The Power Macintosh 8600 is a
personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or te ...
designed, manufactured, and sold by
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company ...
from February 1997 to February 1998. It was introduced alongside the
Power Macintosh 7300
The Power Macintosh 7300 (also sold with server software as the Apple Workgroup Server 7350) is a personal computer designed, manufactured and sold by Apple Computer from February 1997 to November 1997. It was introduced with 166, 180 and 200&n ...
and
9600 with a
PowerPC 604e The PowerPC 600 family was the first family of PowerPC processors built. They were designed at the Somerset facility in Austin, Texas, jointly funded and staffed by engineers from IBM and Motorola as a part of the AIM alliance. Somerset was opened ...
processor, and comes in a new case design that replaces the widely-disliked
-based form factor of its predecessor, the
Power Macintosh 8500.
Like the 7300 and 9600, the 8600 featured the new
PowerPC 604e The PowerPC 600 family was the first family of PowerPC processors built. They were designed at the Somerset facility in Austin, Texas, jointly funded and staffed by engineers from IBM and Motorola as a part of the AIM alliance. Somerset was opened ...
and 604ev CPU, an enhanced version of the
PowerPC 604 used in the predecessor models 8500 and
9500. It used the same new case as the 9600, but was somewhat less expandable (8 instead of 12 RAM sockets, 3 instead of 6 PCI slots) at a lower price, a distinction that was carried over from the previous generation. It includes advanced Audio-Video ports including RCA audio in and out, S-Video in and out and composite video in and out. The 8600 was plagued with supply problems from the beginning, and only in June 1997, four months after its introduction, was the computer widely available. The 300 MHz model was also delayed after its introduction, but not as heavily as the original model had been.
In August 1997, the original model was replaced with two faster ones, at 250 and 300 MHz,
and the 8600 was discontinued in February 1998, a few months after the introduction of its replacement, the
Power Macintosh G3 Mini Tower.
Models
Introduced February 17, 1997:
* Power Macintosh 8600/200: Includes System 7.5.5.
Introduced August 5, 1997:
* Power Macintosh 8600/250: Includes Mac OS 7.6.1.
* Power Macintosh 8600/300:
Includes Mac OS 7.6.1.
Timeline
References
External links
Power Macintosh 8600at Low End Mac
* Power Macintos
an
at EveryMac.com
{{Apple hardware before 1998
8600
8600
Macintosh towers
Computer-related introductions in 1997