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PowerBook Old Schoolers Club

From an Outbound through to a 2004 PowerBook, I dusted off my laptops and fired them up for a trip down memory lane. Read More..


From an Outbound through to a 2004 PowerBook, I dusted off my laptops and fired them up for a trip down memory lane.


Outbound Notebook

I bought my first Mac laptop in about 1993. Curiously it didn’t have an Apple logo on it. It was the brilliant Outbound Laptop (above) that used the ROMS from a Mac Plus. It had some wonderful features such as the removeable infrared keyboard and simple benefits like a built-in carry handle. Still looks good today.

PowerBook 140

Next I moved up to a PowerBook 140. I loved the trackball and relative speed hike over the Outbound. Actually, the 140 trackball still rules as my favourite all-time pointing device. My 140 went around the world twice and got thumped about in a backpack before it was fashionable.

PowerBook Wallstreet

After a couple of desktop machines, next came the Wallstreet 233/14 REV2. The screen size and brightness were amazing. The Powerlogic 400/500mhz upgrade was less than stunning. Next time I’ll save up for a new machine. The Wally now does duty running a SCSI scanner and handles Web surfing in the garage.

PowerBook 15-inch Aluminum

And finally the Aluminum PowerBook G4 15-inch. Great machine. Takes an absolute hammering and never misses a beat. Love the screen, hate the heat and the media-fussy SuperDrive, but a more versatile machine you couldn’t hope for.
Wish list? How about a detachable screen that can be placed in portrait mode for Word douments and Photoshop work? And how about a soft leading edge to the keyboard to prevent ‘wrist-dent”? Other than that, the latest is certainly the greatest.
What is your PowerBook timeline? Email us with it and/or your PowerBook wish list.

By Jason O'Grady

Founded the PowerPage in 1995.