That MacBook Air-shaped roof on Apple’s new Foster + Partners-designed store may look cool, but it’s also apparently pretty dangerous in the face of Chicago’s brutal winters. Most of the store’s outdoor space has been roped off in the aftermath of extreme cold this week, with large icicles dangling from the roof’s edges and signs reading ‘Watch for Falling Snow and Ice’ strewn all around. As reported by local blog Spudart and 9to5 Mac, the flat roof seems to be collecting precipitation, which is then freezing as it drips down the sides and creating an accidental ice skating rink on the walkways.

It’s easy to mock the store’s designers for putting form over function and failing to think about such an obvious component of the building’s everyday conditions – this is Chicago, after all, where temps regularly dip below zero, and wind chills of -30 are expected over the next week. But Apple says the situation is not what it seems.

“The roof has a warming system that’s built into it,” says Apple spokesperson Nick Leahy. “It needed some fine-tuning and it got re-programmed today. It’s hopefully a temporary problem.”

So, the issue is actually a technological malfunction rather than a design flaw. The idea of building ice-melting abilities right into the roof is actually pretty cool, and the roof design also includes internal support columns that funnel water away from the edges, eliminating the need for gutters.

Construction is in full swing on Chicago’s new Apple store by Foster + Partners, revealing a surprise design feature that wasn’t visible in the firm’s early renderings: a gigantic MacBook for a roof. When the project was initially unveiled in 2015, the drawings depicted a sleek two-story structure with river views, glass walls and a slimline roof canopy that looks like it’s precariously balancing on slender supports. But construction crews recently added a shiny metallic silver finish to that canopy – and a familiar white Apple logo.

The store is a relocation of Apple’s Chicago flagship, and will measure about 20,000 square feet. The glass walls range from 14 to 32 feet in height, but there’s little danger of breakage, as they consist of four layers of half-inch-thick glass melded with additional layers of thicker laminated glass. The carbon fiber roof is made of a similar material as yacht hulls, which is what gives it that iconic sheen. It’s four feet thick in the center and just four inches thick at its tapered edges.

You can see this unexpected addition in action in the video above. DNA Chicago reports that crews affixed the logo and left it in place for no more than 60 minutes before removing it again, but it seems likely that it’ll return, especially since the Chicago Tribune reported back in March that the logo would be part of the design. The Tribune has more photos of the construction process.

Technology comes full circle thanks to an iPad and a creative usage of Lego blocks. Oslo-based designers Jason Kinsella and Charlotte Bakken recreated a classic 1984 Macintosh computer with a modern twist, turning the light and sleek tablet into a bulky retro monitor.

The stop-motion film above shows how the technology/toy mashup was created, complete with a floppy disk slot and old school Macintosh logo.

The iPad simply slides in from the side, making the Lego housing a cool-looking place to dock the iPad so you can read or watch a movie.

The project brings Apple back to its early years, emphasizing how the brand has evolved over the past three decades. Of course, the Lego monitor is actually much smaller than the original, since it has to accommodate the comparatively miniature screen of the iPad.

The iPad is one of Apple’s most successful products in recent years, and for good reason. It’s an innovative, easy-to-use, and fun bit of technology that everyone can enjoy, from babies to cats to technophobic adults as well as the typical dedicated technology lover. But this high-tech futuristic gadget inspires some people to embrace the past by creating retro-inspired cases and accessories.

(images via: Kickstarter)

The Etcher is an iPad case that turns your high-tech toy into a well-loved but low-tech one. The case was developed to work just like a classic Etch-A-Sketch, but with some nifty added features like the ability to save your sketches or post them on Facebook.

(image via: GearZap)

If you’re used to using a laptop and are having a hard time adapting to the unique feel of using a tablet, the KeyCase iPad Folio helps ease the transition. It effectively turns your iPad into a laptop, giving it the familiar configuration with an integrated keyboard and a protective outer covering.

(image via: Apple Noir)

Prior to the sleek, no-nonsense form factors of the iPhone and iPad, Apple’s iconic products often took on curvy futuristic shapes like the iBook. Here, the two generations of Apple products meet in a quirky recycling project that uses an old iBook as a functional carrying case for both an iPad and a (fully functional) Apple keyboard.

(image via: Hirac)

Even before the iBook, the classic Macintosh defined Apple’s style. One blogger was surprised to find that the first-gen iPad fits nearly perfectly in the place of the Mac’s screen. So, like any loyal Apple fan, he tore apart the classic computer and updated it with an iPad right where the screen used to be. The design does have some flaws, but overall this case is playful and functional.

(image via: ThinkGeek)

For the same retro Mac look in a portable form, ThinkGeek offers the Padintosh case. It looks just like the front of a classic Mac, even including the disk drive on the front. The hard case protects your iPad from bumps and drops while giving it a unique retro look. The only drawback? The case drastically cuts down on the usable screen area of the iPad.

