The PowerBook 1400 was a notebook computer designed and sold by Apple Computer

Apple Computer

Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...

 (now Apple Inc.) from 1996 to 1998 as part of their PowerBook

PowerBook

The PowerBook was a line of Macintosh laptop computers that was designed, manufactured and sold by Apple Computer, Inc. from 1991 to 2006. During its lifetime, the PowerBook went through several major revisions and redesigns, often being the first to incorporate features that would later become...

 series of Macintosh computers. Introduced in November 1996 at a starting price of $2499, it was the first new PowerBook since the controversial PowerBook 5300

PowerBook 5300

The PowerBook 5300 series was 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 modules for a variety of different units such as ZIP...

. After the introduction of the more powerful PowerBook 3400 in February 1997, the 1400 took on the role of Apple's entry level notebook and remained there until its discontinuation in May 1998. Its successor, the PowerBook G3 Series (ie - "Wallstreet"/"Mainstreet") would ultimately go on to replace and consolidate not only the 1400, but the 2400 and 3400 as well.

Throughout its 18-months on the market, the PowerBook 1400 came available in a number of different configurations. Originally released with a 117MHz PowerPC 603e processor, a 133MHz processor was added in July 1997, and the line topped out with a 166MHz processor the following December. Each version was available as either a "c" or a "cs" model and were differentiated largely by type of LCD technology used. While both models came with 11.3" color displays with 800x600 resolutions, the pricier 1400c came equipped with an active matrix

Active matrix

Active matrix is a type of addressing scheme used in flat panel displays. The term describes a method of switching individual elements of a flat panel display, using a CdSe or Silicon-based thin-film transistor for each pixel...

 display and the 1400cs came with a less expensive passive matrix, dual-scan display.

The PowerBook 1400 was notable for being the first notebook computer to come available with a built-in optical drive. The optional 6x CD-ROM was implemented using a sleep-swappable module system similar to the one pioneered by the PowerBook 5300; other modules included a Zip drive

Zip drive

The Zip drive is a medium-capacity removable disk storage system that was introduced by Iomega in late 1994. Originally, Zip disks launched with capacities of 100 MB, but later versions increased this to first 250 MB and then 750 MB....

 and the standard 1.4MB floppy (an 8x CD-ROM would eventually become standard on the 133MHz model). A pioneering feature of the 1400 was the "BookCover" laptop skin

Laptop skin

A laptop skin is a precision-cut vinyl adhesive material, usually with some design, photograph, or other image, designed for application to the outside of a laptop, usually on the back of the LCD screen....

 which allowed owners the opportunity to give their PowerBook a customized look. Every 1400 shipped with a gray cover, a clear cover, and six inserts; a ClarisWorks template was also included as an "extra" on the system restore CD, from which users could design their own BookCover. The 1400 was easily upgradeable. System memory could be "piggy-backed" onto each other (another feature unique to the 1400), allowing for the use of additional RAM chips. The CPU was located on a removable daughter card and could be replaced with one containing a faster processor, including a number of commercially available cards with PowerPC G3

PowerPC G3

The PowerPC 7xx is a family of third generation 32-bit PowerPC microprocessors designed and manufactured by IBM and Motorola . This family is called the PowerPC G3 by its well-known customer Apple Computer...

 processors from vendors such as Sonnet Technologies, NewerTech, and Vimage. Aside from its two PC Card

PC Card

In computing, PC Card is the form factor of a peripheral interface designed for laptop computers. The PC Card standard was defined and developed by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association which itself was created by a number of computer industry companies in the United States...

 slots, the 1400 also included an internal expansion slot. Although few applications were ever developed to utilize it, Apple did release their own branded video card which included an increased amount of VRAM and an external video port. Other devices included a third-party video card, as well as a relatively rare Ethernet networking card.

There are several well known issues concerning the PowerBook 1400. Like all other PowerBooks prior to the PowerBook G4

PowerBook G4

The PowerBook G4 are a series of notebook computers that were manufactured, marketed, and sold by Apple, Inc. between 2001 and 2006 as part of its PowerBook line. It uses the PowerPC G4 processor, initially produced by Motorola and later by Freescale, after Motorola spun off its semiconductor...

, the drive controller used in the 1400 is incompatible with ATA-6 hard drives. Compatibility may also arise with hard drives larger than 8.2GB, although this can be resolved by partitioning the boot drive to less than 8.2GB or by using Mac OS 8.6 or later. Additionally, unlike all Apple notebooks to come after it, the 1400 will not boot from a CD by holding down the "C" key while starting the machine; the only workarounds to this is by selecting the CD in the Startup Disk control panel or by pressing the Ctrl-Opt-Shift-Del keys.

According to Low End Mac the 117 MHz model is a "compromised mac" due to the lack of a level 2 cache.

