Low End Mac Reader Specials

TypeStyler For Mac OS X is Now Shipping! Download The Free Fully Functional 60 Day Tryout at www.typestyler.com

Don't install Parallels to play poker online! Poker Mac will show you how to download and install a native Mac poker application such as Full Tilt Poker Mac.

Laptop Hardware Provided by TechRestore - Overnight Mac & iPod Repairs.

Compare products like desktop computers, apple laptops, apple macs, and LCD Monitors side by side! All the information and reviews to make the best purchasing decision for new mobile phones, sat nav systems, or MP3 players. The Ciao online shopping community makes searching products easy for you.

The Mac Webb

Mac Design: Little Room for Improvement

- 2002.08.26

Once you reach the pinnacle of good design, what do you do for an encore? This is a question that I ask each time discussion turns toward updates of the Apple product line.

Apple is a company that prides itself on design innovation. They are the only company that considers the user experience in every aspect of a system from software to hardware. Place a PowerBook of any generation next to a comparable PC laptop, and you will immediately see the differences. The build quality and attention to detail will soon make you a fan.

Need to see if your battery is charged? Check the green lights on the battery without turning it on. Need to swap a battery on the fly? Simply swap them and go without turning off the machine. These touches are aspects that are extremely important to the Apple user base.

The most commonly used analogy is automobiles. If you are just looking to get from point A to point B, any car will do. If you are looking for style and elegance, you pay more for those features. Apple machines fill a similar roll.

Looking at the current Apple line, I see three machines that are at the pinnacle of form and function. The Titanium PowerBooks, the iBook, and the LCD iMac all highlight the brilliant design philosophy coming from Cupertino. All three stand leaps and bounds ahead of the competition when you judge the overall offering. From a superior OS to wonderful styling, these machines are a joy to use.

This does, however, create a bit of a problem for Apple regarding the next revision of these machines. In order to keep interest in the lines, Apple has traditionally made major changes PowerBook G4 approximately every 18 months. As of this writing, the Titanium PowerBooks are the next in line for an upgrade, as they entered service in January of 2001.

As I look at that unit, I wonder what Apple could unveil that will capture interest as readily as this machine has. PowerBook fans want portability, capability and design excellence in the next machine. What direction can you take when you are leading the field by such a wide margin?

PowerBook G4s are full featured desktop equivalent machines in a wonderfully elegant Titanium case that measures only 1" think and has a 15" screen. I am not sure where you can possibly go from there and maintain the features currently enjoyed.

Beyond the PowerBook, I look at the Power Mac G4 current Power Macs. The current case design has remained essentially unchanged for the last three years. The design has remained in place because it is one of the finest in the space. These cases allow users to open the machine without screws and access the components with the cords still plugged into the peripherals. They feature built in wireless antennae and molded handles for easy travel. This is a wonderful design and good designs are timeless.

What should they do for an encore?

Kevin Webb spent the last seven years selling technology consulting services. Of that time, at least two years have been devoted to trying to convince the world that the Macintosh is the pinnacle of the computing experience. He is the proud owner of eight Macs, ranging from a new iBook to a Classic. You can read about his newest computer in Kevin Webb's PowerBook G4.

Links for the Day

Mac of the Day: 17" MacBook Pro Core Duo, Apr. 2006 - The top-end MacBook Pro includes a 1680 x 1050, 2.16 GHz Core Duo CPU, and supports Apple 30" Cinema Display.
Group of the Day: G4 List is for those using Power Mac G4s or G4 upgrades.

Recent Deals

Best iPod nano Deals, 11.25. Refurb 8 GB 4G nano, $99; new, $126; refurb 16 GB, $129; new, $150; new 5G/8 GB, $134.60; 16 GB, $161.12. Shipping included.
Best Classic Mac OS Deals, 11.25. System 6.0.8 floppies, $10; 7.1, $12; 7.5, $20; 7.6 $13; 8.1, $11; 8.5, $20; 8.6, $90; 9.0, $20; 9.2.2, $30.
Best 15" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.25. Used 1 GHz Combo, $400; 1.5 GHz SuperDrive, $449; 1.67 GHz hi-res, $600.
Best G4 iMac Deals, 11.24. Used 15" 700 MHz CD-RW, $150; 800 MHz Combo, $229; 1 GHz, $289; 17" 1.25 GHz, $200; 20" 1.25 GHz, $509.
Best MacBook Air Deals, 11.24. Used from $899; refurb from $1,099; new 1.6 GHz/120 HD, $1,150 after rebate; 1.8/64 SSD, $1,150 a/r; 1.86/128 SSD, $1,350 a/r; 2.13/128 SSD, $1,694 a/r.
Best PowerBook G3 Deals, 11.24. Used 233 MHz WallStreet, $75; 266 MHz, $160; 400 MHz Lombard, $199; 400 MHz Pismo, $289; 500 MHz, $350.
Best 12" PowerBook G4 Deals, 11.23. Used 867 MHz SuperDrive, $348; 1 GHz Combo, $379; SD, $519; 1.33 GHz, $529; 1.5 GHz Combo, $549; SuperDrive, $609.
Best Mac Pro Deals, 11.23. Used 2.66 GHz 4-core, $1,300; 3.0 4-core. $1,919; refurb 2.66 4-core Nehalem, $2,149; 2.93, $2,549; 2.93 8-core, $4,999; new 2.26 8-core, $2,290.
Best Time Capsule and AirPort Deals, 11.23. Used 802.11g AirPort Extreme, $49; 500 GB Time Capsule, $150; new, $190; 1 TB dual-band, $280; 2 TB, $469; 802.11n AirPort Extreme, $170.
More deals in our archive.

About LEM | Support | Usage | Privacy | Contacts

Entire Low End Mac website copyright ©1997-2009 by Cobweb Publishing, Inc., unless otherwise noted. All rights reserved. Advice presented in good faith, but what works for one may not work for all. Please report errors to .
LINKS: We allow and encourage links to any public page as long as the linked page does not appear within a frame that prevents bookmarking it.
Access our RSS news feed at http://lowendmac.com/feed.xml.
Email may be published at our discretion; email addresses will not be published without permission, and we will encrypt them in hopes of avoiding spammers. If you prefer your message not be published, mark it "not for publication." Letters may be edited for length, context, and to match house style.
PRIVACY: We don't collect personal information unless you explicitly provide it. For more details, see our Terms of Use.
Low End Mac is an independent publication and has not been authorized, sponsored, or otherwise approved by Apple Inc. Apple, the Apple logo, Macintosh, iBook, iMac, eMac, iPod, iPhone, PowerBook, MacBook, MagSafe, Mac Pro, Apple TV, and AirPort are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. Additional company and product names may be trademarks or registered trademarks and are hereby acknowledged.