I sometimes get asked what Apple devices and collectibles I’m looking to acquire. It’s usually easier for me to answer whether or not I’m interested in a particular item than for me to attempt to list particular devices. However, this list represents some Apple devices that I would likely wish to obtain if one became readily available.
Apple Watch Edition (original, any version)iBook SE (Graphite, opaque version)iMac (Blue Dalmatian)iMac (Flower Power)iMac (lime)iMac (ruby)iMac (sage)iMac (tangerine)iPod shuffle (Generation 2, Avon edition)Macintosh PortablePowerBook 170 (JLPGA edition)PowerBook 100 (preferably with floppy drive)Duo Dock (any version)PowerBook Duo (any version)Xserve G5Xserve RAIDXservePippin (manufactured by Bandai)
I began collecting Apple computers, accessories, and collectibles in the 1990s. When iPod, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch devices were introduced, I began to collect those items as well. About twenty-five years later, I have an extensive collection of all things Apple.
Beginning in late 2018, I began to document and catalog my collection. I use a Nikon D3500 (with 18–35mm lens), iPhone 12 Pro Max, a basic lighting setup, and a white IKEA table. Blog entries include information, photos, and personal commentary. My Instagram account that features highlights from this collection.
Shortly after Steve Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985, he founded the company NExT, Inc. With headquarters in Redwood City, California, NeXT created computer workstations and software that was originally intended for education markets. Notably, a NeXT computer was used by Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau at CERN to develop the world’s first web server and web browser on the then-new World Wide Web. When NeXT was purchased by Apple in 1996 its core technologies were later used in future Apple products, including as a foundation for Mac OS X.
During its 11 years, NExT only developed a few hardware products, including the NExT Computer (later renamed the NExTcube), the Next Workstation, and several peripheral devices including the following:
NeXT Color Printer
NeXT External CD-ROM Drive
NeXT Keyboard
NeXT Laser Printer
NeXT MegaPixel Display
NeXT MegaPixel Color Display
NeXT Mouse
NeXTdimension color board
Sources report that NeXT only sold a total of 50,000 units among all its products combined. Thus, working NeXT computers are considered somewhat rare.
NEXT software began with its operating system, NeXTSTEP. The website 512 Pixels compared the operating system to the Macintosh OS of the time: “NeXTStep looked like the future. It had full-color icons and modern typography and included technologies like protected memory and multitasking.” The user interface also included the Dock, allowed unused applications to be hidden while still running, included smooth scrolling, drag-and-drop functionality, full audio support, and more. NeXT also developed WebObjects, a “set of tools for making huge, complex web sites.”
The story of the distinctive NeXT logo is intriguing. Steve Jobs asked well known designer Paul Rand to create options for him. Rand reportedly told Jobs “no,” and said “I will solve your problem for you and you will pay me.” Rand presented Jobs with a 20-page book that detailed the logo (tilted at 28º), branding, and the new stylized spelling, “NeXT.”
The first NeXT computer (using the cube design) was released in 1990 for $9,999 (equivalent to over $23,000 adjusted for inflation). A second generation of NeXT computers were released later that year that included a revised original cube design, renamed the NeXTcube, and the NeXTstation, a version of this computer.
The NeXTstation was nicknamed the “slab.” It was created as a lower-cost alternative to the original NeXTcube and sold at the time for about half the price at $4,995. Several versions were produced:
NeXTstation (25 MHz)
NeXTstation Turbo (33 MHz)
NeXTstation Color (25 MHz)
NeXTstation Turbo Color (33 MHz)
This NeXTstation is the 25 MHz version, and it shipped with a NeXT MegaPixel Display 17-inch monitor that has with built-in speakers. It also has its own custom keyboard and mouse designs.
The processor is a Motorola 68040 (at 25 MHz or 33 MHz in the Turbo model) and included 8 MB RAM (Turbo and color versions could handle up to 128 MB). This NeXTstation has 256 KB VRAM and can display 4 colors—black, white, and two shades of gray. While the computer fully supports audio, the speaker is built into the monitor.
