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Apple-1 Prototype

In the process of designing the Apple-1, Steve Wozniak constructed the very first, �original� Apple-1 by hand, using a breadboard and manually connecting the wires from each pin to each other pin for every single chip on the board. In this way the design was debugged through to the point where a final schematic could be produced and then the PC boards designed and built according to that schematic.

In an entry posted on his Web Site, woz.org, Steve Wozniak responded to a question posed to him regarding the original Apple-1 as follows:

"I still have one or two Apple I's, fortunately, but I don't know if they are complete enough to work. I also probably have my original handwired breadboard."

I happened to come across that comment while searching for pictures and background info to complete the "real" Apple-1 in this collection. (A replica, obviously, since I built it.) Having built an actual hand wired computer myself at a point not too many years after the Apple-1 was built, and designed and built my own prototypes for add-ons, I immediately began picturing what a completely hand-wired Apple-1 would look like. Before long the bug had bit, and I knew I had to do it.

Someday I may find time to write an entire article about the construction of this system, but for now the pictures will have to speak for themselves... Please note that the sub-exhibits listed at the bottom of this page also contain many more pictures of the prototype, including actual video of the prototype in operation in the Hex Keypad Conversion exhibit.

Here's to you, Woz!

Image Gallery
NOTE: Images beginning with 100 and up are larger versions of the same numbered lower resolution images +100. Not all images appear in high resolution format.

000 Apple-1 Prototype Board (jpg, 236 KB)	001 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom (jpg, 390 KB)	002 Apple-1 Prototype (jpg, 279 KB)	003 Apple-1 Prototype Bottom (jpg, 314 KB)	004 Apple-1 Prototype Comparison (jpg, 278 KB)
005 Apple-1 Prototype Board Comparison (jpg, 473 KB)	006 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top (jpg, 295 KB)	007 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Left (jpg, 322 KB)	008 Apple-1 Prototype Board Left Edge (jpg, 233 KB)	009 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Rear (jpg, 314 KB)
010 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Right (jpg, 275 KB)	011 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom (jpg, 308 KB)	012 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Right Edge (jpg, 285 KB)	013 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Right Edge 2 (jpg, 313 KB)	014 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Angle 2 (jpg, 325 KB)
015 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom 2 (jpg, 395 KB)	016 Apple-1 Prototype Board Power Supply Close-up (jpg, 430 KB)	017 Apple-1 Prototype Board RAM Close-up (jpg, 410 KB)	018 Apple-1 Prototype Board CPU-PIO-ROM Close-up (jpg, 376 KB)	019 Apple-1 Prototype Board Video Section Close-up (jpg, 342 KB)
020 Apple-1 Prototype Power Supply (jpg, 263 KB)	021 Apple-1 Prototype Power Supply Detail (jpg, 222 KB)	022 Apple-1 Prototype Rear (jpg, 307 KB)	022 Apple-1 Prototype Top (jpg, 292 KB)	023 Apple-1 Prototype Side (jpg, 279 KB)
024 Apple-1 Prototype Front (jpg, 281 KB)	025 Apple-1 Prototype Front Edge (jpg, 266 KB)	026 Apple-1 Prototype Close-up 1 (jpg, 324 KB)	027 Apple-1 Prototype Close-up 2 (jpg, 302 KB)	028 Apple-1 Prototype Bottom Angle (jpg, 343 KB)
029 Actual Schematic Used During Construction (jpg, 214 KB)	030 Actual Schematic Used During Construction Back (jpg, 206 KB)	100 Apple-1 Prototype Board LG (jpg, 2.7 MB)	101 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom LG (jpg, 2.8 MB)	102 Apple-1 Prototype LG (jpg, 2.1 MB)
103 Apple-1 Prototype Bottom LG (jpg, 2.3 MB)	105 Apple-1 Prototype Board Comparison LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	106 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top LG (jpg, 2.3 MB)	107 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Left LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)	109 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Rear LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)
110 Apple-1 Prototype Board Top Right LG (jpg, 2.1 MB)	111 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom LG (jpg, 2.3 MB)	112 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Right Edge LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	113 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Right Edge 2 LG (jpg, 2.3 MB)	114 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom Angle 2 LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)
115 Apple-1 Prototype Board Bottom 2 LG (jpg, 2.8 MB)	116 Apple-1 Prototype Board Power Supply Close-up LG (jpg, 1.9 MB)	117 Apple-1 Prototype Board RAM Close-up LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)	118 Apple-1 Prototype Board CPU-PIO-ROM Close-up LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	119 Apple-1 Prototype Board Video Section Close-up LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)
120 Apple-1 Prototype Power Supply LG (jpg, 2.1 MB)	122 Apple-1 Prototype Rear LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	122 Apple-1 Prototype Top LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	123 Apple-1 Prototype Side LG (jpg, 2.1 MB)	124 Apple-1 Prototype Front LG (jpg, 2.0 MB)
126 Apple-1 Prototype Close-up 1 LG (jpg, 2.4 MB)	127 Apple-1 Prototype Close-up 2 LG (jpg, 2.2 MB)	128 Apple-1 Prototype Bottom Angle LG (jpg, 2.5 MB)	129 Actual Schematic Used During Construction LG (jpg, 1.8 MB)	130 Actual Schematic Used During Construction Back LG (jpg, 1.8 MB)