'20th Anniversary Mac' Clarification

[MacRumors]

Since this is getting submitted every day... I thought I'd point out that yes... Apple did have a 20th Anniversary Mac... 7 years ago.

The 20th Anniversary Mac (http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/20th_mac/) was released on Apple's (not the Mac's) 20th anniversary and retailed for $7500.

[Doraemon]

Some links:

http://tam.axon.net/
http://www.theapplemuseum.com/index.php?id=tam&page=personal&subpage=tam
http://www.apple-history.com/frames/body.php?page=gallery&model=anniversary

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

We actually had one... But it got stolen... And there's only 13 of them in Denmark, but nevertheless we never found it again.. :(

[centauratlas]

There are at least 6 of them for sale on eBay right now:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2Fws%2F&krd=1&from=R8&MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&ht=1&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=20th+anniversary+mac

[Photorun]

They were pretty cool but came out at the typical overinflated Apple price of $10,000. I had a friend who actually bought one at that price. Needless to say he was a bit miffed when less than six months later their prices tumbled from a couple price points down eventually to three grand (or four grand).

Neat machines though, would love a TAM myself.

Note: Jerry Seinfeld set had one (on his back desk from the door) for a couple years after the Classic sat for many of the first few seasons.

[michaelrjohnson]

the TAM is a good signifier of the way computing technology has progressed. that machine retailed for $10,000 initially. the powermac G5 retailed for what, $1799 initially? I dont' think we should complain TOO much about apple's pricing. we get more bang for our buck than pc users do, and there's less bucks we have to pay to get the bang.

[NusuniAdmin]

TAM's were awsome. Pretty fast for those days. It was also the first mac to use lcd monitor technology. The only prob was is that is was old world mac rom tech. I wish they released it later and popped a g3 in that baby with new world rom junkies...but then again the first powermac g3 still used old world technology. But it was awsome, lots of extra video and sound goodies. If apple releases a 30'th anniversry mac (for apple's 30'th, not the macs) I hope it is just as cool. But instead of lcd tech it should be the first mac to use holigram technology :D. heheeheheh........Just imagen it....a 30'th anniversery mac with a G6 or G7 clocked at 5-6 ghz with a 2.5-3 ghz bus....ohhhhhh ya baby.....

[andyduncan]

Unfortunately, rather than being a computer for the masses, the Spartacus was an Amelio-ist tribute to everything that was wrong with the Macintosh:
Ridiculously overpriced, underpowered (yes, even for the time), lacking expandibility, and aimed at an elite subset of the market, rather than truly being a "computer for the rest of us".
I hope any machine released to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Macintosh itself will be more accessible; something in the eMac price range.

[DamnDJ]

I see the depreciation value of the machine has held up well over the years. :P

[wdlove]

Actually the $7500 price of the 20th Anniversay Mac was a pretty good value. That it came with a 12" display, custom Bose speaker system complete with subwoofer, and a unique keyboard with an integrated Italian leather palm rest.

I wish Apple would offer some package deals on the CPU and monitor today!

I looked at the eBay aution site for the TAM. Very enticing offer, I am almost tempted.

[sboyle]

At the very end of it's life, Apple did a deal whereby any Apple dealer who sold one, got one for the dealership. Our multimedia shop was an official reseller (lots of museum installations), so my boss and I bagged a couple and split the cost. Sonnet released a G3 upgrade (I immediately pounced on the 300Mhz, but should have waited for the 500), and it's easy enough to up the hard drive (with any standard laptop drive). The Bose sound system makes a great platform for iTunes (if only they'd release iTunes 4 for OS 9 so it could integrate with the rest of the network). Inbuilt TV and Radio, v. basic DVR capability, fantastic looks. And video in, so I can hook the playstation up without needing more space on my desk.

The 800x600x16bit resolution's a bit limiting. You can only fit 128MB of memory in. And you should never ever try and run OS X on it (it screws up the parameter RAM so badly the only cure is unhooking the motherboard battery and waiting two days for it to clear.)

