Design Museum

Apple Titanium PowerBook G4, 2001

Titanium PowerBook G4 - 2001

We developed the Titanium PowerBook G4 as the lightest and thinnest full-featured notebook on the market. This culminated in an enclosure made from formed titanium shells combined with a carbon fibre frame.

With its widescreen format the display is ideal for viewing graphic windows and associated tools and palettes. We developed a thin, completely pure bezel to frame the display making no concessions to the usual distractions. Even the display hook folds up into the bezel only engaging just before the product is closed.

Apple iBook, 2001

iBook power adapter, 2001

iBook - 2001

The iBook was designed for both the consumer and education markets. A continued concern for durability prompted us to combine polycarbonate shells with a die cast internal frame. Critical components such as the hard drive were shock-mounted.

Elements susceptible to damage such as the doors, external buttons and latches were eliminated as we developed the idea of the entire product being hermetically sealed by its external surfaces. The white colour coating was applied to the internal surfaces of the transparent plastic. Even the sleep-state LED indicator does not penetrate the external skins and only becomes visible when the unit is asleep as it gently cycles from dim to bright.

The display opens to rest unexpectedly far from the keyboard, which makes the product feel expansive and accessible when in use but compact when closed. Many of the ideas we developed for the iBook informed the design of the most recent 17” and 12” PowerBooks.

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