Specifications

Component	Specification
Display Computer display A monitor or display is an electronic visual display for computers. The monitor comprises the display device, circuitry, and an enclosure...	11.3 inches (28.7 cm) 16-bit dual scan passive matrix Dual Scan Dual Scan, also known as dual-scan supertwist nematic or DSTN, is an LCD technology in which a screen is divided into two sections which are simultaneously refreshed giving faster refresh rate than traditional passive matrix screens. It is an improved form of supertwist nematic display that offers...  backlit LCD Liquid crystal display A liquid crystal display is a flat panel display, electronic visual display, or video display that uses the light modulating properties of liquid crystals . LCs do not emit light directly....  display (1400cs), or active-matrix Active-matrix liquid crystal display An active matrix liquid crystal display is a type of flat panel display, currently the overwhelming choice of notebook computer manufacturers, due to low weight, very good image quality, wide color gamut and response time...  backlit LCD display (1400c). 800 × 600 pixel resolution
Storage Computer storage Computer data storage, often called storage or memory, refers to computer components and recording media that retain digital data. Data storage is one of the core functions and fundamental components of computers....	750 MB, 1 GB or 2 GB EIDE Eide Eide is a municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. It is part of the region of Nordmøre. It is located on the Romsdal peninsula, along the Kornstadfjord and the Kvernesfjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Eide...  internal hard disk drive; internal/removable 6x, 8x or 12x CD-ROM drive
Processor Central processing unit The central processing unit is the portion of a computer system that carries out the instructions of a computer program, to perform the basic arithmetical, logical, and input/output operations of the system. The CPU plays a role somewhat analogous to the brain in the computer. The term has been in...	PowerPC 603e (117, 133 or 166 MHz)
Bus speed	33 MHz
Random access memory	12 or 16 MB Megabyte The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...  integrated; expandable to 64 MB by adding one or two memory modules
Read-only memory Read-only memory Read-only memory is a class of storage medium used in computers and other electronic devices. Data stored in ROM cannot be modified, or can be modified only slowly or with difficulty, so it is mainly used to distribute firmware .In its strictest sense, ROM refers only...	4 MB Megabyte The megabyte is a multiple of the unit byte for digital information storage or transmission with two different values depending on context: bytes generally for computer memory; and one million bytes generally for computer storage. The IEEE Standards Board has decided that "Mega will mean 1 000...
Networking	None as default, Modem & Ethernet available as upgrades
Battery Battery (electricity) An electrical battery is one or more electrochemical cells that convert stored chemical energy into electrical energy. Since the invention of the first battery in 1800 by Alessandro Volta and especially since the technically improved Daniell cell in 1836, batteries have become a common power...	1.5-4.0 Hours
Physical dimensions Dimensions Dimensions is a French project that makes educational movies about mathematics, focusing on spatial geometry. It uses POV-Ray to render some of the animations, and the films are release under a Creative Commons licence....	8.5 in D × 11 in W × 1.8 in H (22 × 28 × 4.6 cm) 6.7 lb (3.04 kg)
Port connections	1 × ADB Apple Desktop Bus Apple Desktop Bus is an obsolete bit-serial computer bus connecting low-speed devices to computers. Used primarily on the Macintosh platform, ADB equipment is still available but not supported by most Apple hardware manufactured since 1999....  (keyboard Apple keyboard The Apple Keyboard is a keyboard designed by Apple first for the Apple line, then the Macintosh line of computers. It is available in both wired and Bluetooth models.- Layout :... , mouse Apple Mouse The Apple Mouse began as one of the first commercial mice available to consumers. Over the years Apple has maintained a distinct form and function with its mice that reflects its design philosophies.-Features:... ) 1 × mini-DIN-8 RS-422 serial port Serial port In computing, a serial port is a serial communication physical interface through which information transfers in or out one bit at a time...  (printer/modem, AppleTalk AppleTalk AppleTalk is a proprietary suite of protocols developed by Apple Inc. for networking computers. It was included in the original Macintosh released in 1984, but is now unsupported as of the release of Mac OS X v10.6 in 2009 in favor of TCP/IP networking... ) 1 × HDI-30 connector SCSI SCSI Small Computer System Interface is a set of standards for physically connecting and transferring data between computers and peripheral devices. The SCSI standards define commands, protocols, and electrical and optical interfaces. SCSI is most commonly used for hard disks and tape drives, but it...  (ext. hard drive, scanner) 1 × audio out mini-jack socket 1 × audio in mini-jack socket
Expansion slots	2 PC Card PC Card In computing, PC Card is the form factor of a peripheral interface designed for laptop computers. The PC Card standard was defined and developed by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association which itself was created by a number of computer industry companies in the United States...  slots, 1 RAM slot (piggyback)
Audio	8-bit stereo STEREO STEREO is a solar observation mission. Two nearly identical spacecraft were launched into orbits that cause them to respectively pull farther ahead of and fall gradually behind the Earth...
Gestalt ID Gestalt (Mac OS) Gestalt was the name of a system call introduced into the Apple Macintosh operating system System Software 6.0.4 in 1989 to allow applications to dynamically query what capabilities were present in the running system configuration....	310
Code name Code name A code name or cryptonym is a word or name used clandestinely to refer to another name or word. Code names are often used for military purposes, or in espionage...	Epic