The PowerBook 100, however, did not sell well until Apple dropped the price substantially. The 100 series PowerBooks were intended to tie into the rest of the Apple desktop products utilizing the corporate Snow White design language incorporated into all product designs since 1986.
In 1999, the line was supplemented by the home and education-focused iBook family. The PowerBook was replaced by the MacBook Pro in 2006 as part of the Mac transition to Intel processors. == 680x0-based models == ===PowerBook 100 series=== In October 1991, Apple released the first three PowerBooks: the low-end PowerBook 100, the more powerful PowerBook 140, and the high end PowerBook 170, the only one with an active matrix display.
Apple was unable to ship a 68040-equipped PowerBook until the PowerBook 500 series in 1994. The original PowerBook 100, 140, and 170 were replaced by the 145 (updated to the 145B in 1993), 160, and 180 in 1992.
From the 100's 68000 processor, to the 190's 68LC040 processor, the 100 series PowerBooks span the entire Apple 68K line, with the 190 even upgradable to a PowerPC processor. ===PowerBook Duo=== In 1992 Apple released a hybrid portable/desktop computer, the PowerBook Duo, continuing to streamline the subnotebook features introduced with the PowerBook 100.
Apple was unable to ship a 68040-equipped PowerBook until the PowerBook 500 series in 1994. The original PowerBook 100, 140, and 170 were replaced by the 145 (updated to the 145B in 1993), 160, and 180 in 1992.
In 1993, the PowerBook 165c was the first PowerBook with a color screen, later followed by the 180c.
When attempting to increase processing power, Apple was hampered by the overheating problems of the 68040; this resulted in the 100-series PowerBook being stuck with the aging 68030, which could not compete with newer-generation Intel 80486-based PC laptops introduced in 1994.
Apple was unable to ship a 68040-equipped PowerBook until the PowerBook 500 series in 1994. The original PowerBook 100, 140, and 170 were replaced by the 145 (updated to the 145B in 1993), 160, and 180 in 1992.
In 1994, the last true member of the 100-series form factor introduced was the PowerBook 150, targeted at value-minded consumers and students.
The PowerBook 190, released in 1995, bears no resemblance to the rest of the PowerBook 100 series, and is in fact simply a Motorola 68LC040-based version of the PowerBook 5300 (and the last Macintosh model to utilize a Motorola 68k-family processor).
This came in 1995, as an Apple Motherboard containing a 100 MHz 603e processor and 8 MB of RAM (which snapped into a slot containing the previous 25 or 33 MHz 68040 processor and the 4 MB of RAM on the previous daughterboard).
The bad publicity of 5300 series added to the woes of "beleaguered Apple" during the mid-1990s. Apple recovered from the 5300 debacle in 1996 and 1997 by introducing three new PowerBooks: the PowerBook 1400, intended to replace the 5300 as a general-purpose PowerBook; the PowerBook 2400, intended as a slim, sleek sub-notebook to replace the PowerBook Duo; and the luxury model PowerBook 3400.
The PowerBook (known as Macintosh PowerBook before 1997) is a family of Macintosh laptop computers designed, manufactured and sold by Apple Computer, Inc.
The bad publicity of 5300 series added to the woes of "beleaguered Apple" during the mid-1990s. Apple recovered from the 5300 debacle in 1996 and 1997 by introducing three new PowerBooks: the PowerBook 1400, intended to replace the 5300 as a general-purpose PowerBook; the PowerBook 2400, intended as a slim, sleek sub-notebook to replace the PowerBook Duo; and the luxury model PowerBook 3400.
Late in 1997, the PowerBook 3400 was adapted into the first PowerBook G3, codenamed the Kanga.
This series was the last PowerBook model to employ a "real" keyboard with 1 cm high keys; all later models have flat keys. === PowerBook G3 === The first PowerBook G3 Series (completely redesigned from the Kanga) was released in 1998, although it was still an Old World ROM Mac. These new PowerBooks took design cues from the 500 series PowerBook, sporting dramatic curves and a jet-black plastic case.
A second PowerBook G3 Series code-named "PDQ" was introduced later in 1998, with minor changes in configuration options, notably the inclusion of L2 cache in even the lowest-priced 233 MHz model, which helped overall performance. Apple introduced two later G3 PowerBook models, similar in appearance (curved, black plastic case with black rubberized sections) but thinner, lighter and with revised internal systems.