Simon Boyle


Powerbook G3 Firewire,
Blue & White G3
Twentieth Anniversary Mac
PowerMac 8600
Powerbook 540
Powerbook 520
Duo 230
Powerbook 100
MacPlus

[MacFan25]

From the pictures I have seen of it, it looks beautiful. I'd like to see one up close.

I guess Steve announced this right when he came back to Apple?

[dwishbone]

that was a 20th Anniversary Macintosh for the 20th Anniversary of Apple...not of the Macintosh itself.
the mac itself as we know it was born on January 24th, 1984.

[SiliconAddict]

Originally posted by michaelrjohnson
the TAM is a good signifier of the way computing technology has progressed. that machine retailed for $10,000 initially. the powermac G5 retailed for what, $1799 initially? I dont' think we should complain TOO much about apple's pricing. we get more bang for our buck than pc users do, and there's less bucks we have to pay to get the bang.

Bull.

It was an overprice computer with good speakers. The TAM was just a way for Apple to fleece Mac users who are insane enough to spend $10,000 on a freaking computer. Think about this a second. I can go to a car dealership and pay off half of a brand new car with that kind of cash. HALF A CAR!! Or get a used car and pay it off in full. And at least that car will still be running in 8 years. Can the TAM run OS X? (I know for a fact that a 300Mhz Pentium II that I've got sitting at work works just fine with Windows 2000. I think my company spent about 1,800 on it at the time.)

People who spent that kind of money are in the same league as that kid who tore out that guts of that G5 and put a PC in it. Too much money on their hands.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by michaelrjohnson
the TAM is a good signifier of the way computing technology has progressed. that machine retailed for $10,000 initially. the powermac G5 retailed for what, $1799 initially? I dont' think we should complain TOO much about apple's pricing. we get more bang for our buck than pc users do, and there's less bucks we have to pay to get the bang.

Uh... just as a point about pricing, the Power Macs of the day were retailing for around $2000 (I bought a 266 G3 desktop - the top end model at the time - about nine months after the TAM for about $2495). So, the cost of the TAM is not a good thing to compare with a new G5 Power Mac.

Perhaps the better comparison would be...

A dual 2GHz G5 Tower with...
*4GB RAM
*2x 250GB HD
*ATI9800 Graphics
*23" Cinema Display
*Airport Extreme card
*Bluetooth
*Fibre Channel card
*iSight
*Logitech Z-680 THX speakers

Total: $9,314.95

:D

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by NusuniAdmin
TAM's were awsome. Pretty fast for those days. It was also the first mac to use lcd monitor technology...

Well, not really. In most respects, this was an exploded and suped up PowerBook 3400, which was a Mac that used LCD monitor technology... ;)

[rdowns]

Originally posted by centauratlas
There are at least 6 of them for sale on eBay right now:

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?cgiurl=http%3A%2F%2Fcgi.ebay.com%2Fws%2F&krd=1&from=R8&MfcISAPICommand=GetResult&ht=1&SortProperty=MetaEndSort&query=20th+anniversary+mac

Damn, I used to have one of those Picasso Mac lights on the eBay page you posted. Can't believe I threw it out.

[ginjg]

The TAM were specifically designed to be collector's Items. It was a limited edition, only only 10,000 produced worldwide. That's why the price was so high.

The TAM did have one pci expansion slot for a a half length card and a place for a comm card and even came with an extra back that accomodated the card while still keeping the back relatively low profile.

We got ours new, 8 months after it was released, for $2200.00. And sold it in 2001 for $1550.00 with the original box and all the included extras including the leather cd case, pen & pencil set, etc. so we didn't fare too badly on the deal

[SeaFox]

Whoever is submitting all those "Look, there already has been a Twentieth Anniversary Mac." emails must think we're really dumb, or really new to the Mac platform, one of the two.

What? they already made a TAM? Wow! Thanks for the info. We had no idea!
/sarcasm

Too bad it was so ho-hum when it came out. If i remember right there were Performa models with faster processers already out at that point.