Input and output ports include the following:
Floppy internal connector
SCSI internal connector
SCSI-2 external connector (MD50)
DSP port (DA-15)
NeXTstation/Turbo: MegaPixel Display port (DB-19)
Proprietary NeXT Laser Printer port (DE-9)
Two RS-423 serial ports (Mini-DIN 8)
10BASE-T and 10BASE-2 Ethernet
3.5-inch 2.88 MB floppy disk drive
The NeXTstation’s internal storage originally used a hard drive available in capacities of 105 MB, 250 MB, 340 MB, 400 MB, and could support up to 4 GB. However, the operating system cannot use partitions larger than 4 GB. This NeXTstation’s mechanical hard drive has been replaced by a rig that allows an SD card to run the operating system.
The custom NeXTstation keyboard matches the color of the computer and has 85 full-stroke mechanical keys. The custom mouse is also color-matched, has 2 buttons, and uses opto-mechanical tracking.
The NeXTstation measures 39.8 cm wide, by 36.5 cm deep, and 6.4cm tall. It weighs 13 pounds.
Shortly after Steve Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985, he founded the company NExT, Inc. With headquarters in Redwood City, California, NeXT created computer workstations and software that was originally intended for education markets. Notably, a NeXT computer was used by Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau at CERN to develop the world’s first web server and web browser on the then-new World Wide Web. When NeXT was purchased by Apple in 1996 its core technologies were later used in future Apple products, including as a foundation for Mac OS X.
During its 11-years, NExT only developed a few hardware products, including the NExT Computer (later renamed the NExTcube), the Next Workstation, and several peripheral devices including the following:
NeXT Color Printer
NeXT External CD-ROM Drive
NeXT Keyboard
NeXT Laser Printer
NeXT MegaPixel Display
NeXT MegaPixel Color Display
NeXT Mouse
NeXTdimension color board
Sources report that NeXT only sold a total of 50,000 units among all its products combined. Thus, working NeXT computers are considered somewhat rare.
The story of the distinctive NeXT logo is intriguing. Steve Jobs asked well known designer Paul Rand to create options for him. Rand reportedly told Jobs “no,” and said “I will solve your problem for you and you will pay me.” Rand presented Jobs with a 20-page book that detailed the logo (tilted at 28º), branding, and the new stylized spelling, “NeXT.”
This NeXT MegaPixel Display 17-inch monitor shipped with a NeXTstation. It has built-in speakers to power the built-in audio support that was designed for the computer and NeXTSTEP operating system. Its industrial design includes an innovative metal tilting base and two rubber-coated rollers that allow it to easily move back and forth on a desktop or on the NeXTstation, despite the monitor’s 50-pound weight.
This display gets its signal from the NeXTstation’s 256 KB VRAM and can display 4 colors—black, white, and two shades of gray. It is 16 inches wide, by 17.3 inches tall, by 14 inches deep.
The NeXT MegaPixel Display 17-inch monitor has multiple ports. Inputs include a keyboard jack; 8-bit, 8012.8 Hz analog-to-digital (via mono microphone miniphone jack; and 16-bit, 44.1 kHz stereo digital-to-analog converter. Outputs include a stereo headphone miniphone jack; gold-plated stereo RCA line-out jacks, and an integrated mono speaker.
Wikipedia reports:
“A severe problem with this setup was that the monitor could not be switched off completely while the computer was powered on. The screen could be switched black but the cathode heater always remained on. This led to extreme screen dimming after some years of use, especially when the computer was not turned off overnight as in a server setup or in a busy software lab.”
This monitor, in fact, suffers from the dimming problem described above. Although it is still functional, the monitor needs to be repaired for the CRT to work properly again.
Shortly after Steve Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985, he founded the company NExT, Inc. With headquarters in Redwood City, California, NeXT created computer workstations and software that was originally intended for education markets. Notably, a NeXT computer was used by Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau at CERN to develop the world’s first web server and web browser on the then-new World Wide Web. When NeXT was purchased by Apple in 1996 its core technologies were later used in future Apple products, including as a foundation for Mac OS X.
During its 11-years, NExT only developed a few hardware products, including the NExT Computer (later renamed the NExTcube), the Next Workstation, and several peripheral devices including the following:
NeXT Color Printer
NeXT External CD-ROM Drive
NeXT Keyboard
NeXT Laser Printer
NeXT MegaPixel Display
NeXT MegaPixel Color Display
NeXT Mouse
NeXTdimension color board
Sources report that NeXT only sold a total of 50,000 units among all its products combined. Thus, working NeXT computers are considered somewhat rare.
This NeXTstation keyboard matches the color of the computer and has 85 full-stroke mechanical keys.