In 1999, the line was supplemented by the home and education-focused iBook family. The PowerBook was replaced by the MacBook Pro in 2006 as part of the Mac transition to Intel processors. == 680x0-based models == ===PowerBook 100 series=== In October 1991, Apple released the first three PowerBooks: the low-end PowerBook 100, the more powerful PowerBook 140, and the high end PowerBook 170, the only one with an active matrix display.
The "Lombard" appeared in 1999, (AKA: Bronze Keyboard) a thinner, lighter, and faster (333 or 400 MHz) PowerBook with a longer battery life and had both USB and SCSI built in and was a New World ROM Mac, and then the "Pismo" in 2000, which replaced the single SCSI port with two FireWire ports, updated the PowerBook line to AGP graphics, a 100 MHz bus speed, and DVD-ROM optical drives standard, in addition to dropping the "G3" from the PowerBook name.
The Pismo revision also brought AirPort wireless networking capability (802.11b), which had debuted in Apple's iBook in July 1999.
The "Lombard" appeared in 1999, (AKA: Bronze Keyboard) a thinner, lighter, and faster (333 or 400 MHz) PowerBook with a longer battery life and had both USB and SCSI built in and was a New World ROM Mac, and then the "Pismo" in 2000, which replaced the single SCSI port with two FireWire ports, updated the PowerBook line to AGP graphics, a 100 MHz bus speed, and DVD-ROM optical drives standard, in addition to dropping the "G3" from the PowerBook name.
CPU upgrade cards are available for both Lombard and Pismo models. ===PowerBook G4=== Interim CEO Steve Jobs turned his eye to the redesign of the PowerBook series in 2000.
The PowerBook line was targeted at the professional market, and received numerous awards, especially in the second half of its life, such as the 2001 Industrial Design Excellence Awards "Gold" status, and Engadget's 2005 "Laptop of the Year".
The result, introduced in January 2001, was a completely re-designed New World PowerBook with a titanium skin and a 15.2-inch wide-aspect screen suitable for watching widescreen movies.
They are the last PowerBooks able to boot Mac OS 9. In 2003, Apple launched both the largest-screen laptop in the world and Apple's smallest full-featured notebook computer.
This basic design would carry through the transition to the Intel-based MacBook Pro, lasting until late 2008. In April 2004, the aluminum PowerBooks were upgraded.
The PowerBook line was targeted at the professional market, and received numerous awards, especially in the second half of its life, such as the 2001 Industrial Design Excellence Awards "Gold" status, and Engadget's 2005 "Laptop of the Year".
In addition, AirPort Extreme cards became standard for all PowerBooks instead of being offered as an add-on option. In January 2005, the specifications of the aluminum PowerBooks were revised once more to accompany a price decrease.
The SuperDrive now included DVD+R capability. In October 2005, the two higher-end PowerBooks were upgraded once again, with higher-resolution displays (1440 × 960 pixels on the 15-inch model, and 1680 × 1050 pixels on the 17-inch model) and faster 533 MHz DDR2 (PC2-4200) memory.
The 12-inch model with SuperDrive remained unchanged in this respect, although each new PowerBook boasted a longer battery life. ====Battery recall==== On May 20, 2005, Apple and the Consumer Product Safety Commission announced the recall of some Apple PowerBook G4 batteries.
In 1999, the line was supplemented by the home and education-focused iBook family. The PowerBook was replaced by the MacBook Pro in 2006 as part of the Mac transition to Intel processors. == 680x0-based models == ===PowerBook 100 series=== In October 1991, Apple released the first three PowerBooks: the low-end PowerBook 100, the more powerful PowerBook 140, and the high end PowerBook 170, the only one with an active matrix display.
In early August 2006, Engadget reported that a PowerBook had "violently exploded" because of faulty battery.
On August 24, 2006, Apple and the CPSC announced an additional recall of more batteries for the same PowerBook models. About 1.1 million battery packs in the United States were recalled; an additional 700,000 were sold outside the U.S. These batteries were manufactured by Sony; Dell, Toshiba, Lenovo, HP, Fujitsu and Acer laptops were also affected by the defective batteries. == Discontinuation == At the 2006 Macworld Conference & Expo, the MacBook Pro was introduced.
On April 24, 2006 the 17-inch PowerBook G4 was replaced by a 17-inch MacBook Pro variant.
The 12-inch PowerBook G4 remained available until May 16, 2006, when the MacBook was introduced as a replacement for the iBook.
This basic design would carry through the transition to the Intel-based MacBook Pro, lasting until late 2008. In April 2004, the aluminum PowerBooks were upgraded.
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