30 years in Apple products: the good, the bad, and the ugly

Engadget ^ | 4/1/06 | Ryan Block

[qam1]

Has it really been 30 years since two buddies named Steve sold off their prized possessions (Woz's HP calculator and Jobs' VW van) to raise money and launch a company? Has it really been 30 years since the two Steves, tired of selling blue-boxes, built the Apple I and began selling it for $666.66? Yes, it has, and if you don't believe it, just compare Jobs' hairlines from 76 and today. And while the company has become known for many things, from its groundbreaking GUI to the iTunes Music Store, we know Apple has always been a hardware company at heart. So here's to you, Apple: the good, the bad and, yes, the ugly from the past 30 years. Happy Birthday.

The good
We're not going to go on about the contributions Apple's made to consumer electronics and personal computing. We don't really actually think they're all that innovative a lot of the time, they just have a knack for taking what's out there, what's a little higher end or out of reach to the average user, and bringing it to the mainstream at just the right time. Apple is Apple because they bring that technology home, and then package it with a friendly user experience and with an eye for style. High tech, good user experience, stylish presentation, it's not like those aren't things being done elsewhere, just usually not all together at the same time. Perhaps that's the essence of the Apple mystique. We've gathered some of the more groundbreaking devices of Apple's career; oh sure, we could have rounded up more, but we had to be fair to the bad and the ugly, too.

..Snip..
1976 - Apple I
1977 - Apple ][
1984 - Macintosh
1989 - Macintosh SE/30
1991 - PowerBook 100
1994 - QuickTake
1995 - Power Macintosh 9500
1998 - iMac
2000 - Apple flat panels
2001 - PowerBook G4
2001 - iPod
2006 - MacBook Pro

The bad
We like a good Apple as much as the next guy, but if you think we're gonna let 'em off easy for their flubs, flops, or complete misjudgments of their consumer base, well, you might not realize we dislike a bad Apple as much as the next guy, too. Sure, they may have some regrets over the years (seems to us like most probably come from simply pricing themselves right out of the hands of potential buyers) but occasionally concept and forward thinking become high concept and too-forward thinking, and what you wind up with is a device that people just aren't ready for yet -- or devices that just aren't ready for people yet.

..Snip...
1980 - Apple III
1983 - Lisa
1993 - MessagePad and Newton OS
1997 - Twentieth Anniversary Mac
2000 - Power Mac G4 Cube

The ugly
Let's face it, not every device in Apple's career has been lustrous, no matter how illustrious Apple may be. Now, we're not saying that Apple's continued success has been reliant strictly upon aesthetics, but there are a number of reasons why 1985 through 1997 were the lean years, and we don't think John Sculley's, Michael Spindler's, and Gil Amelio's sense of style exactly helped. Hey, even Jobs can't escape the fact that some serious fuglies made their way out the door under his watchful eye. We could make a gallery of Apple's egregiously uncomely, but we picked a few of our fav eyesores that we're no longer cursed by the gadget gods to gaze upon (at least not until we put together this piece, anyway).

..snip..
1989 - Macintosh Portable
1991 - Macintosh Quadra
1992 - Macintosh Performa
1996 - Network Server
2001 - Flower Power iMac

[Yossarian]

The ugliest of the ugly? Easy: The PowerMac G3 All-in-One:

Otherwise known as "The Mac Molar", for obvious reasons.

Current lemon? The new Intel Mac Mini. It has a blatantly defective wireless networking and Bluetooth implementation. I was burned by two units, and the fact that Apple isn't admitting there's a problem has made me look for more solid pastures.

[rintense]

I loved my 660AV Quadra. It was ahead of its time. Still have a Mac SE/30 in a box in my garage.

[Tribune7]

I liked the Cube.

If they want items for bad how about OS 7.

[satchmodog9]

I loathe my I Book.

[359Henrie]

I bought the monitor package, what was it 2x3? lol.

[blu]

Mac SE/30 in a box in my garage.

Our SE is planning on becoming a Macaquarium as a BD gift! (But then I think...should I hang onto it? You just never know when all 6 of the other backup computers will fry!)

[birbear]

I'm a diehard Microsoftie. I worship at the altar of Bill Gates.

That said, my platinum colored Apple IIe (released in about 1988-89) was the most fun I ever had with a computer.

It had the best feeling keyboard of any keyboard I've ever used, and I expanded the hell out of that thing.

I often told my friend, a Mac devotee, that I would find one of those Apple IIe cases and pay somebody to put an Intel-based board in it.

