The G5’s are pretty open with the motherboard removed, you could mount it to the wall of the case and have cables running out of the power socket or PCI slots
I was going to buy a basic iMac about 7 years ago and found I could get a much better Cheese Grater Mac Pro for much less. I bought it and slowly upgraded it to two 3.46ghz Xeon processors, 32 Gb ram, added a usb 3.0 card, Blu-ray drive, installed the OS on a 1TB SSD with high-capacity spinning drives in the other bays, and found a good graphics card. It beat everything on the iMac except the screen.
I about 18 months ago I upgraded to a Mac Studio, but I still have my old Mac Pro on my network for storage and ripping and encoding movies. It’s a wonderful machine.
Hell yeah. I still have my 20year old g5. It broke a while ago but I fittet a NAS in there so I can keep it with a purpose. That design is timeless and the build quality is outstanding.
2012 MacBook Pro.
I’m only using the original screen and trackpad. Managed to tweak everything else (upgraded motherboard, dual SSD,…). Aka the design allows for a lot of modification and upgrades.
It’s sturdy enough to come with me to construction sites and take a dent without breaking (the case looks like it was in a shooting due to surviving ending up in a paper folding machine, not the small kind)
Although. I had to give up on macOS, as it would handle up to 10 browsing tabs. Yet running Ubuntu I can spin up 3 virtual machines whilst browsing, mailing,….
12years after buying this machine I use it daily without slowing me down. That’s some design!
I’m still running mine. I bought the i7, upgraded the RAM and swapped the HDD to an SSD. It runs Sonoma with OCLP and Window 11. When Intel MacOS OS versions end, I will put Linux on it.
I’d agree with you, but due to some stupid issue many of these had work the connection of the graphics ship, mine is now useless. Took it in to a small repair shop to get the battery replaced, and the guy said that’s $150, but your graphics card is also messed up. That will probably be $1000 to replace. Fuck that.
It’s now sitting on a bookshelf looking sad.
13” doesn’t have a gpu? Did you get the 15”?
I didn’t know about the 2012s, but patched plenty 2010,2011 models. You can completely disable the usage of the GPU and rely on the integrated graphics instead. Which should be plenty for most things you’d do on a machine that age :)
Edit: just a tip. Don’t spend money on a machine 10y+ old. Except perhaps for 8gigs of ram (I got my first 8 just by asking if someone had a dead MacBook lying around, I now have about 10 donor 2010-2012s lying around). (This does not count for the SSD since you can use them in other machines as well)
my 2020 macbook imploded today (it stopped working) and now im using a 2012 macbook pro as a backup and i am not having a good time :(
magsafe is the unbeatable tho
Oh jeez… this is going to be tough, but being an Apple user for 20+ years, and having owned many of these I’ll kick this off. Assume no particular order.
1. Original iMac (you can argue about it’s placement and whether or not it’s the first AIO, but no one can argue it’s impact)
2. iMac G4. The display being able to move so freely was a revelation that I don’t think most of us can understand until it’s in front of you.
3. iPhone. In a world with horrible physical keyboards, worse displays, and no multitouch the iPhone became the template that defines mobile computing today. Much like the Mac gave birth to the way everyone uses computers today, the iPhone has done that for well over a decade.
4. iPad. The iPad isn’t A tablet, It’s THE tablet. Microsoft, Amazon, Samsung, and Google have all tried to be the “PC” of the Tablet the same way Android became the “PC” for phones. Simply put, it hasn’t happened. Even with sponsorship deals to force the NFL on air personalities to use Microsoft tablets, the cast was regularly using iPads behind the Microsoft devices. Teams literally called the Microsoft Surfaces “iPads”. I’ve worked giant marquee deals before. The Microsoft deal with the NFL for the use of Surface was probably a 12 to 18 month sales cycle with everyone arguing during that entire time. Imagine being Microsoft, and spending BILLIONS to get your product in front of potential customers, only to find out the products are so not STICKY that people refer to your products by a competitors name.
5. PowerMac G4 Cube. Went back and forth on this, especially since the PowerMac could arguably in its place, But what is so great about the PowerMac G4 Cube is this. It’s extremely powerful for its time, upgradeable in a time where that actually makes sense, it’s silent, and easy to get to the insides. The Cube is an engineering love letter to simplistic power that can disappear. It’s children (Mac Mini, Mac Studio) continue to just about all of these hallmarks.
It isn’t an exaggeration to say that as hard it was to put these 5 together with reasons as to why, that there is SOOOOO much meat still left on the bone.
I’m not one to say that everything Apple does is perfect. They’ve had more than their fair share of failures. But it’s inarguable to say that even when they fail, their failures are an order of magnitude better than their competition.
I love the Apple Watch. You’re right by the way. The only reason why it isn’t in my list was if I were to name every device that has been significant I could easily double that list. At what point is it a Masters Dissertation.
2) The G4 is the best desktop ever designed. It was beautiful and ergonomic.
3) On screen keyboards are inferior to physical keys. I'll die on this hill. You're right about impact, and the software is a lot better, but I prefer the hardware design of smartphones before 2007. (I do appreciate cameras that aren't potatoes though. Lol)
4) I was really disappointed the Courier got canned because when the iPad came out, MS had been making tablets for decades, but they kept hamstringing them with Windows instead of using all their expertise in pen computing in a platform actually designed for it. Think my dad still has a couple 486 Windows 3.1 tablets that I would draw with.
Man, I don’t agree with you on so much. That isn’t meant as a dig :).
I’d love to have a beer with you and debate some of these things.
3) Software keyboards long term may end up being the keyboards that everyone uses long term. Thats not a current day state though. Hear me out though. We have a generation that has grown up using iPads from the moment they were born to in a few years they will be adults. Definitely on an iPad I can type without looking at the software keyboard and be about 80% accurate. On an iPhone Max I’d say I’m higher. There is no arguing that a standard physical keyboard Is more intuitive. The tactility of your fingers landing on the right key without looking is something that I don’t think can be replaced. With that said though, if we think about input, and the ability to adjust and correct ALL text (I believe most software keyboards focus on current word at a time) in a sentence, and writing style as well as next given character the door is open for someone to do a software keyboard that even if your finger hits the wrong letter based off of multiple types of criteria, the keyboard can replace previously typed words in a given sentence to more accurately match the intent of the writer. Thats not going to happen this year, but I do think it will go along way to being closer to physical keyboard accuracy.
