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The Apple years while Steve Jobs was away
As one of the founders of Apple Computer Inc., Steve Jobs became synonymous with the brand. But his relationship with the company wasn't always so hallowed and harmonious. After internal disputes with Apple's board of directors in 1985, Jobs left the company to pursue other projects, including NeXT Inc. and Pixar. Although he'd piloted the Apple brand from the start, the company carried on without him until his return in 1997 during which time he rebooted the company and turned out "world-changing" products. Join us in the gallery below as we look at some of the hardware that Apple made while Jobs was away.
A nostalgic look at the Macintosh Portable, Apple's first laptop
The Macintosh Portable, Apple's first laptop and the first consumer laptop to travel into space, was released in 1989. Groundbreaking in its day, the laptop was still a bulky travel companion, roughly the size of the phone book at four inches at its thickest point. Still, it came packed to its vents with ports, modular design, a floppy disc drive, and a trackball that could be removed and replaced with a numeric keypad. Users could expect six to twelve hours of battery life, but the computer had an odd glitch once the battery was dead. YouTube user Canoopsy explores the quirks of the Macintosh Portable, and compares it to Apple's modern laptops, in this recently posted video. It's a fascinating look back at just how far we've come since the early days of laptops. Enjoy.
Macintosh Portable case mod is bulky, fantastic
Itching to do something with that dead Macintosh Portable in your closet? Then maybe you will be inspired by this video of a mod, spotted by Engadget, that brings OS X to this late '80s machine. This DIY project is as great on the outside as it is on the inside. For starters, the casing of the Portable houses a Toshiba NB100 netbook running OS X. The original keyboard is painstakingly rewired using 300 individual soldering points that connect it to a USB controller pulled from a Dell. There's also an optical USB mouse that replaces the ball mouse. Though upgraded, the mouse still connects to the back of the computer using the original cable. A cordless drill battery provides power to the machine, which now has some modern features such as WiFi connectivity. It's an impressive reuse of a classic computer that the maker says is "a great café computer." You can check out the modded machine in the video below.
Macintosh Portable prototype hits eBay, unusual keyboard configuration intact
If you are looking to grab a piece of Apple history, here is your chance. Spotted on eBay is a prototype Macintosh Portable computer, an early predecessor to the PowerBook. The Macintosh Portable debuted in September 1989 and was a semi-portable, battery-powered version of a desktop Macintosh. The variant available for sale is labeled as a demonstration unit and is in perfect cosmetic condition. Unfortunately, the Portable will not power on, as the lead-acid battery within the device is toast. Though the Macintosh Portable has an input for AC power, the AC power is used to charge the battery, not power the machine. The current owner is selling the laptop precursor with the hope that a collector with some restoration skills may be able to work around this battery issue. This particular Macintosh Portable may look slightly different from the original retail model as it includes a trackball installed on the left side of the keyboard. This unusual configuration suggests the previous owner of this device may have been left-handed, as the trackball can be installed on either side of the keyboard according to the user's preference. Currently, the eBay auction has four days left and is sitting at a cool US$1,750 with zero bids. Even if you are not interested in buying the Macintosh Portable, the auction has some quality pictures of this vintage device and is definitely worth a click-through to check them out. [Via Gizmodo]
Flickr Find: Grampa Mac Portable, meet the baby MacBook Air
It's hard to look at Patrick McCarron's snapshot of -- how many generations? Hard to count -- many generations of mobile computing development and 22 years of Macintoshes on the move without being a little bit awed. The Mac Portable, 1989's answer to getting things done on the go, seems simultaneously quaint and grotesque next to the sleek and dramatically faster MacBook Air. A trackball! That keyboard, that screen! And the floppy drive -- while the newest member of the family doesn't even sport a built-in optical drive. I don't even want to think about how many iPads would fit inside that case. You've come a long way, baby. Here's to another 21 years of portable computing, Apple style. Photo by Patrick McCarron, all rights reserved. Used with permission. Hat tip to Michael Gartenberg.
Mac Portable gets a 20th anniversary vivisection
In September 1989, Apple made its first stab at a portable Macintosh computer. The name? "Macintosh Portable." Kind of has a ring to it, huh? This 16 pound behemoth packs a 10-inch (640 x 400) monochrome display, 16MHz Motorola CPU, 1MB RAM, 40MB HDD, 3.5-inch floppy drive, and a 2400 baud modem into a handsome clamshell design that features (and this is our favorite part) a modular design that allowed the user to position the trackball on either end of the keyboard. Lefties of the world unite! Originally yours for $6,500 - $7,300 (that's $11,288 - $12,677 when adjusted for inflation), but we're guessing you can find someone on eBay (or at Goodwill) to cut you a deal on one at this late date. Hit the read link to celebrate this momentous anniversary in the manner of a true gadget-head: by watching someone gut the thing and take pictures of it. You'll be glad you did.
Macintosh Portable, Pippen make PCWorld Worst tech list
PCWorld has compiled a list of the 25 Worst Tech Products of All Time. All the usual players are there; IBM, Microsoft, Real, and Apple. Apple?! Yes, that's right kiddies, Apple wasn't always firing on all cylinders like it is now.The Macintosh Portable clocks in at number 17, but only because it was 16 pounds, wouldn't run on AC power and cost $6500. Other than that, it was a great machine. Pictured above is the Apple Pippin, Apple's only attempt to enter to lucrative game console market, which comes in at number 22. It was slow, expensive, and had almost no titles.Any other Apple products you would add to this list?[via Scripting News]Picture of Pippen from Wikipedia.
