Speculations about the existence of Mac computers with touchscreen displays are nothing new. Although it might sound like science fiction to many, in 1999, a company called Elo manufactured and marketed touchscreen versions of the iMac G3 through Apple’s Value Added Reseller program, primarily intended for use as kiosk machines.
An accessory that made any iMac G3 touchscreen-enabled
Recently, YouTuber Michael MJD managed to acquire one of these devices, thus uncovering a little-known chapter in Apple’s history. These “desktop kiosks” were equipped with Elo’s iTouch interface, an innovative system for the time that used surface acoustic waves instead of a traditional coating to detect the exact touch point on the screen.
Despite the simplicity of this hardware modification, the result was remarkably impressive. In the video of this prototype, above these lines, you can see the device in action as Michael shares part of the history and technical specifications of the equipment.
For many years, there have been rumors that Apple might be developing its own touchscreen iMac. These rumors intensified around 2010, partly driven by Apple patents related to touchscreen desktop computers and later by reports of touchscreen panels appearing in Apple’s supply chain. Panels, we can now say, were likely destined for iPads.
At that time, however, Apple’s CEO, Steve Jobs, completely dismissed this idea, stating that “touch surfaces want to be horizontal,” citing arm fatigue as the primary drawback when interacting with a vertically positioned screen.
In later years, Apple consolidated its line of touch products with the iPhone and iPad, maintaining its stance against touch screens for Macs. While Mark Gurman claims that we could see the first touch MacBook Pro with an OLED screen in 2025 – and before that on the iPad along with the microLED of the Apple Watch – the truth is that, for now, the closest we are to this type of computer, is with the video of the Elo device that, for a time in 1999, made the iMac G3 touch-capable.
