Apple · Macintosh

Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh

Release date not published

A limited-edition PowerPC all-in-one with a 12.1-inch flat display, TV/FM tuner, Bose speakers and a separate bass unit that also houses its power supply.

Type: All-in-one
Processor: PowerPC 603e 250 MHz (Power Macintosh 6500/250)
Memory: 32 MB
Storage: 2 GB
Screen: 12.1″
Weight: 6.8 kg

All-in-one

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Specifications

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Performance

Processor: PowerPC 603e 250 MHz (Power Macintosh 6500/250)
CPU cores: 1
Graphics: ATI 3D RAGE II (2 MB SGRAM)
Memory: 32 MB
Storage: 2 GB
CPU: 250 MHz PowerPC 603e with integrated floating-point unit, 50 MHz system bus, 32 KB L1 cache split into 16 KB data/instruction caches, and a 256 KB L2 High Performance Cache Module operating at 50 MHz. No processor supplier is assigned without exact maker evidence.
GPU: ATI 3D RAGE II with 2 MB SGRAM, with QuickDraw 2D/3D and video acceleration. The maker specifies thousands of colours at 800 × 600; application-window restrictions apply to accelerated 3D at that mode.
Memory type: 32 MB EDO RAM supplied as one 32 MB DIMM or two 16 MB DIMMs; two 168-pin slots support up to 128 MB. Exact Apple TIL specifies 5 V EDO or fast-paged DIMMs, 60 ns or faster, with 2K refresh; 3.3 V or 4K-refresh DIMMs are incompatible. 4 MB ROM.
Storage type: 2 GB ATA/IDE hard disk, vertically mounted 4× CD-ROM and manual-insert 1.44 MB Apple SuperDrive floppy. Optical-drive output and the TV/FM tuner are controlled by the supplied infrared remote.
Expansion slots: One PCI 2.0 slot for a 6.88-inch card drawing up to 15 W, plus a Comm Slot II for a modem or Ethernet card. A separate video-input slot and TV/FM tuner card are fitted. Macintosh-specific PCI drivers are required; NuBus cards are incompatible.

Display

Screen size: 12.1″
Resolution: 800 × 600
Refresh rate: 60 Hz
Display type: 12.1-inch backlit active-matrix colour LCD, 800 × 600 at 60 Hz; 6 bits per red/green/blue channel. Maker does not name the LCD subtype, so IPS or TN is not guessed.

Connections

Ports: 2 × headphone jack
Back ports: One ADB, external DB-25 SCSI for up to six devices, two GeoPort-compatible serial ports, rear stereo output, two separate stereo audio inputs, S-video input with a supplied composite-video adapter, TV aerial/cable connector and FM aerial connector. One front headphone output plus one rear headphone-compatible line output are counted. No built-in USB, FireWire or Ethernet.
External displays: No external monitor output specified
Speakers: Custom Bose Acoustimass system with integrated stereo speakers and a separate floor-standing bass unit. The power-supply ratings are not acoustic output ratings.
Microphones: Built-in omnidirectional electret microphone
Keyboard and mouse: Custom keyboard with Italian leather palm rests, removable/repositionable ADB trackpad, infrared remote, Bose bass unit and composite-to-S-video adapter. January1998 Apple catalogue lists a 33.6 Kbps GeoPort modem/Internet Connection Kit; older power-test conditions separately describe a 28.8 Kbps modem.

Design and power

Type: All-in-one
Weight: 6.8 kg
Width × depth × height: 419 × 254 × 438 mm
Operating system: macOS
Size and weight detail: Headline size and 6.8 kg weight describe the main unit only. Separate bass unit weighs 4.8 kg and measures 270 × 211 × 298 mm (height × width × depth); keyboard is 0.84 kg and 25 × 292 × 207 mm. Main-unit metric dimensions follow the original maker table rather than converting its rounded inch values.
Power supply: Bass-unit voltage selector covers 90–130 or 180–264 V AC, 47–63 Hz, single phase; manually configured and factory preset
Power use: Maximum continuous AC input 140 W; maximum continuous DC output 70 W. Typical AC input 47 W is qualified to the maker test with 250 MHz 603e, 2 GB disk, 28.8 Kbps modem, L2 module and CD-ROM; sleep is below 30 W without PCI cards.
In the box: Mac OS 7.6.1 with System Enabler 704 originally. Apple support labels introduction as 1 June 1997; widely copied March dates describe announcements, and the accessible May order notice does not establish actual first delivery. Released is omitted pending exact first-sale evidence. Earlier preview articles describe a proposed 604e machine and are not used for this production 603e model. The primary picture is a grayscale original Apple catalogue image, retained without colour reconstruction; higher-quality original colour press imagery remains unavailable.

Configurations

Processor	Memory	Storage	Storage type	Graphics
PowerPC 603e 250 MHz (Power Macintosh 6500/250)	32 MB	2 GB	Hard drive	ATI 3D RAGE II (2 MB SGRAM)

Pros and cons

Pros

Built-in TV/FM tuner and analogue video input
Bose stereo speakers with a separate bass unit
Custom keyboard with a removable trackpad

Cons

Only one short PCI expansion slot
No built-in Ethernet, USB or FireWire
Main unit, bass unit and keyboard occupy separate desk and floor space

Closest rivals

Model	Type	Processor	Memory	Storage	Screen	Weight	Released
ApplePower Macintosh G3 All-In-One	All-in-one	PowerPC G3 233 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Desktop) or PowerPC G3 266 MHz (Power Macintosh G3 Desktop)	32 MB	4 GB	15″	26.8 kg	–
ApplePower Macintosh 5400/200	All-in-one	PowerPC 603e 200 MHz (Power Macintosh 5400)	24 MB – 32 MB	1.6 GB	12.8″	21 kg	1997
ApplePower Macintosh 5500/225	All-in-one	PowerPC 603e 225 MHz (Power Macintosh 5500)	16 MB – 32 MB	2 GB – 4 GB	12.8″	21 kg	1997

Sources

Photo: vintageapple.org

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