[Albert_Solene]

I hate the revised iMac case: the black and silver really doesn't appeal for me, and the shiny mirror-screen is the pits.
Meanwhile, I have the same beefs with others here on the 15" MBP: DVD slot, latch, hard-disk replacement.
Stupid as it sounds, I'm much more likely to upgrade from my current MBP if they put out something with a new look.

[JanusKN]

I'm going to use my PBG4 until I run it into the ground or until Apple does a full redesign of the MacBook

[KernelG]

I still love the Mac Pro design. Coming from a dual G5 tower, I can appreciate new internal things like extra drive bays and the cooling benefits of extra space. My desk has gone from 'jet planes' to near silence. Now that things are solid and efficient, however, it would be nice to reduce size where possible down the road. And while we're wishing, as a pro audio user, a rack-mount Mac Pro would be the ultimate.

[Slowfeet]

Hi there,
Not exactly 'green' to Apple, I started buying Apple products in 1990. Yes indeed, I am definitively an 'Old Man' in comparison to this very 'Boyish' attendance in these forums. Mind you, I say that with a smile... as, living in this 'very old' country such as France is definitively a handicap, but I'll manage.
Now, back to the subject: Mac case design: Nirvana achieved?
Having, for professional reasons to switch to Microsoft for the past 15 years, I have now returned to Mac, and to tell you the truth, I feel very comfortable with this switch again...
Every day, I check on at least 15/20 Sites 'talking' about Apple, and I love it. It is obvious that this 'Mac Generation' is so alive, so demanding, so 'na??ve', yet, so TRUE, makes me smile again.
So, here is the view-point of an 'Oldy': Yes Apple keeps making it, not only their products are efficients and working, but they are 'outstanding' in terms of design.
Let me tell you, however I like this eagerness towards 'new products', that you fellows seem to be too much in the today's fashion of 'buy, use and throw away...' just like Condoms...
How would I be judged if I would think like that because my House, or my car, or my Wife, was an old model, designed 2 or 3 years ago? Old fashioned no doubts.
Nirvana, may be not, but Apple will come out with new designs and features, as time goes on, but remember, whenever you find a product that suits your needs, go ahead, buy it, use it, and keep it, you know, just as a 'collector would'.
As a matter of fact, I just hang off the Apple store where I bought tonite an Apple Display 23'' (so old fashioned...definitively needs a refresh...) and the brand new MacBook Black... just because I thought they were the best suited to my todays' needs, and also because they are so well designed.
Yes, Apple makes not only good products, but also awesome design, and I kind of like it. Never mind whether the design is.. so many days, months or years old. You like it? Take it. Now.
Slowfeet

[wgood]

KernelG said:

...a rack-mount Mac Pro would be the ultimate.

Isn't that the Xserve?

[Verboten]

So many apologists for Apple's laziness.
None of their designs even approach Nirvana they are all heavily compromised not heavenly uncompromised.
If it weren't so you may as well say that apart from slapping in a new Intel CPU and outdated GPU every several months, their job was over.
What we have seen these past twelve months or so is a telephone (nod to Graham Bell and the glass faced phonautograph) and a silver wedge of cheese (MacBook Air) to compliment the hideous cheese grater (MacPro). Oh, and a Leopard which owes its spots to The Beatles "Fixing a Hole".
Mouse Trap set...

[edenflyer]

I bought the original 13" black MacBook the day it came out to replace my PowerBook 12" Aluminum. It has served me very well, but today I ordered the new 13" black MacBook. I love the case design and feel pretty strongly that the MacBook is the best laptop computer for most users. Of course nothing is perfect, but Apple did a great job to start with and I am happy to avoid having to buy new accessories just because I wanted a little more hard drive capacity, more memory, and a faster processor.
A new case design is sort of like having the latest fashions. It looks cool for a few days, but in the end you want value and ease of use. The MacBook provides that and more.

[KernelG]

[quote name='wgood'] Isn't that the Xserve?
>

KernelG said:

> ...a rack-mount Mac Pro would be the ultimate.

No, unfortunately. The tight 1u form doesn't offer expandability or low noise, and it only ships as a "back-room appliance" with a high price tag. Many musicians drooled over the Xserve when it first appeared, but it was not to be. Not yet, anyway.

