“‘It’s all about removing the unnecessary,’ Jonathan Ive has said of the ethos that informs his landmark product designs for Apple Computer. Ive has stripped the complexity out of technology and moved Apple’s products–and with them, much of the high-tech industry–toward what he calls the “utterly serene.” His translucent Power Mac G4 Cube, which resembled postmodern sculpture more than office equipment, proved that computer design could even aspire to high art. But nothing better fulfills Ive’s ambition to create elegant, intuitive machinery than his revolutionary design for the iPod MP3 player. Coveted as much as a fashion statement as for its utility, this ode to minimalism has redefined the way consumers experience technology, to say nothing of music. Dell and Samsung have vainly followed with their own iPod knockoffs, proving conclusively that Ive’s influence runs deep,” Fast Company writes.
Full article here.
The history of Apple’s product line is worthy of a museum exhibition.
Could we say the same for Dell?
No
Our buddy Jonathan makes a cool $1 Million a year and has been awarded the Queens highest honors for design.
Now a nice 30+ Apple Cinema Display matching my G5 would be nice.
Of course I would want the resolution to be higher as well.
My university lecturer Marked Johnathan Ive’s GCSE projects. He design an OHP that was tiny and folded away into a small cube rather than a huge beast with a giant arm sticking out. It was so cool (well, as cool as an OHP can be).
Wonder if Apple will release it?
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What’s an OHP?
Must be an overhead projector. Yep… bring on the 30+ Cinema with higher resolution. And lower price. And a video-in; not to mention the abitily to fold into a cube for petting.
Ed,
Yes, an OHP is an OverHead Projector.
No need for them now, just have an iBook and projector.
>”It’s all about removing the unnecessary.”
IT staff, antivirus programs, bloated software from M$, crashes, user license fees, FUD….
I love how Apple keeps the Touch Pad on it notebooks centered, while every other maker puts then left of center to accommodate the right handed mass.
As a lefty, I really appreciate it, even though I use my right hand with the mouse. I don’t own a laptop so can someone chime in on this. Do you miss the extra room that would result from shifting it over?
Artist. I like the touch pad where it is but really preferred the trackball I had on my powerbook 170. AND I wish all the Apple track pads had two buttons.
I thought that someone else designed the iPod, and then Apple purchased it. Let me see if I can find the article.
Buffy,
The internal reference framework and processing chip was designed by PortalPlayer. This gave Apple a significant head start, but Apple worked with PortalPlayer to add audio digitizing, Firewire, display, and HD controller chips. Apple designed the outside, including the layout of the UI wheel and buttons. I think the article was in Engineering Design or something like that.
I thought the reason the wintel folks had the track pads offset – right was because their larger screen notebooks had ten key in addition to the qwerty.
I would love to have a ten key on my Powerbook.
But It’s my opinion that SJ would never allow the trackpad to be offset becasue it’s not aesthetically clean [as a centered pad].
uhh.. michael dell will be the first in line to say that its designs are boring
Now a nice 30+ Apple Cinema Display matching my G5 would be nice.
And what’s the highest resolution you think it would have? Larger displays typically have unimpressive resolutions.
bring on the 30+ Cinema with higher resolution
My guess is if there’s anything like it on the market now it probably costs over $10K.
“And what’s the highest resolution you think it would have? Larger displays typically have unimpressive resolutions.
Well if the 20″ ACD has 1600 x 1200 and the 23″ has 1920 x 1200 pixels
I guess the 30″ would have to have something like 2800 x 1600 pixels.
Large displays like plasmas, LCD TV’s are bigger, but have lower pixel dimensions, this is why you get a lousy display for up close.
They were not designed for viewing 3-4 feet away, but rather 10-15 feet away, where the eye cannot see the details.
Larger displays will be great, except for the “frequent mouse miles” one will clock up.
Thankfully a (mini)article of praise for someone other than Woz and Jobs. It is nice to be reminded that Apple is a company of more than 2 people.
“Large displays like plasmas, LCD TV’s are bigger, but have lower pixel dimensions, this is why you get a lousy display for up close.”
The conventional wisdom for TVs is that the ideal viewing distance is 5x screen size. So if you have a 30″ TV it’s designed to be viewed from 12 feet away.