Beige box

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A computer lab in 2002, with beige PCs, monitors, keyboards, and printers Maury Hall computer lab -02- (49978326986).jpg
A computer lab in 2002, with beige PCs, monitors, keyboards, and printers

In personal computing, the beige box was the predominant aesthetic style of desktop computers of the 1980s and 1990s, having a boxy beige or off-white case. The term beige box is also sometimes used to distinguish generic PCs from models made by name brands such as Compaq, Dell, or HP. In the early years of these companies, most of their units were beige as well. More recently, as name-brand manufacturers have moved away from beige (typically switching to black, dark gray, and silver-colored cases), inexpensive generic cases became more distinct as "beige boxes". Today, the term white box has largely replaced this usage. [1] [2]

Contents

Background and heyday

The earliest microcomputers came in an assortment of shapes, colors, and materials. TVT Prototype.jpg
The earliest microcomputers came in an assortment of shapes, colors, and materials.

Computer cases at the dawn of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s were often assembled out of wood or prefabricated metal boxes, either bought secondhand by the purchaser, in the case of bare kits, or provided by the manufacturer. The majority of early microcomputer hobbyists and manufacturers lacked the budget necessary for injection-molded plastic case parts. [3] At most, some manufacturers, such as MITS, painted the cases for their microcomputers in vibrant colors—bright blue, in the case of MITS's Altair 8800—reflecting standard practice in mainframe and minicomputer design going back to 1959's IBM 1401, whose powder-blue exterior earned IBM the nickname "Big Blue". [4] [5] In any event, many early adopters of microcomputers were indifferent to the physical appearance of their microcomputers and prioritized the electronics inside. While this resulted in a varied array of case designs and colors, these cases were often rough around the edges and were too conspicuous in the home, hampering the mainstream adoption of microcomputers. [3]

Apple II Plus.jpg
IBM PC-IMG 7271.jpg
The popularity of the Apple II (left), released in 1977, and the IBM Personal Computer (right), released in 1981, established the use of beige in desktop computers for the next two decades.

In June 1977, Apple Computer released the Apple II, the first commercially released microcomputer with a plastic case. [3] [6] The Apple II's design was rendered by Jerry Manock, who chose to color it beige with input from Apple's co-founder Steve Jobs. [7] [8] According to Manock, the use of beige in the Apple II's case helped it blend into office settings of the late 1970s, which heavily featured earth tones; it was also effective at hiding the appearance of dust on the case. In addition, as many municipalities in Japan and countries within the European Union had laws mandating the use of neutral colors in the office to reduce eye strain, the use of beige made the Apple II a good fit for business use in those territories. [7] Helped by its friendly, inconspicuous appearance, the Apple II quickly became one of the first mass-marketed computers for the home. Its built-in keyboard, rounded corners, and beige color scheme were immediately influential in the fledgling home computer industry and were imitated by many. [3] [8]

Following Apple's lead, in August 1981 the computing giant IBM released the IBM Personal Computer, their first mass-market microcomputer. The IBM PC deviated from the Apple II's design by having the keyboard separate from the main system components, which were housed in a short rectangular box. This system unit, as well as the accompanying keyboard and monitor, were all colored beige. [9] Due to its architecture being a largely open standard, the IBM PC spawned a massive market of clone systems, with manufacturers perfectly replicating the IBM PC in both function and form—down to its beige-box case. The explosion of IBM PC clones in the market cemented the use of beige as the standard-issue color for desktop computers. [4]

The rise of the IBM PC standard, according to The New York Times in 2002, coincided with a shift toward workplace democracy, largely inspired by the economic success of Japanese business models. During this era, many companies swapped private offices for cubicles, themselves often colored beige, to foster a sense of equality. The plain, understated aesthetic of these beige-box PCs complemented this new office environment. Although these attempts at workplace democracy eventually became the target of satire through works such as Dilbert , the beige box remained the industry standard for the next two decades. Its longevity was driven primarily by purchasing managers, who prioritized cost-saving through standardization and sought to avoid the visual disarray of differently colored equipment to employees. [4]

