Apple Macintosh PowerBook 520 vs Apple Macintosh PowerBook 5300/100

Every spec side by side, from each maker's published figures.

Only show differences

Better figure, where one is clearly better

Share comparison

Macintosh PowerBook 520 compared with Macintosh PowerBook 5300/100

	AppleMacintosh PowerBook 520	AppleMacintosh PowerBook 5300/100
Overview
Released
Released	May 1994	August 1995
Display
Screen size
Screen size	9.5″	9.5″
Resolution
Resolution	640 × 480	640 × 480
Touchscreen
Touchscreen	No	No
Display type
Display type	9.5-inch backlit FSTN passive-matrix greyscale LCD with 16 shades of grey	9.5-inch backlit FSTN passive-matrix LCD with 16 grey levels
Performance
Processor
Processor	Motorola 68LC040 50 MHz (PowerBook 520)	PowerPC 603e 100 MHz (PowerBook 5300c)
CPU cores
CPU cores	1	1
Memory
Memory	12 MB	16 MB (better)
Storage
Storage	240 MB	500 MB (better)
CPU
CPU	Motorola 68LC040 running internally at 50 MHz with a 25 MHz bus; 8 KB L1 cache and no floating-point unit	100 MHz PowerPC 603e with a 33.3 MHz bus, 32 KB L1 cache and no L2 cache
Memory type
Memory type	4 MB on the logic board, expandable to 36 MB; Apple's Japanese configurations supplied 12 MB	Japanese bundled configuration has 16 MB, expandable to 64 MB; English support gives an 8 MB base configuration
Storage type
Storage type	Internal SCSI hard drive and 1.4 MB Apple SuperDrive floppy drive; Apple lists 160–240 MB drives in its English support sheet and 240/320 MB Japanese configurations	500 MB internal IDE hard drive and removable 1.4 MB Apple SuperDrive floppy module
Battery and size
Battery life (maker's claim)
Battery life (maker's claim)	Up to 3.5 hours	Up to 4.5 hours
Weight
Weight	2.9 kg	2.8 kg (better)
Thickness
Thickness	57 mm	51.4 mm (better)
Width × depth
Width × depth	292 × 245 mm	293 × 217 mm
Battery life detail
Battery life detail	Removable nickel-metal hydride intelligent battery; Apple claimed 3.5 hours per battery, with room for a second battery	Removable nickel-metal hydride battery; Apple claims 3–4.5 hours. Charging takes two hours while asleep or unused, four hours during use. Japanese maker 2.8 kg includes the floppy module; replacing it with the PC Card tray reduces weight by about 180 g
Connections
Operating system
Operating system	macOS	macOS
Port detail
Port detail	ADB, RS-422 serial/LocalTalk, HDI-30 SCSI, AAUI Ethernet, mini-15 video and stereo audio input/output; an optional PCMCIA module supported two Type II or one Type III card	Two Type I/II PC Card slots or one Type III, ADB, RS-422 serial/LocalTalk, HDI-30 SCSI, stereo sound input/output, external video, infrared and power input; Ethernet requires a PC Card
External displays
External displays	Built-in video output supports mirroring or an extended desktop with an optional Apple video adapter cable	Video output supports 256 colours; third-party hardware can provide greater colour depth
Trackpad
Trackpad	Built-in solid-state trackpad in place of a trackball	Built-in solid-state trackpad
Speakers
Speakers	Two built-in stereo speakers and a microphone	Built-in speaker and omnidirectional microphone with 16-bit stereo audio input/output
In the box
In the box	Apple's Japanese 12 MB/240 MB configuration included one battery, power adapter and PowerBook Mobility Bundle software	Japanese 16 MB/500 MB bundle includes nickel-metal hydride battery, power adapter, PC Card tray, KanjiTalk 7.5.2 CD-ROM and PowerBook Mobility Bundle