Apple’s first all-in-one Mac turns 40

The Macintosh 128K was not the first computer developed by Apple, but it was one that changed the way consumers viewed this type of device for personal use with an easy-to-use all-in-one offering that was further developed. sale January 24, 1984.

The first Apple computers (known as the Apple I, Apple II, and Apple III) began hitting the market between 1976 and 1980, but the technology company revolutionized personal computing in the 1980s with the introduction of the Macintosh 128K.

This computer used a WIMP interface (with windows, icons, and a mouse pointer), but stood out for its ease of use, emphasis on personal creativity, and the idea that there was something better about computers than green text on black screens.

The Macintosh 128K, best known as Apple’s first Mac-branded computer, was an all-in-one personal computer—an offering that combined a screen and processing components into a single computer, and which technology company It continues to offer today. line of desktop computers.

Specifically, this computer featured a Motorola 68000 processor, 128 KB of RAM, a 512 x 342 pixel screen, and ran Mac OS 1.0, which promised an easy way to control the computer.

Before him, in 1983, the company released another computer – the Apple Lisa, also an all-in-one computer, but more aimed at a business audience. Although it was not a commercial success (it sold 10,000 units), it included improvements that were later included in the Macintosh 128K, such as a graphical user interface, a mouse as a peripheral accessory, and 10 MB internal memory.

Although the Macintosh 128K went on sale on January 24, 1984, priced at $2,500, it had been introduced several months earlier and was preceded by a promotional broadcast at Super Bowl XVIII on January 22. from Ridley Scott.