[TranceClubMusic]

why is this Page 2? :confused:

[arn]

Originally posted by TranceClubMusic
why is this Page 2? :confused:

http://www.macrumors.com/pages/2003/07/20030725152925.shtml

arn

[rog]

Get Real. the TAM was an overpriced hunk of junk. The 250 MHz 603e was a lot slower than 604es of the era, which hit 350MHz not long after the TAM intro. A 233 604e would have been a much better processor for this mac. Within 8 months, Apple was making G3s that were 3X faster for far cheaper! The PowerBooks of 1997 were far cheaper and better deals. The TAM was $1999 within a year, and was still overprice at that price since a 266MHz G3 was cheaper. An 800x600 screen was unbearable even in OS9. Personally I am glad Apple didn't release an overpriced new anniversary mac because if history tells us anything, it would have been a rip off, much like the current iMac line already is with its 1999 technology, but 1979 prices.

[ffakr]

There's only one person who had a clue about the TAM.

First off, it was $7,500 not $10,000.

Second, (as correctly noted once) it was a limited edition, collectors edition macintosh. It was not released for typical mac users.
If you purchased a $7500 TAM, It was delivered to your office or home by an Apple representative.. it was opened, installed and setup by Apple. You also got a how-to use session.

This wasn't a typical Mac user experience.. it was a decadent computer buying experience on par with the purchase of a Rolls Royce.
TAM wasn't a speed deamon when it was released, it was basically a laptop in a custom case. It was, however, at least a couple years ahead of its time design-wise (look at the piece of crap that Gateway released to compete with the LCD iMac).. and though dated now, it was a beautiful machine when it was released.

[voicegy]

The TAM was a work of art, they only made 10,601 of them (odd number, eh?) and I owned one for two years after Steve came back to Apple and put 'em on "fire sale" status for 2 thousand bucks...the leftovers flew off the shelf.

I've never owned a more jaw dropping, elegant, audience pleasing device. The capabilities at the time were amazing, the remote control could turn it on or off, open the drop-down CD ROM door, turn on the optional TV, change channels, and NOTHING out there could touch it for the sound quality.

Rant and rave about it being a piece of overpriced underpowered junk...there was nothing like it out there, and never has been. It still looks great in person, although compared to today's standards, is woefully inadequate. But that's to be expected given the history, overall, of computing power over the years.

I sitll have the pen and pencil set in their original leather case, and the wall poster hanging in my office. I lament Apple not putting out a "special" machine to mark the 25th Anniversary of Apple Computer, or the 20th Anniversary of the Macintosh for 2004...but can totally understand given the economy in general and how Steve had nothing to do with the original TAM.

Then again, it's only February. Who knows?;)

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by ffakr
...it was basically a laptop in a custom case...

Which I noted...

I always thought that it looked like it should be able to fold up into a portable configuration... ;)

[mac15]

this was released before steve came back to Apple

[centauratlas]

Originally posted by SiliconAddict
Bull. ...
People who spent that kind of money are in the same league as that kid who tore out that guts of that G5 and put a PC in it. Too much money on their hands.

That was a joke according to several Mac news sites.

[wdlove]

Originally posted by mac15
this was released before steve came back to Apple

So maybe that is why we aren't seeing another edition. Steve must think that the 20th anniversary should be a one and only event. He also missed the opportunity to produced a 25th anniversary Mac.

[aftk2]

Heh...everyone seems to be ranting about the price of the 20th anniversary Mac. It was an amazing machine, however, with the subwoofer, the remote control, the awesome case, the LCD (and the tuxedo'd Apple representative who set it up). And yet it wasn't even the most expensive Mac ever released. For that, we'll turn the clock back 7 years prior to the Mac IIfx.

Maximum configuration: $12,000.

