| | Special Expo Report: Part - 4: Expo Floor Pictures - 28 July 99.
We took a number of pictures from the show floor of the iBook, the Apple Pavilion areas and some show booths like 3Com's Palm Computing. Numerous other news sites have far more show pictures than us but we thought you might want to see ours as well:  | Our impression with the new iBook is that the craftsmanship and the attention to detail exceed that of both the iMac and, especially, the new blue G3's. Perhaps Apple's real passion is portables? For those who have Newton's and are familiar with some of the most beautiful little design moves and features, this new machine will be definitely appreciated! | | back side of iBook is more beautiful than most laptops | |  | One of the items that struck us about the design was the use of curvature in the color. On the iMac the machine curves greatly but the color line (between white and color) is held straight or near straight. This line -- which is similar to joint lines in car bodies -- is very important in terms of overall expression. The curved line on the curved body makes the machine seem less serious, more playful. | | front side with curved color line and visible handle | |  | The color line on the iMac raps around the round body as straight as an arrow. The effect is similar to a fine European sports car. Next time you look at a Porsche, Audi or BMW compare. Cars are getting much more sculptured but color, linework and detailing affect how serious or playful the body comes off. The iMac comes off as a "racer" -- its tautness will likely distinguish it from copycats. | | iMacs played second fiddle to iBooks at show | |  | The Tangerine iBook is much better looking than its iMac equal -- for reasons that are not really clear. On the upper left there is a single speaker with decent sound output quality. One of the nicest things in our mind are the keys, which feel wider than PowerBook G3 keys. | | iBook detail: speaker and keyboard keys | | | | > Continue | Expo Report Series: Special Expo Report: Part - 3 Special Expo Report: Part - 2 Special Expo Report: Part - 1 |
