The story of Apple is full of innovative products and successful like the Mac or the iPhone. Some of them make their way, like the Apple Vision Pro, and others were eventually abandoned, like the iPod or Apple’s car project. Over the decades, Apple has released products of any type. They even had their own clothing line, a console and a camera. Today, we’re adding a new piece to that collection.
Apple VideoPhone, Apple’s webcam for video calls in 1996
In the mid-90s, webcams were not yet a consumer product among users as they are today. In fact, they still remain one A large part of the population had neither computers nor access to the Internet.. So, if few people had a webcam, there were few video calling applications. So much so that, for this reason, Apple called this product Apple videophone kit
Inside the Apple VideoPhone kit box you found the webcam itself and software with which it was possible to exchange documents while talking face to face with another person. Something we normally see today, but in 1996 It was for offices and very advanced people.since for its use It took two Macintoshes and two Apple videophones. In the event that one of the users did not have a Mac, communication was possible by installing the Netscape CoolTalk software, but video calling was disabled.
The minimum system requirements for the Apple VideoPhone were a Macintosh with a PowerPC processor, 16 MB of RAM, and macOS 7.5.3.
It was the Apple VideoPhone webcam
If we continue to see what the webcam looked like, we find a material widely used at the time: rigid beige plastic. The camera has a front lens, a power switch on one side, and a dial on the other. The camera keeps the lens covered until we press the power switch, which moves an internal tab.
On the back are the power connection, the image connection to the computer and a wheel to manage the iris or light input. As we see, the only Apple logo we found is at the bottom, in the frame of the serial number sticker. There is no screen printing or embossed logo.perhaps one of the few Apple products without a publicly recognizable logo. Even mice or keyboards have an Apple logo embossed on the back.
|
Focal distance |
6 mm |
|---|---|
|
focal aperture |
f/ 2.8 |
|
Approach |
Manual |
|
White balance |
Automatic |
|
Image resolution |
512 x 492 |
|
Video output |
standard RCA jack |
|
Weight |
200 grams |
|
Price |
280 dollars |
Very few people have purchased this Apple videophone kit, and It was one of the first products that Steve Jobs retired
This Reddit User Has a Real Vintage Apple Gem in His Home
Reddit is the place to find vintage Apple products and trivia, and that’s where Jaxermd decided to share his homemade find. Turns out, I’ve been holding onto this box for years. Now he’s discovered what he actually owns and purchased a second unit to try to make a conference. The next step is to find a compatible Mac, because your 1999 PowerMac G3 is not compatible.
These vintage products are not only collectibles, but also part of the history of vision and innovation that have characterized Apple over the years. Who knows, maybe the next technological “treasure” is waiting to be rediscovered in a corner of our homes.
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