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Brushed Aluminum iMac at WWDC?

LoganT said:
It's not that were so desperate for the hardware; we're desperate for the the software. Mac users don't have a choice, they can't just buy the iMac now and upgrade it later. That's why people want a new iMac now.
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Yeah, that's why I want a new iMac now as well. But no-one is forcing you to buy an iMac, or any Mac for that matter.
Apple has had pretty much the same lineup since 1998. It's not like it's a big suprise. You know the deal.

And you can always build your own tower and put osX86 on it. Sure it won't be "legal", but no-one will care.
 
The current iMac is an intrinsicaly beautiful thing and no matter what they release it still will be!

However, given that this is June and the next 8 weeks will be a blaze of Iphone I wouldn't expect Apple to release ANYTHING to risk taking limelight from Iphone.
 
(Perhaps someone has already mentioned this, but I don't have time to read through 21 pages of posts...)

If the rumors about the iMac getting brushed metal are right, then it certainly is confusing since Apple has traditionally used white versus brushed metal to differentiate their product line. However, what if Apple is "pulling a MacBook"?

What I mean by "pulling a MacBook" is that maybe Apple is going to have one "premium" iMac, just like there is a "premium" black MacBook. Maybe there will be a "pro" iMac that represents Apple's efforts to create the mythical xMac. You might have a $1300 20" iMac, a $1700 24" iMac, and then a $2100 24" "Pro" brushed metal, somewhat expandable iMac.

My idea might be crazy, but I have a hard time believing that Apple is ready to completely abandon white in favor of brushed metal. Assuming the brushed metal iMac rumors is even remotely correct, then perhaps it only applies to part of the product line.
 
rainydays said:
Yeah, that's why I want a new iMac now as well. But no-one is forcing you to buy an iMac, or any Mac for that matter.
Apple has had pretty much the same lineup since 1998. It's not like it's a big suprise. You know the deal.
/QUOTE]

The lineup is wildly different from the one in 1998 unless you take the very basic iMac all in one and tower above it view. When it comes right down to it, the Mac Pro is not the machine that replaced the PowerMac, that's a step above in the workstation cateogory. The 24" iMac is the machine that Apple replaced the PowerMac with and in a lot of cases, it's completely ill suited for the job. A little loyalty for those of us who have been around for over a decade and view the Mac as a tool and not purse would be nice.
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rainydays said:
A silent update wouldn't risk that.
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A redesign wouldn't, either. They're two totally different product lines. There's no reason to hold off on everything just because the iPhone is launching. Sure, give it a few days on either side, but otherwise it just wouldn't matter.
 
Digital Skunk said:
If they made this then I would buy it. I can see two 2.5" HDDs fitting inside this:
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That would be mega cool, i can see loads of snapped and broken screens though!

Not great for schools though when the students wanna be bumming aroud on the internet when their teacher's trying to teach as you can see through both sides.
 
Frohike said:
That would be mega cool, i can see loads of snapped and broken screens though!

Not great for schools though when the students wanna be bumming aroud on the internet when their teacher's trying to teach as you can see through both sides.
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I am holding out hope that the next 24" iMac will be able to hold 2 hard drives internally with easier access than we currently have. If they could make the internals of the new 24" iMac as neat and organized as the G5 iMac, then I could see two user-serviceable hard drives being a reality.
 
Mundy said:
What I mean by "pulling a MacBook" is that maybe Apple is going to have one "premium" iMac, just like there is a "premium" black MacBook. Maybe there will be a "pro" iMac that represents Apple's efforts to create the mythical xMac. You might have a $1300 20" iMac, a $1700 24" iMac, and then a $2100 24" "Pro" brushed metal, somewhat expandable iMac.

My idea might be crazy, but I have a hard time believing that Apple is ready to completely abandon white in favor of brushed metal. Assuming the brushed metal iMac rumors is even remotely correct, then perhaps it only applies to part of the product line.
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I think you have it right. It wouldn't hurt to have a "pro" iMac with a couple of hard drives. Personally, I don't think I would buy it but a lot of offices would. The white is fine and all, but the aluminum would make it pretty sharp looking.

Me, I'm just waiting for Leopard to arrive so I can buy a Mini, if they're still around:confused:
 
still hoping for an update or all new imac before september, it has been more than 250 days i read somewhere since an update.
 
tomd89 said:
still hoping for an update or all new imac before september, it has been more than 250 days i read somewhere since an update.
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282 days to be exact. Hopefully we'll se a redesign with the next update. But I admit that the timing wouldn't be that good.
 
tomd89 said:
still hoping for an update or all new imac before september, it has been more than 250 days i read somewhere since an update.
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282, can you believe it? If you look at the bar graph on the buyers guide, the last time it was this long between updates there was the redesign to the G5, then fairly constant upgrades for about two years, now 282 days, the longest ever. There has just got to be a redesign coming!
 
Please keep this on-topic, folks. I had to delete a number of posts that should never have been made.
 