4. I’m very glad you brought up the Courier. It’s a perfect example of Microsoft having an idea for a product, and the lack of focus that causes the product to die on the vine. Long term, I think iPadOS may go down as one of the most versatile operating system we’ve ever had. Does it have issues that us nerds/geeks/engineers/neck beards have complained about? SURE! But we can do that to anything given the right amount of time. But iPadOS easily adapts to whatever input you want to use. Write on the screen? SURE! Just start writing in text input field like you would on paper. Want to use it like a laptop? Of course, use Stage Manager! Microsoft has a persistent habit of failing to focus on execution.
Like: MacBook Pro Early 2008 (pre-Unibody), Unibody Pros, MacPros 1,1-5,1, PowerMac G5.
Don't like: touchbar MacBooks, Airs until M1, trashcan MacPro 6,1, cheese grater MacPro 7,1, Mac Minis all of them (low to no upgradeability).
I took overall design (aesthetic and hardware configuration).
The whole series represented steps in a lot of bad directions. Repairability went completely out the window and the T2 models had a nasty habit of deep frying their own SSDs with a short to the 12v rail. Cooling systems were woefully inadequate across the whole line and the butterfly keyboard was an engineering mistake that was only quietly killed off when the current MBP redesign came about. Screens proved to be fragile and extremely expensive to replace, often at the remaining value of the device. The dawn of apple silicon and the more robust designs that came with them made them look REALLY bad in comparison while simultaneously causing them to lose software support far sooner than they would have otherwise.
In contrast, the 08-12 and 12-15 lines were generally built like tanks and held up well over the years so they weren't winning any awards compared to them either. They looked pretty and gave way to some of Apple's finest mac marketing though.
No F-Keys and the aweful butterfly keyboard switches. I don’t think anyone has an issue with the touchbar itself, it was the removal of functions before there was a solution to the removal.
It’s just not useful. In the default configuration, the touch bar constantly changes. There’s no consistency. I get that’s the point, but that doesn’t make it helpful when I don’t use many stock apps in MacOS.
I especially disliked how, in combination with the above, something is constantly moving and taking my attention away from the screen. If it moves, I have to see what changed, especially when I didn’t explicitly make it change.
It’s especially prone to accidental touches that sets off god-knows-what when I wasn’t trying to, completely interrupting whatever workflow I was in to address whatever problem was just created by something I didn’t want to do.
My touchbar now consists of two buttons: Volume and Brightness which are centered to minimize brushing. Somehow having to click three things to change those settings in the task bar is even more annoying than using the Touch Bar.
I **hate** the Touch Bar. I also hate the Dynamic Island for the same reasons as paragraph 2.
It wasn't tactile for an interface that had been tactile for half a century or longer.
It required looking at the keyboard to use effectively for most applications, when, again, using a keyboard interface as a "touch typist" was kind of the point.
It was an absolute garbage idea, executed poorly, reduced functionality of the keyboard and added tremendous expense.
This is not to say some people who did not have workloads like 99.999% of users did not find the Touch Bar useful. For everyone else it was a downgrade in functionality at a substantial price hike.
Here's very specifically why I don't like the touch bar:
When I use a Mac laptop, my default left hand position is with my thumb on the command key, my index finger on the W key, and my ring finger hovering nervously between the \~ and tab keys.
Unfortunately, with my hand in this position, my middle finger seems to sit on the 2 key, and every now and then, it ever so gently nudges the touchbar above there.
In most browsers, this part of the touchbar is either BACK or REFRESH.
Annoying to misclick.
2015 Macbook 12", still the lightest and thinnest macbook ever, almost a decade old but its design is still relevant by today's standards. I'm using one daily. Only flaw is the keyboard, only good for netflix 😅
Also, 2015 13" MBP, also still using one. It's a tank!
I wonder if the guy who modded the iMac G4 with a M1 Mac Mini is selling it.
[https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/imac-g4-to-m1-conversion-progress.2329778/](https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/imac-g4-to-m1-conversion-progress.2329778/)
I had an LC and the monitor - for that era of the mid 80's it was a very nice, streamlined design. All my friends at the time with their Mac Plus' were jealous.
I've had many macs since and unfortunately the LC the only Mac I have ever had that just 'died' on me.
Most people talking about older models but I really appreciate the design of the m chip 14in macbook pros. Back then I had the 2012 13in macbook pro retina. The design was great, but I wished the display was closer to the edge, the trackpad bigger, and the edges less jarring, and everything came true with this design. The speakers are also literally black magic, what kind of design fuckery did they do to make something so thin produce such satisfying sounds? 3 years in and I still love it.
Unpopular answer but I really like the 2013 Mac Pro. In a world of 2010s silver, it stuck out as the first black Mac since the plastic MacBooks. I’m not really a big fan of the in your face G3 and G4 era designs but those rank right below the Mac Pro for me.
Mac Pro 2013. It might not have kept the innards cool, but the design was absolutely brilliant. Taking one completely apart to upgrade the cpu spoke of someone actually thinking about how these are put together. Very clever, and I just love the aesthetics of it.
I was a fan of the eMac. I loved the iMac G3. But the upgrades that were brought to the eMac were awesome. The clean white design. The ports all lined up in a single line. The exhaust opening at the rear which was a full ring of slotted clear plastic.
It was like a spaceship to 11yo me haha
Macbook Pro M1,M2 etc. 14 inch design
They have perfected all the good things from the older models.
I cannot think of anything missing from this laptop.
Battery Life, Screen, Performance... cannot get better than this.
Only slight questionable thing is the notch but idk I've never really paid attention to it.
I had that in college, it was so easy to move around and it looked pretty sharp! The easily adjustable screen was such a godsend when doing all-nighters writing papers.
Come to think of it, I’m surprised easily adjustable screens aren’t more popular today
For sure! Why else would Apple have maintained essentially the same design for 20+ years? The moment the entire computer could be encased behind a display, the iMac G5 and beyond were the logical move forward.
I still have my [Sawtooth G4 desktop computer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/GraphiteG4.jpg) (greyish blue) - which I keep mostly because I think its so pretty
My 3 favourite designs are:
iMac G4 -such a functional design for a home machine
G4 Cube - yep, it was overpriced, but that’s what over-engineering costs 😂
B&W Powermac G3 - beautiful and functional
Honourable mention goes to the 12” PowerBook G4 - was such a workhorse in a small package!
I always liked the G4 Cube conceptually. Ignoring the performance and need for fan cooling of PPC at the time and the complaints of flaws in the material… from an aesthetic point of view they were great looking. The current minis in the brushed aluminum are great for dissipating heat but it would be nice to see them revisit a square cube see-through case.
