Apple Device Evolution. Apple IIc Computer 1984. (issue 8)

2023 Author: Gordon Kinson | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-11-26 08:36

We continue to introduce you to the evolution of Apple technology in our regular column. Today's article is devoted to the next update of the legendary Apple II with the IIc marking. This model began to be developed in 1981 and saw the light already in 1984. At this time, the legendary Macintosh was gaining ground on the market.

However, Jobs and the company were counting on a slightly different audience, as the Apple IIc was the company's first portable device. Initially, engineers were focused on creating a more affordable modification of the iconic Apple II, however, the development of the component market allowed not only to make the model cheaper, but also to make it more compact.

By tradition, the project has changed many names and code names. The most interesting of them - VLC (Very Low Cost - "very economical"), Apple IIb (where the index meant Book - "book"), and Teddy (that is, Testing Every Day - "tests every day"). All of them were invented for conspiracy, so that neither competitors nor future users could find out what awaits them.

In addition to the size, the color of the device has undergone changes. This is the first time Apple has adopted a white color scheme for its devices. Many even began to call the Apple IIc - "Snow White". When miniaturization came to the fore, conflicts began to arise between Jobs and the developers. Steve had originally planned a slightly smaller model, using one universal peripheral port. In the course of a long debate, Jobs conceded in favor of installing two of these connectors. One was supposed to be used for printers, faxes, etc., and the second - for the increasingly popular "mouse".

Apple was planning to enter the international market. For this, they equipped the keyboard of their device with a special chip. He was responsible for switching layouts and allowed other languages to be used depending on the country of distribution. In the US domestic market, this module allowed switching between Shoals and Dvorak layouts. Yes, that's right, because at that time there was still no consensus on which key arrangement was more convenient. Later, Shoals' creation (now better known as qwerty) took over and became the world standard.

On the way to miniaturization, Apple engineers faced a new problem for them - heating the device. The most problematic element at that time was not the processor or memory modules, but the 5.25-inch floppy drive. In a small case, special ventilation ducts had to be installed to remove heat. This allowed to reduce the overall heating of the computer.

For the first time to present its own device, Apple did not wait for seasonal exhibitions or conferences. On April 24, 1984 in San Francisco, the company gathered an audience for its own presentation. The event called "Apple II Forever" attracted a large IT audience. For the first time, the community saw exactly the product presentation describing all the key features of the Apple IIc. The presenters, led by Jobs, talked about the company's strategy and boasted record sales of Machintosh. Also, all those present saw the commercial for the product.

Users expecting to see an Apple IIc price tag of less than a thousand dollars were disappointed. For the new model it was necessary to pay $ 1,295. In this case, the monitor for the computer was purchased separately. This was one of the factors in the model's failure. In addition, users began to misinterpret the compactness of the device. Buyers associated it not with a technological breakthrough, but with plotlessness and cheapness.

This turned out to be the next generation of Apple devices. In the next installment of this column, you will be introduced to the Apple IIGS.

See also:

Apple device evolution. Apple computer I. (Issue 1) The

evolution of Apple devices. Apple II computer. 1977 year. (Issue 2) The

evolution of Apple devices. Apple II Plus computer. 1979 year. (Issue 3)

Evolution of Apple devices. Apple III computer. 1980 year. (Issue 4)

Evolution of Apple devices. Apple IIe computer. 1981 year. (Issue 5)

Evolution of Apple devices. Lisa computer. 1983 year. (Issue 6)

Evolution of Apple devices. Macintosh computer (512K, Plus, 512Ke). 1984 -1985 years. (Issue 7)