Power Macintosh

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Power Macintosh, or Power Mac, is the name of a line of Apple Macintosh personal computers based on various models of PowerPC microprocessors. Apple Computer produced the first Power Macs in 1994, starting with the Power Macintosh 6100, which offered speeds of 60 and 66 MHz. All previous models had been based on the Motorola 68000 ("68k") series of processors. The ROM and Mac OS operating system released with the new Power Mac machines included an emulator to enable programs written for Motorola 68k series CPUs, including nearly all prior Mac software, to run without changes. As the Power Mac was originally intended to be a part of the high end of Apple's product line, for a number of years the company continued to offer less expensive 68k-based computers alongside the more expensive Power Mac lineup. In 1996, Apple discontinued the Macintosh LC 580 (released in 1995), the last remaining desktop model of the 68k-based Macintosh line. All subsequent Macintosh computers would be based on PowerPC processors.

All Power Macs prior to 1997 used PowerPC 60x-series processors. In 1997 the first third-generation ("G3") Power Macintosh was introduced, using the PowerPC 750 processor. From this model onward, Apple no longer used a numbering scheme to identify their Power Mac models, but instead referred to them by their PowerPC processor generation number (i.e. G3, G4, and G5). Later models based on the same generation of PowerPC processor relied on descriptive characteristics to differentiate them, e.g. the color scheme ("Power Macintosh G3 – Blue and White") or a technical feature of a particular model ("Power Macintosh G4 – Gigabit Ethernet"). This same identification scheme was used in the iMac, PowerBook, and iBook lines of Macintosh computers.

Currently, the Power Macintosh name is used with Apple's high-end tower style Macintosh Models, targeted primarily at businesses and universities. These are usually equipped with Apple's newest technologies, and command the highest prices among Apple desktop models. Some G4 and G5 Power Macintosh models are available in dual-processor configurations.

The following are recent and current Power Macintosh lines:

Other current and past Macintosh lines have used PowerPC processors including the Macintosh Performa, iMac, iBook, and PowerBook 5300 and later models.

Power Macintosh

See also