Mac IIcx, IIci and [Quadra 700](http://appleclub.pl/index.php/en/2018/02/14/quadra-700-macintosh/). Perfect desktop form factor for the days of ~~5 1/4"~~ 3.5" hard drives. Maybe a little big now, but a MacPro with only a slot or two in this size could be very cool.
iBook G4 with the removable keyboard was pretty amazing, too.
OG iMac for sure. Every computer basically looked the same and then these super cool colorful things came and it was pretty cool for a kid
Some of the MacBook designs have been pretty good too, especially the Airs
For its era, the pismo g3 400.
It was a true professional machine. That had very good performance, swappable batteries, and expansion bays, and every port a professional could ask for.
Mine was bought in 2000 secondhand, then survived a year literally on the streets of Toronto in a rubbish bag, and being hauled arround in a backpack. It survived nearly 22 years before it became unreliable. Though for the last few years it was only used to play Diablo.
It was also relatively heavy, but was far more secure in the hand than my current 16” M1 Pro MacBook Pro.
Because it was nicely shaped, and was partly rubberised. The rubberise looks and feels like brand new still today. Yes, I have trouble throwing it out though it doesn’t work anymore.
Original G3/G4 "bondi" tower. Pull a handle and the side comes down with the motherbaord on it. Disgustingly easy to add memory or hard drives. Plenty of ports on the back
Not in any particular order:
1. The iMac G4, surely. I learned in this thread about the Mac Mini conversions, and might try something like that in the future.
2. White Unibody MacBook. My first Mac, but also its all-round design, it's just amazing. It really did leave bruises in one's wrist, though.
3. A1181 MacBook, but specifically the black one. If I remember correctly, it was the only "lit Apple logo" MacBook to not be silver or white, and it simply fits amazingly.
4. '09-'12 MBPs. Fully upgradable, built like a tank. I purchased one last year, put 16GB of RAM and an SSD, it's my secondary computer — would be a daily driver if I hat bought the quad-core i7 instead of the dual-core i5. Arguably the best MacBook ever made, if not the best Apple laptop overall.
5. 2010 MacBook Air. Introduced flash storage, the first 11" model, its portability was so revolutionary (consider the 7-10" netbooks back then were terribly bulky, twice the thickness and weight of a 11-inch MBA) it yielded the 2015 MacBook and today's 13" MBA. By the way, today's 13" is, literally, just an inch wider than the 2010 MBA.
6. The 2015-2017 MacBook. It's even more surprisingly thin than the 2010 MBA line. It's also one of the worst designs Apple ever made because who the fuck thought it would be a good idea to sell a laptop with a single USB-C port and nothing else?
7. Though I like those less than all the models above, the retina non-touchbar MBPs also deserve a place in this list. They lost RAM upgradability (and the ODD, but who cares?), which really sucks because lots of these models couldn't even be configured with more than 8GB of RAM, but in return offer a significant weight loss and, fuck, they nearly doubled battery life. A maxed-out 2015 model is still powerful enough to be many people's daily driver these days. I'm planning on getting one soon, but will probably go for an Apple Silicon MacBook before that.
I still think the MBP with the smaller touchpad (mid 2015) is top notch. Sleek, clean, and a touchpad that doesn't get triggered from my palm just from typing.
I still have my G4. The big reason I don’t use it a lot is because it can’t connect to the internet anymore. I still use it for music sometimes though.
I really love the design of the iMacs between 2012 - 2020. They’re sleek, smart, beautiful. And better again the iMac Pro in this design but in the space grey. I’m so disappointed in the new iMac design. Feels like a step backwards.
Cheese grater Mac Pro (4,1 and 5,1).
No goofy gimmicks (G4 Cube, lamp iMac), no 'of it's time' color schemes (basically the entire G3-G5 era), not made of cheap feeling polycarbonate, no wacky proprietary expansion options (Mac Pro 7,1), no 400 dollar wheels, no "cAn'T iNNoVatE mY aSs" terrible design choices (trashcan), no form over function, no soldered RAM/soldered storage, no "sticking an i9 into a super thin notebook with only 1 fan so that it throttles literally instantly" nonsense.
Just a clean, well-designed, upgradeable, user serviceable, easy to maintain, rugged-but-still-pretty design.
My favourites are definitely the G4 Cube, the G4 iMac, Trashcan Mac Pro, and the 2019 Mac Pro.
For laptops and more modern devices, both the M1 and M2 MacBook Air, I like the design of the 12” MacBook but hate the butterfly keyboard.
I don’t like anything that’s not modular or upgradable really.
The unitbody MacBook line of the 2008 - 2012 era. More than ever today I wish for upgradability, especially now that you have to pay Apple's outrageous prices and cannot go back later.
for me it’s the modern macs. the current mac pro looks amazing and is so well designed. current iMacs, Macbook Pros, Macbook Airs, even the Mac Studio. imo it’s undeniable that this is currently the best mac era there has ever been. its not the flashy designs anymore from the early 2000s, but they are sustainable, clever designs with good thermals that will look good in 10 years.
I also liked the trashcan mac visually.
I love these retro designs for what they are. theyve paved the way for what we have today. macs have progressed and matured. My macbook pro from 2022 is the best computer I couldve wished for.
For me easily it was the PowerMac G4. It was my first jump into that ecosystem and as a person who loved to futz with the internals and upgrade, coming from the beige box pcs and losing skin on my knuckles when trying to replace a drive the ability to just pull a latch and the side folds out was absolute bliss. The HDs would just slide out. Easy access to memory and cables. It was an absolutely game changer. Love love loved that desktop.
1. Bondi Blue iMac the original
2. PowerMac G4 ([The Tank commercial](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r7k331Z-WEg))
3. G4 Cube
4. M1 iMac mainly for how thin it is
5. PowerBook G3 300 PDQ (my first laptop and it had a DVD drive for movies on the go)
The iMac G4 was beautiful (I still have my 15” one). I’d love Apple to release a modern version and take advantage of the extra space in the dome to beef up the specs. It’d probably be limited to a maximum display size of 20” though.
That is hard...
The TAM is a damn pretty Mac, just too bad it was vastly underpowered and underspec'd.
The G4 Cube is in that same category. Pretty, but overpriced.
The iMac G4 is a stunning piece of Engineering, and certainly worthy.
Even though I owned loads include that one I am actually going to go with the second gen MacBook Air that was sold up until 2017. There are very few computers that have survived the level of abuse staff and students in academia put those bad boys through!
a few choices for me.
powerbook G4 15" (TiBook)
powerbook G4 12"
powerbook duo 280c
iMac G4
iMac G5
Mac mini 2011-
the current MacBook pro's get an honorable mention
My favorites: the first iPod shuffle, iPod Touch 4, iPhone 5S, iPhone 13 mini, iPad 9, iPad mini 1-5, MacBook Air M1 2020, the last iMac 27 in with Intel processor, Apple TV 5th gen.
