We’ve always thought that Apple has done a subpar job of advertising the iMac, so maybe this offbeat story will serve as a good jumping off point for Apple to start spreading the word about one of its greatest products.

The most recent iterations of the iMacs are slick and beautifully designed aluminum beasts. From a design perspective, they’re quiet, take up barely any space at all, and work exceedingly well. They’re also robust. And by robust we mean that these suckers can survive a devastating fire and still work, because that’s exactly what happened to Anders Norman, a Swede who recently lost his whole house and the majority of his possessions in a sweeping blaze.

When inspecting the wreckage, Norman was surprised to find that his iMac was one of the few items to actually survive the blaze intact, aside from some noticeable burns and melting to the keyboard. But not only that, Normal was shocked to find that his iMac not only survived, but still worked!

Norman recalls the incident,

Unfortunately, the whole house and all things in there completely destroyed so even the iMac. What’s funny is that it is still in operation. While damaged from smoke and dust and partially melted, but yet, however in operation. After I plugged in the burned power cord and wiped off the worst dust from the screen I pressed the melted start button. Imagine my surprise when the startup sound sings from the speakers! The screen turns on and the machine connects to the wireless network. The mouse works flawlessly and the scroll wheel as well. Firefox starts and I take up the article from the local magazine about the fire … Fantastic! On Friday I bought a new iMac at the Apple Store here in Umeå, which I now rejoice.

A few things here. First, the scroll wheel on my Mighty Mouse barely works in normal conditions, and his works perfectly fine after a fire? What gives, Apple?! Second, you have to love the Euro-diction (i.e which I now rejoice). Third, you have to admire this guy’s state of mind – his entire house burned down but he’s still rejoicing because he just bout a brand new iMac! This guy’s attitude alone earns him a spot on the list of the world’s most famous Swedes.

Check out his melted keyboard and charred (yet still working) mouse.



Feber via TUAW