Happy 10th birthday iMac! 10 years ago on August 15th, 1998, Apple began shipping the original 233MHz Bondi Blue iMac G3. The iMac is arguably the most influential desktop computer in the last decade. Nobody can forget it's colorful transclucent case. It was later followed up in several different flavors including Strawberry, Blueberry, Lime, Grape, Tangerine, Graphite, Ruby, Snow, Indigo, Sage, Blue Dalmation, and Flower Power. The fun new cases killed beige. Most computer cases before the iMac were beige or gray, and really ugly, and look at them now. Many have colors or transparent cases. Can you guess where that idea came from?
The iMac is special to me personally, because it was my first computer. I used a Macintosh Performa before it, but it was the first computer that was really mine. I remember my dad pulling it out of the box, how I was amazed at it's shape and color. I saw the picture on the box, but that wasn't nearly as amazing as seeing it in person. I don't still have that iMac, but I do remember how beautiful of a machine it was.
The iMac's design wasn't the only thing about it that made it unique. It introduced USB to the masses, and it killed the floppy drive. A lot of people were afraid of ditching the floppy drive, but now most computer users wouldn't miss a floppy drive. If someone really needed a floppy drive, they could purchase a USB floppy drive from Apple, much like the case with the Macbook Air now, which lacks an optical drive, but gives the option of a USB superdrive.
The iMac brought Apple back. In the years before the iMac, Apple was failing. In 1998, Apple earned $414 Million! That was it's first profit in 3 years. The profits and market share gains only continued to grow. Now, 10 years later, the iMac is the only product around at that time to remain in the Apple lineup.
The iMac is special to me personally, because it was my first computer. I used a Macintosh Performa before it, but it was the first computer that was really mine. I remember my dad pulling it out of the box, how I was amazed at it's shape and color. I saw the picture on the box, but that wasn't nearly as amazing as seeing it in person. I don't still have that iMac, but I do remember how beautiful of a machine it was.
The iMac's design wasn't the only thing about it that made it unique. It introduced USB to the masses, and it killed the floppy drive. A lot of people were afraid of ditching the floppy drive, but now most computer users wouldn't miss a floppy drive. If someone really needed a floppy drive, they could purchase a USB floppy drive from Apple, much like the case with the Macbook Air now, which lacks an optical drive, but gives the option of a USB superdrive.
The iMac brought Apple back. In the years before the iMac, Apple was failing. In 1998, Apple earned $414 Million! That was it's first profit in 3 years. The profits and market share gains only continued to grow. Now, 10 years later, the iMac is the only product around at that time to remain in the Apple lineup.
