Apple announced a new, completely redesigned iMac powered by the M1 chip yesterday. The desktop computer is making headlines thanks to that new razor-thin look and revamped internals, but I feel like a controversy is on the brink of breaking out about the aesthetic of the machine.
I would like you, dear reader, to look at these photos and tell me that this computer looks good with these bezels. Really study it, analyze it. Imagine this is sitting on your desk every morning you wake up, ready to get a jump on those emails.
I can remember a time when people would whine and moan about white bezels on iPhones, devices that you could stare at for a while and eventually put away. I never thought we’d see the day where Apple (literally Apple) releases a desktop computer with some of the most in-your-face bezels I’ve ever seen. And let’s not forget: it’s 2021, and we’re spending a lot more time looking at big screens on our desks than usual.
I would like to know who at Apple thought white bezels on this new iMac would be a good idea. I can’t imagine a world where people don’t think they stick out like a sore thumb, but apparently that’s the dystopia we live in now.
The chin is also pretty ridiculous. I get that that’s where the internals of the iMac live (they had to put them there to make the body so thin), but that chin has been ugly for years. It’s not even like Apple just wanted somewhere to put its logo.
A big reason why I published this blog post and didn’t just whine on Twitter is due to Apple’s marketing for the iMac. They’re positioning the device as a home theater thanks to the new Retina screen and surround sound speakers. That sounds fantastic, by the way – I’m totally down with a desktop that can serve as a movie theater. But how high do you have to be to think white bezels around black letterboxes won’t be as visible as the glaring sun in a clear blue sky?
Apple thinks the iMac can be an immersive experience, but there’s nothing immersive about giant white bezels and a huge colorful chin.
Look, it’s fine that Apple went the colorful route with the iMac. I don’t really care (I’m not buying one anyway). And sure, the white bezel adds a sort of cheeriness to the aesthetic. But honestly, we’ve spent so many years complaining about white bezels around screens – it almost feels like Apple’s Mac division was locked in a room for five years to develop this thing and never got the word that people actually don’t really like bezels that aren’t black.
Okay. I wrote this piece at 10:55 p.m. last night. I will stop now. I am available on Twitter to argue about bezel colors if you wish.
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