Starting in November 1994, Apple transitioned the Performa line to use the PowerPC processor. This took some time and started some eight months after the first Power Macintosh models were announced, but as covered at great length in this series, Performas were all rebadged Macs from other lines, so it was inevitable that they’d get the PowerPC treatment at some point.
With that said, let’s walk through this processor transition through the lens of a bunch of beige Macs. If you want to learn more about why Apple moved to PowerPC, I recommend this excellent article on the subject.
As you will see, this transition took some time. This ad aired as Apple was selling both 68K and PowerPC Performas:
Performa 6100 Series
The first PowerPC Performa was actually six Performas:
This machine was based on the Power Macintosh 6100 and used its enclosure. It was a lower, wider case than the 68k-based Performa 600 series. This design was first used on the Centris Quadra 610, which launched in early 1993. There were Quadra and Power Macintosh versions. Here’s my less-than-stellar example of the latter:
When you’re looking at the names of old Macs, it’s important to note the number of …well… numbers in the name. If the model name ends in a 3-digit number, it’s a 68k Mac, while four digits means you’re reading about a PowerPC-based Mac.
Being based on a PowerPC 601, each of these models came equipped with an FPU, which wasn’t true of a bunch of 68K Performas. Storage across the 6100 Series ranged from 250 up to 700 MB, with a 2x CD-ROM drive and 1.44 MB floppy drive standard across the board. Each Performa 6100 Series came with 8 MB of RAM from the factory but had a 72 MB ceiling for upgrades, at least officially. (136 MB worked fine once SIMMs large enough were available on the market.)
Some earlier models came with a comms slot for a modem or Ethernet to be added. The 6100 Series instead came with an AAUI-15 port for use with an external Ethernet adapter. A modem was available via the GeoPort, as David Morgenstern wrote in MacWEEK in 1994:
Apple rolls its entry-level systems on board the PowerPC bandwagon as it debuts five 601-based Performas this week. The Performa 6100 series is based on the 60-MHz Power Mac 6100/60. Each model in the line comes with an internal CD-ROM drive, a 15-inch display with built-in stereo speakers, a modem, a unidirectional microphone and a keyboard.
The Performa packages include a special version of Global Village Communication Inc.’s new $155 TelePort/Gold II 14.4-Kbps fax and data modem. The modem uses a single cable connected to the Performa 6100 series’ GeoPort-compatible serial port for both power and data.
He went on:
Each of the new Performas will come with 8 Mbytes of RAM but will vary in their hard drive configurations or software bundles.
Both the Performa 6110CD and 6112CD have 250-Mbyte hard drives and street prices between $2,600 and $2,650, Apple said. The 6110CD will be sold in consumer electronics stores and will include ClarisWorks 2.1, Intuit Inc.’s Quicken 4.0, Now Software Inc.’s Now Up-to-Date 2.1.1, a dictionary, a file-translator set, clip art and game software. Six CD-ROM titles, including Grolier’s Multimedia Encyclopedia, 1994 Time Almanac, an atlas and a home medical reference, will come with the 6110CD.
Sold in office product superstores, the Performa 6112CD will come with Microsoft Works 4.0a, Quicken, a dictionary, file translators, a typing tutor, and educational and game programs. Eight CD-ROMs, including Grolier’s Multimedia Encyclopedia, the Time Almanac and children’s games, will ship with the 6112CD.
The Performa 6115CD and 6117CD each ship with a 350-Mbyte drive. Apple said it expects prices to range from $2,700 to $2,750.
The Performa 6115CD will be offered in computer superstores and through higher-education resellers. The software includes ClarisWorks, Quicken, Now Up-to-Date, Now Contact 1.1, a dictionary, clip art, file translators, games and a CD-ROM set similar to the 6110 bundle.
Sold in selected warehouse stores, the Performa 6117CD will include ClarisWorks, Quicken, Now Up-to-Date, a dictionary, file translators and games; its eight CD-ROMs are similar to the 6112 package. Also available in warehouse stores is the $2,800 to $3,000 Performa 6118CD with a 500-Mbyte hard drive. The software bundle is similar to the 6117CD.
Even at the time, it was hard to write about the Performa line without using a lot of words.
The 6100 Series ran a standard version System 7.5, not the weirdo “P” versions that earlier machines ran. Not only did this simplify things for Apple, but it meant some features that had been Performa-specific were folded into the mainstream release of System 7. The primary example was Launcher, which was a customizable user interface for quick access to saved applications, documents, and more:
Performa 5200 Series
In the summer of 1995, Apple launched the second batch of PowerPC-based Performas:
The Performa 5200 Series was powered by a 75 MHz PowerPC 603, but to save on costs, the board shipped with a 32-bit memory bus, slowing everything down, not unlike the LC’s combination of a 32-bit CPU and 16-bit bus earlier in the 90s.
(This mistake was repeated on the 6200, and we’ll get back to it in a moment.)
