It's been several years since Apple has updated the styling of its
PowerBook and iBook computers, and although these notebooks can be
considered movers and shakers in terms of design and award winning
operating systems, it may be time to reinvent the Apple portable.
With the upcoming debut of Intel-based Macs in 2006, a new era is
about to assail the computer world - one that Apple should inaugurate
with revolutionary new styling its been known for.
Knowing full well that some engineer at Apple in San Francisco is
probably already finished designing these notebooks, here are some
things I'd like to see.
Styling
No one can deny that Apple products look good - they always have and
always will. Today's glossy white iBook and metallic PowerBooks are
simply beautiful creations that should some day be hung in the Louvre
next to a Rembrandt or Monet (well, maybe not, but we have seen some
impressive designs from Apple over the past decade).
In my opinion, the only competition for Apple in the style
department would be Sony's VAIO line of notebooks. Most notably, the
new FJ series, which comes in a variety or colors and is sleek and
thin, should give Apple a wake up call. Colors are in again, so lets
start to see some choices, just like the days of the iMac G3 and
original iBook.
Furthermore, given the fact that the iPod is arguably Apple's bread
and butter these days, and that their computer designs are reminiscent
of the little MP3 player, it should be taken into consideration that
Apple may start to offer a color option with their notebooks just like
they do with the new iPods, black or white.
But let's take it a step further: Imagine a multicolored LED Apple
logo on the cover of the iBook or the ability to buy fascias, much like
we do for our cell phones and Xbox 360s (those of you who can actually
find one). When it comes to the iBook line, it's primarily geared
towards students and the younger generation, so giving owners the
ability to customize them would be a big plus.
I doubt that anyone buying PowerBook (if the name even sticks
around) is going to want to buy a blue or green notebook, so with this
in mind I believe the PowerBook should be darkened but maintain its
business look - maybe graphite looks with blue illuminating buttons,
something like the Motorola V3 RAZR, and definitely keep the metal
construction.
Screens
Arguably the number one thing that needs to be addressed in the
iBook line is the screen. Apple should give people what they want:
bigger and wider displays.
The widescreen display is a trend started by Apple back in the
TiBook days, and it has proven to be enormously popular with almost
every computer manufacturer on the planet.
So where are the widescreen iBooks? Its been rumored that Apple will
use widescreen displays with the new iBooks, however this has not been
verified. I would like to see a 14.1" or even a 14.5" widescreen
displays on the high end and 13.3" widescreen for the smaller
iBook.
Not only that, but improved resolution would be sight for sore eyes,
especially in the 14" models. The current 1024 x 768 simply isn't good
enough for the larger display, although it works well with the current
12" 'Books. I'd like to see a native resolution of at least 1280 x 854
(like the older 15" PowerBooks) in the new 14" widescreen iBooks and
1152 x 768 (like the even older 15" PowerBooks) on the new lower-end
widescreen iBooks.
The PowerBook's new resolution is good on the 15" and 17" models,
but a widescreen 13.3" model should replace the current 12" model.
A tablet-like PowerBook also wouldn't be a bad idea, but rather than
building it around a 15" screen like PC manufactures have, a 13" or 12"
screen would prove to have a more PDA-like feel without sacrificing
power and expandability.
Hardware
We all know that Intel is going to be the CPU manufacturer of choice
for Apple's upcoming notebooks, but what about the rest of the
machine?
Motherboards by Intel would be a logical choice, and I can vouch for
their stability compared to other manufacturers.
Graphics chips are another concern. The iBook's 32 MB ATI Radeon
should be bumped up to 64 MB, with an option for a higher end 128 MB
model (built to order). As for the PowerBook line, it should bump every
model to 128 MB and also have an option for an Nvidia 256 MB card for
the 15" and 17" models.
Something else I'd like to see in the next generation notebooks are
slots for flash memory card, in particular a Memory Stick and SD slot.
That's something Windows PCs have been providing for quite some
time.
Apple's Front Row, as seen in the newest iMac G5, should also be
brought to the iBook and PowerBook lines, along with a small remote
similar to the credit card-sized remotes HP has bundled with their
Pavilion DV series notebooks.
Larger hard drives all around is another key point. Although the
current 40-60 GB for iBooks is sufficient, given the price tag it could
be bigger. I suggest boosting the high-end model iBook to 80-100 GB and
the low end to 60 GB while bumping the PowerBook line to a minimum of
100 GB and a built to order option of 160 GB - or even a second hard
drive, such as HP uses in some notebooks.
Another interesting idea would be to integrate an iSight camera in
the 'Books, just like the recent G5 iMac. Of course, there is little
space for a decent camera, but look at modern cell phones and how we
manage to get megapixel cameras in such small spaces.
The last thing I would like to see is improved speakers. I'd like to
see some higher quality speakers in the iBooks at the very least, once
again because its aimed at students and young people in general and
will undoubtedly be used to listen to music at some point. Given
Apple's media-centric marketing in the past couple years and the
success of the iPod, the company should pride itself in offering the
best music experience on a notebook PC. It can be done, but will
it?
Price
My final point is price. This is paramount, and Apple hasn't done a
good enough job lowering prices of its notebook computers. If rivals in
the PC industry are rolling out notebooks for $500, Apple should at
least make an effort to bring decent sub-$700 notebooks to the market
without sacrificing the quality that has become associated with the
Apple brand.
No one knows what the future holds for Apple, but it looks bright so
far. The switch to Intel will hopefully continue to show end users how
pitiful the Windows operating system really is and draw more and more
developers to OS X's Unix-based stability.
Are we all going to have the option of buying a glossy black iBook
with a widescreen display and Harmon Kardon speakers? Maybe not - but
maybe it'll be something even better that I simply cannot yet
imagine.
That's just the kind of thing Apple is known to do.
