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Power Mac G4 Cube
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Power Mac G4 Cube
The Power Mac G4 Cube is a Mac personal computer sold by Apple Computer, Inc. between July 2000 and 2001. The Cube was conceived as a miniaturized but powerful computer by Apple chief executive officer (CEO) Steve Jobs and designed by Jony Ive. Apple developed new technologies and manufacturing methods for the product—a 7.7-inch (20 cm) cubic computer housed in clear polycarbonate. Apple positioned it in the middle of its product range, between the consumer iMac G3 and the professional Power Mac G4. The Cube was announced at the Macworld Expo on July 19, 2000.
The Cube won awards and plaudits for its design upon release, but reviews noted its high cost compared to its power, its limited expandability, and cosmetic defects. The product was an immediate commercial failure, with only 150,000 units sold before production was suspended within one year of its announcement. The Cube is one of the rare failures for the company under Jobs, after having avoided bankruptcy. However, it influenced future Apple products, from the iPod to the Mac Mini. The Museum of Modern Art and other museums hold Cubes in their collections.
The Power Mac G4 Cube is a small cubic computer, suspended in a 7.7×7.7×9.8 in (20×20×25 cm) polycarbonate enclosure. The transparent plastic is intended to give the impression that the computer is floating. The enclosure houses the computer's vital functions, including a slot-loading optical disc drive. The Cube requires a separate monitor with either an Apple Display Connector (ADC) or a Video Graphics Array (VGA) connection. The machine has no fan to move air and heat through the case. Instead, it is passively cooled, with heat dissipated via a grille at the top of the case. The base model shipped with a 450 MHz PowerPC G4 processor, 64 MB of random-access memory (RAM), 20 GB hard drive, and an ATI Rage 128 Pro video card. A higher-end model with a 500 MHz processor, double the RAM, and a 30 GB hard drive was sold only through Apple's online store.
The Cube's small size does not feature expansion slots; it has a video card in a standard Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) slot, but cannot fit a full-length card. The power supply is located externally to save space, and the Cube features no audio jacks. Instead, the Cube shipped with round Harman Kardon speakers and digital amplifier, attached via Universal Serial Bus (USB). Despite its size, the Cube fits three RAM slots, two FireWire 400 ports, and two USB 1.1 ports for connecting peripherals in its frame. These ports and the power cable are located on the underside of the machine. Access to the machine's internal components is accomplished by inverting the unit and using a pop-out handle to slide the entire internal assembly out from the shell.
The Cube was an important product to Apple, and especially to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who said the idea for the product came from his own desires as a computer user for something between the iMac and Power Mac G4, saying, "I wanted the [flat-panel] Cinema Display but I don't need the features of the Power Mac". Jobs's minimalist aesthetic influenced the core components of the design, from the lack of a mechanical power button, to the trayless optical drive and quiet fanless operation. The design team at Apple, led by Jonathan Ive, shrunk a powerful desktop form factor, seeing traditional desktop tower computers as lazily designed around what was easiest for engineers. The Cube represented an internal shift in Apple, as the designers held increasing sway over product design. The New York Times called the Cube "pure [...] industrial design" harkening to Bauhaus concepts.
The Cube represented an effort by Apple to simplify the computer to its barest essentials. Journalist Jason Snell called the machine an example of Jobs and Ive's obsession with a "Black Box"—dense, miniaturized computers hidden within a pleasing shell hiding the "magic" of its technology. As the Cube has no fan, the design started with the heat sink. The power button that turned on with a wave or touch was accomplished via the use of capacitive sensing. The proprietary plastics formula for the housing took Apple six months to develop. Effort spent developing the Cube would pioneer new uses and processes for materials at Apple that benefitted later products. Because of the technology included in the Cube, Apple's engineers had a tough time keeping the total cost low. Advertising director Ken Segall recalled that Jobs learned of the product's price shortly before an ad agency meeting, and was left "visibly shaken" by the news, realizing that the high price might cause the product's failure.
Rumors of a cube-shaped Apple computer leaked weeks in advance, and some sites posted purported pictures. The G4 Cube was announced at Macworld Expo on July 19, 2000, as an end-of-show "one more thing". Jobs touted it as combining the power of the Power Mac G4 with a sleek design and miniaturization Apple learned from producing the iMac. Alongside the Cube, Apple introduced a new mouse, keyboard, and displays to complement the machine.
The machine's size and looks were immediately divisive, which Macworld editor Andrew Gore took as an indication that Apple had succeeded in creating a cutting-edge product. The design was a point of praise and of jokes, compared to a Borg cube, toasters, or a box of Kleenex tissues. Others compared it to the NeXTcube. Ive and the design team were so amused by the comparison to a tissue box that they used spare Cube shells for that purpose in their studio.