While Apple briefly attempted to break away from beige in the early 1980s with the release of the all-black Bell & Howell Apple II Plus, it was a commercial flop, and the company quickly reverted to beige for the release of subsequent computer lines including the Lisa and the Macintosh. [10] [8] [a] Other notable attempts at black desktop computers during the 1980s include Delta Computer's Deltagold line, [11] Victor Technology's Victor 9000, and NeXT's NeXT Computer—all of which were short-lived in the marketplace. [10] [12] [13]

Demise

A Silicon Graphics (SGI) Indigo workstation; SGI was one of the first post-1981 computer vendors to successfully embrace color for their case design. Silicon Graphics Indigo (1).jpg
A Silicon Graphics (SGI) Indigo workstation; SGI was one of the first post-1981 computer vendors to successfully embrace color for their case design.

One of the first companies of the post–IBM PC era to successfully embrace the use color in the cases of their desktop computer systems was Silicon Graphics (SGI), who hired the design firm IDEO to render the cases for their workstations in a variety of vivid colors and textures starting in the early 1990s. [4] [10] [14] While never sold to the general public on account of their high price point, SGI's workstations were embraced by creative professionals and research and development firms, with the company intentionally designing their workstations in various colors in order to stand out other workstation vendors, whose designs were more utilitarian in keeping with a more bureaucratic clientele. [4] [15] [16] : 2G  The start-up company Panda Project copied SGI's approach to color with their IBM PC–compatible Archistrat workstation, released in 1995, which came in an assortment of bright colors. [17]

Unlike desktop computers, laptops and notebooks were offered in a variety of shades of grey and black from their inception in the 1980s and were not confined to beige. [4] [10] While some laptops and notebooks were beige, manufacturers quickly realized that their use on the go precipitated scuffs and finger dirt and switched to darker colors as a result. [9] [10] In addition, as many laptops were being used as companion systems to desktop computers at the office, many users preferred to bring home a darker-colored laptop because they were less closely associated with the beige tones of office environments and connoted executive status. [4] [10] The release of Apple's original PowerBook line in 1991 solidified the use of dark greys in notebook design, with the majority of PC vendors following suit with their own notebooks. [10] In the aftermath of the PowerBook's release, IBM unveiled the ThinkPad line in 1992. Designed chiefly by David Hill, the ThinkPads featured an all-black case. IBM were reluctant to release the ThinkPad in black because of German workplace standards that mandated the use of light-value colors in office equipment. While some early models of ThinkPad were offered in beige in Germany, the cost of offering two SKUs for both beige and black models eventually proved too cost-prohibitive. IBM's German subsidiary eventually relented to Hill's original all-black design, with the stipulation that the computer be marketed explicitly as "not for office use". The ThinkPad's design eventually proved iconic and was itself imitated by other notebook vendors. [18] [19]

In 1995, Acer Inc. of Taiwan introduced the Aspire line of desktop computers, featuring either a green or charcoal-grey finish, with a case rendered by Frog Design. [17] The Aspire was a massive commercial success, making Acer a household name in the United States and convincing other manufacturers to experiment with the design of their computers, including Sony who launched the stylish, purple-hued Vaio line of computers in 1996. [20] [2] This development led to PC Magazine and The New York Times to predict the end of the beige-box era. [21] [22] Earlier in 1994, Frog was hired by Packard Bell to redesign their desktop computers; while still primarily beige, they featured user-replaceable, accented trim panels, featuring wavy contours and assorted colors. [23] [24] According to John C. Dvorak in early 1996, advancements in plastic engineering in Taiwan, where many computer vendors had their PCs manufactured, led to OEMs in Taiwan experimenting with colorful computer case designs, albeit with resistance from the buying public in the United States. [25]

The release of the iMac G3 in 1998 is broadly credited for the demise of beige boxes. Imac G3 Bondi Blue side.jpg
The release of the iMac G3 in 1998 is broadly credited for the demise of beige boxes.

