This week marks exactly 25 years since Steve Jobs rocked the world. Under his leadership, the iMac was launched, effectively saving Apple, which was not exactly doing well. That period is popularly known as Apple’s Dark Ages.
If the iMac had not been announced by Steve Jobs on May 6, 1998, we probably would never have had the iPhone and Apple Store either. In fact, the iMac is pretty much the oldest surviving PC ever (although the new version is completely different, of course). Perhaps Apple would have even gone under without Steve Jobs and his “crazy Mac.
The iMac was Apple’s ‘all-in-one PC’
What made Steve Jobs’ Apple iMac so special was the fact that it was one of the first computers to combine a PC with a monitor. Previously, you had to buy those separately and had to be darned careful to make sure your components were compatible. That used to be quite a challenge.
Still, the design was not immediately praised. For example, The New York Times stated at the time that, as a Mac user, you were therefore stuck with the 15-inch screen. “Still, though, is one of the best 15-inch screens at the moment,” the newspaper wrote.
“After ignoring the home market for a few years, the Mac is back in full force,” the Los Angeles Times wrote in May 1998.
Anyway, an intriguing machine. (Image: Apple)
Was he beautiful or spittingly ugly?
You also just had to like the convex, colorful enclosure. “The Apple iMac has plenty of power, great features, competitive pricing and a radical new look – round, translucent, blue and white,” stated the LA Times.
“For my taste, it is far from beautiful, but more importantly, the iMac is so different from the current norm that it absolutely gets attention,” the newspaper said. “And if Apple needs anything these days, it’s the right attention.”
Bill Gates wasn’t awake to Steve Jobs’ rainbow machine
Microsoft founder Bill Gates couldn’t resist dissing the Apple iMac. “All Apple offers right now is leadership in color,” he said. “It won’t be long before we keep up with that, too, I think.”
But Jobs had strict specifications requirements in addition to a colorful look. “This $1,299 product is faster than the fastest Pentium II you can buy,” Steve Jobs stated in an interview. “The market has never had such a powerful and beautiful consumer computer.”
Microsoft’s attempt at color? … And yes, that’s Bono standing there behind that Dell monitor. Image: Microsoft
All in all, Jobs (as before) revolutionized PC technology and design that is still relevant today. Indeed, we want an Apple iMac G3. Maybe we’ll turn it into an aquarium, just because we can.
