Check Out This Bondi Blue iMac G3 on the LEGO Idea Site
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There’s a popular theory that a significant overlap exists between Apple fans and LEGO fans, and here is another piece of evidence in its favor. For your consideration: an Apple-related LEGO project recently submitted to LEGO’s Product Ideas website featuring a rather detailed Bondi Blue iMac G3.
Fan designer terauma has developed the iconic iMac in a 700-part project, complete with the keyboard and the famous “hockey puck” mouse and keyboard that shipped with the computer back in 1998, wired with their iconic translucent and yellowing-prone cables. The LEGO set even includes a miniature replica of the iMac’s cathode ray tube and motherboard.
Here’s the project’s official description:
The iMac G3 was released in 1998.
The bold design, which overturned the conventional image, attracted many people and became the beginning of the later translucent boom.
When I was a kid, my brother and I often played games on this iMac.By releasing this set at LEGO, I wanted people to pick up this nostalgic computer again.
Built with a total of about 700 parts.
made extensive use of the characteristic clear parts and built the building to be a little smaller than it actually is.
Inside, the cathode ray tube and board are reproduced, and a keyboard and USB mouse are also included.
The project was first posted on May 17, and at the time of this article has 5,024 votes, up from the 4,458 votes it had when I first visited the website yesterday. The project has 320 days left to reach the 10,000 supporter milestone required for it to proceed to the next phase.
Don’t get your hopes up too high, though, as we’ll likely never see this beauty on store shelves. Even if the project clears all the hurdles to be considered for a fan-created LEGO kit to be sold at retail, there would still be the matter of negotiating licensing rights and similar agreements with Apple itself. Still, that’s no reason not to vote for it.
The iMac G3 was a series of Macintosh personal computers sold by Apple Computer from 1998 to 2003. The iMac was Apple’s first major product release following the return of CEO Steve Jobs to the company he co-founded. At the time of his return, Apple was in financial peril. Jobs responded by reorganizing the company, simplifying the Apple product line.
The iMac was designed as an inexpensive, consumer-oriented computer that would easily connect to the Internet.
The all-in-one design of the iMac G3 was centered around a cathode-ray tube display, a G3 processor, and components, all contained in a single, teardrop-shaped, translucent plastic case. The G3 was designed by Apple’s head of design, Jony Ive, and his team, marking a radical departure from the company’s previous computer designs.
New production methods were developed to quickly assemble the computer, and new workflows were established that were later utilized for designing future products. The iMac eliminated legacy technologies like serial ports and floppy disk drives, instead providing CD-ROMs and USB ports.
The first release of the iMac G3 was powered by a 233 MHz PowerPC G3 processor, featured ATI Rage IIc graphics, had a 4 GB hard drive, a tray-loading CD-ROM drive, two USB ports, an Ethernet port, an infrared port, built-in stereo speakers, and headphone ports. The color of its casing was Bondi blue, and it shipped with Mac OS 8.1.
While the critical response to the iMac was mixed, it was an immediate hit with customers, becoming Apple’s fastest-selling computer, with sales exceeding six million units over its lifetime. The iMac G3 is credited by many with saving Apple from financial ruin.