Trout74 said:
282, can you believe it? If you look at the bar graph on the buyers guide, the last time it was this long between updates there was the redesign to the G5, then fairly constant upgrades for about two years, now 282 days, the longest ever. There has just got to be a redesign coming!
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Yeah, almost 3 years since the last redesign. That's a lot for a company that makes designer products.
I suspect that they were planning on a new design to be introduced at the same time as Leopard, but then Leopard was delayed.
I can't see them waiting with the update until October. And if they do a refresh now, then change the design in October it will be a bit too close to each other. But then again, a fresh looking iMac with plain old Tiger wouldn't be as attractive as one with Leopard.

Oh, one can only speculate. I guess time will tell.
 
rainydays said:
Yeah, almost 3 years since the last redesign. That's a lot for a company that makes designer products.
I suspect that they were planning on a new design to be introduced at the same time as Leopard, but then Leopard was delayed.
I can't see them waiting with the update until October. And if they do a refresh now, then change the design in October it will be a bit too close to each other. But then again, a fresh looking iMac with plain old Tiger wouldn't be as attractive as one with Leopard.

Oh, one can only speculate. I guess time will tell.
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To be fair, the iMac has changed slightly over the course of 3 years- thinner, iSight, etc... :)
 
I am totally opposed to going metal. The white plastic with the clear "force field" plastic around it is super sleek. All they need to do is make it thinner, lose the chin (or shorten it), and I'd be more than pleased. I love my 20" Core Duo. :)
 
seenew said:
I am totally opposed to going metal. The white plastic with the clear "force field" plastic around it is super sleek. All they need to do is make it thinner, lose the chin (or shorten it), and I'd be more than pleased. I love my 20" Core Duo. :)
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There can be both. White is so long in the tooth now.
 
seenew said:
I am totally opposed to going metal. The white plastic with the clear "force field" plastic around it is super sleek. All they need to do is make it thinner, lose the chin (or shorten it), and I'd be more than pleased. I love my 20" Core Duo. :)
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Since you have a white one that you love, you shouldn't be too bothered if the rest of us gets another color/material ;)

The only thing I'm worried about with the aluminum is the acoustics. Aluminum cases tend to make vibrations more audible than plastic ones. But then again, Apple knows what they are doing in that area.

I'd be OK with plastic, but I'm not all that fond of white for the iMacs. The MacBooks are fine though.
 
LoganT said:
There can be both. White is so long in the tooth now.
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There reaches a point in design where an item has 'intrinsic' beauty regardless of it's age, contemporary influences or it's functional intent. Like say the Porsche 911 whose iconic form arguably reached it's emotive zenith in the 1973 Carrera RS.

The current white iMac is , IMO, at such a crossroads ;

Does it continue on evolving what is an elegant, beautiful and functional design or do they 'throw it all out' and start again ?

Porsche attempted the latter with the 924/928 in the eighties and they were a total failure. They had a stated intention to stop building the 911. Customers rejected the idea!!

To this date the essence of the Porsche 911 is what drives that company. Even today if they stray too far from the expectation of it's design customers simply reject the design and sales plummet!.

I think Apple has a similar 'business model' with the 1984 'Mac' defining the direction that Apple have yet to be able to steer from - and in all probability with good reason since the 90's beige boxes nearly ruined the company in the way that the 924/928 nearly ruined Porsche.

Sometimes you do not need to have an endless stream of 're-invention' - you just have to recognise what's great and build on that.

That design is 'the white iMac'.

My feeling is they will keep the white ( perhaps introduce a piano black as an option) but just slenderize and sleekify...

Why break a 'design classic.
 
surferfromuk said:
There reaches a point in design where an item has 'intrinsic' beauty regardless of it's age, contemporary influences or it's functional intent. Like say the Porsche 911 whose iconic form arguably reached it's emotive zenith in the 1973 Carrera RS.

The current white iMac is , IMO, at such a crossroads ;

Does it continue on evolving what is an elegant, beautiful and functional design or do they 'throw it all out' and start again ?

Porsche attempted the latter with the 924/928 in the eighties and they were a total failure. They had a stated intention to stop building the 911. Customers rejected the idea!!

To this date the essence of the Porsche 911 is what drives that company. Even today if they stray too far from the expectation of it's design customers simply reject the design and sales plummet!.

I think Apple has a similar 'business model' with the 1984 'Mac' defining the direction that Apple have yet to be able to steer from - and in all probability with good reason since the 90's beige boxes nearly ruined the company in the way that the 924/928 nearly ruined Porsche.

Sometimes you do not need to have an endless stream of 're-invention' - you just have to recognise what's great and build on that.

That design is 'the white iMac'.

My feeling is they will keep the white ( perhaps introduce a piano black as an option) but just slenderize and sleekify...

Why break a 'design classic.
Click to expand...

They don't have to break it. They can offer both.
 
LoganT said:
They don't have to break it. They can offer both.
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Don't see it - It's not the 'Jobs way' - One design to rule them all!! The 'one' will prevail.

Personally l think the aluminum one will fail to exude elegance but that may well not rule it out if market expansion is the primary aim...
 
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