Apple I

"Apple 1" redirects here. For the album, see Apple Records discography.
Apple I/Apple-1

A fully assembled Apple I computer with a homemade wooden computer case
Developer Steve Wozniak
Type Personal computer
Release date April 11, 1976 (1976-04-11)
Introductory price 666.66 US$ (today $2772.29)
Discontinued September 30, 1977 (1977-09-30)
CPU MOS 6502 @ 1 MHz
Memory 4 KB standard
expandable to 8 KB or 48 KB using expansion cards
Graphics 40×24 characters, hardware-implemented scrolling
Successor Apple II

Apple Computer 1, also known later as the Apple I, or Apple-1, was released by the Apple Computer Company (now Apple Inc.) in 1976. It was designed and hand-built by Steve Wozniak.[1][2] Wozniak's friend Steve Jobs had the idea of selling the computer. The Apple I was Apple's first product, and to finance its creation, Jobs sold his only means of transportation, a VW Microbus,[3] and Wozniak sold his HP-65 calculator for $500.[4] It was demonstrated in July 1976 at the Homebrew Computer Club in Palo Alto, California.[5]

History

Introductory advertisement for the Apple I Computer

On March 5, 1975 Steve Wozniak attended the first meeting of the Homebrew Computer Club in Gordon French's garage. He was so inspired that he immediately set to work on what would become the Apple I computer.[6] Wozniak calculated that laying out his design would cost $1,000 and parts would cost another $20 per computer; he hoped to recoup his costs if 50 people bought his design for $40 each. His friend Steve Jobs arranged to sell 50 computers to the The Byte Shop (a computer store in Mountain View, California) at $500 each. To fulfill the $25,000 order, they obtained $20,000 in parts at 30 days net and delivered the finished product in 10 days.[7]

The Apple I went on sale in July 1976 at a price of US$666.66,[8] because Wozniak "liked repeating digits" and because of a one-third markup on the $500 wholesale price.[9] Wozniak, who called himself "atheist or agnostic",[10][11] stated that he was unaware of any Satanic connotations with the number.

The first unit produced was used in a high school math class, and donated to Liza Loop's public access computer center.[12] About 200 units were produced and all but 25 were sold during nine or ten months.[7] Unlike other hobbyist computers of its day, which were sold as kits, the Apple I was a fully assembled circuit board containing about 60+ chips. However, to make a working computer, users still had to add a case, power supply transformers, power switch, ASCII keyboard, and composite video display. An optional board providing a cassette interface for storage was later released at the cost of $72.

The Apple I's built-in computer terminal circuitry was distinctive. All one needed was a keyboard and an inexpensive television set. Competing machines such as the Altair 8800 generally were programmed with front-mounted toggle switches and used indicator lights (red LEDs, most commonly) for output, and had to be extended with separate hardware to allow connection to a computer terminal or a teletypewriter machine. This made the Apple I an innovative machine for its day. In April 1977 the price was dropped to $475.[13] It continued to be sold through August 1977, despite the introduction of the Apple II in April 1977, which began shipping in June of that year.[14] Apple dropped the Apple I from its price list by October 1977, officially discontinuing it.[15] As Wozniak was the only person who could answer most customer support questions about the computer, the company offered Apple I owners discounts and trade-ins for Apple IIs to persuade them to return their computers.[16] These recovered boards were then destroyed by Apple, contributing to their rarity today.[17]

Collectors' item

The circuit board of a fully assembled Apple I
Original 1976 Apple 1 Computer in a briefcase. From the Sydney Powerhouse Museum collection
Original 1976 Apple 1 Computer PCB From the Sydney Powerhouse Museum collection

As of 2013, at least 63 Apple I computers have been confirmed to exist. Only six have been verified to be in working condition.

Serial numbers

Both Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak have stated that Apple did not assign serial numbers to the Apple l. Several boards have been found with numbered stickers affixed to them, which appear to be inspection stickers from the PCB manufacturer/assembler. A batch of boards is known to have numbers hand-written in black permanent marker on the back; these usually appear as "01-00##" and anecdotal evidence suggests they are inventory control numbers added by the Byte Shop to the batch Apple sold them. These Byte Shop numbers have often erroneously been described as serial numbers by auction houses and in related press coverage.[41]

USA Museums displaying an original Apple 1 Computer

Clones and replicas

Several Apple I clones and replicas have been released in recent years. These are all created by hobbyists and marketed to the hobbyist/collector community. Availability is usually limited to small runs in response to demand.