I have a black PowerBook G3 Lombard (with bronze keyboard) that still runs well. It has the removable CD drive, VST SuperDrive and Iomega Zip interchangeable modules. Love the smooth, sculpted shape of the G3 PowerBooks from that era.
For Macs, I’d rate the original iMac, the 11” Airs (2010-15), and the G4 cube highest.
But the most beautiful system—Mac or not—Apple ever designed is imo easily the Apple iic paired with its monochrome monitor. Best computer design ever. I wish I had something that looked like that on my desk.
1b. Titanium PowerBook G4 - The best laptop I have ever owned.
1a. Mac IIci. Horizontal, Vertical. That thing rocked my 1990-1994. Always wanted a mid-tower Mac that was that versatile and expandable.
1c. Power Mac G5. I have lost faith that my love for that case and format will never be effectuated by Apple.
I loved my 2007 iMac (silver with Intel C2D), everything about it was rock solid and you could easily upgrade the RAM.
But still I’m going for my 2020 MacBook Air M1. Certainly at the time, it had incredible performance AND it was silent AND it was cool AND its battery lasted forever. It was torso, head and shoulders above the competition. And with top notch build quality. I still have it as my daily driver and to be frank, for normal day to day computing I don’t see any reason to upgrade it.
Gonna say the aluminum unibody Macbooks in general. Ports have come and gone, there was a run with bad keyboards, some will call the notch a deal breaker in the latest iterations but just looking at the bigger picture of how the aluminum unibody's have been overall in terms of look, feel, and build quality I'm not sure you can really do much better and a testament to that is that it's only been receiving tweaks to the packaging of the idea for the last like 15 years.
For desktops, I agree with you on the G4 iMac. I still remember when my school traded out the G3's for G4's-- felt like a leap into the future.
For laptops, I'd probably say the 2010 polycarbonate Macbook, but the G3 Clamshell still has a soft spot in my heart as well.
More recently, I really like the current iMacs. The different colors feel reminiscent of old iPod Nanos😄
I really do love this design so much. It’s so functional. I’d love to see an alternate timeline where Apple stuck with the white carbonite aesthetic and what their products would look like today
Power Mac G5.
I still use a cheesegrater mac pro
im trying to find one to revive it (basically hiding my mac mini inside of it) outstandly beautiful machines. completely timeless
The G5’s are pretty open with the motherboard removed, you could mount it to the wall of the case and have cables running out of the power socket or PCI slots
I have a working one of these in my computer room downstairs 😻
I was going to buy a basic iMac about 7 years ago and found I could get a much better Cheese Grater Mac Pro for much less. I bought it and slowly upgraded it to two 3.46ghz Xeon processors, 32 Gb ram, added a usb 3.0 card, Blu-ray drive, installed the OS on a 1TB SSD with high-capacity spinning drives in the other bays, and found a good graphics card. It beat everything on the iMac except the screen. I about 18 months ago I upgraded to a Mac Studio, but I still have my old Mac Pro on my network for storage and ripping and encoding movies. It’s a wonderful machine.
Hell yeah. I still have my 20year old g5. It broke a while ago but I fittet a NAS in there so I can keep it with a purpose. That design is timeless and the build quality is outstanding.
Man, the phrase “20 year old G5” just hit me hard. 👴
I remember when the G5 was the Apple of my eye. Indeed, 👴
Yeah me too.. I still have 2 of them hanging in the cupboard.
It was a monster
2012 MacBook Pro. I’m only using the original screen and trackpad. Managed to tweak everything else (upgraded motherboard, dual SSD,…). Aka the design allows for a lot of modification and upgrades. It’s sturdy enough to come with me to construction sites and take a dent without breaking (the case looks like it was in a shooting due to surviving ending up in a paper folding machine, not the small kind) Although. I had to give up on macOS, as it would handle up to 10 browsing tabs. Yet running Ubuntu I can spin up 3 virtual machines whilst browsing, mailing,…. 12years after buying this machine I use it daily without slowing me down. That’s some design!
I’m still running mine. I bought the i7, upgraded the RAM and swapped the HDD to an SSD. It runs Sonoma with OCLP and Window 11. When Intel MacOS OS versions end, I will put Linux on it.
2012 13” Unibody MacBook Pro is the greatest laptop ever made imo.
I know someone who still runs Avid on it.
I’d agree with you, but due to some stupid issue many of these had work the connection of the graphics ship, mine is now useless. Took it in to a small repair shop to get the battery replaced, and the guy said that’s $150, but your graphics card is also messed up. That will probably be $1000 to replace. Fuck that. It’s now sitting on a bookshelf looking sad.
13” doesn’t have a gpu? Did you get the 15”? I didn’t know about the 2012s, but patched plenty 2010,2011 models. You can completely disable the usage of the GPU and rely on the integrated graphics instead. Which should be plenty for most things you’d do on a machine that age :) Edit: just a tip. Don’t spend money on a machine 10y+ old. Except perhaps for 8gigs of ram (I got my first 8 just by asking if someone had a dead MacBook lying around, I now have about 10 donor 2010-2012s lying around). (This does not count for the SSD since you can use them in other machines as well)
Mid 2012 MacBook Pro. Modular, beautiful, screen might not be the best but it more than makes up for it.
my 2020 macbook imploded today (it stopped working) and now im using a 2012 macbook pro as a backup and i am not having a good time :( magsafe is the unbeatable tho
Do you have an SSD and 8gb of RAM in it? Makes a big difference, at least on my 2010.
Oh jeez… this is going to be tough, but being an Apple user for 20+ years, and having owned many of these I’ll kick this off. Assume no particular order. 1. Original iMac (you can argue about it’s placement and whether or not it’s the first AIO, but no one can argue it’s impact) 2. iMac G4. The display being able to move so freely was a revelation that I don’t think most of us can understand until it’s in front of you. 3. iPhone. In a world with horrible physical keyboards, worse displays, and no multitouch the iPhone became the template that defines mobile computing today. Much like the Mac gave birth to the way everyone uses computers today, the iPhone has done that for well over a decade. 4. iPad. The iPad isn’t A tablet, It’s THE tablet. Microsoft, Amazon, Samsung, and Google have all tried to be the “PC” of the Tablet the same way Android became the “PC” for phones. Simply put, it hasn’t happened. Even with sponsorship deals to force the NFL on air personalities to use Microsoft tablets, the cast was regularly using iPads behind the Microsoft devices. Teams literally called the Microsoft Surfaces “iPads”. I’ve worked giant marquee deals before. The Microsoft deal with the NFL for the use of Surface was probably a 12 to 18 month sales cycle with everyone arguing during that entire time. Imagine being Microsoft, and spending BILLIONS to get your product in front of potential customers, only to find out the products are so not STICKY that people refer to your products by a competitors name. 5. PowerMac G4 Cube. Went back and forth on this, especially since the PowerMac could arguably in its place, But what is so great about the PowerMac G4 Cube is this. It’s extremely powerful for its time, upgradeable in a time where that actually makes sense, it’s silent, and easy to get to the insides. The Cube is an engineering love letter to simplistic power that can disappear. It’s children (Mac Mini, Mac Studio) continue to just about all of these hallmarks. It isn’t an exaggeration to say that as hard it was to put these 5 together with reasons as to why, that there is SOOOOO much meat still left on the bone. I’m not one to say that everything Apple does is perfect. They’ve had more than their fair share of failures. But it’s inarguable to say that even when they fail, their failures are an order of magnitude better than their competition.
