Apple III

Apple III

Apple III was a business-oriented personal computer produced and released by Apple Computer in 1980. It was intended as the successor to the highly successful Apple II series but faced numerous technical and marketing problems during its lifespan, leading to a commercial failure compared to its predecessor.

Development

The development of the Apple III started in the late 1970s as a project to create a more powerful and sophisticated computer aimed at the business market. It was designed to offer more advanced features than the Apple II, including a higher resolution monochrome monitor, a built-in disk drive, and more memory. The system was powered by a Synertek 6502A processor, running at a higher clock speed than the one used in the Apple II.

Release and Reception

The Apple III was officially released in May 1980. Despite its advanced features, the launch was plagued by significant problems. Early units were affected by overheating issues, which could cause the motherboard to warp and chips to become unseated from the board. This led to a high rate of failure and a recall that damaged the product's reputation among its target business audience.

The initial reception from the market and critics was mixed. While some praised the Apple III for its innovations and potential in business applications, many were deterred by its high price point and the reliability issues that became widely publicized. The computer's compatibility with Apple II software was also limited, which further hindered its adoption.

Technical Specifications

• Processor: Synertek 6502A, running at 2 MHz
• Memory: 128 KB RAM, expandable to 512 KB
• Storage: Built-in 140 KB floppy disk drive
• Display: 560x192 monochrome graphics
• Operating System: Sophisticated Operating System (SOS)

Legacy

Despite its commercial failure, the Apple III had a lasting impact on the development of future Apple products. Lessons learned from its design and marketing challenges informed the development of the Apple Lisa and the Macintosh, both of which were more successful in targeting the business market. The Apple III was eventually discontinued in 1984, following the release of the Apple III Plus, an improved version with better reliability but still unable to overcome the original model's tarnished reputation.

The Apple III is now considered a collector's item, with enthusiasts and historians interested in its history as part of Apple's early efforts to break into the business computing market.