[mindwaves]

Let's have a vote on your favorite iMac!

Mine would have to be my 17'' iMac G5 1.9GHz. As much as I loved my sage iMac DV+ and bluberry iMac, I love my G5 more.

[Gossamer]

The only iMac I've owned: Ruby DV
Waaaay back in the day

[MichiganRich]

The 1st gen 17" PowerBook G4 I'm writing this on. Best Mac ever. Completely loaded at the time of release, and still running beautifully. It will be 4 years old in March and it still makes people drool.

You could take my G5 tower and I wouldn't mind, just leave me the 'Book.... :-)

[lpkmckenna]

The current design seems the best - looks friendly and serious. The sunflower iMac was too cute. The gumdrop iMac looked like a toy. (And the eMac just looked bloated.)

[slpdLoad]

I think the 20" G4 "sunflower/lampshade" iMac is my favorite design. I'd love to have one. However, I think the 24" C2D iMacs now are the best balance of performance, design, and cost of any iMac yet.

[MartiNZ]

I'd agree with the 20" lampshade. So much more visibly impressive than the current design.

While we're at it, for laptops without a doubt the coloured iBooks!

[MichiganRich]

i'M an idiot. Funny what an 'i' can change... duh.

As far as iMacs go, I'd have to vote for the original G4 flat panel 'lamp'. Apples were not as desireable as they would become, and they blew people away with the bold design and the still-kinda-rare-at-the-time LCD.

[beetleboy]

My most favorite iMac ever for me is my Lime G3 iMac DV 400. I love this machine. She still purrs like a cat even after six years.

[Gossamer]

Originally Posted by beetleboy 

My most favorite iMac ever for me is my Lime G3 iMac DV 400. I love this machine. She still purrs like a cat even after six years.

edit: this post is wrong...check the correction below
The iMac DVs did not come in Lime. If it really is a DV (you say 6 years old, which would put it at 2000, which is right for the DVs) then that green color is called Sage. Do google image searches for 'sage imac' and 'lime imac' to see the difference.

[CharlesS]

G5 iMac design, but only the original design, without the iSight. Those were the only iMacs that were easy to get into and replace components such as the hard drive or optical drive. As for the iSight and Intel models, as long as it's going to be near-impossible to access the internals, it might as well be the lampshade iMac instead, because at least that one had the really cool adjustability feature.

Why isn't this a poll, btw?

[Will C]

Originally Posted by Gossamer 

The iMac DVs did not come in Lime. If it really is a DV (you say 6 years old, which would put it at 2000, which is right for the DVs) then that green color is called Sage. Do google image searches for 'sage imac' and 'lime imac' to see the difference.

Ermmmm, yes they did and - I've got one languishing in the loft - I really must find it a new home.
A google image search for 'lime iMac' mostly finds tray loaders, but amongst the results you'll find few DV models with slot load DVD-ROMs and firewire ports.
Apple revised them again with bigger drives, CD-RW and faster procsssors when they launched the Sage, Ruby etc colours - I think these may have been know as DV+ IIRC.

[Not a flame by the way, I mean this as nicely as possible]

[P]

Will C is correct. The first batch of Kihei ("iMac 2", the one with the new motherboard, AGP, Firewire and a 100 MHz FSB), which was the first to include an iMac DV model, came in Blueberry, Tangerine, Strawberry, Lime and Grape, plus a DV SE model in Graphite. The first facelift, which included a 16 MB Rage 128 Pro chip and a small MHz boost, also introduced the new colors.

That's my pick for favourite iMac, by the way. While the GPU proved to be the weak link in the end - 8 MB Rage 128 cut down to a 64bit memory bus just wasn't enough, Apple thought that AGP would take care of that - it is perfectly quiet, and the low latency design makes it snappy. It is slightly too slow to decode DivX well, it doesn't play Warcraft III and the DVD makes a racket when reading CDs, but it was a lovely little machine in its day.

[Gossamer]

Woah...how did I forget about that revision??
Except P is wrong about the graphics card. The first indigo/sage/ruby iMacs still came with the 8MB Rage chip (that I suffered through), it wasn't until the second revision of those colors that the 16MB chip was released in 2001.

[beetleboy]

Thanks Will C and P for your clarifications on the specifications of the G3 iMac DV's!

Beetleboy

[P]

Originally Posted by Gossamer 

Woah...how did I forget about that revision??
Except P is wrong about the graphics card. The first indigo/sage/ruby iMacs still came with the 8MB Rage chip (that I suffered through), it wasn't until the second revision of those colors that the 16MB chip was released in 2001.

I suppose I deserve to be nitpicked for trying to nitpick someone else... I really thought I was right on that one, but it turns out that the first revision of the Indigo/Ruby/Sage iMacs had an 8MB version of the Rage 128 Pro chip, to be compared with the 8 MB Rage 128 chip in the first Kihei and the 16 MB Rage 128 Pro in the next Indigo iMac DV. Still a fairly minor improvement over the lifetime of the model - it was only with the flatpanel models that the iMacs got a real GPU, but then they cost a lot more as well. I still think that iMac DV was the best model until at least the Core2 Duos, which I hear are really nice.

