3: Xserve (#18)

3: Xserve (#18)

Author: Relay August 21, 2020 Duration: 13:27
Apple had made numerous attempts to sell server hardware, including a strange non-Mac server that Steve Jobs likened to a bizarre dream. But in the early 2000s, Jobs decided to take another crack at it, and vowed that this time things would be different.

The story of the Macintosh isn't just about circuits and code; it's a collection of personalities, pivotal decisions, and products that changed everything. On the 20 Macs podcast, host Jason Snell guides conversations with a rotating panel of guests who have watched this history unfold from the front row. These aren't just casual observers, but long-time Mac watchers with deep institutional knowledge and personal anecdotes. Together, they don't just list models, but dig into the most notable parts of Macintosh history-the breakthroughs, the baffling missteps, the cult classics, and the machines that defined entire eras of computing. Each episode focuses on the context and the human stories behind the hardware, offering a rich, nuanced perspective that goes beyond specs and launch dates. You'll hear discussions that feel like a reunion of old friends reminiscing about a shared, formative passion, analyzing how specific models reflected the company's ambitions and the technological landscape of their time. This is a podcast for anyone who appreciates how design, culture, and technology intersect, exploring why these particular twenty Macs left an indelible mark. It's a retrospective built on genuine expertise and a clear affection for the subject, making each conversation both informative and warmly engaging. Tune in for thoughtful analysis and behind-the-scenes glimpses of an iconic journey in personal technology.
Author: Language: en-us Episodes: 29

20 Macs
Podcast Episodes
18: Original Macintosh (#3) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:44
The first Mac followed in the Lisa's footsteps and had a lot of limitations--but it changed the course of the computer industry forever.
17: MacBook Air (#4) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:42
Apple's first attempt at the ultimate thin and light laptop was overpriced and underpowered. The second attempt resulted in the definitive Mac of the 2010s.
16: Titanium PowerBook G4 (#5) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 12:33
Apple's first metallic silver laptop set the company on a path that it's been on for two decades and counting, but it also proved that the company still had a lot to learn.
15: Mac SE/30 (#6) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 13:50
What's the best Mac of all time? It's an impossible question to answer. Yet three well-known Mac commentators all have the same answer.
14: iBook G3 (#7) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 14:33
After a lot of speculation, Steve Jobs finally filled in the Mac's fourth product quadrant with a consumer laptop that was one of a kind. But what's a "consumer laptop," really?
13: Power Mac G4 Cube (#8) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:56
There may have never been a Mac more aligned with Steve Jobs's personal quirks than the Power Mac G4 Cube. It was a spectacular failure.
12: iMac G4 (#9) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:33
One of Apple's greatest design triumphs was meant to set the company up for the next decade. Instead, it became a false start--and a rejected design direction ended up being more functional, if less inspirational.
11: Power Computing (#10) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:42
For a couple of years in the mid-90s, the Mac market was enthralled by a clonemaker with great deals and riotous marketing.
10: Mac Portable (#11) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:11
Thank goodness there are second chances, because Apple's first attempt to make a portable Macintosh was as inauspicious at it gets.
9: Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh (#12) [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:59
In an era where Apple liked to show concepts from its design lab in public, one weird Mac prototype somehow became a real product, and was unveiled at the end of the worst Apple keynote in history.