Emulation

See also

References

  1. "Co-founder tells his side of Apple story". Reuters. September 27, 2006.
  2. NPR : A Chat with Computing Pioneer Steve Wozniak
  3. Kelley: Jobs' vision changed the way we work, play
  4. Steve Jobs: Steve Wozniak Remembers
  5. Freiberger, Paul; Swaine, Michael (2000). Fire in the Valley: The Making of the Personal Computer (2nd ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill. pp. 265–267. ISBN 0-07-135892-7. At a Homebrew meeting in July 1976, Woz gave a demonstration of the Apple 1. Paul Terrell, one of the industries earliest retailers, was in attendance.
  6. Wozniak, Steve (2006). iWoz. W.W. Norton & Company. p. 150. ISBN 978-0-393-33043-4. After my first meeting, I started designing the computer that would later be known as the Apple I. It was that inspiring.
  7. 1 2 Williams, Gregg; Moore, Rob (December 1984). "The Apple Story / Part 1: Early History". BYTE (interview). pp. A67. Retrieved October 23, 2013.
  8. "Video: Wozniak: $666.66 seemed like a good idea". CNET News. November 7, 2005. Retrieved February 19, 2009.
  9. Wozniak, Steven: "iWoz", page 180. W. W. Norton, 2006. ISBN 978-0-393-06143-7
  10. Steve Wozniak (2002). "Letters-General Questions Answered". Los Gatos, California: Unuson Corp. Retrieved June 20, 2013. I am also atheist or agnostic (I don't even know the difference). I've never been to church and prefer to think for myself. I do believe that religions stand for good things, and that if you make irrational sacrifices for a religion, then everyone can tell that your religion is important to you and can trust that your most important inner faiths are strong.
  11. Brian Riley (2012). "Interview with Steve Wozniak". Davis, California: BrianRiley.us. Retrieved August 17, 2014. I’m kind of spiritual inside. I have a lot of philosophies of how to be a good person, how to treat people, and I’ve worked them out, thinking over and over, reflecting inside my mind the way shy people do, and I was very shy, and coming up with my own little keys and rules for life, and they stayed with me…
  12. Turner, Daniel (May 1, 2007). "MIT Technology Review". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  13. April 1977 Price List | Applefritter
  14. Bill of Sale | Applefritter
  15. October 1977 Price List | Applefritter
  16. "The Apple II, cont.". Apple II History. Retrieved February 27, 2011.
  17. "The Huston brothers' Apple-1 Back Story". Retrieved June 25, 2013.
  18. Ong, Josh (November 11, 2010). "Auction of Apple's first computer expected to top $160k". Apple Insider. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  19. Edwards, Benj (September 15, 2008), "Apple I For Sale", Vintage Computing and Gaming, archived from the original on March 14, 2016, retrieved April 1, 2016.
  20. "The Apple 1 Registry". Apple I Mimeo Project. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  21. Calande, John (March 24, 2010). "Another very nice Apple-1 sold on ebay yesterday". Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  22. BBC News (November 23, 2010). "First Apple computer fetches £130,000 at auction". BBC News. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  23. "Christie's Sale 7882 / Lot 65". Christie's. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  24. Heater, Brian. "$211,000 Apple-1 up and running, wants to know what this 'cloud' thing is all about". engadget. engadget.com. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  25. Austin, Scott (June 15, 2012). "Original Apple 1 Computer Sells for $374,500 in Auction". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
  26. "Rare apple 1 computer no sale at christies auction". ABC News. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
  27. "Rare working Apple-1 pops up on eBay with Cassette board accessory". iPhone Hacks. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  28. "Early 1976 Apple-1 computer, from the garage of Steve Jobs". Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  29. "the-saleroom.com". ATG Media. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
  30. http://www.digitaltrends.com/computing/working-apple-1-sells-at-auction-for-record-breaking-671400/
  31. "Vintage Apple computer auctioned off for $668,000". Yahoo News. Retrieved May 25, 2013.
  32. "First Apple Computer Sells for $390,000 in Christie’s Technology Auction". International Business Times. Retrieved July 9, 2013.
  33. "Apple I auction fails to break 500K". Macmint. Retrieved July 14, 2013.
  34. "Apple 1 Sold for $330k After Auction Close". Cult of Mac. Retrieved March 28, 2014.
  35. "Apple-1 computer sold at auction for $905,000". Fox News. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  36. "Computer sold by Steve Jobs out of his parents' garage raises $365,000 at auction". Yahoo!. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  37. "Mystery Woman Dumps Rare, Collectable Apple Computer Worth $200K At Recycling Center". Milpitas: CBS News. 2015-05-30. Retrieved 2015-05-31.
  38. "Apple 1 computer worth $200K left at recycling centre". CBC News. 2015-05-31. Retrieved 2015-05-31. A recycling centre in the Silicon Valley is looking for a woman who dropped off an old Apple computer that turned out to be a collectible item worth $200,000 US.
  39. "Lot 77 APPLE-1 COMPUTER". Bonhams Auctions. 21 September 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  40. "Early Apple computer fails to sell". BBC News. 22 September 2015. Retrieved October 1, 2015.
  41. "The Apple 1 Registry". Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  42. replica I – the apple I(c) clone, retrieved August 15, 2009
  43. replica I at official Briel computers web site, retrieved August 15, 2008
  44. Gagne, Ken Image gallery: Building an Apple-1 replica from scratch, Computerworld, 2009-08-14, story with pictures for assembling a Briel replica I from a kit, retrieved August 15, 2009
  45. Owad, Tom Apple I Replica Creation, retrieved August 15, 2009
  46. Achatz Electronics, retrieved July 29, 2013, archived May 13, 2012
  47. Vectronics Apple World: Obtronix Apple I Reproduction, retrieved July 8, 2013
  48. Mimeo 1 kit, retrieved July 8, 2013
  49. Apple 1 Replica (Newton 1) Running Test Program, retrieved July 8, 2013
  50. Newton 1 replica photos by creator Michael Ng, retrieved July 8, 2013
  51. The Brain Board with Wozanium Pack, retrieved February 2, 2014
  52. "Apple 1js: An Apple 1 Emulator in JavaScript". Retrieved January 28, 2015.
  53. Pom1 Apple 1 Emulator, retrieved July 17, 2013
  54. Apple 1 Emulator - SAM Coupé, retrieved July 17, 2013
  55. CocoaPom Apple 1 Emulator, retrieved July 17, 2013
  56. Sim6502 Apple I emulator retrieved July 17, 2013
Notes
  • Price, Rob, So Far:the First Ten Years of a Vision, Apple Computer, Cupertino, CA, 1987, ISBN 1-55693-974-4
  • Owad, Tom (2005). Apple I Replica Creation: Back to the Garage. Rockland, MA: Syngress Publishing. Copyright 2005. ISBN 1-931836-40-X

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Apple I.
Preceded by
Apple I
April 11, 1976
Succeeded by
Apple II
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Thursday, April 28, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.