You can buy a 4 G5 Xserves for that amount...and with XGrid you can link'em up! We've come a long ways in 14 years :)

[ryanw]

Originally posted by rog
Get Real. the TAM was an overpriced hunk of junk. The 250 MHz 603e was a lot slower than 604es of the era, which hit 350MHz not long after the TAM intro. A 233 604e would have been a much better processor for this mac. Within 8 months, Apple was making G3s that were 3X faster for far cheaper! The PowerBooks of 1997 were far cheaper and better deals. The TAM was $1999 within a year, and was still overprice at that price since a 266MHz G3 was cheaper. An 800x600 screen was unbearable even in OS9. Personally I am glad Apple didn't release an overpriced new anniversary mac because if history tells us anything, it would have been a rip off, much like the current iMac line already is with its 1999 technology, but 1979 prices.

Well, from your explanation it sounds like they used the TAM as a way to bring in money to help develop the 3x faster G3, etc. Sometimes you find apple over priceing things to help bring down the price for other things in the long run. Kinda' borrow from the rich to give to the world type scenerio.

[Doctor Q]

Originally posted by voicegy
The TAM was a work of art, they only made 10,601 of them (odd number, eh?)Instead of 601 extra TAMs, they should have made 603. Actually, make that 603e.

[kingtj]

I remember the 20th. Anniv. Mac when advertisements for it first hit the magazines. I never bought one (don't have that kind of money) - but even being a PC guy at the time, I recall being envious of its looks and LCD screen.

It made a visual/design statement as a memorable collectors' item, so in that sense - it accomplished its goal.

I heard Apple even rolled a red carpet out to your front door when the limo pulled up with the Apple rep. hand-delivering it to you and setting it up. This was all about "show" and "image", and I don't recall EVER hearing of another company doing anything similar.


Originally posted by wdlove
So maybe that is why we aren't seeing another edition. Steve must think that the 20th anniversary should be a one and only event. He also missed the opportunity to produced a 25th anniversary Mac.

[Doraemon]

Originally posted by Snowy_River
Well, not really. In most respects, this was an exploded and suped up PowerBook 3400, which was a Mac that used LCD monitor technology... ;)

Nope.
That's not true. The TAM was basically a PowerMac 5500 with the screen of a PB 3400.

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by Doraemon
Nope.
That's not true. The TAM was basically a PowerMac 5500 with the screen of a PB 3400.


Actually, if you compare the specs, the TAM was really a hybrid of the two. It has some feature of each, and some that are completely unique. For example, both the 5500 and the 3400 have 256kb L2 cache, whereas the TAM only has 128kb L2 cache. Both the PB3400 and the TAM have a minimum RAM speed of 60ns, whereas the PM5500 has a minimum RAM speed of 70ns.

On the whole, I'd say that you're right, the TAM is a PM5500 in a special case. However, I'd also say that the PB3400 is, essentially, a PM5500 put into a laptop. The similarities are substantial.

Although, the other part of my point was that the case of the TAM is essentially a modified, unfolded, PB3400 case.

[howtoplaydead]

Originally posted by NusuniAdmin
TAM's were awsome. Pretty fast for those days. It was also the first mac to use lcd monitor technology. The only prob was is that is was old world mac rom tech. I wish they released it later and popped a g3 in that baby with new world rom junkies...but then again the first powermac g3 still used old world technology. But it was awsome, lots of extra video and sound goodies. If apple releases a 30'th anniversry mac (for apple's 30'th, not the macs) I hope it is just as cool. But instead of lcd tech it should be the first mac to use holigram technology :D. heheeheheh........Just imagen it....a 30'th anniversery mac with a G6 or G7 clocked at 5-6 ghz with a 2.5-3 ghz bus....ohhhhhh ya baby.....


The apple II used LCD, a very small calculator-like (like a nice graphing calc, ti-86 or 89 for ex) it was a wide 7or 9 inch monitor. And PBs had been around before the 20th, but it was nonetheless cool.

