Francais | English | Espanõl

Power Macintosh

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Power Mac)
Jump to: navigation, search
Image:Power Mac G5 hero left.jpg

Power Macintosh, or Power Mac, is a line of Apple Macintosh workstation-class personal computers based on various models of PowerPC microprocessors that was developed, marketed, and supported by Apple Computer from March 1994 until August 2006. The first models were the Power Macintosh 6100, 7100, and 8100, which offered speeds ranging from 60 to 110 MHz. These machines replaced Apple's Quadra series of personal computers, and were housed in cases very similar to systems sold by Apple up to that point. The Power Mac went on to become the mainstay of Apple's top-end offerings for twelve years, through a succession of case designs, four major generations of PowerPC chips, and a great deal of press coverage, design accolades, and technical controversy. In August 2006, the Power Mac's retirement was announced at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference by Steve Jobs and Phil Schiller, making way for its replacement, the Mac Pro.

Contents

[edit] Models

[edit] Old World ROM

Image:Power Macintosh 6100-66.jpg

[edit] Timeline of Old World ROM Power Macintosh models

See also: Timeline of Apple Macintosh models

<timeline> DateFormat=mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1994 till:02/01/1999 Define $skip = at:end # Force a blank line Define $dayunknown = 15 # what day to use if it's actually not known ImageSize= width:600 height:auto barincrement:20 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:5 left:5 bottom:80 top:5

Colors = 

    id:bg         value:white
    id:lightline  value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9)
    id:lighttext  value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5)
    id:header     value:rgb(0.8,0.8,0.9)
    id:performa   value:rgb(0.8,0.8,0.9) legend:Performa_xx00
    id:performa2  value:rgb(0.85,0.85,0.9)
    id:ppc2       value:rgb(0.8,0.9,1)
    id:ppc        value:rgb(0.75,0.85,1) legend:Power_Macintosh_xx00
    id:g3         value:rgb(1,0.85,0.85) legend:Power_Macintosh_G3
    id:g32        value:rgb(1,0.9,0.9)
    id:special    value:rgb(0.8,1,0.9) legend:Special_models
    id:connection    value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5) legend:Continued_on_"New_World"_timeline

BackgroundColors = canvas:bg ScaleMajor = gridcolor:lighttext unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/1995 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightline unit:month increment:1 start:01/01/1994 Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:3

BarData = 

 barset:4400
 barset:performa
 barset:powermac
 barset:gseries

PlotData= 

 width:15 textcolor:black

 barset:4400
   shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
   color:ppc from:11/15/1996 till:10/11/1997 text:"4400"

 barset:performa
   shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
   color:performa from:04/03/1995 till:04/01/1996 text:"5200"
   color:performa from:04/01/1996 till:02/17/1997 text:"5400"
   color:ppc from:03/14/1994 till:05/18/1996 text:"6100"
   color:performa from:01/28/1995 till:10/16/1995 text:"6200"
   color:ppc from:02/17/1997 till:03/14/1998 text:"6500"
 barset:break
   color:performa2 from:03/10/1996 till:04/01/1997 text:"5260 / 5300"
   color:performa2 from:02/17/1997 till:03/31/1998 text:"5500"
   $skip
   color:performa2 from:10/16/1995 till:10/23/1996 text:"6300"
   $skip
 barset:break
   color:special from:03/20/1997 till:03/14/1998 text:"TAM*"
   color:g3 from:03/31/1998 till:10/17/1998 text:"G3 all-in-one"
   $skip
   color:performa from:10/23/1996 till:05/01/1997 text:"6400"
   $skip

 barset:powermac
   shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
   color:ppc from:03/14/1994 till:01/06/1996 text:"7100"
   color:ppc from:08/07/1995 till:04/01/1996 text:"7500"
   color:ppc from:03/14/1994 till:08/14/1995 text:"8100"
   color:ppc from:06/19/1995 till:02/17/1997 text:"9500"
 barset:break
   color:ppc2 from:08/07/1995 till:02/17/1997 text:"7200"
   color:ppc2 from:04/01/1996 till:02/17/1997 text:"7600"
   color:ppc2 from:08/07/1995 till:02/17/1997 text:"8500"
   color:ppc2 from:02/17/1997 till:03/17/1998 text:"9600"
 barset:break
   color:ppc from:02/17/1997 till:11/10/1997 text:"7300"
   $skip
   color:ppc from:02/17/1997 till:02/17/1998 text:"8600"
 barset:break
   color:g3 from:11/10/1997 till:01/05/1999 text:"G3 desktop"

 barset:gseries
   shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
   color:g3 from:11/10/1997 till:01/05/1999 text:"G3 minitower"
 barset:break
   color:connection from:01/05/1999 till:end

TextData = 

 fontsize:S
 textcolor:lighttext
 pos:(250,58)
 text:*Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh

</timeline>

[edit] New World ROM

The following are recent and current Power Macintosh lines based on the New World ROM.

