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How’s this for some perspective? Check out the specs for the 1984 128k Mac desktop

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1984 mac desktop computer 128k specs cpu ram photo
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Have you moaned and groaned lately about how your Intel Core i5 processor just isn’t cutting it these days? What about complaining about your single graphics card setup, bemoaning the fact that your motherboard and/or case doesn’t support double and triple graphics card set ups. Well, let me tell you something sonny. When it comes to computer specs, you don’t know how to appreciate anything!

But seriously, on a day like today, which just happens to be the 30th birthday of the original Mac desktop computer, we thought it’d be kinda cool to take a look at the specs of the original Mac. Not only is it interesting to see what cutting edge computer specs meant 30 years ago, but we thought it might offer for some fascinating perspective.

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iFixIt actually tore down the original Mac, and listed the steps it took to do so, along with the original specs. So what did the original Mac run on?

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Motorola, which these days is more known for Droid smartphones than anything, made the processor. The Mac blazed through programs on a Motorola 68000 processor clocked at a whopping 8 MHz. The processors found in modern smartphones make a mockery of that, nevermind PCs and current Macs.

What about RAM? The 1984 Mac had 128 kilobytes of RAM. My college PC had 1GB of RAM, and I stopped using that thing about 5 years ago. My current rig has 16GB of RAM, while most notebooks usually ship with 4GB or 8GB or RAM. As for storage, the original Mac had 400 kilobytes of storage via 3.5 floppy disks. Thats enough for two or three low-resolution photos these days. Minesweeper probably takes up more space than the original Mac had. The computing world has retired floppy drives long ago.

Finally, there’s the monitor. While we debate the merits of 4k laptops, desktop monitors and TVs, 30 years ago, people were getting by on 9-inch black and white screens with a resolution of 512 x 342, which is what the 1984 Mac was packing. Think a 9-inch desktop monitor would cut it for you today?

Never forget where you came from people. The next time you complain about how you need to get a new 1080p monitor so you can have a triple display setup, just think of what the latest and greatest in computing was when Ronald Reagan was president, and the Cold War was still being waged.

What do you think? Sound off in the comments below.

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Konrad Krawczyk
Konrad Krawczyk
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Konrad covers desktops, laptops, tablets, sports tech and subjects in between for Digital Trends. Prior to joining DT, he…
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