Technology analysts generally credit the release of Apple's iMac G3 in 1998 as marking the decline of the use of beige in desktop computers. [4] [26] [27] [b] Released in August 1998, the iMac G3 was designed by Jony Ive based on an initiative from Jobs, who had recently re-entered Apple after his exodus from the company in 1985. The iMac G3 was an all-in-one computer featuring a plastic chassis constructed from colored translucent polycarbonate. Originally only offered in a blue-and-white color scheme, Apple later released a number of different models of the iMac G3 in numerous other colors and patterns. [4] The iMac G3 was an unprecedented success for Apple, selling hundreds of thousands of units in its first year, and it was partially responsible for the company's financial turnaround in the late 1990s. [6] While Apple's competitors initially derided the iMac's industrial design, going into 1999 a number of top vendors released lookalike desktop computers and peripherals cloning its translucent polycarbonate look, while others vendors like Dell embraced darker, solid-color designs. [4] [29]

By November 1999, ZDNET reported that the state of product design at that year's COMDEX/Fall supported the notion that "[p]ersonal computers that come in the form of a large beige box are an endangered species". [30] In April 2002, while noting that some vendors still sold beige desktops, The New York Times called the beige box "headed toward extinction". [4]

Resurgence

Starting in 2020, a number of computer hardware manufacturers have released retro-style cases sporting a beige finish, intentionally evoking the look of 1980s and 1990s computer cases while accommodating modern ATX motherboards and peripherals. In December 2020, Origin PC released the limited-edition RestoMod, produced in a quantity of 50, featuring a 3D-printed front panel. [31] In late 2024, SilverStone of Japan unveiled the FLP01, a horizontal desktop case with a beige chassis and matching beige injection-molded front panel. Initially touted as an April Fools' Day prank, the case entered production in early 2025. [32] [33] [34] In May 2025, SilverStone followed this up with the FLP02 beige tower. [35] [36] [37]

Notes

  1. ↑ Apple eventually settled on a lighter, de-saturated shade of off-white for their computers during the transition to their Snow White design language in the mid-1980s. [6] : 63 
  2. ↑ Others analysts contend that the transition from bulky cathode ray tube monitors to flat-panel displays accelerated the beige box's demise. [28]