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Power Mac G4 Cube
The Power Mac G4 Cube is a Mac personal computer sold by Apple Computer, Inc. between July 2000 and 2001. The Cube was conceived as a miniaturized but powerful computer by Apple chief executive officer (CEO) Steve Jobs and designed by Jony Ive. Apple developed new technologies and manufacturing methods for the product—a 7.7-inch (20 cm) cubic computer housed in clear polycarbonate. Apple positioned it in the middle of its product range, between the consumer iMac G3 and the professional Power Mac G4. The Cube was announced at the Macworld Expo on July 19, 2000.
The Cube won awards and plaudits for its design upon release, but reviews noted its high cost compared to its power, its limited expandability, and cosmetic defects. The product was an immediate commercial failure, with only 150,000 units sold before production was suspended within one year of its announcement. The Cube is one of the rare failures for the company under Jobs, after having avoided bankruptcy. However, it influenced future Apple products, from the iPod to the Mac Mini. The Museum of Modern Art and other museums hold Cubes in their collections.
The Power Mac G4 Cube is a small cubic computer, suspended in a 7.7×7.7×9.8 in (20×20×25 cm) polycarbonate enclosure. The transparent plastic is intended to give the impression that the computer is floating. The enclosure houses the computer's vital functions, including a slot-loading optical disc drive. The Cube requires a separate monitor with either an Apple Display Connector (ADC) or a Video Graphics Array (VGA) connection. The machine has no fan to move air and heat through the case. Instead, it is passively cooled, with heat dissipated via a grille at the top of the case. The base model shipped with a 450 MHz PowerPC G4 processor, 64 MB of random-access memory (RAM), 20 GB hard drive, and an ATI Rage 128 Pro video card. A higher-end model with a 500 MHz processor, double the RAM, and a 30 GB hard drive was sold only through Apple's online store.
The Cube's small size does not feature expansion slots; it has a video card in a standard Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) slot, but cannot fit a full-length card. The power supply is located externally to save space, and the Cube features no audio jacks. Instead, the Cube shipped with round Harman Kardon speakers and digital amplifier, attached via Universal Serial Bus (USB). Despite its size, the Cube fits three RAM slots, two FireWire 400 ports, and two USB 1.1 ports for connecting peripherals in its frame. These ports and the power cable are located on the underside of the machine. Access to the machine's internal components is accomplished by inverting the unit and using a pop-out handle to slide the entire internal assembly out from the shell.
The Cube was an important product to Apple, and especially to Apple CEO Steve Jobs, who said the idea for the product came from his own desires as a computer user for something between the iMac and Power Mac G4, saying, "I wanted the [flat-panel] Cinema Display but I don't need the features of the Power Mac". Jobs's minimalist aesthetic influenced the core components of the design, from the lack of a mechanical power button, to the trayless optical drive and quiet fanless operation. The design team at Apple, led by Jonathan Ive, shrunk a powerful desktop form factor, seeing traditional desktop tower computers as lazily designed around what was easiest for engineers. The Cube represented an internal shift in Apple, as the designers held increasing sway over product design. The New York Times called the Cube "pure [...] industrial design" harkening to Bauhaus concepts.
The Cube represented an effort by Apple to simplify the computer to its barest essentials. Journalist Jason Snell called the machine an example of Jobs and Ive's obsession with a "Black Box"—dense, miniaturized computers hidden within a pleasing shell hiding the "magic" of its technology. As the Cube has no fan, the design started with the heat sink. The power button that turned on with a wave or touch was accomplished via the use of capacitive sensing. The proprietary plastics formula for the housing took Apple six months to develop. Effort spent developing the Cube would pioneer new uses and processes for materials at Apple that benefitted later products. Because of the technology included in the Cube, Apple's engineers had a tough time keeping the total cost low. Advertising director Ken Segall recalled that Jobs learned of the product's price shortly before an ad agency meeting, and was left "visibly shaken" by the news, realizing that the high price might cause the product's failure.
Rumors of a cube-shaped Apple computer leaked weeks in advance, and some sites posted purported pictures. The G4 Cube was announced at Macworld Expo on July 19, 2000, as an end-of-show "one more thing". Jobs touted it as combining the power of the Power Mac G4 with a sleek design and miniaturization Apple learned from producing the iMac. Alongside the Cube, Apple introduced a new mouse, keyboard, and displays to complement the machine.
The machine's size and looks were immediately divisive, which Macworld editor Andrew Gore took as an indication that Apple had succeeded in creating a cutting-edge product. The design was a point of praise and of jokes, compared to a Borg cube, toasters, or a box of Kleenex tissues. Others compared it to the NeXTcube. Ive and the design team were so amused by the comparison to a tissue box that they used spare Cube shells for that purpose in their studio.
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