[mindwaves]

Originally Posted by CharlesS 

Why isn't this a poll, btw?

What? I see a poll.

[JoshKurtz]

Originally Posted by MartiNZ 

I'd agree with the 20" lampshade. So much more visibly impressive than the current design.

While we're at it, for laptops without a doubt the coloured iBooks!

+1 on both of those opinions. You, my friend, have some seriously good taste.

[MattJeff]

i wish my G4's screen would turn sideways as well as the swivle action

[imitchellg5]

I like the iMac G3s. But I also love my G5 1.8GHz, although the fans are annoying.

[nitewing98]

For looks: my old blueberry G3 (Artoo, to his friends). There were so many matching accessories back then, too. I still have the CD tower and Zip100 USB that matched it.

For performance: My Sage DV+ (known as Kermit, which I thought was funny
a] because Kermit sang "It's not easy bein' green" in the commercial and
b] Kermit was an old transfer protocol, so it seemed apropos)
which I'm still using, BTW. He runs 10.4.8 just fine, thanks. The only problem is that it won't run iTunes videos because it lacks a G4. But for most of my needs, Kermit is the BOMB - still.

[rubaiyat]

The 24" Intel iMac has to be the most lustworth iMac. The sheer expanse, intense color from wide angles and speed make it THE Mac as far as I am concerned.

All I am waiting on to make it absolutely perfect is more FW/USB ports, a 2nd hard drive to allow for TimeWarp and an inbuilt TV tuner.

I would previously have said my iMac 400 DV but it loses lots of marks for only being able to run MacOS 9.1 which sucked. If Apple let you install older OSes and I could install OS 8.6 on it then it would be a fantastic machine.

[jpdalamar]

While the current Intel iMac is my favorite design overall, I still recall the first time I saw the lampshade iMac at an apple store. Its DVD drive tray was ejected and it looked just like it was sticking its tongue out at me!!! Too cool!!

[larrinski]

Had major problems with my imac G5, & the new intel imac is wicked. Add one for the intel version...

[chris v]

Design-wise, I loved the lampshade G4's, but they were always underpowered. The G5 was a design compromise, but a much more capable machine, and yeah, the new 24" iMacs are pretty stunning.

[Rev-O]

From a visual standpoint, I like the original G3s. I liked the variety of colors offered throughout the life of the model. If you are going to have a computer sitting out in plain sight, why not make it lively instead of beige and boring?
Next would be the current G5 form factor, though I dislike the chin. I've always thought the iMac should be a bit thicker just so the chin could be lost. Still, a nice and clean design, if somewhat sterile.
Lampshades are my least fav. The flat panel display had nice 'wow' factor, but the shape and looks of the thing never thrilled me.

[driven]

I think the "lampshade" (I've always called it the longneck) was the most innovative and most eye pleasing. My second choice would be the multi-colored G3s. (I've still got one of those in operation!) The G5 is nice, but nothing too innovative about it. It looks like something Sony would build after they finally figure out style.

My favorite design would still be the G4 Cube.

[MattJeff]

Lampshade is perfect. best design

[Eriamjh]

Originally Posted by MattJeff 

Lampshade is perfect. best design

I humbly disagree.

While I think the G4 design is the coolest, I feel the current iMac design is the most ideal. The only thing the Intel/G5 design lacks is the height adjustment of the G4 design.


I think the Intel/G5 version looks professional, elegant, and takes up no less space than a monitor alone. I think getting rid of the bottom panel so the iMac looks like a display alone with standard wireless keyboard and mouse would be the next step to the perfect iMac.

For years, stupid people have always thought the display was the computer. Soon, they will be right.

[Veltliner]

I like the current design best.

I think the 20" iMac looks best with its ratio of body size to screen size.

[ibugv4]

iMac G4. The G3 was quite a shocker, but I never really liked the CRT aspect. the G5/Intel design is what everyone expected in 2002 and we got that art-deco-ish modern-lamp looking iMac ... it was stunning, white and chrome.. very upperclass, very intriguing, mysterious. iMac G5/current design is boxy, uneven (whats up with the larger margin at the bottom and the way too large iMac text on the back and Apple logo up front.. and that power light.. what the heck?).

From an overall design standpoint the best models were all models prior to the G5/Intel. The current offering lacks everything to make the eye happy, unless I truly am less than 2% of the populator and know the other 1.9999% of people who thought the G4 had more flair than the G5.

[2stepbay]

I have owned the G3 iMac, 17" G4 lampshade, and the 20" G5 iSight. The G5 is so far beyond the other two. Great screen size and resolution, quiet, fast (2.5 gb RAM). Next machine is definitely a 24" Intel.

