Apple iMac: The Computer That Saved the Company

The first product launched by Apple after Steve Jobs returned as CEO in 1997 was not the iPhone or the iPod, but a new desktop computer. The original "Bondi Blue" iMac was a revolutionary product that not only saved Apple from financial disaster but also reshaped the entire personal computer industry.

In the late 1990s, Apple was a dying company. In the home market, it relied on a confusing lineup of Macintosh Performa computers, which were essentially repackaged Power Macintosh models designed for business and education.

A poorly negotiated Macintosh clone program ended up hurting Apple more than it helped. Jobs discontinued the Performa models, ended the clone program, and secured a $150 million investment from Microsoft, which was trying to avoid a monopoly status for Windows.

All Apple needed was a new home computer.

Image credit: Daniel Lu

At first, Apple developed the Macintosh NC as part of the Network Computer initiative promoted by Oracle's Larry Ellison. Ellison was appointed as an Apple board member when Jobs was reinstated as CEO.

The idea was to create a computer without an external disk drive, which would rely on the internet for using apps. This concept wasn't far from that of today's Chromebooks, but in the era of physical media and dial-up modems it was still too early for that, and the project was canceled.

A Fresh Start

Apple released the iMac in August 1998 for $1,299 (about $2,500 today). It was an all-in-one computer with a CD drive, the modern PowerPC G3 processor, and a built-in modem that made it easier to connect to the quickly growing internet, hence the "i" in its name.

When Jobs unveiled the iMac on May 1998, he explained: "The 'i' stands for 'Internet,' but it also means 'individual,' 'instruct,' 'inform,' and 'inspire.'" At the time, the Internet was exploding in popularity, and Apple wanted to position the iMac as the easiest computer to get online – which was a big deal in an era when setting up an Internet connection was still complicated.

If you were born in this century, the iMac G3 may look to you like an innovative PC case with a built-in display, but it was in fact a stylish monitor with a built-in computer. Apple used a CRT instead of LCD with physical pixels, simply because it was more affordable at the time. The stereo speakers were positioned on the sides of the CD drive.

Yes! The "i" in iMac originally stood for Internet – but it quickly took on a broader meaning.

The original model had a translucent Bondi Blue body (named after Bondi Beach in Australia), somewhat similar to the Newton-based eMate 300 laptop. Within months, the iMac was available in five different colors. The egg-shaped design is credited to Jony Ive, then Apple's new head of design. He drew inspiration for the iMac's curved translucent shell from a gumdrop candy and modern household objects, meaning for the computer feel more fun and inviting than the dull beige boxes of the time.

Image credit: Teppo Moisio

When monitors were shaped like ovens and predominantly beige, the iMac looked like nothing else. The original, single-button mouse, shaped like a hockey puck, was heavily criticized as an example of form over function and eventually replaced.

Mirroring the removal of the headphone jack from the iPhone in 2016, the iMac didn't have a dedicated printer port, prompting the industry to switch to the obscure USB standard.

Image credit: H. Michael Karshis

More significantly, two years before the first USB flash drive, the iMac didn't have a floppy disk drive – a bold move that was heavily criticized. That made the external floppy drive one of the first popular USB devices.

Apple's bet on CD-ROMs and USB was forward-thinking but controversial. The closest thing to that Apple has done since was the removal of the optical drive from the original MacBook Air in 2008.

Steve Jobs was notoriously against using cooling fans in computers, preferring passive cooling to keep machines silent. However, the iMac's G3 processor ran too hot, so a whisper-quiet fan had to be added. Jobs only agreed after engineers convinced him it wouldn't ruin the user experience.

It's a Hit!

Image credit: Jim Abeles

The iMac became an immediate hit, selling 800,000 units in its first five months, making it one of the fastest-selling computers ever and marking the beginning of Apple's comeback. Utilizing Jeff Goldblum as a narrator, advertising was focused on the computer's elegant all-in-one design and ease of connecting to the internet.

