Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh (TAM), the amazing hybrid of Mac, radio and TV that you probably don’t know about

The 1990s were a very turbulent decade for Mansana, which has taken experimentation to the extreme with devices that have come out of the traditional catalog of computers. At that time, those from the block entered the PDA world with the Newton and the MessagePad; they also released a digital camera (Apple QuickTake), a CD player (Apple PowerCD), and even a computer-TV hybrid called Macintosh TV. However, probably none of them was as peculiar as Twentieth Anniversary of the Macintoshor THE SIZE1997.

As you can see, the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh is visually stunning like no other Mac from that era. to iMac. We are talking about an ultra-thin desktop computer by the standards of that time, which expanded the concept all in one to media consumption. It’s because can be used as TV and FM radioand also included a sound system designed bose.

The team had several unique features, some of which aged better than others. But let’s be clear: TAM was far from market success, especially since it was ridiculous expensive. However, it came to symbolize a very confusing period for Apple, when the company was close to bankruptcy and dependent on the return of Steve Jobs to start the road to recovery.

The 20th Anniversary Macintosh was created to celebrate the history of Apple.

The idea for the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh was born in 1996 when Apple executives at the time decided to create a team that will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the company’s history. It was presented at MacWorldExpo in January 1997 and went on sale a couple of months later, in March.

In addition to the striking design, TAM is equipped with a 12.1-inch LCD screen with a maximum resolution of 800 x 600 pixels. Under the hood, meanwhile, it had a 2GB hard drive, a 250MHz PowerPC 603e processor that was upgradable to 400MHz, and 32MB of RAM, expandable to 128MB.

The front panel contained a CD player and buttons for switching between the computer and TV, as well as volume and channel control. The SuperDrive is located on the right side, while the rest of the connectors, including radio and TV, are located at the back. As for the software, it was released with System 7 and updated to version 9.1.

The keyboard is also very pleased. It included a leather-wrapped palm rest with a trackpad what could be untied move you at your convenience; furthermore, flipping the keyboard provided a transplant that covered the gap left in the palm rest if the touch controls were removed. And, how could it be otherwise, the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh included a remote control.

Now the most striking thing was the huge cylindrical “base block”. It contained an external power supply and also served as a subwoofer for a Bose-designed sound system; it was connected to TAM by a thick cable, which was then known as the “umbilical cord”.

Here you can see unpack quite recently from the team:

exorbitant price

It is estimated that around 12,000 TAM units were made, although it is not known how many were actually sold. The truth is that the hybrid computer and multimedia center was launched at a very high price even by today’s standards. When the Macintosh Twentieth Anniversary debuted in America it cost 7500 dollarsalthough it was first speculated that it could be around $10,000.

Really idiosyncratic? Those who were willing to pay that amount received the equipment at their home, and a technician was assigned to install and commission it. They even say that Apple he shipped the computer in a limousine and the technician did his job in a tuxedo; though it is not entirely clear if this was actually the case or if the story has been exaggerated over the years.

The truth is that low demand for the Twentieth Anniversary Macintosh forced the company to cut its price drastically. To the point that the computer sold for less than $2,000 before it was discontinued in March 1998.

Attention to detail above all

A striking feature of TAM is that it could be turned on in three ways: using the remote control, a button located on the back of the computer, or a special key located in the upper right corner of the keyboard.

Whereas the motherboard and other components were easily accessible from the back of the computer. Apple made it possible to expand the functions of the equipment with modules that were sold separately, such as Ethernet.

But the inclusion of new components had a downside: as the thickness of the equipment increased, the original case cover could no longer be used. To remedy this, the company included an alternate version with a sort of ledge that allowed additional hardware to be placed. Subtlety has been lost, but the design line has been retained..

Hooks have been provided behind one of the optional covers, also at the back, for optimal cable management when using the secondary port. At the same time, not only the aforementioned palm rest insert appeared under the keyboard, but also a system of grooves for organizing the keyboard cable. trackpad and prevent it from getting tangled.

As we said, the 20th Anniversary Macintosh was not the passion of the majority. However, it has been part of Apple’s rich history and has become object of desire for collectors and fans of the brand.