home *** CD-ROM | disk | FTP | other *** search
Text File | 1989-01-20 | 5.6 KB | 103 lines | [TEXT/MSWD] |
-
- MacWorld, San Francisco, California. January 19,1989. Apple Computer, Inc.
- today introduced the Macintosh(R) SE/30 computer, a major extension of its
- compact Macintosh personal computer product line.
-
- The Macintosh SE/30 operates at up to four times the speed of the Macintosh SE
- and provides users with convenient MS-DOS and OS/2 disk compatibility. It is
- the company's first transportable system to use the Motorola 68030
- microprocessor and 68882 math coprocessor and to provide RAM expansion
- capability up to 8MB.
-
- Apple also announced that it will make an upgrade kit available to current
- Macintosh SE users who want Macintosh SE/30 functionality. "With the
- introduction of the Macintosh SE/30, Apple is demonstrating its commitment to
- technological advancement in the Macintosh product family," stated Randall S.
- Battat, vice president, Product Marketing. "The Macintosh SE/30 delivers the
- most significant performance increase yet in a compact Macintosh."
-
- The Macintosh SE has become the most popular model in the Macintosh computer
- family since its introduction in 1987. The new Macintosh SE/30 continues to
- build on this heritage and provides users with the familiar compact, easy to
- set up design and integral high-resolution monochrome video screen. The
- Macintosh SE/30 also works with most of the existing base of Macintosh
- software applications.
-
- Macintosh SE/30 Features
-
- The increased performance of the Macintosh SE/30 derives from its combined use
- of the Motorola 68030 and the Motorola 68882 floating point coprocessor chips.
- The 16MHz Motorola 68030 is a full 32-bit microprocessor with separate 256-
- byte data and instruction caches. These features make the Macintosh SE/30
- operate up to four times the speed of the Macintosh SE.
-
- In addition, the companion Motorola 68882 floating point coprocessor performs
- certain complex mathematical calculations more than 100 times faster than the
- Macintosh SE. This dramatically improves the performance of some
- spreadsheets, statistical and numeric-based graphics programs.
-
- A second key feature of the Macintosh SE/30 is the Apple(R) FDHD(TM) (Floppy
- Drive High Density), an internal 1.4MB floppy disk drive that increases
- flexibility in integrating the Macintosh SE/30 operation into a multivendor
- environment. Nicknamed "SuperDrive," the FDHD can read, write and format MS-
- DOS, OS/2, Macintosh and Apple II ProDOS(R) diskettes. It works with 720K or
- 1.4MB MS-DOS or OS/2 diskettes; 400K, 800K and 1.4MB Macintosh diskettes; and
- ProDOS diskettes.
-
- Apple File Exchange, a utility available with Macintosh System Software, is
- used along with the FDHD drive to access and transfer files conveniently
- between MS-DOS, OS/2 and ProDOS diskettes. The Macintosh SE/30 user in a
- multivendor office can then share documents, spreadsheets and other data files
- simply by transferring a diskette from one system to another.
-
- The Macintosh SE/30 expansion slot architecture supports new types of advanced
- expansion options not previously available on a compact Macintosh, such as
- video, memory parity, high-speed communications and sound.
-
- Several well-known hardware developers have already endorsed the 030 Direct
- Slot and are introducing products at MacWorld. These cards expand Macintosh
- SE/30 customers' options in networking and communications, allow the addition
- of external color and gray-scale monitors, and let users work with digital
- signal processing (DSP) based sound. These companies include: Avatar
- Corporation, Creative Solutions, Digital Communications Associates, DigiDesign
- Inc., Dove Computer Corporation, Epic Technology, Kinetics, MacPEAK Systems,
- Micron Technology, and SuperMac Technology.
-
- In addition to other advances, the Macintosh SE/30 includes an Apple custom
- sound chip on the motherboard that provides four-voice stereo sound capability
- and compatibility with sound applications.
-
- "The Macintosh SE/30 is the choice for users who want a general purpose
- computing system that is easily transportable, expandable and provides maximum
- performance," stated Todd Logan, Macintosh SE/30 product manager. "By
- incorporating the 68030 in a compact Macintosh we are making the latest in
- technology as affordable as possible."
-
- Configurations
-
- Apple offers three configurations of the Macintosh SE/30. The first option
- has 1MB of RAM and a single 1.4MB FDHD floppy disk drive; the second option
- has 1MB of RAM and an internal 40MB hard disk; and the third option has 4MB of
- RAM and an 80MB internal hard disk. Both hard disk configurations include the
- FDHD. Keyboard options and other peripheral devices are packaged and sold
- separately.
-
- Price and Availability
-
- Immediately available from Apple U. S. resellers nationwide, the Macintosh
- SE/30 (1MB) carries a suggested retail price of $4,369, the Macintosh SE/30
- Hard Disk 40 (1MB) carries a suggested retail price of $4,869, and the
- Macintosh SE/30 Hard Disk 80 (4MB) has a suggested retail price of $6,569.
- Both configurations ship with Macintosh System Software 6.0.3, MultiFinder(TM)
- and HyperCard(R). The Macintosh SE/30 requires System Software 6.0.3.
-
- The upgrade kit for Macintosh SE users includes a Macintosh SE/30 logic board
- and chassis. Customers who upgrade to Macintosh SE/30 functionality, can also
- elect to upgrade their internal floppy disk drive to 1.4MB capacity using the
- optional FDHD Upgrade Kit. Pricing and availability for the Macintosh SE/30
- upgrades will be announced in the Spring.
-
- Apple, the Apple Logo, Macintosh, HyperCard and ProDOS are registered
- trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc. FDHD and MultiFinder are trademarks of
- Apple Computer, Inc. NuBus is a trademark of Texas Instruments. MS-DOS is a
- registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.