I hope that by 2007 we get beyond 6 ghz, my sights are set on a G7 quad 20Ghz with 20 Terrabytes of HD space and 15 gbs of ram. With a 1gb graphics card. bus: 10 gb

[NusuniAdmin]

sorry about the first lcd monitor thing, but i know the TAM had some new thing wit its monitor, i read it in a mac addict magazine a while back...if i can remember it i will post it up....GRRR WUT WUS IT!

[army_guy]

I remember those Genesis systems, they were real machines in those days (QUAD CPU) but let down by poor implemention.

[cruzing]

It was initially meant for an executive's desk and IMHO, it still looks spectacular. Yes, it was expensive and slow (even for its day) but Apple probably charged what it did just to break even. All that development cost with the Bose stereo, remote control and leather needs to be spread over a limited run. I paid just under $2k when they were blowing out the inventory and it was one of the best purchases I've ever made. Cheers, sccdlc

[windowsblowsass]

when imentioned thed tam 3 times with a picture onthe forums for a tenttieth aniversary mac no one responsded to ,me

[NusuniAdmin]

Originally posted by windowsblowsass
when imentioned thed tam 3 times with a picture onthe forums for a tenttieth aniversary mac no one responsded to ,me

First of all, get some typing lessions dude. I am 14 and I can type a heck of a lot better than you dude, and i also go on chat rooms for nearly 2 hours a day.

[Doctor Q]

Originally posted by NusuniAdmin
First of all, get some typing lessions dude. I am 14 and I can type a heck of a lot better than you dude, and i also go on chat rooms for nearly 2 hours a day. I thought of something funny. Traditonal typing classes and typing programs (oh, excuse me, they call it keyboarding) start you off on the home row, typing F-G-F and J-H-J over and over. Maybe, since so many kids do most of their typing in instant message windows or forums, they should start off with L-O-L and O-M-G instead!

[NusuniAdmin]

Originally posted by Doctor Q
I thought of something funny. Traditonal typing classes and typing programs (oh, excuse me, they call it keyboarding) start you off on the home row, typing F-G-F and J-H-J over and over. Maybe, since so many kids do most of their typing in instant message windows or forums, they should start off with L-O-L and O-M-G instead!

yes...i remember that class in 8'th grade, an EASY A+++++++. Its funny though, cause i am doing reports at least once a week and my english teacher says I have some of the best grammer in the class, which is very funny. I am in aim and junk a lot but I also do web design and programming, so i am not constantly typing L-O-L and O-M-G and S-T-F-U all the time. But seriously, that dude i made the comment about types like a 6 year old, o wait when I was 6 I typed better than that :D :p

[Snowy_River]

Originally posted by windowsblowsass
when imentioned thed tam 3 times with a picture onthe forums for a tenttieth aniversary mac no one responsded to ,me

Hi WBA,

Don't get too discouraged just because your posts don't draw attention sometimes. It happens to all of us, from time to time.

Originally posted by NusuniAdmin
First of all, get some typing lessions dude. I am 14 and I can type a heck of a lot better than you dude, and i also go on chat rooms for nearly 2 hours a day.

Hey, NA,

Give him a break. Not everyone is a great typist. Sometimes we post when we're really tired, and there are more typos.

Peace.

[whiskeybravo]

Originally posted by rog
An 800x600 screen was unbearable even in OS9.

Really?? Gee, I hope my Daughter doesn't read this and find out here 466 iBook running OSX is unbearable.

Sure, the X menu bars and some interface elements are a bit overscale at this resolution, but in OS9?? I don't think so. In fact, standard was pretty much still 7x4 on a 15" CRT at the time so 8x6 was, while not luxurious, very workable.

[sinisterdesign]

overpriced & underpowered or not, it's still a beautiful machine. look at the computer cases of the time. can anyone say "beige"??!? being a designer myself, i still think the design of this machine still holds up today does anyone remember the design firm? was it frog?). who else besides apple would have crammed all that stuff (cd, tv, speakers, lcd, etc) into a sexy little package like that, ESPECIALLY at the time?

bash it if you want, but i'm having a hard time keeping my finger of the "place bid" button....