[edit] Timeline of New World ROM Power Macintosh models

See also: Timeline of Apple Macintosh models

<timeline> DateFormat=mm/dd/yyyy Period = from:11/01/1998 till:09/01/2006 Define $skip = at:end # Force a blank line Define $now = 06/01/2006 # Please keep updated Define $dayunknown = 15 # what day to use if it's actually not known ImageSize= width:600 height:auto barincrement:37 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal PlotArea = right:5 left:5 bottom:80 top:5

Colors = 

    id:bg         value:white
    id:lightline  value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.9)
    id:lighttext  value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5)
    id:connection    value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5) legend:Cont._from_"Old_World"_timeline
    id:g3         value:rgb(1,0.85,0.85) legend:Power_Macintosh_G3
    id:g32        value:rgb(1,0.9,0.9)
    id:g4         value:rgb(1,0.85,0.65) legend:Power_Mac_G4
    id:g42        value:rgb(1,0.9,0.7)
    id:g5         value:rgb(1,0.85,0.45) legend:Power_Mac_G5
    id:g52        value:rgb(1,0.9,0.5)
    id:special    value:rgb(0.8,1,0.8) legend:Special_models
    id:connection    value:rgb(0.5,0.5,0.5)

BackgroundColors = canvas:bg ScaleMajor = gridcolor:lighttext unit:year increment:1 start:01/01/1999 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightline unit:month increment:1 start:01/01/1999 Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:3

BarData = 

 barset:gseries

PlotData= 

 width:15 textcolor:black

 barset:gseries
   shift:(5,-5) anchor:from fontsize:s
   color:connection from:start till:01/05/1999
 barset:break
   color:g3 from:01/05/1999 till:10/13/1999 text:"G3 B&W"
 barset:break
   color:g4 from:10/13/1999 till:07/18/2001 text:"G4 Graphite*"
   color:special from:07/19/2000 till:07/03/2001 text:"G4 Cube"
 barset:break
   color:g42 from:07/18/2001 till:08/13/2002 text:"G4 Quicksilver"
 barset:break
   color:g4 from:08/13/2002 till:06/09/2004 text:"G4 Mirrored Drive Doors**"
 barset:break
   $skip
   color:g5 from:06/23/2003 till:06/09/2004 text:"G5"
 barset:break
   $skip
   color:g52 from:06/09/2004 till:10/19/2005 text:"G5 FX"
 barset:break
   $skip
   color:g5 from:10/19/2005 till:08/07/2006 text:"G5 DC"


TextData = 

 fontsize:S
 textcolor:lighttext
 pos:(150,58)
 text:*Architecture upgrade in January 2001 **Architecture downgrade in June 2003

</timeline>

[edit] Naming

All Power Macs prior to 1997 used PowerPC 60x-series processors, and 4-digit model numbers (e.g. Power Mac 8600). In 1997 the first third-generation ("G3") Power Macintosh was introduced, using the PowerPC 750 processor. From this model onward, Apple no longer used a numbering scheme to identify their Power Mac models, but instead referred to them by their PowerPC processor generation number (i.e. G3, G4, and G5). Later models based on the same generation of PowerPC processor relied on descriptive characteristics to differentiate them, e.g. the color scheme ("Power Macintosh G3 - Blue and White") or a technical feature of a particular model ("Power Mac G4 - Gigabit Ethernet"). This same identification scheme was used in the iMac, PowerBook, and iBook lines of Macintosh computers.

The marketing name was changed from Power Macintosh to Power Mac with the introduction of the G4 models, meaning all G3 and earlier models are Power Macintoshes, while all G4 and G5 models are Power Macs. Not all Apple documentation follows this rule, but the vast majority does.

[edit] Usage

The "Power Mac" brand name was used for Apple's high-end tower style computers, targeted primarily at businesses and creative professionals, in differentiation to their more compact "iMac" line (intended for home use) and the "eMac" line (for the education markets). They were usually equipped with Apple's newest technologies, and commanded the highest prices among Apple desktop models. Some Power Mac G4 and G5 models were offered in dual-processor configurations. Other past Macintosh lines that have used PowerPC processors include the Macintosh Performa, iMac, iBook, and PowerBook 5300 and later models.

[edit] Advertising and marketing

Apple introduced the Power Macintosh series of high-end personal computers aimed at businesses and creative professionals in 1994 with an advertising campaign consisting of several television commercials and print ads. The television commercials used the slogan "The Future Is Better Than You Expected", featuring the first three Power Macintosh computers to showcase special features such as networking and MS-DOS compatibility.

[edit] Processor and software

The ROM and Mac OS operating system released with the new Power Mac machines included an emulator to enable programs written for Motorola 68k series CPUs, including nearly all prior Mac software, to run without changes. As the Power Mac was originally intended to be a part of the high end of Apple's product line, for a number of years the company continued to offer less expensive 68k-based computers alongside the more expensive Power Mac lineup. In April 1996, Apple discontinued the Macintosh LC 580 (released in 1995), the last remaining desktop model of the 68k-based Macintosh line. The PowerBook 190cs, the last 68k-based PowerBook, was discontinued in October of 1996. All subsequent Macintosh computers would be based on PowerPC processors until 2006, when Apple switched to Intel processors.

[edit] Successor

The Intel-based successor of the Power Macintosh is named the Mac Pro, in line with the renaming of their professional notebooks from PowerBook to MacBook Pro.

[edit] See also

Image:Commons-logo.svg
Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

[edit] References

<references />

[edit] External links

es:Power Macintosh fr:Power Macintosh id:Power Mac it:Famiglia Power Macintosh he:Power Mac nl:Apple Power Mac pl:Power Mac ja:Power Mac ko:파워맥 sv:Power Macintosh zh:Power Macintosh

Retrieved from "http://en.wikivisual.com/index.php/Power_Macintosh"
Personal tools