References

  1. ↑ Ross, John; Kelly L. Murdock (2007). PC User's Bible. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN   9780470088975.
  2. 1 2 Miller, Michael J. (September 3, 2002). "Black Is the New Beige". PC Magazine. Vol. 21, no. 15. Ziff-Davis. p. 8 – via Google Books.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Miel, Rhoda (August 6, 2007). "Apple II Booted Up Revolution for Plastics". Plastics News. Vol. 19, no. 23. Crain Communications. p. 42 – via Gale.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Lohr, Steve (April 18, 2002). "The Beige Box Fades to Black". The New York Times. p. G1. Archived from the original on September 17, 2017.
  5. ↑ Driscoll, Kevin (2022). The Modem World: A Prehistory of Social Media. Yale University Press. p. 53. ISBN   9780300248142 – via Google Books.
  6. 1 2 3 Hall, Peter (January–February 1999). "No Regrets". I.D. Vol. 46, no. 1. Magazine Publications. pp. 62–63. ProQuest   214764536.
  7. 1 2 Davies, Erin (August 17, 1998). "Why Are PCs Beige?". Fortune. Vol. 138, no. 4. Time Inc. p. 32. ProQuest   213227352 – via the Internet Archive.
  8. 1 2 3 Meikle, Jeffrey L. (2005). Design in the USA. Oxford University Press. p. 204. ISBN   9780191518027 – via Google Books.
  9. 1 2 Manes, Stephen (April 20, 1995). "Outside, Monitors Remain Neutral". The New York Times. p. C2. Archived from the original on October 22, 2012.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Clark, Joe (August 25, 1994). "Computing in Living Colour". The Globe and Mail. Bell Globemedia. p. P9.
  11. ↑ Stephen, Bruce (September 1, 1987). "Looks are everything: Delta launches series of better looking PCs". PC Week. 4 (35). Ziff-Davis: 29 – via Gale.
  12. ↑ Burgess, John (September 27, 1993). "If PC Looks Could Thrill..." The Washington Post. p. F17. Archived from the original on January 13, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Akron loses computer company". The Newark Advocate. Associated Press. April 22, 1989. p. 3 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ Bajaj, Vikas (April 30, 2002). "Makers of electronics begin to emphasize style". The Dallas Morning News. Knight Ridder Tribune News Service. p. 1. ProQuest   456664795.
  15. ↑ Knapp, Shelley (January 28, 1999). "Add colour to your desktop". Calgary Herald. p. B8 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ Fowler, Veronica (September 4, 1994). "A silicon success". The Des Moines Register. p. 1G, 2G – via Newspapers.com.
  17. 1 2 Ziegler, Bart (October 18, 1995). "Computers Begin to Break Design Barrier". The Asian Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company. p. 8. ProQuest   315652827.
  18. ↑ Dell, Deborah A.; J. Gerry Purdy (2000). ThinkPad: A Different Shade of Blue. Sams Publishing. pp. 174–176. ISBN   0585330468 – via the Internet Archive.
  19. ↑ Hussain, Shaz (April 11, 2018). "50 Shades of Beige". Science Museum Blog. London: Science Museum. Archived from the original on December 31, 2025.
  20. ↑ Miller, Matt (October 22, 1996). "Beyond the box: New colors, designs getting raves in today's PC market". The San Diego Union-Tribune. p. 1. ProQuest   271561827.
  21. ↑ Lohr, Steve (July 18, 1996). "Finally, Taking Computer Design Out of the Model T Age". The New York Times. p. C2. Archived from the original on July 27, 2024.
  22. ↑ Howard, Bill (October 24, 1995). "A Fork in the PC Road". PC Magazine. Vol. 14, no. 18. Ziff-Davis. p. 95 – via Google Books.
  23. ↑ Ditela, Steve (May 1995). "Movin' On Up". Upside. 7 (5): 42 et seq. ProQuest   217997126.
  24. ↑ Einstein, David (October 6, 1995). "Where Success Is by Design". San Francisco Chronicle: B1. ProQuest   303433722.
  25. ↑ Dvorak, John C. (February 20, 1996). "Inside Track". PC Magazine. Vol. 15, no. 4. Ziff-Davis. p. 91 – via Google Books.
  26. ↑ Tan, Andrew (October 2003). "Obsessions of a Modder". HWM. Hardware Zone. p. 55 – via Google Books.
  27. ↑ Packwood, Lewis (August 16, 2021). "Why Were Old PCs Beige?". Kotaku. Pedestrian Group. Archived from the original on September 18, 2021.
  28. ↑ Marriott, Michel (June 17, 1999). "Thinking Outside the Beige Box". The New York Times. p. G1. Archived from the original on September 23, 2025.
  29. ↑ Fairlie, Rik (November 1999). "Boring Is Not Beautiful". Computer Shopper. Vol. 19, no. 11. SX2 Media Labs. p. 179 – via Gale.
  30. ↑ Spooner, John G. (November 16, 1999). "PC makers look beyond the beige box". ZDNET. CBS Interactive. Archived from the original on June 11, 2023.
  31. ↑ Knight, Shawn (December 14, 2020). "Origin is selling a retro-inspired beige box PC". TechSpot. Future Publishing. Archived from the original on August 7, 2025.
  32. ↑ Tyson, Mark (November 17, 2024). "Retro beige PC case goes from April Fools' joke to retail — SilverStone's sleeper PC with modern internals ships in Q1 2025". Tom's Hardware. Future Publishing.
  33. ↑ Crider, Michael (November 18, 2024). "SilverStone's beautiful retro PC case is beige with faux floppy drives". PCWorld. IDG Publications.
  34. ↑ Purdy, Kevin (November 18, 2024). "April Fools' joke results in Japanese firm making a beige '80s throwback PC case". Ars Technica. Condé Nast.
  35. ↑ Tyson, Mark (May 20, 2025). "SilverStone reveals late-80s style tower PC case — proudly beige but thoroughly modern inside". Tom's Hardware. Future Publishing.
  36. ↑ Crider, Michael (May 21, 2025). "SilverStone's beige PC tower case is blatant nostalgia bait, and I love it". PCWorld. IDG Publications.
  37. ↑ Cunningham, Andrew (May 21, 2025). "SilverStone is back with a beige PC case that looks just like your crappy old 486". Ars Technica. Condé Nast.
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