PowerExpress on eBay!

[alk]

I have had an eBay alert running for years that shoots an email to me whenever a new prototype Apple machine gets posted to eBay.  A couple days ago, a PowerExpress prototype popped up.  It's a bit spendy, though, and it's local pickup only.  My guess is it won't sell.

Still, it's a very interesting machine.  It appears to have the complete video subsystem (both capture and output including the DSUB-14 Mac monitor output), though it's missing whatever goes in the VCI slot.  I can't tell from the pictures if the ROM SIM or L2 cache is installed - it's one of those.  It even has a engineering unit of the Goleta processor card.  Those things are even rarer than the PowerExpress machines themselves.

Link for your gawking pleasure.

 

[Carboy7]

Oh, that's Hap's listing!

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

That's the ROM DIMM. (says the guy with the empty slot. :-/ )

 

[olePigeon]

Has a prototype DVD drive, too.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Hopefully it'll go to a well heeled collector interested in getting it working again. But it'll probably wind up a dust collecting display piece for a STEVE JOBS!!!!!!! collector. It is an integral milestone in his checkered history within the Infinite Loopiness when all is said and done.

 

[Cory5412]

Hey alk! How have things been, etc?

I just saw the PeX listing myself. I remember years ago someone (CaptainZ?) had one, I forget if his ever ran, but I remember it got discussed from time to time.

If this one runs, it could be particularly interesting, perhaps more for the feedback on what that 275MHz CPU would have been like to use.

 

[MJ313]

Hopefully it'll go to a well heeled collector interested in getting it working again. 

It doesn't work? It has the dimm though.

 

[Trash80toHP_Mini]

Z hat the uber rare PEx prototype, the unobtanium Manhattan Desktop. Don't think he ever got it up and running though. Hap was going to ask his friend Jim Abeles(?) if he had one in his extensive collection. So far Z's is the only one known to be out in the wild AFAIK.

 

[Carboy7]

Apparently there was going to be a Desktop and a MiniTower option for the Manhattan. So there is probably a MiniTower Manhattan somewhere, but who knows?