When Apple resurrected the all-in-one computer with the iMac, it started a design revolution. Within months, computer makers were following suit with their own fruit -flavored PCs. The design of the iMac -- whether you love it or hate it -- made the desktop computer more approachable, more style conscious. With a sexy design and appealing colors, it communicated what Apple’s been about from the beginning: the computer as a lifestyle appliance. But the iMac's pretty face belied what was underneath: power. Now, the new G4 Cube may portend another design revolution and raises the bar with impressive power yet again.
Gigahertz and teraflops aside for a moment, the design is still what makes the Cube stand out. It is about 8 inches on each side -- only about a quarter the size of most PC towers. All the processing goes on inside the silvery cube, which rests in a 10-inch tall clear acrylic stand. The Cube operates in complete silence, since the design that allows air to flow through the case eliminates the need for a noisy cooling fan. Alongside the futuristic cube are an equally stylish set of round Harman/Kardon speakers, an optical mouse and a keyboard -- all in the same clear and gray color scheme of the Cube. Put together with the optional 22-inch Apple Cinema Display, it's the smallest, sleekest and most powerful desktop on the planet.
The Cube is Apple through and through. It uses the Mac operating system that’s been the model of simplicity and stability for years. But the machine also incorporates Apple’s constant and high level of technical innovation that made the G4 platform the first consumer-grade supercomputer. The Cube comes in two speeds: with a 450MHz ($1,800) or 500MHz ($2,300) processor. Both are capable of besting any of the top Windows/Intel machines because of the highly refined processor design and other CPU innovations. The 450MHz model comes with 64 megabytes of RAM, the 500MHz model with 128MB (both expandable to a whopping 1.5 gigabytes). Both systems sport 16 megabytes of video RAM for amazing image processing. With that sort of firepower, you’re capable of making home versions of Toy Story, if so inspired. Of course it also includes a DVD-ROM drive for playing movies, a 56k modem, 3 Firewire ports (if you include the mysterious internal one) and 2 USB ports (the latest standards for fast and easy peripheral connectivity), an Ethernet connector, and a 20GB hard drive. In keeping with a philosophy that many still find premature, it does not have a floppy drive or any serial or parallel connectivity.
Just like with the iMac, there are the naysayers. Some compare the new design to a toaster oven or a tissue box. Others are afraid that the clear acrylic design will start another industrial design revolution (this one of ‘70s Lucite disco-ball design that most of us would just as soon forget). But love it or hate it, Apple has achieved something that others will undoubtedly follow. Copycats may swipe the design, but it looks like it will be a while before competitors will match the speed.
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