I Got the Power(Book)

Charlotte Henry looks back at the PowerBook, the groundbreaking product that launched Apple into the laptop market

- Charlotte Henry

THE POWERBOOK 100 series of portable computers from Apple was launched in October 1999. Unlike its predecessor, the Mac Portable, the PowerBook was (relatively) lightweight, and easy to carry, with the team behind it, reportedly determined to keep the weight to under 8lb. It came in three versions: the 100, 140, and 170. They all had an eyecatching trackball built-in, a feature then not offered by PC rivals. Only the top-end 170 models had an active-matrix display.