Apple IIc Plus
The Apple IIc Plus is the sixth and final model in the Apple II series of personal computers, produced by Apple Computer. The "Plus" in the name was a reference to the additional features it offered over the original portable Apple IIc, such as greater storage capacity (a built-in 3.5-inch floppy drive replacing the classic 5.25-inch drive), increased processing speed, and a general standardization of the system components. In a notable change of direction, the Apple IIc Plus, for the most part, did not introduce new technology or any further evolutionary contributions to the Apple II series, instead merely integrating existing peripherals into the original Apple IIc design. The development of the 8-bit machine was criticized by quarters more interested in the significantly more advanced 16-bit Apple IIGS.
History
The Apple IIc Plus was introduced on September 16, 1988, at the AppleFest conference in San Francisco, with less fanfare than the Apple IIc had received four years earlier. Described as little more than a "turbocharged version of the IIc with a high-capacity 3½ disk drive" by one magazine review of the time, some users were disappointed. Many IIc users already had add-ons giving them something rather close to what the new model offered.
Apple IIc
The Apple IIc, the fourth model in the Apple II series of personal computers, is Apple Computer’s first endeavor to produce a portable computer. The result was a 7.5 lb (3.4 kg) notebook-sized version of the Apple II that could be transported from place to place. The c in the name stood for compact, referring to the fact it was essentially a complete Apple II computer setup (minus display and power supply) squeezed into a small notebook-sized housing. While sporting a built-in floppy drive and new rear peripheral expansion ports integrated onto the main logic board, it lacked the internal expansion slots and direct motherboard access of earlier Apple IIs, making it a closed system like the Macintosh. However, that was the intended direction for this model — a more appliance-like machine, ready to use out of the box, requiring no technical know-how or experience to hook up and therefore attractive to first-time users.
History
The Apple IIc was released on April 24, 1984, during an Apple-held event called Apple II Forever. With that motto, Apple proclaimed the new machine was proof of the company's long-term commitment to the Apple II series and its users, despite the recent introduction of the Macintosh. The IIc was also seen as the company's response to the new IBM PCjr, and Apple hoped to sell 400,000 by the end of 1984. While essentially an Apple IIe computer in a smaller case, it was not a successor, but rather a portable version to complement it. One Apple II machine would be sold for users who required the expandability of slots, and another for those wanting the simplicity of a plug and play machine with portability in mind.
Podcasts:
