Before the Mac
Apple before the Macintosh — the 6502-based machines that built the company, the Lisa that first brought a mouse and windows to a desk, and the Newton handhelds of the 1990s. These are the deep cuts: mostly collector territory now, but the foundation everything else was built on.
Prices are the US launch price and exclude tax; for machines this old they are approximate and often quoted without a monitor. The Macintosh itself, and every line that grew out of it, lives on the Mac page.
Apple computers — the pre-Macintosh era
| Model | Chip | Specs | From | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple I | MOS 6502 | A bare assembled board sold to hobbyists — you added a case, keyboard and TV | $666.66 | 1976 |
| Apple II | MOS 6502 | Colour graphics, sound, expansion slots, BASIC in ROM — a personal-computer landmark | $1,298 | 1977 |
| Apple II Plus | MOS 6502 | More RAM and Applesoft BASIC built in — VisiCalc made it the must-have business machine | $1,195 | 1979 |
| Apple III | 6502A | Business machine with built-in 5.25″ drive — troubled by overheating, a rare flop | $4,340 | 1980 |
| Apple IIe | MOS 6502 | The definitive Apple II — cheaper, expandable, and made all the way to 1993 | $1,395 | 1983 |
| Apple Lisa | Motorola 68000 | First Apple with a mouse-driven GUI and windows — brilliant, expensive, a commercial failure | $9,995 | 1983 |
| Apple IIGS | 65C816 | 16-bit Apple II with colour graphics and a Mac-like sound chip and interface | $999 | 1986 |
Newton — the handheld era
| Model | Chip | Specs | From | Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newton MessagePad | ARM 610 | Pen-based PDA, handwriting recognition — the device that coined “PDA” | $699 | 1993 |
| eMate 300 | ARM 710 | Newton OS in a rugged clamshell with a keyboard, built for schools — green translucent shell | $799 | 1997 |
| MessagePad 2100 | StrongARM SA-110 | The last and best Newton — fast, big screen — before the line was cut in 1998 | $999 | 1997 |