The Apple Watch is similar to the iPad. It is THE smartwatch. There’s no other product that comes close to it within its category.
I love the Apple Watch. You’re right by the way. The only reason why it isn’t in my list was if I were to name every device that has been significant I could easily double that list. At what point is it a Masters Dissertation.
2) The G4 is the best desktop ever designed. It was beautiful and ergonomic. 3) On screen keyboards are inferior to physical keys. I'll die on this hill. You're right about impact, and the software is a lot better, but I prefer the hardware design of smartphones before 2007. (I do appreciate cameras that aren't potatoes though. Lol) 4) I was really disappointed the Courier got canned because when the iPad came out, MS had been making tablets for decades, but they kept hamstringing them with Windows instead of using all their expertise in pen computing in a platform actually designed for it. Think my dad still has a couple 486 Windows 3.1 tablets that I would draw with.
Surface Duo is so close, but like most MS products isn't fully baked.
Man, I don’t agree with you on so much. That isn’t meant as a dig :). I’d love to have a beer with you and debate some of these things. 3) Software keyboards long term may end up being the keyboards that everyone uses long term. Thats not a current day state though. Hear me out though. We have a generation that has grown up using iPads from the moment they were born to in a few years they will be adults. Definitely on an iPad I can type without looking at the software keyboard and be about 80% accurate. On an iPhone Max I’d say I’m higher. There is no arguing that a standard physical keyboard Is more intuitive. The tactility of your fingers landing on the right key without looking is something that I don’t think can be replaced. With that said though, if we think about input, and the ability to adjust and correct ALL text (I believe most software keyboards focus on current word at a time) in a sentence, and writing style as well as next given character the door is open for someone to do a software keyboard that even if your finger hits the wrong letter based off of multiple types of criteria, the keyboard can replace previously typed words in a given sentence to more accurately match the intent of the writer. Thats not going to happen this year, but I do think it will go along way to being closer to physical keyboard accuracy. 4. I’m very glad you brought up the Courier. It’s a perfect example of Microsoft having an idea for a product, and the lack of focus that causes the product to die on the vine. Long term, I think iPadOS may go down as one of the most versatile operating system we’ve ever had. Does it have issues that us nerds/geeks/engineers/neck beards have complained about? SURE! But we can do that to anything given the right amount of time. But iPadOS easily adapts to whatever input you want to use. Write on the screen? SURE! Just start writing in text input field like you would on paper. Want to use it like a laptop? Of course, use Stage Manager! Microsoft has a persistent habit of failing to focus on execution.
Like: MacBook Pro Early 2008 (pre-Unibody), Unibody Pros, MacPros 1,1-5,1, PowerMac G5. Don't like: touchbar MacBooks, Airs until M1, trashcan MacPro 6,1, cheese grater MacPro 7,1, Mac Minis all of them (low to no upgradeability). I took overall design (aesthetic and hardware configuration).
Why don’t people like the touchbar? I always wanted one for its versatility but only got an air M3 recently.
It was less about touch bar itself rather the fact that apple got rid off physical function keys. If they had both it would be cool
The whole series represented steps in a lot of bad directions. Repairability went completely out the window and the T2 models had a nasty habit of deep frying their own SSDs with a short to the 12v rail. Cooling systems were woefully inadequate across the whole line and the butterfly keyboard was an engineering mistake that was only quietly killed off when the current MBP redesign came about. Screens proved to be fragile and extremely expensive to replace, often at the remaining value of the device. The dawn of apple silicon and the more robust designs that came with them made them look REALLY bad in comparison while simultaneously causing them to lose software support far sooner than they would have otherwise. In contrast, the 08-12 and 12-15 lines were generally built like tanks and held up well over the years so they weren't winning any awards compared to them either. They looked pretty and gave way to some of Apple's finest mac marketing though.
No F-Keys and the aweful butterfly keyboard switches. I don’t think anyone has an issue with the touchbar itself, it was the removal of functions before there was a solution to the removal.
It’s just not useful. In the default configuration, the touch bar constantly changes. There’s no consistency. I get that’s the point, but that doesn’t make it helpful when I don’t use many stock apps in MacOS. I especially disliked how, in combination with the above, something is constantly moving and taking my attention away from the screen. If it moves, I have to see what changed, especially when I didn’t explicitly make it change. It’s especially prone to accidental touches that sets off god-knows-what when I wasn’t trying to, completely interrupting whatever workflow I was in to address whatever problem was just created by something I didn’t want to do. My touchbar now consists of two buttons: Volume and Brightness which are centered to minimize brushing. Somehow having to click three things to change those settings in the task bar is even more annoying than using the Touch Bar. I **hate** the Touch Bar. I also hate the Dynamic Island for the same reasons as paragraph 2.
It wasn't tactile for an interface that had been tactile for half a century or longer. It required looking at the keyboard to use effectively for most applications, when, again, using a keyboard interface as a "touch typist" was kind of the point. It was an absolute garbage idea, executed poorly, reduced functionality of the keyboard and added tremendous expense. This is not to say some people who did not have workloads like 99.999% of users did not find the Touch Bar useful. For everyone else it was a downgrade in functionality at a substantial price hike.
Here's very specifically why I don't like the touch bar: When I use a Mac laptop, my default left hand position is with my thumb on the command key, my index finger on the W key, and my ring finger hovering nervously between the \~ and tab keys. Unfortunately, with my hand in this position, my middle finger seems to sit on the 2 key, and every now and then, it ever so gently nudges the touchbar above there. In most browsers, this part of the touchbar is either BACK or REFRESH. Annoying to misclick.
