Hmmm, well, so much for our pattern recognition skills. Way back when Uncle Steve first fried the retinas of the world with the dangerously bright Key Lime iBook last September, we made it clear that, based on the images posted to Apple's web site, we had to file Apple's new radioactive hue squarely in the "Fashion Don't" category. Judging by the commentary plastered all over the 'net at the time, it seemed like virtually everyone agreed with us. But then the backlash came rolling in-- people who really liked the color started crawling out of the woodwork to fill our inboxes with pro-Key Lime diatribes. And as the mail piled up, we finally had to conclude that Key Lime was strictly a "love it or hate it" phenomenon, at least at first glance. We can't say whether or not it was a commercial success, though we can say that we've still never seen a Key Lime iBook in person. (So we'd have to guess, "no.")

So now Apple goes and unveils iMacs in new patterns dubbed "Flower Power" and "Blue Dalmatian." These, too, have all the earmarks of a lightning rod for controversy; people are going to take one glance, form a snap first impression, and stick to that opinion until they keel over dead. And just like Key Lime, when we went looking for positive commentary on the 'net, we just couldn't find any-- response to Apple's shift to floral prints and polka dots appeared to be one unanimous gasp of horror. We went ahead and made our own opinions clear (that Apple's new direction is obviously the product of some heavy drug use), donned our favorite flame-retardant pajamas, and waited for all the Flower Power and Blue Dalmatian fans lurking out there to flame us silly.

But here's the thing: compared to the blistering firestorm we suffered after publicly denigrating Key Lime, the backlash from fans of Apple's new iMac patterns was more like a mild heat wave coupled with an uncomfortably high relative humidity rating. We were expecting-- heck, we were hoping-- that dozens of Mac fans would write in to tell us that we're just fashion-challenged and that the Flower Power and Blue Dalmatian iMacs are hands-down the coolest thing that Apple's ever produced. Instead, we got a dribble of letters from people who mostly said that the new patterns "aren't as bad as we think." Not exactly the ringing endorsement we wanted. There was also a fair amount of "hey, Flower Power's actually kind of neat-- I'd never buy it myself, though" sentiment. Oh, sure, there were a couple of very vocal fans, but overall, we have to wonder if Apple's bean counters are more than a little nervous about the sales figures.

Apparently the analysts aren't too thrilled, either, and while we generally rate analyst opinions right up there on the usefulness scale with electric paperweights and edible drywall, when CNET reports that the analyst consensus is that Flower Power and Blue Dalmatian "could limit the appeal of Apple's best-selling machine," we just have to nod our heads in agreement as if they'd said "it's unwise to eat furry cheese." We really hope it doesn't come to pass, but at this point we foresee shortages of Indigo and Graphite iMacs even as warehouses are packed to the gills with Apple's "groovier" options. Don't agree? Then grab $1199-$1499, march on down to your local Apple dealer, and prove us wrong-- because this is one of those times when it doesn't pay to be right.