[Velocity211]

I've never heard the "lampshade" nickname for the iMac G4 before. But anyway, my fav has to be the G4 and the Intel, I only owned the G4 for a brief period of time before I had to sell it. So now, I'm saving for the 24" iMac.

[ChasingApple]

Without a doubt the G4 iMac (I use one daily) is my favorite design, 2nd would be the original G3's. As for the G5 and Intel, I hate the design, ugly and plain as hell.

[gooser]

i voted for the g4. no computer could ever attract more attention in my living room. especially when it's off and my bluetooth mouse and keyboard are tucked away. people just wonder what it is. i'm sure i'll upgrade someday. having said that i plan on keeping a working g3 imac in my office til the day i die. NO FAN!

[Naaaaak]

The lampshade was awesome. My only real complaints are that the arm is not strong enough to hold a webcam at a good angle sometimes and terrible upgradability.

[ajprice]

In terms of design, I'd say the G5, it looked really nice and it had the removable back with access to all the parts, unlike the iSight G5 iMac and Intel iMac. I saw a few G4's on display in PC World and the matt white dome always got to look dirty, and that put me off those, if the dome was glossy it would have looked really great!

[cblackmo]

The dome.
You could swivel and tilt the flat screen all the way down to the keyboard almost right into the keyboard molding - and it would become the most gorgeous thing I'd ever seen for a desktop computer. It completely hid the dome, and it was as if your computer was a thin floating glass screen.

iMacs are based on an all-in-one concept, and even though it has the most parts of the iMacs; the silhouette of the dome and arm gave it more art and personality than the others. Which is what I always look for in the iMac line.

[Big Mac]

That's hard. I have never owned an iMac, but I know quite a lot about them. I like the Luxo because of its quirky industrial design. I give credit to the highly upgradable original iMac G5, but I'd never own one because of the capacitor fiasco. I think the current iMacs represent a really great priceerformance value, but I still hate Intel. Meanwhile, I'll always have a soft spot for the first graphite SE that did away with the additional metal around the screen to make the translucent display of the internals look cleaner.

[macdevil]

Originally Posted by Naaaaak 

The lampshade was awesome. My only real complaints are that the arm is not strong enough to hold a webcam at a good angle...

I can't agree more. My mother actually "swithched" because she thought the design was so modern. I never had one so I can't relate on the upgrading process. I do love my 24", although it has made the side scroll on the mighty mouse unncessary

[ApeInTheShell]

If you take a look at the iMac G4 it had a tray loading drive just like the original iMac and five colored iMacs. The iMac G5 and iMac Intel have slot loading drives like the iMac DV series. The problem with the iMac DV series was the drive reading CDs and DVDs incorrectly. It was also easy to get your CD or DVD stuck if it was not the right thickness. Now we don't worry about that with the new iMac.

My favorite iMacs were the slot loaders. We currently have a 20" iMac Core Duo 2 and an iMac DV 400 Blueberry. I plan to replace the latter with a Mac Mini.

[slugslugslug]

I voted for both the G5 and Intel, but I guess if pressed to pick one, I'd have to go along with CharlesS and pick the early iSight-less G5s. I'll probably pop a new hard drive in my 20" 2.0 GHz G5 when I get Leopard, and I look forward to the relative painlessness of the procedure.

Anyway, yeah. When it came out, I thought the slab was kinda ugly, and boring compared to the G4. But after additional exposure, I started to really love the look, and I'm glad they've kept it through the Intel transition.

[chevy5150]

For some dumb reason, I'm just partial to the Gumdrops. :-)

[ChasingApple]

Style, form, and function....G4 Lampshade.

[PB2K]

imac g3 bondi blue, my first

i still have one. I can't use it anymore but it has tremendous emotional value

[dn15]

I owned one of the original-style iMac DV's and loved it, but my vote goes to the Intel iMacs for aesthetic reasons. I'm a major fan of minimalism, and you can't get much simpler than having everything built-in behind an LCD, with hardly and footprint on the desk.

(Yes, the iMac G5 has the same advantages, but I can only pick one and the G5 had so many power supply and logic board problems that I can't give it my vote.)

[GabrieL^]

gotta give credit to the G3's, they started it all.

[brokenjago]

I was not a huge fan of the boxy-ness of the iMac G5s. I think the iMac G5/iMac CD and C2D are much more organic and sleeker.

[noot]

I have owned four iMacs so far the G3/233, G4/400/DVD, G4/800/15" and just recently bought the Core Duo 20" and I think this one has the best iMac design ever.

[WOPR]

I've gone with the G4 as it worked well and was reliable. My iMac G5 was DOA (those caps) and my Core2Duo lasted 10 weeks before the screen broke. The movable screen on the G4 was a brilliant feature and is sorely missed on the new one, although I do love the speed of my new one (when it works!).

[centerchannel68]

The G4 iMac's moveable screen was top notch. I loved that model best. I wish they continued that form factor isntead of the new one... the new one doesn't swivel, or have height adjustability.