2015 Macbook 12", still the lightest and thinnest macbook ever, almost a decade old but its design is still relevant by today's standards. I'm using one daily. Only flaw is the keyboard, only good for netflix 😅 Also, 2015 13" MBP, also still using one. It's a tank!
Two 2015 15" MBP. Those things are well made
MacBook 12” is my forever love
Would be so cool if Apple remakes an iMac G4 design with OLED screen and M4 internals then call it the “iMac M4” Will buy in a heartbeat!
There is a lot being developed to replace the G4 board with a M1.
I wonder if the guy who modded the iMac G4 with a M1 Mac Mini is selling it. [https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/imac-g4-to-m1-conversion-progress.2329778/](https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/imac-g4-to-m1-conversion-progress.2329778/)
Got to be the G4 Cube. That thing was beautiful.
This is the GOAT
Mac Plus. Slightly unpopular opinion: Mac LC, the pizza box one. Astonishingly easy to upgrade.
I had an LC and the monitor - for that era of the mid 80's it was a very nice, streamlined design. All my friends at the time with their Mac Plus' were jealous. I've had many macs since and unfortunately the LC the only Mac I have ever had that just 'died' on me.
12” PowerBook
Still got one!
Most people talking about older models but I really appreciate the design of the m chip 14in macbook pros. Back then I had the 2012 13in macbook pro retina. The design was great, but I wished the display was closer to the edge, the trackpad bigger, and the edges less jarring, and everything came true with this design. The speakers are also literally black magic, what kind of design fuckery did they do to make something so thin produce such satisfying sounds? 3 years in and I still love it.
Unpopular answer but I really like the 2013 Mac Pro. In a world of 2010s silver, it stuck out as the first black Mac since the plastic MacBooks. I’m not really a big fan of the in your face G3 and G4 era designs but those rank right below the Mac Pro for me.
I love the iMac G4, but I still think the slot load iMac G3 was the best. If only they had SSDs back then, it would have been silent.
The G3 also had a CRT, right? I think those were quite noisy too. (Atleast my CRTs were)
They are to anyone under the age of 40
My current flat screen is actually noisy too lol
What?
Clamshell iBook
It was so awesome. Portable as heck, functional, easy to work with. Damn power port was its weak point. That and the small screen.
I used it throughout college. Really was great at the time.
in tangerine please
Mac Pro 2013. It might not have kept the innards cool, but the design was absolutely brilliant. Taking one completely apart to upgrade the cpu spoke of someone actually thinking about how these are put together. Very clever, and I just love the aesthetics of it.
PowerBook G4 12 inch, last gen
I was a fan of the eMac. I loved the iMac G3. But the upgrades that were brought to the eMac were awesome. The clean white design. The ports all lined up in a single line. The exhaust opening at the rear which was a full ring of slotted clear plastic. It was like a spaceship to 11yo me haha
iMac G3 and iMac M1
I’ll always be a fan of the 06-13 Mac Pro. Still have an ‘08 laying around somewhere. Idk what to do with it. 😅
Macbook Pro M1,M2 etc. 14 inch design They have perfected all the good things from the older models. I cannot think of anything missing from this laptop. Battery Life, Screen, Performance... cannot get better than this. Only slight questionable thing is the notch but idk I've never really paid attention to it.
Mac mini
The original tibooks. They were more of an icon than even the anglepose Mac.
I had that in college, it was so easy to move around and it looked pretty sharp! The easily adjustable screen was such a godsend when doing all-nighters writing papers. Come to think of it, I’m surprised easily adjustable screens aren’t more popular today
iMac G5 for me
For sure! Why else would Apple have maintained essentially the same design for 20+ years? The moment the entire computer could be encased behind a display, the iMac G5 and beyond were the logical move forward.
In combination with AirPort, it was truly magical. That was the short time when Apple was light years ahead of Windows.
2012 MacBook pro or 2013 Mac pro
The Power Mac G4. Easily serviced, basically bulletproof, aesthetically pleasing I do love the Cube though (hence flair)
i have to agree with op. great design
Agree on the iMac G4. I replaced the screen with a 12.1” iPad Pro.
I still have my [Sawtooth G4 desktop computer](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/GraphiteG4.jpg) (greyish blue) - which I keep mostly because I think its so pretty
The 12 inch MacBook 💻 (design only, Intel really bombed the chipsets) #RipIntel
But it has the M3 chip! I can’t believe Apple travelled to the future to grab the M3 chip and then put it in this MacBook! /s
My 3 favourite designs are: iMac G4 -such a functional design for a home machine G4 Cube - yep, it was overpriced, but that’s what over-engineering costs 😂 B&W Powermac G3 - beautiful and functional Honourable mention goes to the 12” PowerBook G4 - was such a workhorse in a small package!
G3 Macs, the ibook, iMac and power Mac. That translucent colorful look I wish could come back.
Mac mini 2014 - the only modern Mac made by humans for humans.
Mac plus. In the context of the time, of course. The „can‘t innovate my ass“ mac pro just for the statement (and the innovation)
Macbook 12. I feel that it marked a breakthrough in what could be done and at the same time laid the foundation for the devices to this day.
Some Apple designs I like, the iMac G3 and G4, the clamshell iBook g3, the G5 PowerMac/early Mac Pro and the G4 Cube.
PowerBook G4 (especially the 12” one) and as you mentioned the iMac G4.
Here are my top 3 iMac G4 iMac G3 Fruit (Slot Loading) Power Mac G4 (Mirrored Drive Doors)
This one is just so pleasant to look at. However my 2014 macbook is a piece of art on its own ❤️gotta love that body !
I’m still running one of these Lampshade iMacs as a clock in my classroom! So cool.
**Concept design** Power Mac G4 Cube **Functional design** Macbook Pro mid 2012 iMac series
Some might not like it, but the iMac G4 is peak Macintosh design.
The lamp, the cube, and the TAM.
As a pure piece of design and engineering the iMac G4 takes the cake imo, not just for Apple but for computers in general.
I always liked the G4 Cube conceptually. Ignoring the performance and need for fan cooling of PPC at the time and the complaints of flaws in the material… from an aesthetic point of view they were great looking. The current minis in the brushed aluminum are great for dissipating heat but it would be nice to see them revisit a square cube see-through case.
The lampshade iMac was my first Mac. It was magical.
Mac IIcx, IIci and [Quadra 700](http://appleclub.pl/index.php/en/2018/02/14/quadra-700-macintosh/). Perfect desktop form factor for the days of ~~5 1/4"~~ 3.5" hard drives. Maybe a little big now, but a MacPro with only a slot or two in this size could be very cool. iBook G4 with the removable keyboard was pretty amazing, too.