(images via: Jonas Damon)

The iPad’s super-thin profile is really a testament to just how quickly technology has moved in the past several decades. Designer Jonas Damon juxtaposes the modern iPad with one of the much thicker, much clunkier pieces of technology from previous years. The CRT (cathode ray tube) iPad dock looks like one of the old thick pre-LCD, pre-plasma TVs that were once in every home – and it makes for a pretty cool place to rest your iPad while you watch some retro TV shows.

(images via: Miterbox)

The retro TV aesthetic takes a slightly different turn with this handmade stained wood TV iPad dock from Etsy seller Miterbox. The stand is slim and simple, designed to give the iPad an awesomely fun place to sit.

(images via: BKNY Design)

The V-Luxe might just be the pinnacle of TV-like iPad stand design. It features a swiveling, tilting mount for your iPad as well as a speaker cabinet below. The high-quality construction keeps your iPad safe while the very cool retro design makes you feel kind of like you’ve stepped back in time.

(images via: Spinninghat, Austin Yang)

If you do a lot of typing on your iPad, you might be among the legions of users who are frustrated with just how difficult that can be. The virtual keyboard offers no haptic feedback, so touch-typing is just about impossible. Thanks to inventions like the Typescreen from Spinning Hat and the iTypewriter from Austin Yang, the iPad has some typewriter-like mounts that allow users to press actual, physical keys when typing. The typewriter mounts work a lot like classic typewriters, but instead of hammers striking a ribbon they feature rubber-tipped “fingers” that reach up to touch the on-screen keyboard.

(image via: Mic Gadget)

Apple fans who want to go way, way back in time will love the iStation: an iPad dock that turns your tablet into something resembling the early Apple I or Apple II computers. The iStation charges your iPad and provides the perfect place for a wireless keyboard to sit while you type. Inside the sleek wood case is a high-quality stereo system, including a subwoofer.

(images via: TwelveSouth)

The BookBook case covers up your iPad with a beautiful classic leather book, blending cutting-edge technology with an extremely low-tech aesthetic. The BookBook isn’t all about making your iPad look pretty, however – it protects against damage and can even keep it safe from nefarious iPad thieves by blending right in with the other books on your shelf.

(image via: Crunchy Logistics)

Compared to the iPhone, the iPad’s screen is exceptionally large. But if it still isn’t big enough for you, Crunchy Logistics has you covered. Their Padzilla accessory is basically a touch table iPad dock. You plug your iPad into it and then use an enormous 150-inch display for all of your iPad activities. Why? If you still have to ask that after watching the iPad air hockey video above, then you’re probably not in the Padzilla’s target market.

(images via: Kickstarter, ThinkGeek)

Gaming on an iPad is fun, but lacks the tactile satisfaction of smashing buttons and shoving a joystick around. These two iPad accessories bring that experience to the cutting edge of gadgets by attaching retro-type controllers to the iPad. The GameDock is a small dock that lets you play games through your iPad on a TV screen and with retro-style Nintendo controllers. The Joystick-It sticks (harmlessly and removably, of course) right onto the surface of your iPad, giving you an instant joystick with which to play all of your favorite arcade games.

If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then a host of eager entrepreneurs really, REALLY admire Apple Inc. and its visionary founder & CEO, the late Steve Jobs. Dodging Cupertino’s copyright lawyers at every step, they seek to juice up their bland with the famous Apple brand. These 10 outrageous Apple brand and logo ripoffs showcase the most egregious transgressions of those eager to co-opt the fruits of Apple’s labor.

Steve Jobs Action Figure

(images via: Mashable)

The wildly popular, unofficial and unauthorized Steve Jobs Action Figure was in many ways a victim of its own success: word of the figurine spread across the globe and permeated the deepest corners of Cupertino: yep, the smoky back rooms where the legal beagles roam. Kudos to M.I.C Gadget for their sublime expertise in designing this superbly detailed action figure; boo-dos to the suits for shutting it down.

(images via: M.I.C Gadget and Walyou)

Give M.I.C Gadget credit for trying – in a series of attempts to satisfy Apple Inc’s legal department they first relabeled the figurine as the “Pineapple CEO”, then swathed it in a burka-like black face covering. All to no avail: the product was so accurate in its portrayal of Steve Jobs there was just no way to pass it off as anything else.

Apple Apples

(images via: Blog!NOBON)

Call them Apple Apples or the even more redundant iApple, these logo branded fruits still taste sweet. The concept originated by a Japanese fanboy with far too much time on his hands is based on the fact that apples won’t turn red if they’re not exposed to sunlight. Selective masking results in tasty tattooed fruit that make great desktop offerings to your favorite tech teacher.

