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Have It Your Way (1/6/99)
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Sometimes it's easy to forget just how much a product can change during its development cycle. Take a look at Yosemite, for instance, and note the number of features that differ from earlier prototypes described on the web: it's iMac-colored instead of dark blue, it has no AGP slot, it has no IrDA port, there's no media bay that allows the swapping of modules with PowerBooks, etc. Yosemite is quite a different beast than we were all originally led to believe. We point this out because P1, the consumer portable we've been hearing about for many months now, is still several months away from introduction, so any information on prototypes at this stage is hardly indicative of what will actually ship.
That said, NoBeige has more information on the P1 as it currently exists. According to their sources, yes, Virginia, there is a P1 at the Expo. In fact, there are two. And they're completely different from one another. Only a very select few were given sneak peeks at the early P1 prototypes by Steve Jobs himself, who is reportedly looking for feedback on the two designs. The first unit is apparently reminiscent of the ill-fated eMate, using curved and colored translucent plastics and "advanced shock absorption technology--" another page borrowed from the eMate's book, since the eMate was capable of surviving a four-foot drop onto a concrete surface without damage. The second P1 prototype, however, is reportedly a plainer super-slim notebook. Sony's had some pretty solid success with its own incredibly thin VAIO laptops, and Apple is considering a similar design for the P1.
Our vote? Well, it's tough to say for sure without actually seeing them, but we're leaning towards the "eMate 2." We always liked the eMate-- both its looks and its ruggedness. And while the idea of a really thin laptop also appeals to us greatly (since it leaves more room in the bag), we'd rather have a "gee-whiz" portable that we can toss around and drag all over the world without having to worry so much about damaging sensitive equipment. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking. In the meantime, we'll wait to see what Apple actually ships.
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SceneLink (1252)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 1/6/99 episode: January 6, 1999: Brace yourself, because it looks like an iMac price war is looming on the horizon. Meanwhile, the new iMacs underwent a little surgery before hitting the runway, and the P1's design is still way up in the air...
Other scenes from that episode: 1250: Fire At Will! (1/6/99) If you'd have asked us yesterday, we would have told you that now is absolutely, positively, no-questions-asked the best possible time to buy an iMac. After all, the processor speed's been bumped up slightly, the disk capacity's been expanded by 50%, and the price has dropped $100... 1251: Mezz Has Left the Building (1/6/99) Let's recap: the new iMacs cost $100 less, have a slightly faster processor, a bigger hard disk, and come in five colors. Sounds like a solid upgrade, right? Except that what Apple's not shouting from the rooftops is that the "iMac 266" is actually missing a couple of things found in the "classic" iMacs...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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