[cu10]

It's not perfection; it's marketing!
When the case design is featured prominently in movies & ads (Inconvenient Truth, Showtime, & more), the investment in the brand has been heavy. It pays to leverage that immense brand-building.
Yes, the casing is a significant part of Apple's brands.
As are the product names. Apple changed the "iBook," "Powerbook," "Powermac" names to "Macbook," "Macbook Pro," & "Mac Pro" in the mid-'00's; to better leverage the "Mac" brand which it started building in the mid-'80's.
Brand-focusing also explains why there are only a few variations of Apple's laptops today.
And Apple has always been a marketing company. Just check out iWoz - Steve Wozniak's book - especially if you wanna hear more of the techie side of the story.

[staypuffinpc]

You overlooked the change in form-factor from the 14" and 12" iBooks to the 13" macbook. I went from a 14" ibook to a 13" macbook and it was a world of difference. Somehow, the slight change in thickness, weight, and dimensions made a huge difference and the macbook felt like so much better of a fit for me, both in my hands and in my backback. Also, while the general casing has not undergone a lot of changes in 5 years, Apple has made several "unseen" changes that have radically altered my laptop-using experience. To name a few:
# magsafe: what a difference a plug can make, eh?
# magnetic "lock" instead of a latch. This made such a difference that I was SORELY disappointed to find that my new MBP does not have it. Of course, my wife ripped open the lid on my MBP when I first got it thinking that it worked the same as my MB did.
# the keyboard: much better feel. I've actually never been much of a fan of mac keyboards (except for the old black Powerbook G3 keyboards, which was the best laptop keyboard I've ever used). The new keyboards feel much better.
# the apple appears right side up when the lid is opened: silly difference, but it affects the perceived package, I guess.
There are probably some other functioning aspects they've added to the design, but these show that their design over the last few years has sought to change the experience (which mac is all about, right), and not just the eye-candy of using a laptop. Of course one thing that has NOT changed are the lousy speakers. Being such a media-centric machine, I'd hoped they'd upgrade these--at least on the MBPs.

[CLeyden]

Tend to agree with the comment of montgomery_burns. I bought a MacBook instead of a MacBook Pro as it is trivial on the MB to upgrade the hard drive. To do the same on the MBP is a real pain which involves taking the whole machine apart.

[wgood]

Excellent post, good sir.

You have echoed the same things I like about my MacBook, compared to my old iBook. The thickness and dimensions really do make a difference when it is in your backpack, and the MagSafe has saved my rear on more than 1 occasion. As for the magnetic latch? Well, that is just pure genius.

[RASTERMAN]

In related news...

Jonathan Paul Ive CBE (born February 1967) Senior Vice President of Industrial Design at Apple Inc., internationally renowned as the principal designer of the iMac, iPod and the iPhone, has been reportedly busy registering himself on various popular headhunting sites.

Recent documents acquired from an anonymous source at Amazon.com indicate purchases relating to career change/advancement reference materials, i.e. "Cover Letters for Dummies."

It's also been reported that he has been seen spending an unusual amount of time shopping and sucking down expensive coffee drinks at Barnes & Noble in addition to other bookstores. Reports are that he spends most of his browsing time specifically in the "Career Building & Resume Section."

*Note: All of the above is fictitious, and as far as I know completely untrue. Just trying to be funny, okay? Also, the first paragraph is intentionally plagiarized from wikipedia.

Cheers!

---RASTER
Message was edited by: RASTERMAN

[Civet]

Nirvana? I thought the lead singer was dead.
Anyhoo. I consider the ThinkPad to be the pinnacle of notebook design, not the MacBook Pro. And the fact that the MacBook copies that design just reaffirms that. You know what they say about imitation and flattery.
The Mac Pro casing could do with a number of improvements. Not the least of which is making it actually a desktop: my old dual G5 bent my desk in under a year. Here, again, I have seen a number of new features (new meaning post-G5 design) in other PCs which I really like so, no, the Mac Pro has not reached nirvana, either: it's still possible to improve on it.
The Mac Mini is great, if you like sitting next to a toaster. My G4 Mini was so toasty I frequently had to open the study window. Maybe it's just me, but it seems Apple put the vents upside down on that product.
The new iMac with the black panel around the monitor is nicer than the white one. But didn;t HP come out with black panelled monitors first?
In summary: all the Mac designs could be improved upon. But I think since people are still buying them in droves, contrary to what this article feels, the design team HAS been resting on its laurels and gotten lazy. Best Mac for me? The Pismo. No two ways about it. It's function and practicality meet form at its finest. Although that, too, can be improved upon, of course, as can most things in this world.