I love the bold colors Apple used back in the day to differentiate the iMac from boring PCs. I recall many other manufacturers copying the Bondi Blue and other candy colored plastic hues. Apple has since sobered a bit, which saddens many. For those of you who miss the colorful computers comes a little sunshine, in the form of Speck Products snap on SeeThru faceplates, first for the MacBook and now for your iMac.

The 15-ounce polycarbonate plastic frame SeeThru Candy Colored Hard Shell for the 20” iMac comes in translucent Aqua, Black, Pink, and Red. My Aqua version reminds me of that old Bondi Blue hue. It snaps on easily without having to remove any wires and includes a little hole for the camera at the top of the screen and a cut out for the slot-loading SuperDrive.

Camera Hole in iMac SeeThru

Four internal soft rubbery knob-like pieces, called compression bumpers hold the SeeThru Hard Shell securely in place. There is no adhesive material to mar any of your iMac surfaces. Considering the kind of action most desktop Macs get, this is a decidedly odd product. It doesn’t protect the screen, or the back of the Mac, so protection is pretty limited. On the other hand, if you have small children, which I do, the Hard Shell protects your silver frame from food-encrusted fingers and the table bumps that sometimes occur in daily life. This product is for the silver iMacs and does not fit on the older white iMac computers.

Color Code Your iMacs

If you have a room full of multiple iMacs, you could develop a color-coding system for machines configured for particular tasks, such as video editing, music creation, or photographic needs. In your home, the colors provide a little individuality among family members and may even complement your decor.


Black iMac SeeThru

The iMac SeeThru is a sweet treat of pretty colors over what I otherwise consider an elegant expanse of silver. I also think it’s a wasted opportunity for organizational tools. It would be more useful if it included a penholder, a slot for paper sticky notes, or even an eyeglass holder or a whiteboard along the bottom.

I wrote on the SeeThru with a wipe-off marker, something I would never try on the Mac itself, but the Aqua color over silver was too dark for effective note making, but it might be more effective on the pink SeeThru. The lower half is a good expanse for my sticky notes though. If color and case protection is your thing, it’s a well-made product, but leaves most of us scratching our heads as to its true usefulness.

Other Speck Products Reviews:

Speck See-Thru MacBook Case

Speck iPhone 3G cases

Speck Activefit iPod Armband

Speck TechStyle-Puck for shuffle or headphones



Edited by Ilene Hoffman, Reviews Editor

by Sandra Miller