He cringes. :)

[Yossarian]

OSX server is pretty good. it does run on a Linux kernal, however.

To clear up any misconceptions: Mac OS X (both client and server) are derived from BSD UNIX, not Linux. It runs on a microkernel called "XNU", which combines the Mach microkernel with the FreeBSD kernel with "I/O Kit", a C++ interface for drivers.

Add all this to the usual GNU tools, and you have a solid UNIX implementation. Just like adding the GNU tools to the Linux core OS makes that a solid UNIX implementation as well.

[kimbermatic]

I first touched an Apple PC back in 1980. Then never had the money, no real desire.

However, the ipod and powerbook drew me in for a closer look. I have four PC's and they have been either MS or Linux.

Given the thought of what Vista will be when it finally arrives I needed to fill the void of MS machines.

I took the dive with the new mini duo/intel when my multimedia machine with MS died. I was amazed with the just works that played out for me.

This let me to the decision of the new Macbook Pro. Again very, very impressive.

I am selling off my AMD/MS machines and will now have Linux and Apple machines. I really believe MS has screwed up with their age and growth, some of it self inflicted and some of it from the success. All I know is operating system must be stable, and I the user has the right to bypass the DRM controls. Itunes is DRM'd but there are ways around it the operating system isn't trying to control it as vista will in the future.

[SengirV]

Very good product, but about 2 to 3 times what it should have cost to be a success.

[krb]

That's //c, sir :-)

It was definitely a fantastic machine. Came complete with the 80-column card (wich also gave you 64 extra K of memory as well as double hi-res graphics) and the printer card preinstalled.

[Yossarian]

I took the dive with the new mini duo/intel when my multimedia machine with MS died. I was amazed with the just works that played out for me.

Can I ask some questions?

• Have you tested WiFi networking? How's the range?
• Have you tested Bluetooth peripherals? How's the range and mouse stability?
• Have you tested both WiFi and Bluetooth at the same time?

I have returned two core duo minis due to this issue. Every demo unit I've tested at the stores has wireless issues. Macintouch is full of reports of how these features are broken.

I've given up on them, at least until Apple makes a statement and recall on units. But if your unit is working perfectly, maybe they fixed the problem....

[Celtjew Libertarian]

True... but I didn't buy it to be a high-end machine. I bought it to type up class reports (and play obsessive amounts of stats-based baseball simulations) on.

The monitor, however, was the first thing to go.

[6SJ7]

If Apple would allow that software to run on other machines they'd make a killing.

Apple builds subtle tie-ins between software and hardware which would not be possible running on a generic box. For instance, with an Apple notebook computer, close the lid; the OS goes into sleep mode. Open the lid; the OS wakes. Tap the power button when the machine is already powered up; a dialog box appears asking if you want to shut down or put the machine into sleep mode.

Using the new Apple remote, you can wake the machine or put it into sleep mode via the remote. Handy if you are running a presentation or watching a DVD.

[359Henrie]

I guess it was hi res since my 1st computer was a Univac 1218, 16k CORE memory.

[359Henrie]

I played the SSI war games on it.

[Celtjew Libertarian]

SSI Baseball was what I played.

[Minn]

Had a strange experience on a flight from Miami to Minneapolis yesterday. There’s this guy in the isle seat in front of me. He’s wearing a muscle shirt. He’s balding. He has one of those Freddie Mercury mustaches. He had a tan probably obtained on South Beach. He was reading some magazine that had a full-page ad about “Hep C” and it’s dangers.

Then the strangest thing happened. He gets up, opens the overhead bin, and pulls out a computer. Much to my astonishment, it is not a Mac, but a Dell. Very strange.

[Filo]

Apple builds subtle tie-ins between software and hardware which would not be possible running on a generic box.

Windows does that too (mostly) but those are just minor issues, really.

The biggest thing Apple would have to deal with is the variety of hardware it would have to support. Dozens of video cards, hundreds of different drives, etc.

They could do it, but they'd need to put a bunch of code in.

They'd also have to beef up their security substantially. There aren't a lot of Apple viruses because hackers don't bother trying to break 2% of the world's installed base. Get a few more percentage points and the wide variety of OSX vulnerabilities would be exposed.

Unfortunately I don't think Apple has the vision to do this anyway.

[goldstategop]

The G4 Cube was too big to be portable... that's what killed it. Its descendant, the Mac Mini has been a hit from Day One.

(Denny Crane: "I Don't Want To Socialize With A Pinko Liberal Democrat Commie. Say What You Like About Republicans. We Stick To Our Convictions. Even When We Know We're Dead Wrong.")