The PowerBook 500 (codenamed Blackbird) series was a range of Apple Macintosh PowerBook portable computers first introduced by Apple Computer with the 520 model on 16th May, 1994. The 500 series included the first portable computer to use a trackpad instead of a trackball as a built-in pointing device, the first with a PCMCIA (later PC Card) slot, built-in stereo speakers, built-in ethernet, use a so-called "intelligent" NiMH battery and the first to automatically go to sleep when the lid was closed shut.
It was the first series of PowerBooks, compared to previous PowerBook models, to include a Motorola 68LC040 CPU, be upgradable to the PowerPC architecture, use 9.5" Dual Scan passive color/B&W displays, use a CPU on a daughtercard (with the PowerPC and 68040 upgrades), have an expansion bay, PC Card capability, two battery bays (and a ten minute sleep/clock battery), full size keyboard with F1-F12 function keys, be able to sleep while connected to an external monitor and have a battery contact cover included on the actual batteries.
The 500 series of PowerBooks included the ability to use two batteries at the same time, allowing for 4 hours of battery life from two installed charged batteries. The 500 series also introduced a full-sized keyboard with 12 function keys, and used a 640x480 resolution display.
In total, almost 600,000 PowerBook 500 series units were produced, compared to only 300,000 PowerBook 5300 units.
Models
| 520 | 520c | 540 | 540c | 550c | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apple Part # | M3981LL | M3984LL | ? | M2809LL/B | ? |
| Processor | 68LC040 | 68LC040 | 68LC040 | 68LC040 | 68040 |
| CPU Speed | 25 MHz | 25 MHz | 33 MHz | 33 MHz | 33 MHz |
| Built-in RAM (MB) | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Maximum RAM (MB) | 36 | 36 | 36 | 36 | 36 |
| Hard drive (MB) | 160 or 240 | 160, 240, or 320 | 240-320 | 240-320, later 500 | 750 |
| Display | 9.5" B&W, Dual scan passive | 9.5" Color, Dual scan passive | 9.5" B+W, Active Matrix | 9.5" Color, Active Matrix | 10.4" Color, Active Matrix |
| Resolution/Color | 640x480x16 | 640x480x256 | 640x480x64* | 640x400x32K* | 640x400x32K |
| * 64 Grays, though can be set to 256 grays. | |||||
| * K 32,000 colors at 640x400, or 256 colors at regular 640x480 | |||||
See also
External links
- O'Grady's PowerPage - PowerBook 500
- MacOPINION Road Warrior Retrospective: The PowerBook 500 Series - 13 September 2000 column written by Charles Moore
- Apple Technical Specifications: PowerBook