The PowerBook 160 is a

portable computer A portable computer is a computer designed to be easily moved from one place to another and included a display and keyboard together, with a single plug, much like later desktop computers called '' all-in-ones'' (AIO), that integrate the ...

that was released by

Apple Computer Apple Inc. is an American multinational technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, United States. Apple is the largest technology company by revenue (totaling in 2021) and, as of June 2022, is the world's biggest company ...

along with the

PowerBook 180 The PowerBook 180 is a portable computer released by Apple Computer along with the PowerBook 160 in October 1992. At the time, it constituted the new top-of-the-range model, replacing the previous PowerBook 170. Its case design and features a ...

on October 19, 1992 and the PowerBook 165 variants were released the following year. At the time, it constituted the mid-range model replacing the previous PowerBook 140 in processing power. The PowerBook 160 was sold until August 16, 1993.

Basic features

Its case design is the same as that of the

, but it shipped with the less powerful 25 MHz

Motorola 68030 The Motorola 68030 ("''sixty-eight-oh-thirty''") is a 32-bit microprocessor in the Motorola 68000 family. It was released in 1987. The 68030 was the successor to the Motorola 68020, and was followed by the Motorola 68040. In keeping with general ...

CPU and no FPU, identically to the low-end 145. However, the PowerBook 160 came with a (diagonal) passive matrix

LCD screen A liquid-crystal display (LCD) is a flat-panel display or other electronically modulated optical device that uses the light-modulating properties of liquid crystals combined with polarizers. Liquid crystals do not emit light directly but i ...

, which for the first time was capable of displaying 4-bit

grayscale In digital photography, computer-generated imagery, and colorimetry, a grayscale image is one in which the value of each pixel is a single sample representing only an ''amount'' of light; that is, it carries only intensity information. Graysc ...

. The 160 and the 180 were the first PowerBooks to add an external color video port like the

Macintosh Portable Macintosh Portable is a laptop designed, manufactured, and sold by Apple Computer, Inc. from September 1989 to October 1991. It is the first battery-powered Macintosh, which garnered significant excitement from critics, but sales to customers ...

before it, as well as increasing the maximum RAM to 14 MB. Both PowerBooks introduced a new power saving feature which allowed their processors to run at a slower 16 MHz rate, the same speed as the original 140. The PowerBook 160 had a 40MB SCSI hard disk drive, configurable to 80 or 120MB.

PowerBook 165 (August 1993 – July 1994)

The 165, which was introduced on August 16, 1993, added a 33 MHz processor and larger standard hard drive. Along with the PowerBook 145B, this would be the last of the true 100 series PowerBooks and the last Apple laptop to include two serial (printer and modem) ports. After the 165 was discontinued on July 18, 1994, its entry level descendant, the PowerBook 150, would continue to be sold until October 14, 1995, and though it used the 140 case design, its internals were actually based on the

PowerBook Duo The PowerBook Duo is a line of subnotebooks manufactured and sold by Apple Computer from 1992 until 1997 as a more compact companion to the PowerBook line. Improving upon the PowerBook 100's portability (its immediate predecessor and Apple's th ...

and

PowerBook 190 The PowerBook 190 and its companion PowerBook 190cs are laptop computers manufactured by Apple Computer as part of their PowerBook brand, introduced to the market in August 1995. The two models differ only in their screen: the 190 had a 9.5" g ...

, a 100-series PowerBook in name only as it used the

PowerBook 5300 The PowerBook 5300 is the first generation of PowerBook laptops manufactured by Apple Computer to use the PowerPC processor. Released in August 1995, these PowerBooks were notable for being the first to feature hot-swappable expansion mod ...

's motherboard and case as well.

PowerBook 165c (February – December 1993)

Introduced on February 10, 1993, the 165c (pictured) was identical to the 165, except that it included a

68882 The Motorola 68881 and Motorola 68882 are floating-point units (FPUs) used in some computer systems in conjunction with Motorola's 32-bit 68020 or 68030 microprocessors. These coprocessors are external chips, designed before floating point math b ...

FPU and had a passive matrix color LCD capable of displaying 256 colors. It was Apple's first PowerBook with a color display. As a result of the thicker color display, the exterior case lid was redesigned, more closely resembling that used on the

series. The PowerBook 180c used the same case modification.The 165c was discontinued on December 13, 1993.

Specifications

Timeline

References

{{Apple hardware before 1998 180 68k Macintosh computers