Power Macintosh 7200

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Power Macintosh 7200
Beige box with a floppy and CD drive
A Power Macintosh 7200/90
Also known as"Catalyst"[1]
DeveloperApple Computer
Product familyPower Macintosh, Workgroup Server
Release dateAugust 8, 1995 (1995-08-08)
Introductory priceUS$1,700 (equivalent to $3,399 in 2023)
DiscontinuedFebruary 17, 1997 (1997-02-17)
Operating systemSystem 7.5.2 - Mac OS 9.1
CPUPowerPC 601 @ 75–120 MHz
Memory8 MB, expandable to 512 MB (70 ns 168-pin DIMM)
DimensionsHeight: 6.15 inches (15.6 cm)
Width: 14.37 inches (36.5 cm)
Depth: 16.93 inches (43.0 cm)
Mass22 pounds (10.0 kg)
PredecessorPower Macintosh 7100
SuccessorPower Macintosh 7300

The Power Macintosh 7200 (and Power Macintosh 8200 tower based variant which was available alongside the 7200 in Europe) is a personal computer designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Computer from August 1995 to February 1997. The 90 MHz model was sold in Japan as the Power Macintosh 7215, and the 120 MHz model with bundled server software as the Apple Workgroup Server 7250. When sold as the 8200, it used the Quadra 800/Power Mac 8100's mini-tower form factor.

The 7200 was introduced alongside the Power Macintosh 7500 and 8500 at the 1995 MacWorld Expo in Boston.[2] Apple referred to these machines collectively as the "Power Surge" line, communicating that this second generation of PowerPC machines offered a significant speed improvement over their predecessors. Introduced as a successor to the Power Macintosh 7100, the 7200 represents the low end of this generation of Power Macintosh,[1] which replaced NuBus with PCI. It shares the 7500's "Outrigger" case. At launch, the 7200 was available with processor speeds of 75 and 90 MHz, with the slower model being replaced by a 120 MHz CPU in February 1996. The 120 MHz model was also available in a "PC compatible" variant, which came with a PCI card that allowed the computer to run Microsoft Windows and other PC operating systems. The card featured a 100 MHz Pentium processor.

The Power Macintosh 7300 replaced the 7200 in February 1997.

Upgrades[edit]

Unlike other Power Macintosh machines of the time, the CPU is soldered to the motherboard instead of on a daughterboard. This presented a challenge for users who wanted to upgrade to a faster processor. At the time of its introduction, Apple promised an inexpensive logic board upgrade to the 7500, but due to high demand for the 7500, this never materialized. When the upgrade was finally made available, it was to the follow-on model, the Power Macintosh 7600, and came in the form of a complete logic board replacement.[3] The base price was $1,300 and upgraded the system to a 120 MHz CPU, but did not include L2 cache.

The 7200's CPU was considered otherwise impossible to upgrade until, over three years after the 7200 was discontinued, Sonnet eventually produced an G3 upgrade card for the PCI slots.[4]

Models[edit]

A Power Macintosh 8200, the 7200 in a Quadra 800 case

Introduced August 8, 1995:

  • Power Macintosh 7200/75[5]
  • Power Macintosh 7200/90[6]

Introduced January 11, 1996:

  • Power Macintosh 7215/90[7]

Introduced February 26, 1996:

  • Workgroup Server 7250/120[8]

Introduced April 22, 1996:

  • Power Macintosh 7200/120[9]
  • Power Macintosh 7200/120 PC Compatible[10]
  • Power Macintosh 8200/100[11]
  • Power Macintosh 8200/120[12]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b Pogue, David; Schorr, Joseph (1999). "Chapter 13: The PowerPC Macs, Model by Model". MacWorld Mac Secrets, 5th Edition. IDG Books. pp. 517 - 519. ISBN 0-7645-4040-8.
  2. ^ Epler, Anita (August 7, 1995). "Apple's PCI risk". InfoWorld Magazine. Vol. 17, no. 32. pp. 1, 80.
  3. ^ Shatz-Akin, Jim (July 1996). "Power Takes the Lead - Upgrade Pit Stop". MacUser. Archived from the original on 2001-02-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ "Sonnet Technologies Crescendo G3 7200 400/512k (1M) Specs @ EveryMac.com". Archived from the original on 2013-05-18. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
  5. ^ "Power Macintosh 7200/75: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  6. ^ "Power Macintosh 7200/90: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  7. ^ "Power Macintosh 7215/90: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  8. ^ "Workgroup Server 7250/120: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-10-04.
  9. ^ "Power Macintosh 7200/120: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2012-07-29. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  10. ^ "Power Macintosh 7200/120 PC Compatible: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2015-02-01. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  11. ^ "Power Macintosh 8200/100: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2009-05-15. Retrieved 2017-09-22.
  12. ^ "Power Macintosh 8200/120: Technical Specifications". Apple. Archived from the original on 2022-09-26. Retrieved 2017-09-22.

External links[edit]

  • Official Power Macintosh 7200/120 page (1996) 7200/120
  • Official Power Macintosh 7200/120 (PC Compatible) page (1996) 7200/120 PC
Timeline of Power Macintosh, Pro, and Studio models
Mac ProMac StudioMac ProMac StudioMac ProMac ProMac ProPower Mac G5Power Mac G5Power Mac G4Power Mac G5Power Mac G4Power Mac G4 CubePower Mac G4Power Macintosh G3#Blue and WhitePower Macintosh 9600Power Macintosh G3Power Macintosh 8600Power Macintosh 9500Power Macintosh 8500Power Macintosh 8100Power Macintosh G3Power Macintosh 7600Power Macintosh 7300Power Macintosh 4400Power Macintosh 7500Power Macintosh 7200Power Macintosh 7100Power Macintosh 6500Power Macintosh 6400Power Macintosh 6200Power Macintosh 6100Power Macintosh G3Twentieth Anniversary MacintoshPower Macintosh 5500Power Macintosh 5400Power Macintosh 5260Power Macintosh 5200 LC
Timeline of Macintosh servers
Mac transition to Apple siliconCascade Lake (microprocessor)Ivy Bridge (microarchitecture)Westmere (microprocessor)Nehalem (microarchitecture)Harpertown (microprocessor)Apple Intel transitionPowerPC 970PowerPC G4PowerPC 7xxPowerPC 600Motorola 68040Mac Pro#Mac Pro ServerMac Mini#Mac Mini ServerMac Pro#Mac Pro ServerMac Mini#Mac Mini ServerApple Macintosh Server G4Apple Macintosh Server G4Apple Macintosh Server G4Apple Macintosh Server G4Apple Macintosh Server G3Apple Macintosh Server G3Apple Workgroup Server 9650Apple Workgroup Server 7350Apple Workgroup Server 8550Apple Workgroup Server 7250Apple Workgroup Server 9150Apple Workgroup Server 8150Apple Workgroup Server 6150Intel XserveXserve G5 Cluster NodeXserve G5XserveXserveXserveApple Network Server 700Apple Network Server 700Apple Network Server 500Apple Workgroup Server 60Apple Workgroup Server 95Apple Workgroup Server 80