Did you know the Apple PowerBop? This is one of the first laptops designed by the Apple brand, the PowerBook, remodeled for the French telephone network.
Apple has sold several Mac models in its 48 years of existence. From the Macintosh to the PowerMac G4, the iMac G3 and the Mac Studio, there are several dozen iterations of powered computers. As for portable computers, Apple tried it in 1989, with the Macintosh Portable, which did not meet with real success.
In 1991, Apple tried the experiment again, with the PowerBook 100. It was a success and other models were released: PowerBook 100, PowerBook 140, PowerBook 170… and 180. Don’t try to understand what these mean. figures, we don’t know what they correspond to, except that the PowerBook 100 corresponded to the low end, the 140 to the mid-range and the 170 to the high end.
A high-end model dedicated to France
For its part, the PowerBook 180 was identical to the 170 but more powerful, with a Motorola 33MHz processor. Sold in the United States as a priority, Apple’s laptop was not compatible with the French Bi-Bop network, the very first cell phone technology created by France Telecom. It was not compatible, until 1993, and the PowerBop.
To give a boost to this very recent technology deployed in a handful of French cities, France Telecom is calling on Apple to offer a computer compatible with Bi-Bop. The Cupertino company then recovers PowerBook 160, 180 and 180c and equips them with a Bi-Bop antenna.
By bringing the PowerBop close to a France Telecom antenna in the street, the user can then send a fax, consult their Minitel… The first computer in history with a “wireless” connection has everything to be a real success in France, whether thanks to this technology, or thanks to its technical specifications.
An interesting technical sheet
9.5-inch grayscale LCD screen with a resolution of 640 by 400 pixels, Motorola 68030 processor clocked at 33MHz, 80MB storage… For the time, these were good laptops that Apple sold in France. If the PowerBook 160 and the PowerBook 180 only have a grayscale screen, the 180c offers a color LCD screen. The Bi-Bop modem allows you to reach a connection speed of 9,600 bits/s (or 1,200o/s).
Marketed during 1993, the PowerBop will be abandoned by Apple a few months later, at the end of 1994. To sell off the remaining stock, Apple will sell off unsold PowerBops in 1995. In total, 650 copies would have been produced by Apple, of which only part was sold. To sell the remaining models, Apple would have replaced the Bi-Bop antenna of the PowerBop with a floppy disk drive.
For its part, France Telecom will abandon the Bi-Bop network during 1996. Like the PowerBop, Bi-Bop mobile phones will only have sold hundreds of copies. The network will be abandoned in favor of the GSM network, then 3G, 4G and, finally, 5G.
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