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More Tangerine Dreams (7/22/99)
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On a related note, do we have to tell you what we think of the pundits claiming that the iMac's revolutionary industrial design is not important enough to influence the rest of the computer industry? Heck, computer manufacturers everywhere are finally realizing that style sells, and we're not just talking about the Future Power rip-off artists. The spectre of the beige box will soon be a thing of the past, and if the iMac was the computer that killed it, the iBook will be driving the nails into the coffin. It's curvy, it's colorful, and we think it's going to sell like Spock ears at a Trekkie convention.
Interestingly enough, while the iBook has generated more AtAT feedback than any product or event since the iMac itself was announced, almost none of the iBook mail focused on the AirPort wireless networking, or the unit's unfortunate weight, or any of the technical features: the vast majority of the buzz we're hearing concerns the iBook's colors. (So much for the theory that color isn't what sells computers...) Specifically, we received dozens of messages in defense of Tangerine from viewers who love Apple's bright orange iBooks-- and don't get us wrong, folks, we like the Tangerine ones better than the Blueberry. But here's a kicker for you: two faithful viewers, Bob Sassone and Timur Tabi, both independently posited similar Jobsian Tangerine Conspiracy Theories: Steve is limiting iBook colors to Blueberry and Tangerine in the hope that Tangerine's increased visibility and sales in the iBook stats will give the flavor a boost on the iMac side as well, thus vindicating the original questionable decision to ship an orange computer, which proved less than popular. Hey, it could happen.
If you're looking for the more pedestrian (and probably true) explanation, though, faithful viewer and Expo attendee John Rousselle has the answer: "I overheard an Apple guy on the floor explaining that the double-shot rubber on the casing only came out nice in Blueberry and Tangerine. None of the other fruit flavors were rubber-friendly." Sounds entirely possible to us, and it hints strongly that Apple's working on bringing the remaining flavors to the iBook (as Steve Jobs himself hinted, in a Wired article), possibly even by the time the first units make it onto the shelves. As for us, we think the Blueberry looks fine, and the Tangerine is nifty-- but we'd buy a Lime iBook in a heartbeat. We're keeping those fingers crossed...
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SceneLink (1677)
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And Now For A Word From Our Sponsors |
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 | | The above scene was taken from the 7/22/99 episode: July 22, 1999: Other computer manufacturers are getting bloody in the battle to ship low-cost PCs, but Apple stands coolly on the sidelines. Meanwhile, Tangerine proves popular with the viewers, though some people wonder if Steve has ulterior motives for pushing orange, and while this Expo feels smaller somehow, it's still a smashing success...
Other scenes from that episode: 1676: Greetings, Prof. Falken (7/22/99) When Steve Jobs first took the wraps off of the iMac, we recall several people enumerating the system's various shortcomings and predicting that, in the final analysis, the average consumer wouldn't be willing to pay more money for an underfeatured computer "just because it's blue."... 1678: Some Expo Reflections (7/22/99) As we prepare to head back into the Expo for a last happy day of wandering the floor, we thought we'd just share a few random thoughts about the overall experience this year. See, we at AtAT generally aren't the schmooze type, so we don't spend all our time getting sneak peeks at secret products in the back rooms and drinking ourselves into oblivion at the various parties only to awaken half-naked in a dumpster inexplicably clutching a tin of Altoids and a rubber chicken...
Or view the entire episode as originally broadcast... | |  |
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