1999 iBook Memories
Recently, while visiting the library in London, I came across a collection of old technology magazines and promotional material, and tucked away amongst them was an original 1999 iBook brochure. Naturally, as the Apple loyalist that I am, I had to stop what I was doing and flick through every single page.
The moment I saw that Tangerine Orange Clamshell iBook again, it instantly took me back to an era where technology still felt exciting in a completely different way. The late 90s and early 2000s had this optimism about them. Companies were not afraid to experiment. Devices had personality. They looked bold, futuristic, playful, almost rebellious. Modern tech today is refined and beautiful, but back then it felt imaginative.
The Apple iBook G3 Clamshell in Tangerine Orange was, in my opinion, peak industrial design. That translucent plastic shell still looks incredible even now. It felt approachable and futuristic at the same time. Apple somehow managed to make a computer look friendly without making it look cheap. The curved edges, the built-in handle, the colours, the glowing Apple logo, it all screamed confidence. It was technology with character.
Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love my modern Apple MacBook Pro. The silver unibody design is timeless, elegant, minimal, and unmistakably Apple. But there was something about the Clamshell era that represented pure creativity. It was Apple returning from the brink, daring to stand out while the rest of the computer industry was busy producing endless grey plastic boxes that looked like microwave ovens designed by accountants.
As I sit here writing this in Gaucho Covent Garden, surrounded by the noise of London life and the smell of steak drifting through the restaurant, I can’t help but think how rare genuine design confidence has become. Modern devices are thinner, faster, more powerful, but very few feel iconic in the same emotional way the Clamshell iBook did.
That old brochure reminded me that technology is not just about specifications and benchmarks. It is about feeling. Inspiration. Identity. The best designs become attached to moments in your life. They become memories.
And honestly, the late 90s Apple aesthetic still holds up remarkably well today. Which is both impressive and mildly irritating for every other tech company that spent decades trying to imitate it.
If you ever find yourself in London, I genuinely recommend checking out the British Library , and if you’re after a fantastic steak afterwards, Gaucho Covent Garden is well worth the visit. Some blogs are inspired by world events. Others by politics. Mine apparently gets triggered by translucent orange plastic from 1999. Human beings are absurd creatures.
