Apple’s most vintage line inspires toy robots

Philip Lee is a publicist and owner of Classicbot, a line of designer toys that turns historic replicas of Apple hardware and desktop icons into lovable characters.
The first, Classicbot, looks just like the original Macintosh computer, except it has a friendly face, arms and legs. There’s even a mouse, a Font Suitcase that fits in the toy robot’s hand, and a cardboard box reminiscent of the original packaging. Next up is a line of classic desktop icons, led by a happy Trashcan, and fans can expect a tangerine and bondi blue iGot later this summer.

Many toy designers use a vinyl substance to create whimsical characters in small batches. But vinyl didn’t allow Lee to incorporate many of the small details and crisp lines, so he opted for more precise injection molding. It’s more expensive and the toys must be produced in large quantities, but Lee says he hasn’t had any problems with excess inventory.

The Classic is 10 cm tall with arms and legs attached with magnets in case a buyer wants to eliminate the toy factor. The Trashbot is taller in a series called Trashbot & Friends. The friends are Errorbot and plastic icons representing Mail, Folder and Disk.

“The (classic machines) have a lot of volume and you can create characters,” he said. “It’s difficult with the latest generation of Macs. There’s not a lot of character or volume. Everything is thin.”

Philip Lee

You can find more information about this curious collection in the following link. link.