Personal Computer System - Apple Macintosh Quadra 900, 1991

Summary

Computer system comprising two monitors, tower, graphics card, software and manuals.

At the time of its release, the Apple Macintosh Quadra 900 was a state of the art computer; it had significantly greater speed and memory capacity.

It was one of the first that could be used to create movies using QuickTime.

It was introduced in October 1991 and discontinued in May 1992. A second monitor could be added to facilitate viewing multiple pages of documents or multiple windows whilst working in graphics or video.

The Quadra 900 had sufficient capability to support advances made in digital video editing, for example, by the release, in December 1991, of Apple QuickTime and the Adobe Premiere professional digital video editor software.

The Quadra 900 gained a solid reputation as the preferred setup for video editing. Its price of about AUD$8000 was expensive for a personal computer.

By the end of 1991, video editing was brought to a broader group than high-end production houses. This was achieved through the Quadra and developments, such as the Apple QuickTime video format, Adobe Premiere and the availability of the Videospigot card. The card, plugged into the Quadra 900, allowed analogue to digital conversion of video direct from the camera.

Part of a representative collection of hardware, software, trade literature and promotional material that documents the history of the Apple company, and its contribution to, and impact on the computer industry and society.