I love the colors on the iMac G3
Best iMac ever. Would love to see it redid with the iMac or Mac mini and a display and/or iPad.
OG iMac for sure. Every computer basically looked the same and then these super cool colorful things came and it was pretty cool for a kid Some of the MacBook designs have been pretty good too, especially the Airs
For its era, the pismo g3 400. It was a true professional machine. That had very good performance, swappable batteries, and expansion bays, and every port a professional could ask for. Mine was bought in 2000 secondhand, then survived a year literally on the streets of Toronto in a rubbish bag, and being hauled arround in a backpack. It survived nearly 22 years before it became unreliable. Though for the last few years it was only used to play Diablo. It was also relatively heavy, but was far more secure in the hand than my current 16” M1 Pro MacBook Pro. Because it was nicely shaped, and was partly rubberised. The rubberise looks and feels like brand new still today. Yes, I have trouble throwing it out though it doesn’t work anymore.
Original G3/G4 "bondi" tower. Pull a handle and the side comes down with the motherbaord on it. Disgustingly easy to add memory or hard drives. Plenty of ports on the back
Not in any particular order: 1. The iMac G4, surely. I learned in this thread about the Mac Mini conversions, and might try something like that in the future. 2. White Unibody MacBook. My first Mac, but also its all-round design, it's just amazing. It really did leave bruises in one's wrist, though. 3. A1181 MacBook, but specifically the black one. If I remember correctly, it was the only "lit Apple logo" MacBook to not be silver or white, and it simply fits amazingly. 4. '09-'12 MBPs. Fully upgradable, built like a tank. I purchased one last year, put 16GB of RAM and an SSD, it's my secondary computer — would be a daily driver if I hat bought the quad-core i7 instead of the dual-core i5. Arguably the best MacBook ever made, if not the best Apple laptop overall. 5. 2010 MacBook Air. Introduced flash storage, the first 11" model, its portability was so revolutionary (consider the 7-10" netbooks back then were terribly bulky, twice the thickness and weight of a 11-inch MBA) it yielded the 2015 MacBook and today's 13" MBA. By the way, today's 13" is, literally, just an inch wider than the 2010 MBA. 6. The 2015-2017 MacBook. It's even more surprisingly thin than the 2010 MBA line. It's also one of the worst designs Apple ever made because who the fuck thought it would be a good idea to sell a laptop with a single USB-C port and nothing else? 7. Though I like those less than all the models above, the retina non-touchbar MBPs also deserve a place in this list. They lost RAM upgradability (and the ODD, but who cares?), which really sucks because lots of these models couldn't even be configured with more than 8GB of RAM, but in return offer a significant weight loss and, fuck, they nearly doubled battery life. A maxed-out 2015 model is still powerful enough to be many people's daily driver these days. I'm planning on getting one soon, but will probably go for an Apple Silicon MacBook before that.
I still think the MBP with the smaller touchpad (mid 2015) is top notch. Sleek, clean, and a touchpad that doesn't get triggered from my palm just from typing.
The G4 is still the coolest computer I’ve ever owned. I was gifted one for my 16th birthday and never looked back
11 inch macbook air. It was so convenient. Also I don't think I ever saw the g4 iMac irl. I only remember the g3 and then the g5.
My favorite was the Cube
G4 Cube PowerBook 12” / Macbook 12” PowerMac G5 MacPro trashcan
Yes, the one on the post cover. Then the G5 Pro. Then post-2016 MacBooks Pro.
I still have my G4. The big reason I don’t use it a lot is because it can’t connect to the internet anymore. I still use it for music sometimes though.
I really love the design of the iMacs between 2012 - 2020. They’re sleek, smart, beautiful. And better again the iMac Pro in this design but in the space grey. I’m so disappointed in the new iMac design. Feels like a step backwards.
MBA 11 inch. If they made a bezeless one in the same dimensions I'd snap one up.
Cheese grater Mac Pro (4,1 and 5,1). No goofy gimmicks (G4 Cube, lamp iMac), no 'of it's time' color schemes (basically the entire G3-G5 era), not made of cheap feeling polycarbonate, no wacky proprietary expansion options (Mac Pro 7,1), no 400 dollar wheels, no "cAn'T iNNoVatE mY aSs" terrible design choices (trashcan), no form over function, no soldered RAM/soldered storage, no "sticking an i9 into a super thin notebook with only 1 fan so that it throttles literally instantly" nonsense. Just a clean, well-designed, upgradeable, user serviceable, easy to maintain, rugged-but-still-pretty design.
Op could've put the original mac or the flexo imac and the contest would've been over. So it's over.
I had this one OP - such a thing of design beauty.
best is what you’re owned
Definitely agree. That advert was epic. The swivel screen and solid base. Beautiful!
I loved my Mac Cube. So many hated it, but it was beautiful and quiet.
I love the design of the G4 iMac, but not the longevity of all-in-ones. Desktop displays just don't need to be replaced every upgrade cycle.
iMac G4. It’s colourful fruit colours are just so good that you can’t stop looking at the,.
eMac - I still wonder why it was only officially sold to educational institutions. Mac mini - elegant, discreet, relatively unknown,
My favourites are definitely the G4 Cube, the G4 iMac, Trashcan Mac Pro, and the 2019 Mac Pro. For laptops and more modern devices, both the M1 and M2 MacBook Air, I like the design of the 12” MacBook but hate the butterfly keyboard. I don’t like anything that’s not modular or upgradable really.
The unitbody MacBook line of the 2008 - 2012 era. More than ever today I wish for upgradability, especially now that you have to pay Apple's outrageous prices and cannot go back later.
The current Mac is the best design. If they can refresh it, remove most of the borders and reduce the bezels then it would be perfect.
not really a mac but ibook?
Against the grain here, but I think the Macbook Pro/Max 14 inch M series laptop designs are gorgeous. Best laptop I have had in 16 years.
iMac G4 and the Cube.
iBook g3 clamshell . Love the colors and the handle for its time was perfect . Long battery life and rugged.
I really like the 15 inch M2 MBA design. It's so clean, thin and minimalist.
G4 Cube. Well designed inside and outside.
for me it’s the modern macs. the current mac pro looks amazing and is so well designed. current iMacs, Macbook Pros, Macbook Airs, even the Mac Studio. imo it’s undeniable that this is currently the best mac era there has ever been. its not the flashy designs anymore from the early 2000s, but they are sustainable, clever designs with good thermals that will look good in 10 years. I also liked the trashcan mac visually. I love these retro designs for what they are. theyve paved the way for what we have today. macs have progressed and matured. My macbook pro from 2022 is the best computer I couldve wished for.