Shortly after Steve Jobs was ousted from Apple in 1985, he founded the company NExT, Inc. With headquarters in Redwood City, California, NeXT created computer workstations and software that was originally intended for education markets. Notably, a NeXT computer was used by Tim Berners-Lee and Robert Cailliau at CERN to develop the world’s first web server and web browser on the then-new World Wide Web. When NeXT was purchased by Apple in 1996 its core technologies were later used in future Apple products, including as a foundation for Mac OS X.
During its 11-years, NExT only developed a few hardware products, including the NExT Computer (later renamed the NExTcube), the Next Workstation, and several peripheral devices including the following:
NeXT Color Printer
NeXT External CD-ROM Drive
NeXT Keyboard
NeXT Laser Printer
NeXT MegaPixel Display
NeXT MegaPixel Color Display
NeXT Mouse
NeXTdimension color board
Sources report that NeXT only sold a total of 50,000 units among all its products combined. Thus, working NeXT computers are considered somewhat rare.
This NeXTstation mouse matches the color of the computer, has 2 buttons, and uses opto-mechanical tracking. NeXT had at least two mouse designs, this rectangular version and a circular design.
The data sheet that Apple provided for the AppleDesign Powered Speakers II described them as “audiophile-quality…designed to work perfectly with virtually any personal computer, portable CD player or audio cassette player and with any television that supports sound output.”
Similarly, Apple’s Service Source repair manual lists system compatibility as “Any Macintosh computer, any personal computer equipped for sound output, any CD player or audio cassette player, or any television supporting sound output.”
The arc-sliding design of the rear speaker leg allowed the speakers to be adjusted to various angles. The power and volume controls were located in the front of the right speaker, and an included cable with 3.5 mm plugs connected the two speakers. An external headphone port was also located on the front of the right speaker. A stereo audio input port was located on the rear of the right speaker.
The speakers delivered 90 dB at 0.5m at 200Hz. Each speaker measures 6.8 inches tall, 4.1 inches wide, and 3.9 inches deep.
These AppleDesign Powered Speakers II are dark gray with a silver metallic Apple logo at the top-center of each speaker. The dark gray (almost black) color matched the PowerBook laptop colors of the time and Apple’s PowerCD. The speakers were also available in beige (platinum) to match Apple desktop computers sold at the time.
The AppleDesign Powered Speakers II were discontinued in 1995.
The AppleColor High-Resolution RGB Monitor is a CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) computer display introduced in 1987 and discontinued in 1992. This monitor has the distinction of being Apple’s first color display for the Macintosh. It was introduced along with the Mac II.
The tube size is 13 inches with a viewable size of 12.8 inches. The display uses Sony Trinitron technology.
The monitor is capable of displaying 640 x 480 resolution at 69 dots per inch and supports 24-bit color. It measures 11 inches high, by 13.5 inches wide, is 16 inches deep, and weighs 44 pounds. The monitor uses Apple’s proprietary DA-15 video connector.
Surprisingly, this monitor’s specifications are still available on Apple’s Documentation website as of June 2024.
The Macintosh Centris 650 has the distinction of being Apple’s Macintosh product with the shortest lifespan (along with the Centris 610). The Centris 650 and 610 were introduced on February 10, 1993, and discontinued on October 21, 1993—a lifespan of only 253 days. The short life resulted from a technicality when Apple made the decision in late 1993 to follow a new naming scheme for all their products: “Quadra” for business, “LC” for education, and “Performa” for home. As a result of the name change, the Macintosh Centris 650 became the Macintosh Quadra 650.
The Centris computers were introduced as Apple’s midrange offerings in 1993 as replacements to the Macintosh IIci and Quadra 700. The Centris 650 used a Motorola 25MHz 68040 or 68LC040 chip and could run System 7.1, up through and including Mac OS 8.1 (without a PowerPC upgrade).
The Centris 650 includes onboard video with VGA support via an adapter, 3 NuBus slots, two ADB ports, two serial ports, an external SCSI connector, and a 5.25-inch drive bay. This was one of the earliest Macintosh computers to be available with an internal CD-ROM drive (an AppleCD 300i model).
According to MacWorld in April 1993, five configurations were available:
25 MHz 68LC040, 4 MB RAM (on board), 512 KB VRAM, 80 MB HDD, no Ethernet
Although Beats products are not Apple-branded, the Beats by Dr. Dre website states, “Beats by Dr. Dre (Beats) is a leading audio brand founded in 2006 by Dr. Dre and Jimmy Iovine… Beats was acquired by Apple Inc. in July 2014.” As an Apple collector, I have a small number of Beats products in my collection.
Beats describes the Studio Buds + on their website:
“Beats Studio Buds + custom acoustic platform packs powerful, balanced sound in a sophisticated, pocketable design. Reengineered acoustic venting improves audio precision and gently relieves pressure for a more comfortable all-day fit. Each bud is equipped with a two-layer transducer that flexes to deliver cleaner bass and ultra-low distortion. So whether you’re listening to music or taking calls, Studio Buds + deliver rich, immersive sound wherever you go.”
As a “sister” company to Apple, the Beats Studio Buds + offer the following “Enhanced Apple Compatibility:”
One-touch pairing—easy, one-touch setup instantly pairs with every device in your iCloud account
“Hey Siri”—simply say “Hey Siri” to activate your voice assistant
Find My—locate your lost earbuds on a map based on the last known connected location
Over-the-air updates—receive software updates and new features automatically
Beats also offer “Enhanced Android Compatibility:”
Google Fast Pair
Audio Switch
Find My Device
These earbuds offer many features, including:
Active Noise Cancelling (ANC)
Transparency mode
Up to 36 hours of total battery life (9-hour earbuds + 27-hour charging case)
One-touch pairing
Crisp, clear call performance from upgraded, voice-targeting mics
Sweat and water resistant earbuds (IPX4-rated)
Four soft eartip sizes
Spatial audio for Dolby Atmos
Pocket-sized charging case with USB-C connector
The case measures 2.55cm tall, 7.2cm long, and 5.1cm wide. Each bud measures 1.5cm tall, 2.05cm long, and 1.85cm wide. Each bud weighs 5g, and the entire product—2 buds and the case—weighs 59g.
My primary interest in this product was the design including the “transparent” color option. This was the first Apple-backed product released in a semi-transparent design in about 20 years (with the possible exception of updates of the originally Apple-designed Harman Kardon SoundSticks). Other notable transparent Apple products over the years have included the following:
iMac (CRT models, 1998–2003)
eMate 300 (1997–1998)
iBook (“clamshell” models, 1999–2001)
Power Macintosh G3 All-in-One (1998)
Power Macintosh G3 (Blue & White tower, 1999)
Studio Display (various LCD and CRT designs, 1998, 1999, 2000)
As a side-note, some may have forgotten that Apple’s LaserWriter 8500 (1997–1999) used light-green-tinted transparent plastics in its lower drawer and top paper feeder.
As mentioned above, Harman Kardon SoundSticks were reported to have been designed in partnership with Apple and have been available since 2000. Although the product has not changed significantly, it has been updated regularly (2004, 2009, 2012, and 2020).
This Hydro Flask insulated water bottle features the distinctive (and now discontinued) spearmint color (a shade of green) and features a white Apple logo. The bottom of the bottle specifies it is a 20-ounce model.
The Hydro Flask website (as of 2024) refers to this particular model as a “20 oz Wide Mouth,” named for its capacity, and it includes an “insulated cap for wide mouth bottles.” This bottle has a cap, “Flex Cap Strap,” and “Boot” (rubberized bottom)—all color-matched in the spearmint color.
The iPod shuffle Generation 4 is a rare example of Apple reversing a design theme and going back to a design closer to a previous design, while still improving upon it. The iPod shuffle Generation 4 has a design similar to the Generation 2 iPod shuffle, but it is smaller and adds a “VoiceOver” feature that reads the name of songs, artists, and playlists out loud.
Between the Generation 2 and 4, the Generation 3 iPod shuffle had no controls on the iPod device, the Generation 4 added the clickable ring buttons back to the iPod.
This iPod shuffle is 1.14 inches tall, 1.24 inches wide, and 0.34 inch deep, including the clip. It weighs 0.44 ounce (12.5 grams). According to Apple, this iPod could play up to 15 hours of audio. Unlike the iPod shuffle Generation 2 that shipped with a custom USB-powered charging base, this Generation 4 shipped with a short USB-to-3.5mm cable.
The iPod shuffle Generation 4 was available in five colors: silver (with a black button ring); and blue, green, orange, and pink (with a white button ring). All models have 2 GB of storage, or up to 500 songs. This example is pink and includes the original packaging.