(image via: Blog!NOBON)

The next best thing to an Apple iPod is an iPod apple… well, sort of. Though it’s rather useless as a music player it can come in quite handy should you get the munchies.

iShampo

(images via: HumorStorage)

Trying hard or hardly trying? After applying the time, money and risk inherent in any new business venture, the originators of “iShampo” went and shot themselves in the foot by leaving off the final “o”. Then again, their assumed market is a non-English-speaking country who likely will only recognize the non-tectural logo. Anyway, let’s enjoy smug white iShampo shampoo and technical black iShampo conditioner!

(image via: Ministry of Tofu)

Claiming to be an officially licensed Apple product is one thing, having an officially approved Apple aroma is another… and just what would an actual Apple Shampo, er, Shampoo smell like? Apples? Too obvious. Perhaps, as a netizen commenter suggests, it “smells daintedly of sugared oranges with a whiff of cut grass and a sprig of winterberry”.

Apple Pantyhose

(images via: Beijing Kids)

What can be said about Apple Pantyhose besides the fact that it’s made and sold in South Korea? Well, it comes in brown or blue, for one thing, and… blue pantyhose?? Anyway, once they’re out of the package their Apple brand marketing mystique instantly fades, though one way to get it back is to wear them on your head while robbing an Apple Store.

Hello Kitty, Goodbye Steve Jobs

(images via: Sanrio and Hello Kitty Hell)

We have to assume Sanrio got the official OK from Apple Inc to use their brand trademarks in this well-intentioned tribute to the late Steve Jobs but that still doesn’t make it right. Then again, Sanrio also pimped out Hello Kitty to Hooters so nothing is sacred it seems.

Apple iFoot Shoes

(images via: Fanbuxie and LOVE)

When you’re a shoe manufacturer whose main influences are Converse All-Stars and Apple products, and your customer base feels similarly, the result is a wide range of high-top sneakers proudly displaying the classic and current Apple logo. Best feature? They run without needing batteries.

(images via: Jessie Kavana Customs)

Naughty or nice? These custom shoes are one-off models made per order for an Apple employee, who obviously doesn’t work in the company’s legal department. Check out the string of Christmas lights encircling the toe, wouldn’t it be cool if they actually lit up? Perhaps there’s an app for that.

Apple 7-Eleven

(images via: M.I.C Gadget)

If you’re looking for an Apple iPhone 7-11, get your apps to Guangzhou, China but prepare to be disappointed. The store supposedly does NOT sell real or imitation iPhones, and odds are you can’t get Big Gulps, Slurpees or apples there either. You CAN get sued, however, if you’re the store owner.

iPhone Brand Gas Stove

(images via: Kotaku, Bolong and M.I.C Gadget)

If this officially inspected iPhone Brand Gas Stove rings, DON’T answer it… at least, not when it’s on. Wuhan State Police recently seized 681 neatly boxed iPhone Brand Gas Stoves from a storage warehouse recently. Those official-looking tags indicating the stoves had passed inspection? They’re fake too.

(image via: Bolong)

Isn’t it great to know China’s law enforcement authorities are finally getting serious about copyright infringement? It would be if they were, but these stoves were impounded because their safety switches were defective. That’s some darned fine police work there, Lu.

Fake Apple Stores

(images via: LA Times, Business Insider and Tech Crunch)

Laws affecting intellectual property may be weak throughout much of East Asia but the law of supply and demand has never been stronger. Take China’s imitation Apple Stores, near-perfect copies of Apple’s signature stores right down to the t-shirts and ID tags worn by the employees. Not all Chinese cities have official Apple Stores so local entrepreneurs step in to fill the gap. Ditto for Myanmar, where a snazzy pseudo-Apple Store brightens up a street in Mandalay (top).

(images via: Apple Gazette and M.I.C Gadget)

For every letter-perfect imitation Apple Store there are probably two, three or more imperfect ones such as those above. Business, one might say, really sucks.

‘iFeng’ 4S Blow Dryer

(images via: Dumaujvaros and Cult of Mac)

From suck to blow: it’s the iFeng 4S, a ballsy tribute to a guy who probably hadn’t used a hair dryer in years. The 900-watt “tribute edition” dryer is limited to just 99 copies, and if you believe that then the Chinese online seller probably has an iBrooklynBridge you might be interested in as well.

(images via: Dumaujvaros and Cult of Mac)

The iFeng 4S (“Feng” is Chinese for “Wind”) appears to be made from ABS and PC, the latter being the only off note the chunk dryer plays. Why use its snout to memorialize Steve Jobs, though? We have to assume the company owner is an Apple fanboy hit hard by Jobs’ passing. He had the chance to express his feelings in a uniquely personal yet public manner and he did exactly that.

(images via: Gizmodo and Daily Mail UK)

Call it a perfect storm of brand envy, marketing desperation and creative bankruptcy, resulting in logo hijacking on an unprecedented scale. You’d think consumers regardless of first, second or third world residency would know better and maybe they do, but simply don’t care – the power of the Bitten Apple transcends the quality and relevancy of the item it’s stuck on.