???? – 1994retired
Macintosh LC 500 series
“It bulged so your classroom didn't have to.”
“It spoke, listened, and played video before it was cool — then gracefully stepped aside.”
The Macintosh Quadra 840AV was Apple's mini-tower powerhouse, sold from July 1993 to July 1994, with the AV standing for audiovisual: video input and output, telecommunications, speech recognition, and enhanced audio. Introduced alongside the Centris 660AV, it packed a faster Motorola 68040 processor on a logic board all its own. For anyone who wanted their computer to see, hear, and talk back, this was the machine.
Its retirement came swiftly: Apple discontinued the 840AV shortly after introducing the PowerPC-based Power Macintosh, with the 8100/80AV offering the same functionality in the same form factor — albeit at a significantly higher price. The comparably priced 7100/66AV arrived in a IIvx-style desktop case instead. A short life, but the speech recognition and video tricks it pioneered found eager successors.
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“It bulged so your classroom didn't have to.”
“Twice the speed, $700 less — it left before the students even noticed.”
“One machine, four names, four feet, and no case screw — Apple's cheapest way in never had to shout.”