On July 18th, Apple Computer announced what will likely
be its last Macintosh model based upon the Motorola 68030
processor. Running at a speedy 33MHz, the PowerBook 150
replaces the aging PowerBook 145B and offers an industry-
standard 640x480 passive matrix 4-level greyscale display.
Despite the fact that the PowerBook 150 is packaged in the same casing as the 145B, it weighs only 5.5 lb. (most other 100-series PowerBooks weigh 6.8 lb.). A quick look at the
back panel of the 150 will help you understand why this PowerBook is so light in comparison. Apple’s goal with the PowerBook 150 was to deliver a high-performance portable computer at the lowest possible price. It achieved this goal by removing many of the standard features that independent polls determined were not often utilized by low-end users. Missing from the PowerBook 150 are sound-input and sound-output jacks, a serial port, an ADB port and, like the PowerBook 145B, video-out and an internal microphone. Best described as a bare-bones PowerBook system, the 150 ships with 4 megabytes of RAM (expandable to 40 megabytes using Duo RAM modules), one LocalTalk-compatible serial port, an HDI-30 SCSI port, an internal modem slot (for all 100-series modems) and, in a cost-cutting first for Apple, an internal 120 megabyte IDE drive. IDE (Integrated Drive Electronics) hard drive mechanisms are most popular in IBM-compatible systems and are significantly lower in cost than the traditional SCSI drives favored by Apple.
Like the 145B, Apple ships the PowerBook 150 with a back-up utility on the hard drive rather than a set of system software disks, placing the onus on the purchaser to back-up immediately. In addition, the 150 ships with ClarisWorks 2.1 and the PowerBook Mobility bundle previously shipped with the new 500-series PowerBooks. Included in this software bundle are AppleTalk Remote Access Client, PC Exchange, Dataviz translators, PowerBook File Assistant, the PowerBook Control Strip and the Launcher.
The PowerBook 150 is available immediately at your local Apple reseller, and retails for under $1999.00 Canadian (US. ApplePrice of $1449.99).
  
Apple is reportedly close to deals with both IBM and Moto-
rola that would see Apple license its System 7 operating
system to both industry giants for the production of the
first legitimate Macintosh clones. Knight Ridder/Tribune
Business News has indicated that both IBM and Motorola
would manufacture Macintosh clones using the PowerPC processor developed by all three companies. The same report suggests that Motorola would manufacture many of the clones for other (as yet unnamed) companies, selling only a few under the Motorola brand name.
Many industry analysts have suggested that Apple’s failure to license the Macintosh operating system is responsible for the Macintosh’s small, 10% market share. While some believe this deal has come too little, too late to have a significant market impact, others indicate that IBM’s manufacturing of Macintosh clones constitutes an important public endorsement of the Macintosh operating system.
While no dates were suggested, industry speculation is that the Macintosh clones could reach the market by summer of 1995.
  
Once again, prospected buyers of Apple PowerBooks are meeting frustra-
tion. For the second time in three years, Apple is unable to meet demand
for its high-end PowerBook systems. In the fall of 1991, Apple struggled
to provide customers with PowerBook 170’s, lauded for their superior
display and speed.
It’s now 1994, and production problems with Apple’s PowerBooks 540 and 540c have left prospective buyers out in the cold. A bug in the 33MHz ‘040 chip used in both machines (which causes the Macintosh to freeze during sleep) and the limited availability of active-matrix displays are thought to be major reasons for the production delays. Industry sources have said Apple hopes to fill all backorders by the end of July.
  
At PC EXPO in New York this past June, Apple eagerly demonstrated a Power Mac-
intosh version of its DOS Compatibility Card. Now out of production, the card
(code-named Houdini) was bundled together with a Quadra 610 in the Canadian
market and sold as the Quadra 610 DOS Compatible. The 25MHz 486SX processor
direct card provided Macintosh users access to the vast library of DOS/Windows
software, with the ability to copy and paste data between operating systems.
The new version of the card reportedly addresses many of the shortcomings of its predecessor. Now running with a speedy 50MHz 486DX2 processor, the card provides support for both networking and SoundBlaster-compatible sound output. Though Apple maintains that the card (operating in a Power Macintosh 6100 at PC EXPO) was for technology demonstration only, industry sources speculate it could be on shelves as early as November, for under $500 US.
Power Macintosh owners have previously had access to DOS and Windows software through Insignia Solution’s SoftWindows. Users, citing the poor, 386-level performance of the software emulator and lack of sound support, have suggested that SoftWindows is only a valid solution for people with very limited DOS/Windows demands. Apple has opportunity here to provide a more efficient and complete cross-platform solution for those Power Macintosh users who must use both Macintosh and DOS/Windows software daily. Not to mention those users who want to play DOOM.
