Still Ticking: “Obsolete” iMac G4 as Clock

Nicole Martinelli ()

Still Ticking: “Obsolete” iMac G4 as Clock

Some devices are more versatile than others.

Though the 2002 iLamps were declared “obsolete” by Apple in 2009, the repurposed stainless steel base plate of this iMac G4 makes a nice wall clock.

It’s the handiwork of a Japanese Apple fan, who published a step-by-step DIY project.
Still Ticking: “Obsolete” iMac G4 as Clock

It’ll go nicely with your G4 iLamp Lamp, too, and probably won’t take more than half an hour to make.

Not to be trusted with a drill? There’s a ready-made version on Etsy for $30.

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About the author

nicole_martinelli

Nicole Martinelli is a San Francisco native who has lived in Milan and Florence, Italy. She's written for Wired.com, The New York Times and Newsweek. You can find her on Twitter , Facebook and Google+.

If you're doing something new/cool that's Apple related, email her about it.

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  • MacRat

    I have the PowerMac G4 kit.

    It’s crap.

    The hands are too heavy for the clock to reliably turn and also wobble around.

  • http://blog.purplearth.net ObbieZ

    The clock LOOKS cool, but if the computer still works it’d be more responsible to re-deploy it.

    The school where I work does not have a huge budget, and we still have two of these “make-up mirror” iMacs in service. One of them replaced a G3 Snow iMac (some staff have been calling them “bowling ball” iMacs) at the Front Desk, and our Front Desk person LOVES it. Even when these machines are displaced by something more up-to-date, there are many people on the wrong side of the digital divide that would LOVE to have such a machine.

    For a working G4 iMac (or even a G3 for that matter), better to donate it to a school or a community organization serving the technologically-deprived than to cut it up to make a cool-looking clock. There are many people out there for whom these machines are not obsolete at all, and are a lot more computer than what they’d replace, which is no computer at all.

  • MacRat

    ObbieZ,

    I agree with you.

    It is really sad when there are schools getting rid of iMac G5′s because they are considered “too old” to use. Such a waste.

  • http://blog.purplearth.net ObbieZ

    @MacRat:

    Especially when there are schools that have NO COMPUTERS AT ALL.

  • firesign3000

    i still use a g4/700 imac in my bedroom to play music and even watch a bit of video. so far it refuses to die.

  • http://www.etsy.com/shop/randall180 randall

    I have the same clock on Etsy along with the Lamp. My clock is a little different. And don’t worry… I only use stripped down, non-working G4s. Its a shame to see them recycled, I would rather it be a cool lamp than a paperweight.

    http://www.etsy.com/shop/randall180

    randall…

  • http://www.natural-treatments.net Evelyn Ahmed

    some bowling balls are heavy and i accidentally dropped one on my foot. it is quite painfull~`: