Tag: Macintosh 512K

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Macintosh 512K (1984)

Upon release of the Macintosh 512K, a slightly redesigned Macintosh with the specs as the original Macintosh was introduced as the Macintosh 128K. Thus, the Macintosh 512K was technically the third Macintosh to be released since the new 128K model differed from the original Macintosh. 

The Macintosh 512K had the same 512×342 monochrome display as the original Macintosh, but its memory was quadrupled. The name Macintosh 512K refers to its 512 kilobytes (kB) of internal RAM. The computer was not designed to be upgraded with additional RAM or further expanded, although a few third-party add-ons made available (such as a $2,195 “HyperDrive” hard drive by General Computer Corporation).

The Macintosh 512K was bundled with software including MacPaint and MacWrite, but many additional titles  were soon available, including MacDraw, MacProject, Macintosh Pascal, and Microsoft Excel (requiring 512 kB of RAM to run). The increased memory also allowed the Macintosh 512K to handle larger word processing files, file sharing using Apple’s AppleShare local file sharing abilities, and generally faster performance of the graphical user interface (GUI). 

Sources: Wikipedia (Macintosh 512K, GCC), EveryMac

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Macintosh Mouse (original, beige, 1984)

This original Macintosh Mouse, Model M0100, shipped with a Macintosh 512K. This mouse was compatible with the Apple Lisa and was the same mouse that shipped with the original Macintosh. 

The original Macintosh Mouse used a DE-9 connector and remained unchanged until 1987 when its color was altered to Platinium (with Smoke accents) to match the Macintosh Plus. Like all early Macintosh mouse designs, it used only one button to control the famously easy-to-use Macintosh operating systems of the time.

Source: Wikipedia

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Macintosh Keyboard (original, 1984)

The Macintosh Keyboard, Model M0110, was included with the original Macintosh. This keyboard was also shipped with the Macintosh 512K.

This keyboard may be the simplest of all Apple keyboards because it lacks arrow keys and a numeric keypad. It used a telephone-style connector (RJ-10) to connect to the Macintosh, but the cable was wired differently than a standard telephone cord (a telephone cord is not interchangeable and will result in device damage). 

This keyboard also introduced the “Command” key and symbol to the world. Apple II computers were in wide use at the time and included the “open Apple” key (a key with the outline of the Apple logo) and a “closed Apple” key (a key with a solid Apple logo), both used for shortcut and other functions before the Macintosh. (The Open- and Closed-Apple keys were also used on the Apple Lisa.) The “Command” key and symbol were used on this original Macintosh Keyboard and functioned similarly to the “Open Apple” key on the IIe. The keyboard that replaced this original Macintosh Keyboard design, the Apple Desktop Bus Keyboard, continued the tradition of the “Open-Apple” symbol by printing the Open-Apple on the same key as the Command symbol.

For years, users (especially teachers, including me) referred to keyboard shortcuts using the “Open-Apple” terminology, such as “Open-Apple-C” (for Edit > Copy) or “Open-Apple-P” (for File > Print), instead of using the arguably more elegant, and now standard term, “Command.”

Source: Wikipedia

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Soft Carrying Case (for original Macintosh models, 1984)

At the time the original Macintosh was released, the computer was considered portable, due to its relatively small size (compared to its competitors) and the fact that the laptop computer was not yet widely available. (Apple would not release their first laptop, the Macintosh Portable, until 1989—a machine that was barely portable and cost over $7,000 at the time.) The original Macintosh design included a built-in handle and similarly sized models were offered from 1984 until the Color Classic II was discontinued in 1995. 

Apple captured this opportunity to release the Soft Carrying Case that would fit all the “classic” Macintosh computers. The Soft Carrying Case was dark beige with black straps. Internally, the Soft Carrying Case has a soft, beige, fleece-like lining with compartments for the mouse, keyboard, manual/disks/cables, and a large central space for the Macintosh. Since the original Macintosh models had no internal hard drives, 3.5-inch floppy disks were required to run the operating system and programs.

The case could be used as a carry-on for air travel, but contains a Warning tag: “This bag is designed for carry-on use only. Use an ATA Spec. 300, category 1 approved container for checking your computer as luggage or shipping it as cargo.”

My collection currently includes two Soft Carrying Cases. One was a gift, and this example was included with the purchase of my Macintosh 512K. Verifying the exact name of of this product required some research. I finally located an Apple-based source in a 19-page brochure released in 1983 before the original Macintosh release. The brochure touts, “At less than 20 pounds in weight, Macintosh is easily carried from here to there. But handles always help. This durable, water-resistant carrying case is thickly padded so the Macintosh main unit, keyboard, mouse, manual and disks fit snugly inside.”

Source: Apple via Internet Archive

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Apple Personal Modem 300/1200 (1987)

An Apple white paper summarized the Apple Personal Modem 300/1200 features:

“The Apple Personal Modem is a compact, 1200/300-baud modem that provides a cost-effective data communications solution for any Apple personal computer system. With the modem and appropriate software, your Macintosh or Apple II computer can communicate with other personal computers, minicomputers, and mainframes to send reports and graphs between offices, access data bases and commercial information services, find out the latest stock prices, or shop and bank from your own home.”

At the time of its release, the modem worked with several types of Macintosh and other Apple computers: Macintosh (128K, 512K, 512K Enhanced), Macintosh Plus, Macintosh SE, Macintosh II, Apple II GS, Apple IIe, Apple III, Macintosh XL, and Lisa. The modem did not ship with cables because several different interfaces were in use at the time: Apple System/Peripheral-8 Cable (Macintosh Plus, Macintosh SE, Macintosh II, or Apple IlGS); Macintosh Peripheral-8 Cable (Macintosh 128K, 512K, 512K Enhanced); Apple IIe Peripheral-8 Cable; Apple Ile Modem-8 Cable (Apple Ile, Apple II Plus, Apple II, Apple III, Macintosh XL, Lisa); and other computers with an RS-232 port.

This modem in my collection appears to have never been used, and all original paperwork, manuals, and packaging was included in the box. Thus, I was able to provide an “unboxing” of a 1987 product. Note that the internal packaging is mostly styrofoam and the Apple logo is embossed in two different locations in the styrofoam.

Source: Apple (PDF)