Mac Plus retail box: was it for a beige or platinum model?

[Byrd]

Hi,

I'm building up my childhood Mac Plus with accelerator and internal SCSI, with packing boxes.

This is the box I have - can anyone please clarify was it for the beige or platinum model? Kind of hard to discern (the keyboard keycaps are kind of dark here over the light grey of platinum). There was a later box type that matched the Mac SE which was a two-colour cheaper box and presume for the Plantium Mac Plus.

I've some spares case of various shades and can't quite work out what went in here originally.

Thanks

JB

 

[envirogeek]

I believe that is the putty (beige) box.

I seem to remember the box went to a straight red apple with the platinum era packaging.

 

[s_pupp]

It looks like the box to my own beige Plus.

 

[Byrd]

Thanks all - you’re right. My confusion is because all beige Mac Pluses are now yellowed. And all platinum Mac Pluses are now beige! I think I’ll inspect the casings and stick to the one colour that’s the best condition.

 

[Scott Baret]

The serial number of your Plus is usually a pretty good indicator. If you've got one made sometime after very early 1987, it should be platinum. Note that the color of the key caps and mouse button also changed when the computers turned platinum.

 

[Byrd]

Spent a week fixing up Mac Pluses (x 4), which included sitting them outside to mingle in a moment of high heat and UV A and B in Aussie sun, thought I had 2 x beige and 2 x platinum.

Amusingly a "beige" Mac Plus clearly became platinum after a day! And the one beige Mac Plus doesn't budge to any lighter shade. I think it demonstrates the platinum plastic Apple used can yellow more easily (often to the point of no return, or heavy retrobrighting needed), while the putty beige plastic: once sun damaged you get what you get.