The Macintosh SE/30 introduced a major performance upgrade to the “compact Mac” range with the 68030 processor, and upgrade from the 68000 processor in all earlier Macintosh models.
It could also support a massive 128MB RAM – a huge amount of memory back in 1989.
The Macintosh SE/30 carried forward a similar design to the Macintosh SE, however omitted the slot where a second floppy disk could be installed, as many SE/30s were equipped with internal hard disk drives.
An internal expansion slot on the board could support an additional piece of hardware to be installed inside the computer, such as a network card or graphics card to drive a second monitor.
This exhibit displays the following items:
- Macintosh SE/30 computer
- An all-in-one “classic” Macintosh design with styling carried forward from the Macintosh SE.
- Apple Extended Keyboard II
- The professional model keyboard featuring a full row of function keys, keypad, and number pad.
- Apple Desktop Bus Mouse
- The first major revision to the original Macintosh mouse which connected using Apple’s new ADB port.
- Apple Hard Disk 40SC
- An external SCSI hard disk drive with 40MB of storage.
- Apple Tape Backup Drive
- An external SCSI tape backup drive which was compatible with 40MB tape cartridges.
Noteworthy remarks:
- Apple’s naming convention at the time was to use “x” to denote use of the 68030 processor, eg. Macintosh IIx and Macintosh IIcx. However, it was considered inappropriate for this model, the improvement on the Macintosh SE, therefore it was named the SE/30.
- The Macintosh SE/30 is a highly desirable computer among collectors.
Working status:
In good working order, and presents as a good example of the “Platinum” colour case with not too much discolouration, however the Hard Drive 40SC and Tape Backup Drive are currently non-functioning.
Exploring the Macintosh SE/30:
- As this Macintosh features an internal hard disk drive, many software programs and games are installed and ready to be used.