... are too high though.

you need to get out more - Bose are widely accepted to be pretty much worst in-class.

Not trying to be mean, but if you do take joy from great audio, there's a whole world of music waiting for you!

[tylernol]

Originally Posted by teknikal90

But bose and beats are consumer friendly. they're not the most accurate/capable, but they have clean, consumer friendly designs, and have a 'wow' sound that is appealing to customers. exhibit a: the bose sounddock... look how popular it's become and a lot of people swear by them.

Sort of like iOS vs Android.

expensive, small designs, big (though not the most technologically great) sound...kind of like the iPad mini?

no....Apple's stuff is quite well engineered and thought out. If you are upset about the lack of retina, go to a store, and hold a mini in your hand and you will understand why Apple did not implement Retina --it is a design trade-off in favor of form factor.

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Originally Posted by aliasfox

The TAM was electronically pretty much the same thing as a PowerBook 3400, with a slightly faster processor (250mhz vs 240mhz). Even the keyboard and screen were the same, if I recall correctly.

For those who are asking about sound systems that are better than Bose:

- For significantly less than a Bose audio cube surround sound system, get a KEF surround sound set up that sounds better and more stylish

- For an iPod dock, the B&W Zeppelin blows the Sounddock out of the water.

- For a movie oriented system with real speakers, Paradigm Mini Monitors will provide a good punch

- For a budget, good all around system, build either a stereo or surround system off of PSB Alpha B1 speakers ($280/pair) and a midrange Onkyo/Denon/Yamaha/Pioneer receiver. PSB's Imagine towers that go for ~$3k/pair sound incredible too.

Personally, I run a pair of B&W 804s speakers for my fronts, MM-1 for my surrounds, off of a McIntosh amplifier (fronts) and Denon receiver (preamp processor and rear amps).

yup. Dynaudio is another good speaker company, I have two of their towers driven by an Audio Research amp.

[teknikal90]

Originally Posted by tylernol

no....Apple's stuff is quite well engineered and thought out. If you are upset about the lack of retina, go to a store, and hold a mini in your hand and you will understand why Apple did not implement Retina --it is a design trade-off in favor of form factor.

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yup. Dynaudio is another good speaker company, I have two of their towers driven by an Audio Research amp.

The same could be said for beats, its a design trade off in favour of form factor why they dont have higher impedance drivers (ipods then can't drive them)...why they're not open vs. closed....you cant commute with open headphones...Why doesn't the ipad mini have retina or a more powerful chip when the competitors have quad cores and 200+ppi screens?
bottom line, theyre all consumer focused brands appealing on the cool factor, not necessarily the technology advantage
Apple isn't known to have the best specs, neither are bose and beats.
Look at any non-apple sites - 'apple sucks, they're overpriced..I can buy PCs for half the money with 2x the power ...you're paying for the pretty design.. then look at any audiophile enthusiast sites... Beats suck...you can get headphones with better SQ at half the price...you're paying for the 'cool' plastic design...
Same thing.

[seveej]

I once worked for a company, where the big boss bought a TAM for the company's main meeting room.

Sure it was cool. Not only was it a sleek AIO - it was the first flatscreen computer I had ever seen.

Problem was, with that dinky 12" screen, it was basically useless. But he** did it look good on that antique birch table.

I think we could say, that the advance of technology has enabled Ive to not only listen to his gods of design, but to create useable products while doing so.

[Luap]

Originally Posted by DesterWallaboo

BOSE is all name.... their products are so-so.

There is a reason why they never publish their specs on their speakers... because they aren't that great.

If you believe everything you read on the internet, then yes

[rhett7660]

Originally Posted by iMacFarlane

That thing cost the same amount as my first car. Wow.

That was more than my first car by about 6K!

[DesterWallaboo]

Originally Posted by Luap

If you believe everything you read on the internet, then yes

I figure owning film/audio post-house has an effect on my ability to judge audio. ;-)

I'm used to real precise audio... and Bose isn't it.

[LarryC]

$7,499.00. I wonder what that would be in todays dollars. Sorry if somebody has already asked and/or answered this question, but I didn't feel like reading through 187 posts to find out.

[BRyken]

Just watched this today, pretty cool.

[cosmichobo]

Originally Posted by LarryC

$7,499.00. I wonder what that would be in todays dollars. Sorry if somebody has already asked and/or answered this question, but I didn't feel like reading through 187 posts to find out.

Don't think it's been asked...

According to http://www.1soft.com/todaysdollars.htm - $7499 in 1997 is now worth $8430.

If you tried to match it up with Apple's current line up... I'd say around $6,000 - around twice a Mac Pro... given that the TAM's price was originally around twice a PowerMac 9600...

Worst part... As I understand it... the TAM's manufacturing cost was only around the $2k mark... So that's a hell of a markup...