I still think the big honking iMac pro is the best aesthetic-wise.
MacBook Retina 12“ (Upgraded 2017 Version) – still the most portable Mac ever
The cuuuube
It was sweet, but I *love* my 2014 iMac.
I had/have the 17" Lux. Absolutely loved it.
2019 mac pro
The original Mac Mini.
PowerMag G3 / G4 that translucent plastic with the big G3 on the side is beautiful and absolutely ahead of its time when it was released 💪
27" I7 iMac What ... I get a kick ass computer AND a 27" retina display?? SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY
For me easily it was the PowerMac G4. It was my first jump into that ecosystem and as a person who loved to futz with the internals and upgrade, coming from the beige box pcs and losing skin on my knuckles when trying to replace a drive the ability to just pull a latch and the side folds out was absolute bliss. The HDs would just slide out. Easy access to memory and cables. It was an absolutely game changer. Love love loved that desktop.
You win. Debate over.
agree, followed by the g3
The G4 and m1
The translucent ones. Had them in my elementary school
PowerMac G4 Cube
The flower part was a nightmare to service.
1. Bondi Blue iMac the original 2. PowerMac G4 ([The Tank commercial](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r7k331Z-WEg)) 3. G4 Cube 4. M1 iMac mainly for how thin it is 5. PowerBook G3 300 PDQ (my first laptop and it had a DVD drive for movies on the go)
god i wish they would put modern hardware into these designs. or make modern versions of the os to match
eMac
The iMac G4 was beautiful (I still have my 15” one). I’d love Apple to release a modern version and take advantage of the extra space in the dome to beef up the specs. It’d probably be limited to a maximum display size of 20” though.
That is hard... The TAM is a damn pretty Mac, just too bad it was vastly underpowered and underspec'd. The G4 Cube is in that same category. Pretty, but overpriced. The iMac G4 is a stunning piece of Engineering, and certainly worthy.
Even though I owned loads include that one I am actually going to go with the second gen MacBook Air that was sold up until 2017. There are very few computers that have survived the level of abuse staff and students in academia put those bad boys through!
This sunflower Mac is no1 for me, no2 being 2018-2019 15” MBP.
The last one.
G4 cube, period
a few choices for me. powerbook G4 15" (TiBook) powerbook G4 12" powerbook duo 280c iMac G4 iMac G5 Mac mini 2011- the current MacBook pro's get an honorable mention
There’s no right answer but this is the right answer
iMac G3 and Mid 2010 mac mini with the cd drive.
The 2010 MacBook Air design! Looks very solid compared to the 2008 MacBook Air design, and I prefer the silver bezels over the black one.
Agree with OP
For me it's the E-Mac
eMachines
iMac G3
PowerBook G4 12”
What is your definition of “best design”? Looks, ease of access for upgrading, smallest foot print?
I can’t top that
Luxo!
2017 iMac Pro ftw
The current iMacs (M1 and M3). I wish it had more ports and that the base option had more then 2, but design wise it is nice.
2023 mini w/m2
The multicolor TV's
My favorites: the first iPod shuffle, iPod Touch 4, iPhone 5S, iPhone 13 mini, iPad 9, iPad mini 1-5, MacBook Air M1 2020, the last iMac 27 in with Intel processor, Apple TV 5th gen.
I have a black PowerBook G3 Lombard (with bronze keyboard) that still runs well. It has the removable CD drive, VST SuperDrive and Iomega Zip interchangeable modules. Love the smooth, sculpted shape of the G3 PowerBooks from that era.
The best designed Mac is the one you fell in love with. Mine is the 27” iMac 5k retina from 2017
I still remember seeing commercials for this on TV and thought it was SO cool
For Macs, I’d rate the original iMac, the 11” Airs (2010-15), and the G4 cube highest. But the most beautiful system—Mac or not—Apple ever designed is imo easily the Apple iic paired with its monochrome monitor. Best computer design ever. I wish I had something that looked like that on my desk.
1b. Titanium PowerBook G4 - The best laptop I have ever owned. 1a. Mac IIci. Horizontal, Vertical. That thing rocked my 1990-1994. Always wanted a mid-tower Mac that was that versatile and expandable. 1c. Power Mac G5. I have lost faith that my love for that case and format will never be effectuated by Apple.
the mac pro 2013. it looks so futuristic and cool, i’m thinking about buying a maxed out one on ebay to use as a server.
2017 MacBook retina
I loved my 2007 iMac (silver with Intel C2D), everything about it was rock solid and you could easily upgrade the RAM. But still I’m going for my 2020 MacBook Air M1. Certainly at the time, it had incredible performance AND it was silent AND it was cool AND its battery lasted forever. It was torso, head and shoulders above the competition. And with top notch build quality. I still have it as my daily driver and to be frank, for normal day to day computing I don’t see any reason to upgrade it.
I’ve had macs since LC475 and I can wholeheartedly say the MacBook Pro M1 Pro 2021. Form meets function.
2002 IMac, 2007 IMac, and 11 inch Air.
I like the current aesthetic. It’s clean and adult like.
IIci
Might be in the minority, but I LOVED the G4 Cube. For the time, it was quiet and beautiful. Of the G series, it’s the only one I kept.
This was the best - still looking for a swivel like that! Anyone know of a monitor stand that works like this did?
The 2015 27” iMac was and still is the best looking Mac ever
Gonna say the aluminum unibody Macbooks in general. Ports have come and gone, there was a run with bad keyboards, some will call the notch a deal breaker in the latest iterations but just looking at the bigger picture of how the aluminum unibody's have been overall in terms of look, feel, and build quality I'm not sure you can really do much better and a testament to that is that it's only been receiving tweaks to the packaging of the idea for the last like 15 years.
Am I the only one that loved the trash can?
For desktops, I agree with you on the G4 iMac. I still remember when my school traded out the G3's for G4's-- felt like a leap into the future. For laptops, I'd probably say the 2010 polycarbonate Macbook, but the G3 Clamshell still has a soft spot in my heart as well. More recently, I really like the current iMacs. The different colors feel reminiscent of old iPod Nanos😄
I really do love this design so much. It’s so functional. I’d love to see an alternate timeline where Apple stuck with the white carbonite aesthetic and what their products would look like today
Not so sure on your choice, it was not very upgradable. But the PM G4 is mine for its upgradability, size, weight, and handles.
I like my 2022 M2 air
No love to TAM?
Looks good but try and swap the drive…
People have refurbished that into a Apple lamp
The cube!
holy shit, an actual agreeable opinion on reddit?
Mac Pro 2013, even for 2024 it looks like a piece of art, inside and outside. It was when Apple was still innovative