Like previous Performas, the model numbers mostly relate to various default storage sizes, which topped out at 1 GB. All but the base model shipped with a 4X CD-ROM drive.
It also came in the same new case that Apple debuted with the Power Macintosh 5200/75 LC.
Thanks to the magic of eBay, I happen to have one such machine. It was for sale “For Parts,” and it sounds like something is very broken deep inside its beige plastic case.
The entire machine could be tilted forward or back on its plastic foot, a feature not found on previous all-in-one Macs.
For good measure, here’s a photo of the machine, straight from the archives of Apple PR:
This case design was dubbed “Bongo” and was an evolved version of the “Hook” design that was used in the 500 line. Adrian Mell wrote this about the design in Macworld:
The all-in-one design exhibits a lot of the same spirit that Apple vested in the original Macintosh. A deceptive minimalism belies this machine’s utility and value. Apple has again figured out how to package a full-featured computer into the simplest possible shape.
Its predecessors, which include the Performa 520, 550, 575 and now 580, all offer good functionality and value, but they lack the 5200’s design integrity. In comparison, their efforts to mimic the appearance of a conventional three-piece desktop computer just made them look clumsy.
I honestly don’t know where I fall on this debate. On one hand, the 5200 is much less busy looking than the old 500 series, but something about the 5200’s design is too bulbous for me from some angles.
To help meet the desired costs — and to fit in the shallower case — Apple dropped the beloved Sony Trinitron CRT in favor of a lesser CRT with a more rounded front from LG.
People were not a fan of that move.
Performa 6200 Series
When the 5200 line came out in May 1995, the 6100 was upgraded to the 6200. The change replaced the 6100’s 60 MHz PowerPC 601 with two options: a 75 MHz PowerPC 603 or a 100 MHz PowerPC 603e.
This line of Performa has a bit of a reputation:
Part of this was due to a batch of faulty CPUs, as reported by Andrew Gore for MacWEEK:
If you’re going to eat crow, you might as well take big bites.
That seems to be Apple’s philosophy with the announcement this week of another problem with a shipping Macintosh. However, unlike the PowerBook lithium-ion batteries, which caused the recall of the 5300 series,1 this time the problem affects only a very small number of systems.
Specifically, 0.1 percent of LC and Performa 6200 and 5200 machines shipped since July have defective 603 CPUs. The problem is so subtle that it is noticeable only when doing certain floating-point instructions in a certain sequence, which results in calculation errors.
“It sounds like the Pentium [math problem],2 but the difference is that with the Pentium it was a design flaw in the chip,” said Bruce Gee, product line manager for entry Mac systems. “This is just a manufacturing flaw.” Gee added that Apple has taken steps to make sure none of the systems shipping today have flawed chips.
Performa and LC users can find out if they have the faulty chip by running the 52xx/62xx Diagnostics Utility, which Apple made available on major on-line services and its FTP sites last week. Customers can also call (800) 785-7371 to get the utility and, if necessary, arrange for a replacement logic board.
The Final 68K Performas
Despite the launch of the machines described above, two final 68K Performas made it out the door in the spring of 1995: the 580CD and 588CD.
These machines shipped without the Sony Trinitron, and were powered by a 33 MHz 68LC040, so there was no FPU included. Storage options included a 250 and 500 MB IDE-based hard drives. Like some earlier models, they could be outfitted with Apple’s TV tuner card.
A DIY Upgrade
If you had a 68K Performa and wanted a PowerPC, there was an official way to do so from Apple, as Daniel Knight covered on LowEndMac:
The Apple Power Mac Processor Upgrade (APMPU) is a PowerPC 601 upgrade for 68040-based Macs that have a 32-bit LC processor direct slot (PDS) – the Quadra 605/LC 475/Performa 475-476, LC 575/Performa 575-578, LC 580/Performa 580-588, and Quadra 630/LC 630/Performa 630 series.
The APMPU has a 66 MHz PowerPC 601 processor, which operates at twice the clock speed of the 68040 processor installed in the computer being upgraded.
Although this upgrade is specified for 68040-based Macs with LC PDS, the upgrade does not plug into the PDS. In fact, due to the size of the upgrade card, the processor direct slot cannot be used with the PPC upgrade card, very much limiting expansion options.
This upgrade is not compatible with the 040 PDS in the Centris line, the Quadra 610, or the Quadra 650-950. These models work with the Apple Power Mac Upgrade Card and equivalents from DayStar and Sonnet.
Turns out the APMPU itself was built by DayStar, which sold a version of the card under a different (and better) name: the PowerCard 601:
Take a Breath
I did not expect to write nearly 2,000 words on the Performa’s transition to the PowerPC chip, but here we are. Next time, we’ll be looking at the next batch of updates to come to the Performa line.
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- The PowerBook 5300 story is a wild one. ↩
- This one was new to me. ↩