Apple estimated that almost a third of the units were sold to first-time computer buyers. Two companies were sued by Apple for releasing all-in-one computers with the iMac's color scheme.

Released in 1999 for $1,599, the iBook wasn't just named and designed after the iMac, but also carried its legacy as the first consumer device with Wi-Fi support. An AirPort router would cost $299, and each matching Wi-Fi card would add $99 to that.

Thanks to Apple's product placement efforts, its new computers appeared in the biggest movies and TV shows of that time – Apple was aiming to becoming more than a computer maker but more of a cultural icon once again.

The iMac was redesigned the same year with a more compact body, a CD/DVD slot instead of a pull-out tray, and a FireWire connector, initially used mostly to offload photos and video from digital cameras. The iBook switched to an all-white, rectangular design in 2001.

By the end of 2001, the iMac had sold 6 million units.

Then, Apple released the FireWire-enabled iPod, which could house 5GB of songs in a package as compact as the smallest Sony Walkman models. Without the success of the iMac, Apple wouldn't be able to release the iPod that early.

The iMac Jobs Wanted

Apple released a new iMac in early 2002, with a PowerPC G4 processor, an LCD screen and a radical new design. Jobs said that mounting a computer with a hard disk and an optical drive behind a flat display will make it "not very flat anymore," and create "the worst kind of cable mess, right in front of your eyes."

Instead, Jobs chose to "let each element be true to itself": the 15-inch display was attached to the dome-shaped base with a mechanical arm that allowed tilt, height and swivel adjustment.

For the education market, Apple released the eMac, with the same G4 processor and an all-white body similar to that of the iMac G3. It was eventually made available for the home market for $1,099. Later that year, Apple released a 17-inch version of the iMac G4 with a 16:10 aspect ratio.

The problem with the new design was realized when the 20-inch version became available in 2003. The mechanical arm had to be made stiffer to prevent the display from sinking, and the base had to be heavier to counterbalance it. All in all, the new version was almost twice as heavy as the 17-inch model.

The New Apple's Computer

The company that released the iMac G5 in 2004 was very different from the one that created the iMac G3 six years earlier. By then, Apple was mostly known for the iPod, which became mainstream thanks to USB 2.0 support, and the iTunes Store, which ended the album era in the music business.

The new iMac was made to look like the iPod, with an all-white chin and downward-facing speakers. It was the thinnest desktop computer of its time, at less than two inches. This design went against everything Jobs had said less than three years before. Not surprisingly, the iMac G5 wasn't presented by Jobs, but by Apple's head of marketing, Phil Schiller.

The iMac's processor was replaced with an Intel Core in 2006, effectively ending Apple's PowerPC alliance with IBM and Motorola. The reason was Apple's disappointment in the efficiency of the G5, which was never used in a laptop.

The move was accompanied by the "Get a Mac" advertising campaign, which highlighted the differences in software between the Mac and Windows platforms. As part of the transition, the high-end PowerBook was replaced by the MacBook Pro, and the iBook was replaced by the MacBook.

With the release of the iPhone in 2007, the iMac switched to a curved design made of aluminum and black plastic. The 2009 model moved to a 16:9 aspect ratio. After the removal of the optical drive in 2012, the iMac's design remained the same for almost a decade.

Apple released an iMac based on its own M-series processor in 2021, with a flat design, no disk drive option, and for the first time since the iMac G3, multiple colors. At 11.5mm, it was the first iMac thinner than the iMac G4's display. The iMac's design has remained the same since.

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The legacy of the iMac G3 isn't just today's iMacs, but the philosophy behind it: attractive design, ease of use, and leaving the past behind.

The legacy of the iMac G3 isn't just today's iMacs, but the philosophy behind it: attractive design, ease of use, and leaving the past behind. This philosophy can be seen in the iPhone and the iPad, and this is the reason for the "i" in their name.